Surface Grass | ||
Location Birchgrove, New South Wales | ||
Birchgrove Park is a park and sports ground located in Birchgrove, New South Wales on the waterfront of Sydney Harbour. It is the location of Birchgrove Oval, the headquarters of the Sydney Cricket Club from 1897 to 1947 and a historic rugby league football ground which served as the original home of the Balmain Tigers club.
Regarded as the spiritual home of rugby league in Australia because it hosted the first professional matches in 1908, Birchgrove Oval hosted the official launch of the 2008 NRL season, which celebrated the sport's centenary in Australia. Australian Rules Football also has historical links to Birchgrove Park, with NSWFA matches played there from 1903 to 1926.
During the 1908 New Zealand Māori rugby league tour of Australia a Sydney Metropolitan team hosted a match against the tourists at Birchgrove Park. The Balmain rugby league club played Premiership matches at the ground from their first season in 1908 until 1942.