As the new footy season kicks off, Penrith Panthers fans are preparing for another year of visiting their home away from home – Parramatta’s CommBank Stadium.
Not too far in the distance is a return to Penrith, and that has started to feel more real now with progress on the redeveloped stadium chugging along – with every indication it will be ready for the start of 2027.
The experience at CommBank has been mixed for many. But the first class facilities helped ease the burdens and challenges, with the hope of a matched experience at the new Penrith Stadium contributing to a growing comfort with the temporary surroundings.
But I’m still really troubled by where this whole thing will land once the Panthers are back at home.
I fear, as I have consistently noted, that we will look back on all of this with regret. That the end result will not be what Penrith as a city deserves.
None of those fears have been eased by the progress in construction, showing the emergence of the new eastern and western grandstands – and the roof on the east.
That roof has been Penrith’s biggest talking point in the last few weeks. I literally can’t go anywhere without someone mentioning it.
In the first draft of this column, I put on my maths teacher hat and dissected numbers left, right and centre about overall capacity, covered and uncovered seats and where corporate numbers fit into the overall capacities being touted.
But even I started to get bored. So let’s just deal with a few straight facts instead.
When all is said and done, Penrith Stadium will go from a capacity of 22,500 to 25,000.
But it should be noted that the 25,000 figure includes 2,200 corporate seats (about double the previous corporate offering), which means the real general public capacity sits at about 22,800.
Take out the previous corporate seating from the old 22,500 capacity and in reality the upgrade is delivering about 1500 more general public seats. Worth noting.
Now, about that roof.
Combined, 53 per cent of the seating in the new grandstands will be under cover.
Again, this includes the 2,200 corporate seats in the new western grandstand.
Previously, the number of under cover seats was 41 per cent.
The State Government will argue this is an increase overall, so that’s a win. That has certainly been the narrative in press releases thus far.
It will argue that it’s not just about seating, but significantly improved views from the grandstand, better overall facilities and of course upgraded amenities.
But here’s the thing.
Should a government, in 2026, be building a stadium that only has under cover seating for half of its spectators in the grandstands?
State Government ministers have called this a “world-class” stadium upgrade.
But on what planet is “world-class” a small nudge in capacity, and a slight increase in under cover seating?
The stadium is being built in the middle of one of the hottest parts of Sydney, and we’re meant to be comfortable with sun protection for about half the seated crowd?
I’m not sure you’d get away with that building a local playground let alone a stadium.
Just remember the words “world-class” when you’re among the majority getting rained on watching the Panthers in the middle of winter, or sitting in the searing heat in an early March clash.
There is of course more to the upgrade than just a 12 per cent increase in covered seats. There is better amenities for players, officials and fans, and other improvements aimed at better engaging the community.
The new grandstands are also significantly steeper, which make for a better viewing experience (and a tougher ascent to your seats!).
My whole argument here is not about whether or not the new stadium will be “better”. You would want it to be better, there would be something dramatically wrong if it wasn’t.
But is this the stadium we should be building in 2026? Is this value for money? Is it $309 million well spent? Should it have been spent at all? Is it even in the right place?
And will all of this prove to be a disaster?
Bear with me while we delve into the past, because I think it is worth refreshing as the new stadium gets closer.
Then in government, the NSW Liberals first announced the Penrith Stadium upgrade in December of 2021. It featured all the usual fanfare, including then Premier Dominic Perrottet passing and kicking the footy around the old Penrith Park.
At no stage in this early phase was a budget announced. At that point it would have been guess work anyway – it was a commitment to redevelop the stadium, with the right processes to reveal the required funding and costs.
I suspect if you looked at raw video from that announcement you may spot then Penrith MP Stuart Ayres glancing over at the Penrith Paceway site from the corner of his eye. He likely knew at that point that redevelopment of the stadium on the current site was going to face significant challenges. Still, follow the process.
By the time Labor was elected in 2023, $309 million was sitting in the budget. This had happened back in 2022 and in some ways, was really there for show – in other words, to back-up the 2021 commitment with real money and to protect the commitment should the Coalition lose government.
When Labor won the 2023 election, it made clear it would not spend a dollar more than the $309 million already budgeted towards the redevelopment. That included ruling out adjustments for increased costs, a key point.
That presented a problem, because the project was not advanced down the road enough to suggest $309 million would get the job done, or was ever going to be the final figure. There was no suggestion $309 million was going to deliver an upgrade that made the whole thing worth it.
By the time locals headed to the polls at the 2023 State Election, the Liberals already had considerable doubts about redeveloping the existing venue.
It was becoming clear that any redevelopment would be extremely costly for little overall benefit, given the restrictions of space at the current site. The small increase in capacity alone would have ruined the business case.
The Coalition had its eyes firmly on the Penrith Showground, with an eye-watering plan to build a massive new enclosed stadium on the site, with the relocation of the struggling Penrith Paceway and harness racing facilities.
Whether that was the right plan or not is not necessarily the debate here. What is important to note is that the Liberals, who originally kicked off this upgrade journey, had seriously questioned the value in upgrading the existing site and had all but walked away from it.
In fact, through Infrastructure NSW and with the blessing of cabinet, the previous government had already begun negotiations with the Paceway. It was attempting to reach an agreed outcome, though compulsory acquisition was a realistic end result.
I have no doubt that had the Liberal Party retained government at the election, it would have abandoned the redevelopment plan – even if that meant a longer wait for the Showground deal to come off. I have had this confirmed by senior Liberals.
In 2023, then Panthers CEO Brian Fletcher told the Weekender the real cost to properly redevelop Penrith Stadium at the current site was more likely around $450 million.
So to be clear, both the sitting government and Panthers had all but accepted that redevelopment of the current stadium was off the table.
But Labor stuck with the $309 million figure and the existing site.
It was a big call and against where the Liberals, Infrastructure NSW and Panthers were heading.
Some will argue that from a financial standpoint, it’s the right move. If all they want to spend is $309 million, so be it.
But I can’t get myself to acceptance on a $309 million spend that will ultimately increase the capacity only marginally, will leave thousands of seated fans exposed to the elements, and will see the venue fall out of the control of Panthers and Penrith City Council.
The latter point is significant. When the Panthers return to the venue in 2027 as a tenant, members can expect significantly higher ticket prices and more expensive food and drink. It will price some out of their favourite pastime.
The whole thing barely qualifies for a pub test let alone passes one.
It is clear that Labor got lost in its desperation to not take away something ‘the other side’ had promised.
In doing so I seriously question it landed on the best outcome.
Penrith Stadium needed work. There is no doubt about that. It was not at the end of its life but it was close to getting the pension and was not future-ready in terms of NRLW expansion and the expectations of modern fans.
The problem is that $309 million buys you very little in 2026 in the construction game. That, combined with the restrictions of space on the existing site, resulted in what we’re going to have in 2027: a stadium anything but world-class.
Labor essentially became obsessed with building a stadium that fit within a strict budget rather than finding the best solution for Penrith and I honestly believe it lost its way in trying to do so.
Other issues were at play.
I firmly believe that the desire of fans to keep both the southern and northern hills was somewhat over-stated and distorted the upgrade options.
An unwillingness to consider significant changes to the ends of the ground hamstrung the quality of the ultimate project.
It also clouds the overall intent. On one side of the coin Labor is celebrating that it is keeping the hills, labelling it a community win, but on the other side it felt it necessary to knock down both existing grandstands and replace them to provide a superior viewing experience. Have your cake and eat it too, I guess.
When all is said and done, the demolition of the eastern grandstand is actually bizarre. It could really only be justified if the new stand was going to form part of a new seating plan that incorporated at least one of the ends of the ground.
Perhaps for the government this makes sense. They will now own and operate the stadium, earning revenue not available to them before. They get to tick the box and say they met an election commitment, add a stadium to the wider network and give themselves a pat on the back.
That said, I have serious doubts the venue will attract concerts and other sporting events in any considerable number. The venue will be the newest yet least attractive in the government’s stadium network.
For Panthers as a club and Penrith as a city? It just doesn’t feel like a win.
One feels that if the existing site was the only option, less money could have saved the stadium’s soul, improved facilities and prolonged the venue’s life until a future election cycle delivered a more sensible upgrade plan.
But in truth, Labor should have put the brakes on this whole thing at some stage when it became clear this was not value for money, and would not deliver an overwhelmingly better experience for fans.
Just for a second think about the 25,000 fans packed in to Penrith Stadium on game day.
How many of them are legitimately having a significantly better experience than they were before?
The answer to that question is very problematic for everyone involved.
Panthers is not blameless here. I have no doubt it should have been stronger in its advocacy for a much better outcome than the one I believe will be delivered. There is a strong argument to suggest it should have reconsidered its support for the project once it was clear the budget was stuck at $309 million and what it would deliver.
Labor has landed in dangerous territory here. The very project that helped get it elected in Penrith in 2023 may be its downfall in 2027. It will need to be cautious in how it celebrates the opening of the stadium, especially as fans – ie voters – open up their wallets to pay for their first year of membership at the venue.
But governments come and go.
For many people, that patch of land bordered by Mulgoa Road, Ransley Street and Station Street means something more than just grass, dirt and seats.
It is a significant part of their lives.
Regardless of where we end up once ribbons are cut and balls are kicked in 2027, we will always know it could have been so much better.
What a shame that is.
Originally published in The Western Weekender