National Rugby League side South Sydney CEO John Lee has "described the push to rebuild Sydney’s Allianz Stadium as a piecemeal approach," insisting a smart state government will realize it needs to "devote the majority of its resources to ANZ Stadium," according to Brent Read of THE AUSTRALIAN. Lee is part of the group of club officials "in talks with the ARL Commission over the game’s stadium policy." Manly has reportedly "also been included in talks in a clear signal the club could be on the move" when the state government completes its billion-dollar investment in Sydney’s venues. Cronulla will also be approached as the NRL "looks to have all its Sydney clubs playing the majority of their games at major venues." Lee has been "lobbying the state government to devote a large chunk of its resources to ANZ Stadium" -- a battle Souths "appear to be losing" given the recent comments of Sports Minister Stuart Ayres. Lee: "Any retrofitting of an SCG, any rebuilding of Allianz, that’s all going to be piecemeal. You need an uber stadium and then some boutique stadiums. I think a smart government will look at the evidence, see where most of the people live, fix ANZ to take it from an athletic track to a proper rectangular stadium. ... It’s not the bankers and the backpackers who are coming to major sporting events. It is real families, real people who are in that massive geographical catchment of the whole Sydney basin" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 2/11). Read reported in a separate piece the NRL has "reopened talks with its clubs over the game’s stadiums strategy." ARL Commission officials held talks with Premier Mike Baird last week where they were "encouraged to talk to their disgruntled clubs and return with a uniform policy." ARLC Chair John Grant "also plans to speak" with officials from rugby union and football in the hope of reaching an agreement between the codes. Under former NRL CEO Dave Smith’s watch, the league "had been pushing for a new stadium at Moore Park, a move that led to ructions within the code." With the government "on the verge of announcing where it will direct its billion-dollar investment," the NRL has been urged to "end the internal bickering and work in unison towards a solution." Grant: "You have to be uniform. The government is prepared to commit but you have to act as a code and you also have to then act as a group of rectangular sports. ... So, ultimately, we’re going to be very influential in this" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 2/10).
