| Stadium Name: | Riverway Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname: | Townsville Cricket Ground | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country: | Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location: | 2 Sporting Drive, Thuringowa Central, Townsville, Queensland 4817 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates: | -19.3172°N 146.7317°W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened: | 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner: | Townsville City Council | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Surface: | Grass | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction Cost: | A$16.5m[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tenants: | Thuringowa Bulldogs AFL club Gold Coast Suns (AFL) (2019) Queensland Bulls | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former Names: | Tony Ireland Stadium Pioneer Park | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Capacity: | 10,000 (1013 seated) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Riverway Stadium, also known as Townsville Cricket Ground, is an international standard cricket and AFL stadium in Thuringowa Central, Townsville, Queensland, Australia. The stadium is a part of the Riverway sporting and cultural complex.
The stadium includes the oval, a 1,013-seat grandstand and supporting facilities, a practice oval and cricket practice nets. The design was modeled on Brisbane's Gabba cricket ground specifications and has a six-turf wicket block.[2] Riverway Stadium has a maximum capacity of 10,000+[3] This was achieved on New Year's Eve 2007 when 10,024 spectators attended a Twenty20 cricket match between Queensland and Victoria.[4] The stadium is also home to the Thuringowa Bulldogs AFL club, and the AFL's local regional office.[2] In June 2009, the stadium hosted a 4-day first class match between Pakistan A and the Australia A cricket team.[5] The stadium also hosted some matches of the 2012 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup which was held in Australia from 11 August 2012. India emerged as the winner of Under-19 Cricket World Cup after beating Australia in the final at the Riverway Stadium.
In November 2014, the stadium hosted its first international match between debutants Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong. The Stadium became the 10th ODI venue in Australia.
The stadium hosted Townsville's first AFL game for premiership points on 15 June 2019 when the Gold Coast Suns took a home game to Riverway Stadium against St Kilda.[6]
In 2008, the inadequacy of the current "temporary" lighting was highlighted when a Queensland v Western Australia AFL representative match was rescheduled from dusk to mid afternoon.[7] Costs to install lighting adequate for televised sport have been estimated at five million dollars.[7]
Top 5 Sports Attendance Records
| width=1% | No. | width=17% | Date | width=46% | Teams | width=22% | Sport | width=8% | Competition | width=6% | Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 31 December 2007 | T20 | 10,024 | ||||||||
| 2 | 15 June 2019 | AFL | 7,243 | ||||||||
| 3 | 2 March 2013 | AFL (preseason) | 7,216 | ||||||||
| 4 | 23 February 2014 | AFL (preseason) | 6,426 | ||||||||
| 5 | 1 March 2015 | AFL (preseason) | 4,431 |
In October 2014, Riverway Stadium received ICC-accreditation as an international venue.[8] It hosted a two-match ODI series featuring Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea in November 2014, with the latter making their ODI debut.[9] PNG won the series 2–0.[10]
In February 2016, the stadium hosted a three-match T20I series featuring Ireland and Papua New Guinea, which was won by Ireland (2-1).[11] A 2015-2017 ICC Intercontinental Cup match was also played between the two teams, which Ireland won by 145 runs.[12]
In 2022, the ground served as the venue for Australia's home ODI series against Zimbabwe.[13] The hosts won the first two matches comfortably,[14] [15] but were stunned in the final match, which Zimbabwe won by three wickets.[16]
In August 2026, the ground will host its first test match.
As of September 2022, the stadium has hosted the following ODI matches.
| Team (A) | Team (B) | Winner | Margin | Year | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By 4 Wickets | 2014 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 3 Wickets | 2014 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 5 Wickets | 2022 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 8 Wickets | 2022 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 3 Wickets | 2022 | Scorecard |
One ODI century has been scored at the venue.[17]
Two ODI five-wicket hauls have been taken at the venue.[18]
| No. | Figures | Player | Team | Opposing team | Date | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5/33 | Won | |||||
| 2 | 5/10 | Won |
| Team (A) | Team (B) | Winner | Margin | Year | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By 5 Wickets | 2016 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 7 runs (D/L) | 2016 | Scorecard | ||||
| By 11 runs | 2016 | Scorecard |