Here’s a venue Tasmania’s AFL team won’t call home: Apple Isle footy legend Matthew Richardson recalls playing on Australia’s worst oval – which is covered in gravel!
- Queenstown Oval has a shocking playing surface
- Some of the game’s greats have ‘survived’ there
- More blood than sweat and tears after every game
Tigers great Matthew Richardson has shocked footy fans by recalling the time when he played on an infamous Tasmanian oval that is made of gravel rather than grass.
Located on the west coast of Apple Island, the Queenstown Oval – or The Gravel as it has come to be known over the years – is home to the Queenstown Crows, whose winning record at home is understandably extraordinary.
Tasmanian AFL legend Matthew Richardson told The front bar that the shock of running on the ground is burned into his memory.
Richmond AFL legend Matthew Richardson once played Tasmanian’s infamous all-gravel oval – and clearly remembers the pain of it
‘Yes, I played it. I will never forget it,” he said.
“We were an under-16 development team from Devonport and Burnie and we went there to play the West Coast lads, who were a pretty rough and tough bunch of lads.
“None of us had ever seen the ground. It was something mythical to all of us, but when we all walked on it, we just looked at each other and said, “S**t, it’s just gravel”.
“I remember that day they just flogged us for not going fast. There are literally heaps of stones all over the ground.’
Every year, ten truckloads of gravel are brought in, dumped, then crushed and rolled to form a painful playing field at the Queenstown Oval (pictured)
A Grade II listed park, it has been in use for over 100 years and is devoid of grass as it is built near the My Lyall copper mine and the nutrients in the soil inhibit the growth of grass.
The council brings in 10 truckloads of gravel a year to refill it and they use a 10-ton road roller to regularly flatten the oval.
“It knocks the rocks back into the ground,” explains Scott Butler, the West Coast Council works manager.
Over the years it has attracted a number of big AFL players and tough guys who just want to play a game on it – including Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan, Sydney Swans star Daryn Cresswell, the late Carlton tough man Arthur Hodgson and St Kilda and Richmond legend Ian Stewart.
Stewart, 79, was born in Queenstown and honed his toughness, evasiveness and track skills.
A redeeming feature of the Queenstown Oval gravel surface – it plays well on wet surfaces
“I’m still scarred,” said the three-time Brownlow medalist who went on to coach South Melbourne and Carlton.
In fact, the ardent footballer says the robustness of the oval actually teaches players not to fall over.
“That’s why the Tasmanians seem to have a very good balance,” he said.
The Queenstown Crows jersey washer after every home field says there’s always a lot of blood on every shirt.
While the ground will never feature any AFL action, although Tasmania has been awarded the 19th license to field a side in the big dance, discussions surrounding Tasmania’s new $750 million stadium are still circulating.
Two Tasmanian government ministers have defected and are now independent, partly because of their opposition to the cost of the land – and that could well influence the vote on the stadium in the future.