Top 10 Facts about Melbourne Cricket Ground

The Melbourne Cricket Ground during the 2010 AFL Grand Final photo by Alexander Sheko – Wikimedia commons

Top 10 Facts about Melbourne Cricket Ground

It has been dubbed the sporting capital of Australia, hosting some of the best sporting events in Australia. The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) also known locally as “The G” is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria.

The Melbourne Cricket ground is one of the biggest sports stadiums in the world. The Ground is regarded as Australia’s premier sporting venue. For over one hundred years, it has played host to many of the country’s biggest cricket and Australian Rules Football Matches and many other significant sporting contests besides.

It is one of the most iconic cricket stadiums in the world no doubt being hailed to be the seventh wonder in the sports world. Here are the top 10 facts about Melbourne Cricket Ground.

1. The Cricket Ground was opened in 1853

Melbourne Cricket ground as seen from the worlds tallest residential building the Eureka Tower photo by Adam.J.W.C. – Wikimedia commons

The Melbourne Cricket Club founded in 1838 was forced to move several cities before it could finally choose its current location, in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria to build the epic Melbourne Cricket Ground stadium in 1853. The world-renowned sports complex Melbourne Cricket Ground was initially planned to be as a field just to play cricket but nowadays, it is an enormous multifunctional sports complex.

The complex as well as Rod Laver Arena often hosts various championships in rugby, football matches and other sports competitions and huge concerts. It has undergone numerous renovations over time.

2. The Ground is the largest stadium in the southern hemisphere

The ground of the MCG in Melbourne. photo by SuperJew – Wikimedia commons

The ground is colloquially referred to by the locals as “The G”. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the southern hemisphere, the 11th largest globally and the second largest cricket ground by capacity.

With a capacity of over 100,000 people, the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is the largest stadium in Australia. Due to safety measures, the ground’s capacity, which was well over 100,000 was reduced to its current arrangement.

3. The Melbourne Cricket Ground has the highest light towers

Melbourne Cricket Ground’s Great Southern Stand and light tower photo by Jimmy Harris – Wikimedia commons

The light towers at the ground are the tallest for any sporting venue across the globe. Now an instantly recognizable landmark in Melbourne, the lights have revolutionized the sport of the ground and it became an integral part of the stadium operations, night cricket and football proving immensely popular with the sporting public.

The construction of the light towers was completed in December 1984, The ground was first lit up at 9:30 pm on the night of December 3, 1984, by the then state premier and the ground trustee the honourable John Cain. The ground’s light towers were first used for an event on February 17, 1785, for a world champion of the cricket match between Australia and England.

The light tower system comprises six light towers that stand approximately 75 meters high (equivalent to a 24- storey building) with the head frame a further 10 meters higher (85 meters overall.)

4. The Melbourne Cricket Ground is the birthplace of Test cricket

Australian cricketers Don Bradman and Charles Bannerman photo by National Library of Australia – Wikimedia commons

The first ever cricket test match between Australia versus England took place at the ground in 1877. Australian cricketer Charles Bannerman became the first cricketer to score a century in Test cricket at The Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The first ever Test match began with a crowd of only 1000 watching

5. The stadium was nicknamed “Camp Murphy’

During the second world war, the ground was taken over by US troops and nicknamed “Camp Murphy”. Throughout the War, over 200,000 personnel were barracked at the ground.

From April to October 1942, the US Army’s Fifth Air Force occupied the Ground naming it “Camp Murphy,” in honour of officer colonel William Murphy, a senior USAAF officer killed in Java.

6. The Ground was the main stadium for the 1956 Olympics

Ron Clarke carrying the Olympic Torch through the MCG at the 1956 Olympic Games’ opening ceremony. photo by John R. Morrison – Wikimedia commons

The ground was the centrepiece of the Olympic games in 1956. This feat goes down as the most famous historic moment. The grounds hosted the opening and closing ceremonies, tracks and field events and the finals in field hockey and soccer.

The stadium was only one of seven possible venues including the Melbourne showgrounds for the game’s main arena. The inability to decide on the central venue nearly caused the Games to be moved from Melbourne.

The stadium’s capacity was increased by the new Olympic on the Northern stand and on the day itself 103,000 people filled the stadium. It was also the main stadium for the 2006 Commonwealth games.

7. The stadium’s most notable attendance is 1.153 million patrons

The ground’s most notable attendance record which still stands today is 1.153 million patrons for the 15 days of the 1956 Olympics.

The 1956 summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and commonly known as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956.

8. It had a Billy Graham religious event record ground cram

Billy Graham, American religious figure. photo by Warren K. Leffler – Wikimedia commons

The record crowd crammed into the ground was more than 130,000 but not for a sporting event, it was for a religious event led by Billy Graham in 1959. American evangelist Rev. Billy Graham, 1959 crusade at the ground attracted a stadium record crowd (estimated between 130,000- 140,000).

It is estimated that more than 130,000 people heard Mr Graham share the Gospel of Jesus Christ that night. It broke the attendance record of the stadium.

9. Melbourne Cricket Ground hosted the first One Day International(ODI)

Image by PDPics from Pixabay

The first one-day international (ODI) took place in 1971 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The international One-day game is a Late twentieth-century development. The first ODI was played on 5 January 1971 between Australia and England at the ground, ODIs were played in White-coloured kits with the red-coloured ball.

It is hence called the birthplace of ODI cricket

10. It was the first Cricket Ground to Use the sopper

The Melbourne Cricket Ground, called Australian sports “spiritual Home’, was the first international cricket ground to use the supper sopper. This supper sopper is an example of an Australian innovation which soaks up excess water from sporting fields and courts.