MJF Architects was engaged to design alterations and additions to an existing rugby league club house in Sylvania. The project aimed to reuse the existing structure as the foundation for a new-generation facility, incorporating a gymnasium, updated changerooms, a bar and function spaces including a private function room, office accommodation, and a cafe.

Working with the existing building structure required a careful assessment of what could be retained, upgraded, and extended. A primary ambition — ensuring views to the playing fields from the bar, function rooms, and social spaces — needed to be achieved within the constraints of the existing plan and structure. Maximising the capacity and quality of the bar and function facilities was also central to the brief.

The design uses the existing building as its core, extending and reconfiguring where needed to deliver the full range of facilities. As with MJF Architects’ work at Miranda, the view to the playing fields is used as a driver for the internal planning — ensuring social spaces are oriented to look out over the oval and creating a genuine connection between the club’s architecture and its sport.

The concept delivers all brief requirements within a design that respects the existing structure while giving the club a facility that is fit for purpose — modern, functional, and animated by its connection to the game.