For many rugby devotees, Brisbane’s Ballymore Stadium was the indomitable heart of Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) until 2006, when the Queensland Reds transferred their home games to the Lang Park stadium at Milton, the traditional home of the competing format of Rugby League. The change enabled far larger crowds, but many felt that it also led to a loss of sporting camaraderie and a weakening of Ballymore’s invigorating community spirit.
In the wake of the transfer, Ballymore continued to serve as a subsidiary training and administration satellite within its parkland precinct, bordered by Enoggera Creek, in the inner suburb of Herston. Over time, and despite its bucolic environment, the stadium and its ancillary buildings began to suffer from neglect, and the attraction and value of the venue withered. Ultimately, of
