Junction Oval facts for kids
Victoria v South Australia cricket teams match at
the Junction Oval, September 2018 |
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| Location | St Kilda, Victoria |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 37°51′21″S 144°58′48″E / 37.85583°S 144.98000°E |
| Owner | Government of Victoria |
| Operator | Cricket Victoria |
| Capacity | 7,000 |
| Surface | Grass (Oval) |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1856 |
| Renovated | 2015–18 |
| Construction cost | $40 million (2015–18 redevelopment) |
| Tenants | |
| Victoria cricket team (2018–present) Victoria women's cricket team (2018–present) Melbourne Stars (WBBL; 2018–present) Melbourne Renegades (WBBL; 2018–present) St Kilda Cricket Club (VPC; 1856–present) St Kilda Football Club (Challenge Cup/VFA/VFL; 1873–1874, 1876-1879, 1886-1915, 1918-1941, 1944-1964) University Football Club (Challenge Cup; 1875) South Melbourne Football Club (VFL; 1944–1946) Fitzroy Football Club (VFL; 1970–1984) |
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| Ground information | |
| Tenants | Victoria cricket team |
| International information | |
| First women's Test | 21 February 1958: Australia v  England |
| Last women's Test | 5 February 1972: Australia v  New Zealand |
| First WODI | 9 February 2000: Australia v New Zealand |
| Last WODI | 3 March 2019: Australia v New Zealand |
| First WT20I | 22 January 2013: Australia v New Zealand |
| Last WT20I | 2 March 2020: Bangladesh v  Sri Lanka |
| As of 8 September 2020 Source: Cricinfo |
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Junction Oval is a famous sports ground in St Kilda, Victoria, Australia. It's also known as the St Kilda Cricket Ground or the CitiPower Centre. The oval is close to the St Kilda Junction, which is how it got its name. It's about five kilometres from the centre of Melbourne. It's also part of the bigger Albert Park sports area.
Between 2015 and 2018, the oval had a big upgrade. This $40 million project made it the main office for Cricket Victoria.
Contents
History of Junction Oval
Junction Oval was first set up in 1856. The very first grandstand, a seating area for spectators, was bought from an old racecourse and put up in 1892.
A new grandstand was built in 1925–26. It cost £7000 and was designed by E J Clark. This stand was later named the Kevin Murray Stand, after a famous footballer from the Fitzroy Football Club. Another brick stand was added in 1933–34, costing £7500. It was named the Don Blackie-Bert Ironmonger Stand, honouring two Test cricketers from the St Kilda Cricket Club. This stand is still used today.
In 1956–57, a new scoreboard and kiosk were built. This was for the cricket club's 100th birthday.
Modern Features and Capacity
The ground can hold 7,000 people. The scoreboard, built in 1954–55, is a well-known sight in the St Kilda area. There are two main historic grandstands: the Blackie-Ironmonger stand and the Kevin Murray grandstand. The rest of the ground has terraced areas and grassy slopes.
Some older buildings were removed in 1988 because they were a fire risk. Junction Oval is known for being a very nice place to watch sports. It has a great playing field and a modern background of tall buildings and parkland.
Shane Warne's Connection
Cricket legend Shane Warne has a strong link to this ground. He played his first big cricket match here for Victoria in 1991. He also played many times for his club, St Kilda, between 1989 and 2006.
Because of this, there were talks in 2010 to rename the ground the Shane Warne Oval. This didn't happen, but Warne supported keeping the ground suitable for top-level cricket.
Recent Redevelopment
In December 2014, the Victorian Government announced it would give $25 million to upgrade the oval. The goal was to make it the main office and training centre for Cricket Victoria. By the end of 2015, Cricket Victoria, Cricket Australia, and the Melbourne Cricket Club added another $15 million. This allowed the project to go ahead.
The upgrade added many new things:
- A smaller, top-level cricket ground for up to 7,000 fans.
- A special centre for promoting diversity in cricket.
- Places for visiting teams, coaches, and officials to stay.
- High-quality training, medical, and recovery facilities.
- An office for all of Cricket Victoria's activities.
- A home for a cricket education program.
- Better watering and drainage for the oval.
- A large grass training area.
- A 10-lane indoor training centre.
- Better facilities for local cricket clubs, including the St Kilda Cricket Club.
The improved ground was first used for a Sheffield Shield match on March 3, 2018. This game was between Victoria and New South Wales.
Cricket at Junction Oval
Junction Oval was created at the same time as the St Kilda Cricket Club. This club has played its home games here since 1856. They are part of the Victorian Premier Cricket competition and have a successful history at the ground.
Before the 2015–18 upgrade, the oval had hosted 28 first-class cricket matches. This included 25 Sheffield Shield games. However, by 2005, the ground wasn't up to modern standards for first-class cricket.
Victoria needed another top-level cricket ground besides the huge Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). This was because the state team sometimes had to play important matches in other states. The upgrade in the mid-2010s fixed this problem. Now, Victoria can host matches at a suitable venue. This also helps the MCG and allows the oval to host Women's Big Bash League games.
The venue is also the main office for Cricket Victoria and is called the CitiPower Centre. Before the upgrade, Victoria used the oval in 2005–06 when the MCG was getting ready for the 2006 Commonwealth Games. It was also used often in the early 1990s when the Great Southern Stand was being built at the MCG. In 2008–09, it hosted the Sheffield Shield final because the MCG was busy with a bushfire relief concert.
Thanks to the upgrade, the Victorian state team now plays many home games here. They play in the domestic One-Day Cup and Sheffield Shield competitions. The Victorians quickly found success at the new ground. They won their sixth One-Day Cup and 32nd Sheffield Shield at Junction Oval in the 2018–19 season.
Australian Rules Football at Junction Oval
The recent upgrade of Junction Oval meant that Australian rules football no longer plays there. However, the ground has a very long and rich history with this sport, lasting 145 years.
On May 28, 1870, the first ever top-level Australian rules football match was played at the oval. It was between South Yarra and Albert Park.
The St Kilda Football Club started playing its home games here in 1873. They played at the oval until 1964. There were a few breaks, like during World War I and World War II.
Other football clubs also used the oval as their home ground. These included South Melbourne from 1944 to 1946 and Fitzroy from 1970 to 1984. The first ever women's football match was played here in 1921.
St Kilda played 564 home matches for premiership points at the ground between 1897 and 1964. Their last home game there was on August 22, 1964. They won against Geelong in front of 37,100 fans.
After the 1964 season, the Saints moved to Moorabbin Oval. They wanted to run their own venue.
In 1970, Fitzroy moved to the oval and stayed until the end of 1984. Fitzroy played 135 home matches for premiership points there.
The ground also hosted six VFL finals matches. This included three Grand Finals in 1898, 1899, and 1944. Fitzroy won all three of these Grand Finals. Between 1870 and 1984, 845 top-level football matches were played at the ground.
Junction Oval was also a regular place for Victorian Football Association finals after World War II. It hosted many Grand Finals from 1945 until 1987.
The Melbourne Football Club used the oval for training and their offices from 1985 to 2008. The annual 3RRR Community Cup football match was also played here until 2007.
The last football team to use the oval was the Victorian Amateur Football Association's Old Melburnians Football Club. They played their final Australian rules football match there on July 22, 2015.
| St Kilda Football Club Home VFL Match Record at the Junction Oval (St Kilda Cricket Ground) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Most Recent Home Match |
| Junction Oval | 564 ~ |
250 (44.33%) |
310 (54.96%) |
4 (0.71%) |
1964 Premiership Season Round 18 |
| 1897 to 1964 | |||||
| South Melbourne Football Club Home Match Record at the Junction Oval (St Kilda Cricket Ground) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Most Recent Home Match |
| Junction Oval | 29 - |
20 (68.97%) |
9 (31.03) |
0 (0%) |
1946 Premiership Season Round 19 |
| 1944 to 1946 | |||||
| Fitzroy Football Club Home Match Record at the Junction Oval (St Kilda Cricket Ground) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Most Recent Home Match |
| Junction Oval | 135 - |
75 (55.56%) |
59 (43.70%) |
1 (0.74%) |
1984 Premiership Season Round 22 |
| 1970 to 1984 | |||||
Record Attendances for Football
The biggest crowd ever at the ground was 46,973 people. This was on May 20, 1950, to watch St Kilda play Carlton in a VFL match. This crowd was even bigger than any of the three Grand Finals played at the venue.
The most people to watch a South Melbourne home game at Junction Oval was 38,000. This was against Richmond in 1946.
For a Fitzroy home game, the record crowd was 27,202. This was against Collingwood in 1981.
Other Sports and Events
Junction Oval has hosted more than just cricket and football. On March 3, 1975, famous heavyweight boxer "Smokin" Joe Frazier fought Jimmy Ellis here. Frazier won the fight, which helped him get back into the running for Muhammad Ali's world heavyweight title.
Other big events at the ground include:
- The 1898/99 Victorian athletics titles.
- Many bicycle races.
- Two inter-colonial lacrosse matches between Victoria and New South Wales.
- A pre-season rugby league trial match in 1978.
Junction Oval at Austadiums
