Officially opening the Bruce Gordon Centre are (from left) Federal Sport Minister Anika Wells, Bruce Gordon’s wife Judith Gordon, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Dragons chairman Andrew Lancaster, NSW Sport Minister Steve Kamper, Wollongong MP and Minister Paul Scully, Keira MP and Minister Ryan Park, Cunningham MP Alison Byrnes, Whitlam MP Carol Berry and Dragons CEO Tim Watsford. Photos: Keeli Dyson.
A $65 million rugby league hub to enhance opportunities from junior to elite levels in the Illawarra has officially opened, with the world-class Bruce Gordon Centre set to unite the St George Illawarra Dragons under one roof for the first time in history.
Cutting a ribbon at the facility set to be a new starting point for a club with a long history, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese joined a sea of red at the University of Wollongong’s Innovation Campus as the Dragons community and high-performance centre was officially opened.
“This is an investment in this region as well as this club,” Mr Albanese said.
“It brings together the highest standards in elite sporting infrastructure with the very best of community sport facilities.”
The Bruce Gordon Centre, named after the local media mogul, businessman and long-time Dragons stalwart, marks the first ”true home” of the club. It is also an opportunity to provide consistency and equality, with two full-sized NRL playing fields, a high-performance gym and sports science facilities, medical and treatment areas, equitable facilities for male and female players, and dedicated spaces for staff, functions, community and education.
Dragons chairman Andrew Lancaster said: “The Bruce Gordon Centre represents more than just elite performance, it represents our junior programs, our pathways, it represents community, education, gender equality and important connection.
“Our NRL and NRLW players, our junior representatives, male and female, our academy athletes, our coaches and our staff — this is now a place where standards can be set and lived up to every day.
“One club. One great club. One aligned club. Under one roof for the first time in our history.”
The Dragons were financially supported by both state and federal funding for the project, with investment expected to have benefits beyond elite athletes or even the club itself by facilitating and inspiring young people to go outdoors and be active.
Mr Albanese said: “It’s also really important at a time where we look at young Australians and we worry about the rising issues of mental health, the rising issues of physical health as well.
“The role that team sports can play in getting people off their devices and onto the fields is so important as we go forward.”
Federal Sport and Communications Minister Anika Wells said: “We know that social media can impact mental health, but sport builds it back up.
“Sport teaches our kids resilience, it teaches you that no matter how you’re travelling, there’s always people that will have your back.
“It teaches women to trust their bodies, it teaches people to make real-time decisions, to live with the consequences and to move on — that is the power of sport, and that is why we’re so committed to getting kids off their devices and back into sport.”
The opportunities created by the centre are also expected to attract an additional 6000 women to rugby league across the Illawarra over the next decade, giving the Dragons a boost in a fast-growing female sport gaining prominence and popularity.
Mr Lancaster added: “Women’s sport, women’s rugby league — incredibly strong.
“Part of the focus here at the Dragons is to ensure not that we built just a world-class facility, but that we built a world-class facility that would cater equally to women’s rugby league and men’s rugby league. It’s absolutely key in the future and you will see the game develop.”
But while the facility marks a new chapter and gives the club the tools it needs to look to the future, finding glory isn’t expected to be an easy feat.
“The Bruce Gordon Centre gives the Dragons a great platform to compete in the NRL and NRLW, but it doesn’t guarantee success,” Mr Lancaster said.
“The club must now repay the investment through standards, performance, development and real community connection.
“The responsibility now sits with us as a club to honour this investment by developing better players, better rugby league programs, stronger community connections and a stronger Dragons.”
