Lough Playing Fields

Bring your ball or Frisbee, dogs and kids alike, it's a great place to come and play. If you're dating take a hike down into the forested walks of Cooper Park.

I grew up at 39 Suttie Road which backed onto Lough Playing Fields through the 60s into the early 70s until I was 21 and went overseas for the first time. Wonderful place, as was Cooper Park etc. etc.. On the weekends the archers would come and set up targets on the field and shoot arrows over great distances. In the 60s we had rock fights with other kids and on 'Cracker Night' (in early to mid May) there would be a few bonfires set up on the field and people (mainly us boys) would let off fireworks or engage in 'bunga fights' throwing firecrackers at each other.. Once when I was about 13 got the shirt blown off my back. All that sort of thing. Wild stuff. Inconceivable today - people would be killing one another. All the poor animals were terrified. Everyone locked up their dogs for the night. And much, much else. Sydney was still affordable, even in the Eastern Suburbs, and very livable before being destroyed by the traffic and way too many people and all the accompanying problems. Happy days. I was lucky.

A wonderful park if... you have a dog. Not great for playing though as there is dog mess all over and dogs going Wild. Surface is uneven and full of branches and twigs. Easily accessible and spacious.

Poor drainage due to not having a water channel despite being on marshy wetland. Common sense lost the battle here.

The ground is in pretty poor conditions with large patches of dirt. Makes a cricket game very uneven. For such a nice area you think they'd be able to maintain the park better.