Melbourne Storm has locked in its next three NRL home games with Sunshine Coast Stadium to be club’s “home away from home” for the upcoming matches against Gold Coast, Newcastle and Canterbury.
With the support of Sunshine Coast Council, the home game “three pack” will consolidate Storm’s strong connections with the Coast, including being partners in the successful Sunshine Coast Lightning Super Netball franchise and the feeder club arrangement with the Sunshine Coast Falcons.
Tickets for the matches against the Titans in round 10, Knights in round 12 and Bulldogs in round 13 are on sale now.
Storm Qld members will have guaranteed access to the game and will contacted by the club to arrange their tickets.
For non-members, there will a range of great memberships available with fantastic offers and savings available at melbournestorm.com.au.
A stadium capacity of 6000 has been set for at least the initial match under the Queensland Government’s current legislation on stadium events and it will operate in conjunction with a COVID-Safe Plan.
With strict COVID-19 restrictions in place in Victoria, Storm has been based in camp at Novotel Sunshine Coast at Twin Waters for the past 11 days.
That arrangement has been extended to provide the travelling players, staff and their families the surety of having the best living location and facilities possible while they are away from their homes in Melbourne.
Storm CEO Dave Donaghy said the club was delighted to have Sunshine Coast Stadium as its temporary home ground as the unpredictable season 2020 continues.
“The squad has transitioned extremely well to the Coast and they’re very much looking forward to making Sunshine Coast Stadium home for our next three allocated home matches,” Donaghy said.
“It’s a first-class regional facility which is a credit to the Sunshine Coast.
“It continues to be a very unusual time for our club, and the NRL.
“Our thanks go to Sunshine Coast Council for joining us in a partnership which will bring the NRL to our Queensland members and fans, as well as the Coast’s league community after they experienced the disappointment of missing out on two NRL games earlier in the season.
“While we have played trial games here in the past, these will be our first official NRL games at Sunshine Coast Stadium.
“They will be three big events to get along to and we look forward to seeing the Purple Army in big numbers.
“Whilst Melbourne will always be home, the extraordinary circumstances we face in Victoria left us with no alternative but to depart when we did.
“We are feeling for our members and all Victorians who received some challenging news yesterday with regards to further lockdowns.
“Hopefully the situation improves as a result of the measures taken and we can bring some cheer to our members and fans back home by making them proud on the field.”
While in Queensland, Storm continues to comply with the requirements set by the NRL and State Government to minimise the risks to our football bubble and the wider community.
The club is unable to schedule any open training sessions or public events until restrictions change.
A decision on the venue for Storm’s remaining 2020 home matches will be made at a later date, with the hope that AAMI Park will again become an option.
