THE MCG has been rapidly transformed from cricket use to football-ready before, but the process has never been as complicated as that the MCG grounds event staff are now undertaking.

Less than an hour after Australia beat New Zealand in the final of the Cricket World Cup on Sunday evening, work commenced on removing the seven remaining cricket pitches and placing them at their winter home in nearby Yarra Park, between the MCG and Punt Road Oval.

But that was just the start.

The Melbourne Cricket Club, which runs the MCG, delivered a 'clean stadium' to the International Cricket Council for the tournament.

As outlined in the AFL Record this week, more than 40 separate pieces of work need to be completed on and off the playing surface and inside and outside the stadium, to convert the ground back to use for football on Thursday evening, when Carlton plays Richmond in the season’s opening home and away match.

Among the tasks is the removal of various lots of corporate signage and branded infrastructure, to be replaced by the signage of partners aligned to the venue, the AFL and the host club, in this case, the Blues.  

More than 200 full-time and casual staff are doing the work – and they have just 90 hours to complete it.

Certainly helping was the fine weather in Melbourne overnight Sunday and on Monday, which allowed the work to proceed at pace.

"It hasn’t been an easy task given such a short timeframe, and the number of parties involved, but we pride ourselves on our ability to perform under this sort of pressure," MCC chief executive Stephen Gough told the AFL Record. 

"We’re looking forward to showing off an MCG in excellent condition for the opening round of football."

A full day-by-day breakdown of how the MCG work will be completed will appear in the round one edition of the AFL Record, available at all grounds.