If you haven’t seen the movie, you probably should. Yes, it has Kevin Costner in a very Kevin Costner role, but don’t hold that against it. It also features James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta in one of his first movies, and Burt Lancaster in one of his last. Seriously, if you haven’t seen it, do so. I’ll wait…

(For those who have decided to plough on without seeing it, here’s the bit where 21^st century etiquette demands I insert ***SPOILER ALERT*** because I’m about to give away a key plot element. Seriously, watch the movie, then come back.)

The movie shows the resentment Costner’s character has towards his late father, but finishes with him making peace with his father by having a game of catch with his father’s ghost on a baseball diamond. The diamond was built by Costner’s character who had ploughed under most of his corn crop, after hearing voices in his head.

Trust me, it is much better on the screen than in a paragraph.

So how is a 1989 movie set largely on an Iowa farm relevant to Canberra in 2016? Well, it’s because I’ve been hearing – with increasing frequency – people saying: “If you build it, they will come” about Canberra.

• A convention centre or indoor arena capable of holding events of up to 7000 people? If you build it, they will come…
• A stadium closer to the city centre than GIO Stadium, because that nine-kilometre journey is so arduous? If you build it, they will come…
• A fast train service between Sydney and Melbourne via Canberra? All together now! If you build it, they will come…
• Now, it is entirely possible that if these things are built, people will actually come to them. But it’s also equally possible that they’ll wind up windblown and empty, a lot of the time.

I present the curious case of The Monkees. A group that has sold more than 75 million albums. A group with a concert scheduled for Canberra this week (unless you don’t get this far into this magnificent publication until the weekend, in which case, you’ve missed it). A group that sells out arenas around the world. A group that is playing at Llewellyn Hall in a show that, at the time of writing, had plenty of tickets still available. For mine, the tickets were just a bit too highly priced.

A larger venue may lower individual ticket prices based on bigger attendance, but there’s no guarantee.

How often do the Raiders or Brumbies genuinely fill GIO Stadium? Even the second NRL final there this season had thousands of empty seats.

And fast trains? I’m a fan of the concept, but I’m highly sceptical that the pricing will be right to compete with planes, buses or driving yourself.

I suggest the arguments based on “they will come” statements don’t stack up to a proper case for any of the above. Indeed, let’s return to the oft-misquoted line which is actually: “If you build it, he will come”. And it wasn’t about building the field to lure a crowd. The field was built to connect a man with a dream of reconnecting with his father.

Chris Coleman is the 2CC Drive presenter.