Great Barrier Reef Arena named alongside MCG to host Australia A fixtures for a second year running

Mackay’s Great Barrier Reef Arena is going from strength to strength when it comes to international scheduling. Discover why the latest triumph has it viewed in a similar vein as the MCG.

Mackay’s Great Barrier Reef Arena is becoming a mainstay on the Cricket Australia calendar. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

Mackay’s Great Barrier Reef Arena is going from strength to strength in Cricket Australia’s international scheduling.

The stadium has already been unveiled as the host venue for the opening matches of the summer, with two women’s T20 Internationals between Australia and India slated for late September.

Cricket Australia’s latest fixture announcement for India’s five-Test tour this summer also included two ‘A’ fixtures between Australia A and India A, the first of which will be hosted by Great Barrier Reef Arena.

“It’s unbelievable for us to be held in such high esteem,” Harrup Park and Great Barrier Reef Arena CEO Adrian Young said.

“We are extremely excited to be able to put our venue on display and show how good a pitch and facility we have to those watching.”

Young noted that matches would serve as a prequel to the tantalising Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, with heated selection battles set to be played out for both sides.

Sheffield, Shield, Marsh One Day Cup, and WBBL fixture are among the games played at Great Barrier Reef Arena in the past year. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

“We’ll see some guys right on the cusp and who will probably play in the Test series who will be up here,” he said.

Among a slew of high-level fixtures, GBRA played host to a four-day and one-day game between Australia A and New Zealand A in 2023.

“The feedback from last year was fantastic from Cricket Australia, the wicket and facility were rated excellent,” Young said.

“We’ll be trying to continue that moving forward with the added layer of visibility the Indian cricket team brings along.

“We are still trying to prove that our facility is the best in regional Australia and we want to continue to cement that for Mackay, so that GBRA is recognised and continues to play a major role on international calendar.”

Adrian Young speaking at the Mackay Regional Council 2032 Olympics Planning Summit. Picture: Max O'Driscoll.

The clash from October 31 to November 3 will be the first of two between Australia A and India A, with the second to be played at the MCG four days later.

“Hosting those A matches at the upgraded Great Barrier Reef Arena and the MCG give these ‘A’ matches significant status,” Cricket Australia Head of Cricket Operations and Scheduling Peter Roach said.

“(It) will provide great opportunities to players from both sides to put up their hand for selection.”

Originally published as Great Barrier Reef Arena named alongside MCG to host Australia A fixtures for a second year running