3 minute read

Cronulla would be permitted to host a home NRL final at Shark Park, even if they are drawn against another Sydney team.

The NRL will allow Cronulla to host a home final at Shark Park if applicable, even if it means forgoing extra ticket sales by keeping the fixture at the small stadium.

Ongoing redevelopment to the nearby Cronulla Leagues Club has reduced Shark Park's capacity to 13,500 for the 2023 season.

The figure is well below both the 20,000 at which it previously operated, and the capacity of other suburban home grounds including Penrith Stadium (22,500), Hunter Stadium (30,000) and Canberra Stadium (25,000).

The ground's reduced capacity has rarely proven an issue this season, with only two of nine games eclipsing 12,000 spectators thus far.

When the Sharks earned hosting rights by finishing second on the ladder last year, the NRL approved the undersized Shark Park for use in the clash with North Queensland.

But a home final against a rival Sydney club appeared to pose a different scenario, with demand from local fans likely to far exceed the stadium's capacity.

Entering the final round of the regular season, the Sharks appear a strong chance to finish sixth on the ladder and host either the Sydney Roosters or South Sydney in the first week of the finals.

That game would be permitted to go ahead at Shark Park despite the potential for greater windfall at a bigger ground.

"We have a policy," NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo said.

"In week one, the policy is designed to reward the home team and reward the fans and the community from that particular area.

"That policy hasn't changed and it won't change this year.

"As we get further down the track, we move to the opportunity to look at bigger stadiums in that city and in that area."

Abdo said the NRL would brainstorm other ways to involve fans if tickets were to sell out quickly.

"We'll then look at activating live sites and community activations in and around the stadiums," he said.

The Sharks are unable to finish the season in the top four so are no chance of hosting a final beyond week one.

The Warriors cannot clinch a top-two finish and earn a home final in the first week, but are certain to host one in either week two or three, depending on the result of their first finals match.

On average, they have drawn 22,300 fans to regular-season home games in Auckland this year.

The NRL has not yet confirmed whether their home final would be moved from 25,000-seat Mt Smart Stadium to Auckland's Eden Park, which seats twice as many people, to cope with expected demand.

"If the Warriors are going to host a game much deeper into the finals, we'll have a discussion with them in due course," Abdo said.

"At this stage, the default position is that they'll be playing at Mt Smart."