{"product_id":"a-thing-of-beauty-the-founding-of-the-sydney-cricket-ground-by-geoff-armstrong-9780648733188","title":"A Thing of Beauty: The Founding of the Sydney Cricket Ground","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Thing of Beauty: The Founding of the Sydney Cricket Ground\u003c\/em\u003e is an exquisite two-volume work that tells the remarkable story of how a small group of men turned land that was once a mix of sand and swamp into the finest cricket ground in the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Thing of Beauty\u003c\/em\u003e is published in association with Venues NSW and the SCG, and tells how the men who built the ground quickly learned that maintaining, let alone improving, a major sports arena is an expensive business. As a result, through the 1890s, sports such as cycling and rugby and events such as school carnivals and fireworks displays took place alongside the big cricket matches.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1895, champion American cyclist Arthur Zimmerman raced in front of a record SCG crowd. An asphalt cycling track was then built around the perimeter of the cricket field, and lights were added soon after.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThree consecutive Ashes cricket series caused huge controversy. The first, in 1891-92, might have been a disaster but for the work of SCG secretary Sydney Fairland. The second, three years later, was backed by the SCG Trustees and made a fortune. The third, in 1897-98, led to the demise of the SCG's 'Ground Committee' and to a larger involvement of politicians in the venue's administration.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Macmillan Publishers New Zealand Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47350547710188,"sku":"9780648733188","price":62.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/107d5869746595c7336ecf8cd616415f.jpg?v=1772538491","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/a-thing-of-beauty-the-founding-of-the-sydney-cricket-ground-by-geoff-armstrong-9780648733188","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}