The Canberra Raiders are still a few months away from assessing the future of their partnership with Wagga, but they're confident Equex Centre upgrades will result in a bigger crowd in the second and final year of the current deal.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
A crowd of 10,079 people watched this year's grand finalists beat Penrith at Wagga in May, with the capacity set to grow to around 12,000 thanks to additional extra seating and the construction of a hill on the southern end.
Raiders chief operating officer Jason Mathie held a phone hook-up with Wagga City Council on Wednesday where car parking, improving the access and egress of the venue and increased capacity were on the agenda.
Reserved seating will be made available for the first time, with members of both clubs to be given first preference, with great corporate options also being investigated.
Canberra struck a deal to play a home game at Equex Centre this year and next, but are yet to assess whether it will be extended after they play Newcastle on April 18.
READ MORE
"It was definitely really successful for both parties in year one and we did a thorough review," Mathie said.
"The fact we're only having our first meeting now in terms of stage two, I reckon we'll probably sink our teeth into it for two to three months, and I'll go back to Don (Furner, CEO) to give him feedback on improvements we're making.
"He'll ask me how it will be different from the first year and what I envisage the scope is for future years, if and when we go down that path. I reckon we're a good three months off that."
It was decided to limit the capacity for this year's Panthers game to around 10,000 to ensure a comfortable experience for fans.
"We took the guidance of council there," Mathie said.
"I think they were stoked they got just over 10,000 but you want to grow on that, we want it to be a step up again.
"The area's been awesome to us for not only recruitment of players, but recruitment of fans and members."
This year's match was held on the same weekend as the Wagga Gold Cup carnival, the city's premier race event, but will be a stand alone game this year.
Mathie doesn't believe it will have any impact on the crowd.
"Knowing the Riverina and how much they love their sport I still think they'll embrace both events," he said.
