By Sebastian Tan in Canberra
Canterbury’s coach Cameron Ciraldo has joined growing calls for Canberra’s GIO Stadium to undergo a facelift after revealing he will need stitches after glass shattered on him in the ageing arena.
While the visiting coach was left with a deep gash in his hand, Raiders’ boss Ricky Stuart also weighed in, calling his side’s home arena in the capital a “shithouse stadium” and suggesting authorities didn’t care about the state of the 1970s-built venue.
Drama erupted inside the stadium in the dying minutes of the Bulldogs’ gritty 14-10 win against Canberra on Thursday night, when Ciraldo thrust his hand against the glass of his coaching box.
“The box was quite foggy, so we couldn’t see what was happening,” he explained.
“We tried to open the window, and the whole window smashed on us. There was glass all over us, and I’ll need a couple of stitches.
“It’s a great atmosphere, but it deserves an upgrade.”
When informed of his counterpart’s injury, Stuart also lambasted the state of the arena on what had been a wet night in Canberra.
“I’m coming to the change room and I thought it was raining in there. There’s no good whingeing about it, because the people you’ve got to whinge to don’t give a shit,” said Stuart.
“The people that make decisions about our stadium don’t care about the stadium. They don’t care about the nation’s capital having the shithouse stadium that we have.
“So that’s why I don’t whinge about it. I don’t care. We just make up and we’ll just do what we got to do, because they don’t care.”
Ciraldo’s injury is the latest issue to plague the venue as pressure has been mounting for the capital’s main stadium to be transformed despite ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr saying it won’t be for another decade.
Former Wallaby and now Senator David Pocock says it is “clearly past its due date”, adding multiple reports over 17 years have found that the infrastructure needs to be either updated or replaced.
He acknowledged the ACT government is in a tough spot budget-wise, but says the Canberrans expect at least a plan.
“It’s just seen as a cost rather than an investment in community, an investment in well-being, and as a country that is grappling with ballooning health budgets, we should be doubling down on ways to get people out, active and connected to their community,” Senator Pocock told AAP.
“We know that one of the challenges in bringing a men’s (soccer) team to Canberra is the state of the stadium.”
Canberra has also missed out on hosting tournaments such as next year’s Rugby World Cup, partly because of the stadium, despite having one of Australia’s most successful rugby teams, the ACT Brumbies.
“The economic impact of having shows and big events coming to Canberra is huge,” Senator Pocock said.
ACT’s Sports Minister Yvette Berry said sport is a big priority, but stood by Barr in saying the government won’t need to consider major changes for another decade.
“I understand everybody wants the best stadium in the ACT for spectators,” she told AAP.
“I’ve sort of grown up with all of the changes in the AIS and GIO Stadium, but it really does have a little bit more life left in it.”
“It continues to need maintenance and refurbishment. It’s an older facility, so that will always happen.”
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