THE Victoria Racing Club might be forced to consider changing next year's Turnbull Stakes meeting to a Sunday, as the AFL appears certain to stage the 2011 grand final on the first Saturday in October, reports The Age.It says: The Turnbull Stakes meeting is the traditional launch of the Melbourne Spring Carnival, and the VRC will decide in coming weeks if it moves the program to the Sunday. No solution has been found in the battle for the October date between the AFL, Cricket Victoria and the VR
THE Victoria Racing Club might be forced to consider changing next year's Turnbull Stakes meeting to a Sunday, as the AFL appears certain to stage the 2011 grand final on the first Saturday in October, reports The Age.
It says: The Turnbull Stakes meeting is the traditional launch of the Melbourne Spring Carnival, and the VRC will decide in coming weeks if it moves the program to the Sunday. No solution has been found in the battle for the October date between the AFL, Cricket Victoria and the VRC.
''Grand final day is impossible to go up against,'' VRC chief executive Dale Monteith said yesterday. ''They [AFL] are saying it's just for the one year, and that worries me. It could happen again and again. We will do anything to have the date to ourselves. We are going to have more talks with CV and hope they could stage the shield final at the Junction Oval. We would even help if they had catering problems to overcome.''
Due to contractual arrangements with the Melbourne Cricket Club and CV, the MCG may be required for the Sheffield Shield final, which means the AFL can't simply start the 2011 season a week earlier.
The news only got worse for the VRC yesterday when it was announced the Royal Show, which is staged opposite Flemington and shares a train line with the course, will also be held that weekend after a change of school holiday dates for 2011.