Lavington Sports Ground
Located in Hamilton Valley, just north of Albury, the Lavington Sports Ground is considered one of the premier regional sporting facilities in Australia, regularly hosting elite sporting events including pre-season AFL & NRL games. The Lavington Panthers Football Club (OMFL) and Lavington Cricket Club call the ground home, while it also plays host to the Ovens & Murray Football League Grand Final each year. It was previously the home of former VFL club Murray Kangaroos.
Opened in 1970, the Lavington Sports Ground currently has a capacity of 12,000 and a significant $19.6 million redevelopment of the venue was completed in late 2020. Works included an extension to the existing grandstand to now have undercover seating for 1500 spectators, 150-seat function room, media, corporate and administration facilities, new and refurbished change rooms, improvements to the terracing and a new multi-sport oval and pavilion. The oval also features four large light towers upgraded in 2010 to provide TV broadcast standard lighting for night events.
Located adjacent to the ground is the Lavington Sports Club and also within the precinct is a velodrome, netball courts and cricket nets. In July 2009, the facility was sold by Penrith Entertainment Group to the Albury City Council for $1.2 million.
The venue has played host to many big sporting events. On the 18th of March 1992, it hosted a Cricket World Cup match between Zimbabwe and England, with Zimbabwe winning by 9 runs. Many pre-season AFL & NRL matches have been held while it also hosted the 2011 NRL City v Country origin match. In February 2014, the ground hosted its first A-League match with Melbourne Heart and Perth Glory and it also recently staged a pre-season BBL game. The record crowd at the ground is 20,169 for an AFL pre-season match between Essendon and Carlton in 1995.
Lavington Sports Ground Details
Rugby League
Cricket
Football