IF THE St Kilda Football Club ends up back at its former home at the Junction Oval, it may not get a warm welcome from the neighbours.
According to a report in the Herald Sun on Saturday, sporting and community groups in St Kilda have called on the newly elected Labor government in Victoria to close the door on the Saints moving back to their heartland.
Daniel Andrews was elected Victorian Premier last Saturday and among his election promises was $25 million to build a new facility for Cricket Victoria and upgrade the Junction Oval so that it could host first-class cricket and give the AFL access to the MCG earlier in the year.
But what was missing was the extra commitment made by the vanquished Coalition that would have allowed the Saints to relocate there as well.
Among those to have signed a statement supporting the cricket-only proposal are the St Kilda Cricket Club, Save Albert Park, Junction Area Action Group, South Melbourne Districts Sports Club, Collegians Football Club and the St Kilda Sports Club.
While Andrews has indicated this week that he hasn't closed the door on football being included in the Junction Oval plans, a spokesman for the group, Peter Logan said the government had an obligation to proceed with the cricket-only solution because "this is the only formal plan" on the table.
However, AFL.com.au understands that there are other sporting clubs in the precinct open to the return of the Saints, noting that that they will use the area almost exclusively during business hours, not on evenings and weekends.
If St Kilda does move to the area, it will share an elite training and administration facility with Cricket Victoria at the Junction Oval, but the training ground would be across the other side of Lakeside Drive, where Albert Park Oval 1 is now located.
Old Melburnians Football Club would vacate Junction Oval, which would become a year-round cricket ground, to share Oval 1 with the Saints.
St Kilda officials declined to comment on Saturday.
