Perth Glory can confirm that the club’s ISUZU UTE A-League team will play ten of their thirteen home games of the 2022/23 Season at Macedonia Park, Stirling.
The club has been forced to relocate to a temporary home due to the ongoing and delayed stadium renovations at HBF Park, but will return to that venue for three regular-season home fixtures beginning on March 10th.
“We have been confronted by a unique set of challenges caused by circumstances completely beyond our control,” said Glory CEO Anthony Radich.
“Being informed so late in the piece of the unavailability of HBF Park for an additional six home games beyond the original four has severely delayed and thrown our season-planning into disarray.
“Our Members and fans were our primary consideration throughout the decision-making process and there is no perfect outcome.
“We have worked tirelessly to ensure that our Members, partners and fans are able to attend games at a venue which is of a rectangular orientation and fit for football.
“As well as needing a rectangular venue, we wanted to avoid having to play “home” fixtures on the east coast given that our Members, partners and fans have been deprived of normality in terms of home games for the past two years.
“Obviously there are major financial implications for our club and we are discussing with the State Government potential compensation for loss of access to HBF Park.
“We’re pleased to say the State Government is looking to provide significant financial support, match day/event and temporary infrastructure support to enable us to host home matches at Macedonia Park.”
A-Leagues Commissioner Greg O’Rourke, meanwhile, was quick to emphasise the importance of Glory not being forced to relocate home games yet again.
“The impact of this construction delay is considerable on Perth Glory, its Members, sponsors and corporate partners,” he said.
“It was vital to ensure they were able play in their home city.”
The news was also warmly welcomed by Stirling Macedonia Football Club President, Luke Pavlos.
“Macedonia Park was used by the Perth Kangaroos who were the forerunners to Perth Glory in the early 1990s,” he said, “and the club was, of course, created by two Stirling residents in Nick Tana and Paul Afkos.
“So the fact that they will be playing at Macedonia Park in the City of Stirling creates a real sense of nostalgia.
“We are looking forward to working with Perth Glory, VenuesWest and the City of Stirling to deliver an experience that will be second to none and bring back some of those early-days memories when other teams feared the trip to Perth due to the atmosphere created by the home fans.”
City of Stirling Mayor Mark Irwin is similarly enthused at the prospect of Glory A-League Men’s fixtures being played at Macedonia Park.
“Hosting these games will make a significant economic impact in the City of Stirling,” he said.
“It will create a lasting legacy and an incredible opportunity for local residents to have this quality of sport in their neighbourhood.
“The City is eager to work with the organisers, clubs and broader community to ensure these games are a great success.”
Significant temporary infrastructure improvements will be made to render Macedonia Park fit for A-League football, including the addition of temporary seating to build its capacity, pitch renovation, additional parking and a temporary lighting upgrade and the State Government has agreed to assist in implementing these improvements.
This work, however, will take time to complete and as a result, Australian Professional Leagues (APL) has had to amend the club’s season fixtures.
The original first two home games of the ISUZU UTE A-League Men’s campaign, v Central Coast Mariners on Sunday 23 October and v Brisbane Roar on Sunday 13 November, will be rescheduled at Macedonia Park for later in the season, thereby ensuring that the club retains its 13 scheduled home fixtures.
The first home game will now take place on Saturday 10 December at 7.30pm WST against Western United.
The game against Central Coast Mariners on Saturday 23 October will be reversed and played instead at Central Coast Stadium, while details regarding the new scheduling of the Sunday 13 November meeting with Brisbane Roar are to be confirmed.
A fixtures update inclusive of revised dates and kick-off times is expected in the coming days.
“Macedonia Park is an historic football venue,” concluded Radich, “and we look forward to making it our home.
“We are confident that the infrastructure improvements will create an atmospheric boutique venue with a strong community football feel.
“We will endeavour to create the best possible fan experience, turning the venue purple each week and giving our team the best possible chance to be successful this season.
“We would like to sincerely thank Stirling Macedonia Football Club and the City of Stirling for their support and acknowledge the similarly proactive approach of Australian Professional Leagues (APL) who have been steadfast in their support, helping us to strongly argue our case for a venue fit for football and to be appropriately compensated for our loss.”
“I understand that this has been a very distressing and difficult time for all our Members and fans and I would like to thank each and every one of them for their great patience and understanding.
“We are greatly appreciative of their unwavering faith and incredible loyalty.”
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