The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) is a historic multipurpose stadium located in Moore Park, an eastern suburb of Sydney. Over its storied 173-year history, the stadium has established itself as one of Sydney’s most popular sporting and entertainment venues.
The area on which the SCG stands today was originally part of the second Sydney Common, an area of Sydney set apart for public recreation. As the area begun to establish itself as a popular location for sports, grandstands and hills were constructed to accommodate spectators.
The area would formally adopt the name Sydney Cricket Ground in 1894 due to its extensive use as a cricket ground. The SCG would go on to serve as Sydney’s principal sporting venue for many years before the construction of other sports-specific stadiums around the city, such as the neighbouring Sydney Football Stadium and Stadium Australia in Homebush.
As the name suggests, the stadium is still primarily used for cricket, hosting Tests, One Day Internationals and Twenty20. Apart from cricket, the SCG is also used to host Australian rules football, rugby league, rugby union and association football.
Unlike most stadiums, the design of the SCG is unique, comprising six separate grandstands. This is due the venues long history of continual renovation and remodelling. Each renovation has generally included the addition of a new stand with the most recent completed in 2013.
Although these renovations have helped to ensure the venue keeps up with modern standards, it would have been fitting for these recent additions to have been built in a similar style as the Members’ and Ladies’ Pavilions. These stands are the oldest and most historic of the ground’s current stands, constructed in 1878 and 1896 respectively and are what the SCG is best known for, it’s a shame a similar design wasn’t incorporated into the rest of the stadium.
