North Sydney Oval has been in use since 1867, and it is the rare 19th-century ground that has become busier rather than quieter. On any given year it stages Sheffield Shield cricket, Big Bash fixtures, AFL Women’s matches, Shute Shield rugby union and NSW Cup rugby league — five different competitions on the same turf, ringed by a set of grandstands that mostly predate the sports now played in front of them. It sits sixteenth on our list of the oldest stadiums in the world still in use.
The ground sits on Miller Street in North Sydney, on the northern side of the harbour, and holds about 10,000 people. That is small by Sydney standards, which is exactly why broadcasters and codes looking for an intimate, full-looking venue keep coming back to it.
Key Stats
| Opened | 1867 (first used as a cricket ground) |
| Location | Miller Street, North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Capacity | 10,000 |
| Tenants | NSW Blues (Sheffield Shield and Marsh Cup), Sydney Sixers (BBL, since 2023), Sydney Swans (AFLW, since 2022), Northern Suburbs (Shute Shield, since 1900), North Sydney Bears (NSW Cup) |
| Sport | Cricket; Australian rules football; rugby league; rugby union |
| Record attendance | 23,089 (13 May 1994, North Sydney Bears v Manly-Warringah) |
| Oldest grandstand | Duncan Thompson Stand (1929) |
A Ring of Named Stands
What gives North Sydney Oval its character is the near-continuous ring of grandstands, each named for a figure from the ground’s own history. The oldest is the Duncan Thompson Stand of 1929, named after the rugby league coach and administrator. The Bill O’Reilly, Charlie Macartney and Mollie Dive Stands all date from the 1980s and carry the names of two Australian Test cricketers and the captain of the Australian women’s team. The Bob Stand was relocated to the ground in 1983, and the Doug Walters hill sits behind one of the ends.
The care taken over the ground has been recognised formally: North Sydney Oval won the Sydney Cricket Association’s Ground of the Year award in 1992.
The Rugby League Years
For most of the 20th century the oval was known first as a rugby league ground. The North Sydney Bears played here in the NSWRL and NRL from 1910 to 1999, and the ground’s all-time record crowd comes from that era: 23,089 people on 13 May 1994 for a match against Manly-Warringah, more than double the current licensed capacity. The Bears have continued to use the ground in the NSW Cup since 2000, and the venue is scheduled to feature again in the top flight when the Perth Bears enter the NRL in 2027.
A Home for Women’s Sport
The most striking shift of the last decade has been the ground’s role in women’s sport. In 2018 it hosted the inaugural women’s State of Origin rugby league match. In 2022 it staged its first AFL Women’s premiership game, drawing 8,264 — close to capacity — and the Sydney Swans have used it for AFLW since. In 2026 it was chosen for the first Australia v Ireland AFLW international. It has also hosted women’s Ashes cricket, and one of its stands has carried the name of an Australian women’s captain since the 1980s, long before that was common practice.
FAQ
How old is North Sydney Oval?
It was first used as a cricket ground in 1867, making it one of the oldest continuously used sports venues in Australia.
What sports are played at North Sydney Oval?
Cricket (Sheffield Shield, Marsh Cup and Big Bash), Australian rules football (AFLW), rugby union (Shute Shield) and rugby league (NSW Cup). Few grounds anywhere carry four codes in a single year.
What is the capacity of North Sydney Oval?
About 10,000. The record crowd of 23,089, set at a Bears rugby league match in 1994, dates from a time when far more of the ground was terracing.
Photo: Blank-2018 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)