The story of the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) and its relationship to the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) has been reimagined through an exciting new redevelopment, as the MCC Museum was officially re-opened last night.
MCC President Michael Happell cut the ribbon to welcome the invited guests into the MCC Museum for the official re-opening, following its $700,000 renovation.
Since its foundation, the MCC has played a pivotal role in promoting and developing sport within Australia and around the world.
In 1853, the Melbourne Cricket Club moved its ground – the MCG – to where it still sits today within the Yarra Park precinct. In a unique management arrangement, the MCC continues to manage the MCG and Yarra Park for the state of Victoria and the people of Australia.
The MCC Museum is the final part of the Club’s museums offering to be completed following the $17 million renovation of the Australian Sports Museum which reopened in February 2020.
The 400-square metre MCC Museum, which has been closed since August 2019, is home to more than 700 artefacts, featuring items such as the ball used when Australia won its first Test on English soil, the 1960 and 1964 VFL trophies won by Melbourne FC, a cricket shirt worn by Warwick Armstrong in the 1920s and a large architectural model of the MCG.
The MCC Museum’s rebuild sees newly added interactive multimedia touchscreens, alongside artefacts, paintings, rare porcelain and items of cricketana to further showcase the rich history of the Club, its activities and the ground it manages.
President Michael Happell said the MCC Museum’s re-opening was a continuation of the Club’s commitment to showcasing the history of sport through storytelling, following the completion of the Australian Sports Museum.
“It is a really special feeling for us to finally be able to re-open up the world-class facility that is the MCC Museum as part of continuing to welcome back our Members and visitors to the MCG,” Mr Happell said.
“After the Australian Sports Museum, the MCC Museum is the second most visited sports museum in Australia and we are so very proud to be custodians of both.
“The project is a key component of a major focus in our strategic plan – ensuring that we treasure and celebrate what is most important to the Club, and that is its members. We are always looking to foster the sense of the belonging that the membership instills.
“What we have on display really encapsulates a chronological experience of member history and the members’ relationship with sport and with the MCG, dating right back to the Club’s inception in 1838. The use of new technology allows us to continue to tell some of those stories in more engaging ways.
“Re-opening the MCC Museum and the award-winning Australian Sports Museum means that there are now some really compelling reasons for everyone to visit the MCG.
“You don’t have to be a history or sporting buff to enjoy the experience, we feel there is something for everyone at the MCG.”
The first MCC Museum was established in 1969 and it was an integral part of the MCG Tours itinerary until the old Pavilion came down in 2003. It was then re-opened in its current location on Level B1 of the Members’ Reserve in November 2006.
The redevelopment of both the Australian Sports Museum and the MCC Museum was made possible through the generous support of the Victorian Government and the MCC Foundation.
This week, on the Wednesday and Thursday nights, fortunate Full, Restricted and Provisional members will get a first glimpse of the newly-redeveloped space as part of two exclusive ‘Night at the MCC Museum’ events.
The MCC Museum will then open for its first MCG event day during the Melbourne Stars v Sydney Thunder Big Bash League match on Friday December 10.
Members and their guests can access the MCC Museum free of charge on MCG event days, provided they have a match ticket to enter the Ground.
Non-members can also access the MCC Museum as part of their ticket to, and experience of, the Australian Sports Museum on non-MCG event days.
Tickets to the Australian Sports Museum must be pre-purchased, visit www.australiansportsmuseum.org.au.