NZ venues named for 2011 Rugby World Cup
12 Mar 2009
The match schedule for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand has been announced in Auckland today (12.03.09) with 13 venues across the country chosen to host pool matches.
Rugby New Zealand CEO Martin Snedden confirmed the tournament will kick off at Eden Park in Auckland on Friday 9 September, 2011 when New Zealand plays Tonga.
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have been allocated five pool matches each while North Shore, Hamilton, New Plymouth, Rotorua and Dunedin will each host three matches. Whangarei, Nelson, Palmerston North, Napier and Invercargill will host two matches.
A total of 16 New Zealand cities bid to host pool games, and both Tauranga and Queenstown missed out. Auckland’s Mt Smart stadium was also unsuccessful.
Balanced schedule
Rugby New Zealand had worked closely with Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL) over the past few months to bring the schedule to reality, Snedden said.
"Our collective view is that the match schedule represents the best balance between ensuring a successful tournament in New Zealand while also recognising its global standing.
"The philosophy all along has been a ‘Stadium of Four Million’. We believe today’s announcement, building on the knock-out decisions announced last year, takes us further towards the fulfillment of that promise," he said.
Quarter finals
The quarter-final match-ups were also confirmed, with the top two teams in Pool A (featuring currently qualified teams New Zealand, France and Tonga) and Pool B (featuring Argentina, England and Scotland) playing off in Christchurch.
Wellington will host quarter-finals featuring the winners and runners-up from Pool C (featuring Australia, Ireland and Italy) and Pool D (featuring South Africa, Wales and Fiji).
Finals
In addition, the dates for the final weekend, which coincides with the New Zealand Labour Day holiday, were also confirmed.
The Bronze Final will take place on Friday October 21 at Eden Park, Auckland, followed by the Final on Sunday October 23 at the same venue.
"The two-day break after the Bronze Final allows us to better prepare for the Final on Sunday, and should also ensure a huge festival night for Auckland on Saturday," Snedden said.
Blockbuster rugby weekend
The schedule features a blockbuster opening weekend which will see pool heavyweights Argentina take on England in Christchurch, and South Africa play Wales in Wellington, while communities in Invercargill, New Plymouth, Rotorua and North Shore get their first taste of Rugby World Cup action.
The second and third weekends will feature the Australia v Ireland clash, and New Zealand v France respectively. The pool stage wraps up with deciders taking place across all four pools.
Unique tournament
Speaking at the announcement in Auckland, RWCL managing director Mike Miller said: "While the number of match venues is more than Australia 2003 and France 2007, it reflects the Organising Committee’s desire to take the tournament to the entire nation under its call to arms of a Stadium of Four Million philosophy.
"RWCL fully supports this and the desire to ensure the tournament has a unique look and feel that fits in with the cultural background of the nation."
More information:
2011 Rugby World Cup returns to NZ
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