Toowoomba prepares to welcome NRL to city for clash between Roosters, Dragons
No one is more excited to see James Tedesco and a host of other NRL stars play than the kids in the Southern Suburbs Tigers juniors — but they’re not the only ones.
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If Jack Bird crosses the line for St George Illawarra Dragons on Sunday - listen out for George Gainey.
The Southern Suburbs Tigers junior will be cheering for his “Uncle Jack” alongside more than 7000 diehard rugby league fans at Clive Berghofer Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
“I’d like to play footy like him,” George said.
“You have to train, work hard and play a lot of games.”
For now though, George is keeping it simple.
“I like playing footy with my mates,” he said.
“It’s a lot of fun and I love everything about it.”
George and his mates Levi Mills, Charlie Borchardt and Metui Pengilly (pictured) will be among thousands turning out to see the Dragons take on superstar fullback James Tedesco and his Sydney Roosters in the first
On Friday afternoon, more than 6700 tickets had been sold, with Toowoomba on track to beat the 7300 who turned up to watch the Dragons and the Gold Coast Titans square off in 2018.
The Southern Suburbs Tigers juniors all have their number one teams, but they’re all excited about the big game.
It’s a feeling shared by Mayor Paul Antonio who played an integral role in securing the match for Toowoomba and opening the door for more regular NRL fixtures.
Mr Antonio paid tribute to his deputy mayor Geoff McDonald, as well as NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and his staff for working with the Toowoomba Regional Council to reach a good outcome.
“It’s very satisfying for myself — I had Geoff with me who had amazing contacts, and what I’ve learnt is the NRL did show real respect to Toowoomba in regards to the history we have.
“I’m very proud of the work done by Queensland Health working with the NRL, given the circumstances we’re in with Covid-19.
“I’ve had calls from a number of regional centres looking to host, and I think they’re in awe of what we did.
“It was an amazing journey, a journey where we were engaging with a very cooperative partner.”
This weekend’s match is expected to generate big bucks for Toowoomba in a short space of time, with economics experts putting the overall output at more than $540,000.
This isn’t even to speak of the potential business generated from televising the game.
But Mr Antonio said he wasn’t just content with a single match, making his ambitions known of securing an annual fixture as part of a lead-in to the Olympic Games.
“It gives us the opportunity in the discussions we’ve had in regards to a yearly game,” he said.
“That would be good for us, but it will also help us in our argument to secure a 20,000 seat stadium so we can host football games in 2032.
“That’s not just about rugby league, it’s about all the various codes.
“It’s all about us maturing as a regional capital and preparing for the Olympic Games.”
The match is also exciting the hospitality sector, with pubs, cafes and restaurants preparing for increased patronage over Saturday and Sunday.
Finch Cafe owner Dan Farquhar said he was nearly booked up for Saturday at both his locations, but still had some spots available.
“It’s a fantastic initiative — it’s great to see a team of the calibre of the Roosters coming here,” he said.
Masks will be compulsory at the game while patrons are seated or in general admission areas.
Masks may be taken off while eating or drinking, but you must be seated to do that.
There will be some road closures in place and some traffic management from police and council.
Punters can expect a heavy police presence at the stadium as well as in the Safe Night Precinct after the game.
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