By DUNCAN JOHNSTONE - Stuff.co.nz
Last updated 16:25 18/12/2009
JOHN SELKIRK
SELLOUT PREDICTION: Scattering teams across the country should ensure packed houses at matches, says Rugby World Cup New Zealand boss Martin Snedden
Rugby World Cup team hosting announcement
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JOHN SELKIRK Zoom
Rugby World Cup's New Zealand boss Martin Snedden is predicting plenty of sellouts after the tournament's tentacles stretched even further through the country on Friday.
With hosting cities being added to the match venues to total 23 centres across the two islands, Snedden believed New Zealanders were set to embrace the teams and the tournament.
He said he had no fears that the smaller cities and towns would take up the "once in a lifetime opportunity" to get involved and that included filling seats at their stadiums.
"I reckon just about every match outside of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch will be sellouts or close to," Snedden, RNZ 2011 chief executive, said.
"The local communities will just climb into it and they are not big stadiums. I'm not worried about those ones at all. And I'm not worried about the big finals. It's just big pool matches in big stadia that don't involve All Blacks ... the ones we need to get New Zealand to buy into."
He said marketing would step up from March to increase public consciousness.
For now there was plenty to enthuse as the tournament operated from the Bay of Islands to Invercargill.
There were more winners than losers with Timaru and Whakatane the two cities to miss out because of accommodation problems.
Hamilton gets to see the All Blacks as well as Wales, Fiji, Samoa and probably Japan.
New Plymouth hosts Ireland, the United States, Wales, Namibia and another European side.
Wanganui and Masterton are part of the action as well as Kerikeri and Ashburton.
All have come through a stringent process and won approval after first-hand visits by management from the bulk of the 20 teams.
The All Blacks will hit the road from Auckland to Hamilton and on to Wellington.
"They said to us we just want to keep moving from community to community and that sounds fine to us. As long as it goes according to plan they'll be in Christchurch a bit later on," Snedden said.
But they won't match the Irish who will spread their popularity wide. They will start in Queenstown and then go to New Plymouth, Auckland, Taupo, Rotorua and Dunedin.
Even non-rugby venues were included in the training areas to be used - cricket grounds in Dunedin and Nelson and the famous Cooks Gardens in Wanganui.
Ticket revenue is Snedden's only income so he needs the feelgood factor to turn into cash, hoping to offset the government's $39.3m grants. But he classes that as "an investment not a loss".
Gerry Brownlee, Associate Minister World Cup minister noted that when he said: "The underwrite is of some concern but the spinoff benefits could be enormous."
As the World Cup machine starts to gather momentum the next phase will be travel packages released in January followed by corporate hospitality in February. Ticket sales will open in March and April.
The host cities with the number of nights teams will stay in them - and the training venues - are:
BAY OF ISLANDS
Asia1 (like to be Japan) 4, Canada 6, Tonga 4
WHANGAREI
Asia1 2, Canada 3, Tonga 10
RODNEY
Asia1 11 Namibia 3, Samoa 5
NORTH SHORE
France 5 + 10, South Africa 2 + 2
AUCKLAND
Australia 4, England 7, Fiji 8, Ireland 6, New Zealand 7 + 8, Samoa 7, Scotland 5, Tonga 5
HAMILTON
Asia1 3, Fiji 2, New Zealand 7, Samoa 2, Wales 7 + 6
TAUPO
Ireland 4, South Africa 3 + 6, Wales 5
ROTORUA
Europe2 2, Fiji 2, Ireland 4, Namibia 7, Samoa 6
TAURANGA / Mt MAUNGANUI
Europe2 3, Fiji 4+ 5, Samoa 4
GISBORNE
Namibia 7 + 5
NAPIER
Asia1 6, Canada 15, France 3
NEW PLYMOUTH
Europe2 3, Ireland 4, Namibia 4, USA 10, Wales 3
WANGANUI
USA 6
PALMERSTON NORTH
Argentina 7, Europe1 7, Playoff winner 3
MASTERTON
Europe1 7
WELLINGTON
Australia 6, Canada 3, Fiji 7, France 3, New Zealand 8, South Africa 17, Tonga 6, USA 5, Wales 9
BLENHEIM
Europe2 10
NELSON
Europe2 2, Italy 7 + 14, USA 4
CHRISTCHURCH
Argentina 15 + 8, Australia 8 + 8, England 19, Europe1 3, Europe2 6, Italy 7, Scotland 11
ASHBURTON
Playoff winner 6
DUNEDIN
England 3, Europe1 11, Ireland 7, Italy 3, Playoff winner 8, Scotland 5
QUEENSTOWN
England 3, Ireland 6, Playoff winner 4
INVERCARGILL
Argentina 3, Playoff winner 4 + 3, Scotland 4
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