Election bonanza leaves Broncos happy

Tony Abbott and the Queensland premier have pledged to help keep the Brisbane Broncos at Red Hill. Source: AAP

THE Broncos NRL club, based in the marginal seat of Brisbane, has become a political football.

Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and Queensland Premier Campbell Newman stood side by side on Wednesday promising cash and land to keep the club at its Red Hill base.

Both have denied any suggestion it's a case of pork barrelling in a marginal seat held by the Coalition's Teresa Gambaro with a 1.1 per cent margin.

Instead, they've described it as a justifiable investment in the club's future at Red Hill, and in the sporting lives of those living in Brisbane's inner northwest.

Not be outdone, federal Labor countered with a pledge of $3 million for training and playing facilities at the Broncos Junior Rugby League Academy at Logan, south of Brisbane.

Logan happens to lie in the electorate of Forde, which star Labor candidate Peter Beattie is trying to wrest from the Coalition.

Mr Beattie described Labor's cash promise as a great local initiative that'll help ensure the success of Queensland's beloved Broncos.

"The bottom line with all this is you don't have a Broncos team unless you have a catchment area like this," he told reporters on Wednesday.

Back at Red Hill, Mr Abbott said it was entirely reasonable for a Coalition government to tip in a "relatively modest" $5 million for a $21 million redevelopment of the Broncos Red Hill base.

Mr Newman promised the club exclusive access to land at the adjacent "under utilised" Ithaca TAFE campus.

The land will be used for a second training ground, and a high-performance training facility.

Broncos chief executive officer Paul White said the club had outgrown its site, and the state government's land pledge meant the Broncos could stay at the club's spiritual home.

The club will again be in the political spotlight on Wednesday night, as the venue for the second televised showdown between Mr Abbott and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

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