Oval upgrade for AFL state competition

Published: 14 April 2021. (Note: information was correct at date of publication but may have since been changed or superseded.)

Council will provide almost $10,000 to help upgrade the Buchan Street Oval in order to stage a four-day, junior AFL state competition.

Through a Sports Tourism Event grant, Council will provide $8,331 in cash and up to $1,600 in-kind support to the Cairns Eagles Australian Football Club to assist in the upgrade of the sports park to allow the club to host the Queensland School Sports State Under 12 AFL Championships.

The competition, which will be held from 10-13 June, will feature 12 teams (each with 23 players and four support staff) from across Queensland.

AFL Cape York will also have a representative team from Cape York and the Torres Strait to participate in the competition, and Cairns will feature another team.

It is anticipated that the event will attract between 1,000 and 1,500 players and visitors to the region, which could deliver an estimated boost of over $500,000 to the Cairns economy.

The competition coincides with the AFL Premiership match between St Kilda and Adelaide at Cazalys on Saturday 12 June.

Cape York House has secured St Kilda’s “Captains Run” to be staged at the Buchan Street Oval on Friday 11 June, during the state championships.