Snedden 'thrilled' with work

COLIN SMITH/Nelson Mail

GROUND CHECK: Rugby World Cup 2011 CEO Martin Snedden right, chats with Tasman Rugby Union chief executive Peter Barr during his tour of Trafalgar Park.

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The last time Martin Snedden visited Trafalgar Park, it was 1986 and he was playing cricket for Auckland against Central Districts.

Both sides wanted a result and the light was fading, so they had every car in the area pull up to the boundary and turn on the headlights.

Unsurprisingly, the batting side, Auckland, fell short, skittled out in the fading light.

Yesterday, Mr Snedden, the man charged with organising next year's Rugby World Cup, returned to the park to gauge progress as it undergoes a major overhaul ahead of the tournament.

He was shown around by Nelson City Council senior project manager Shane Davies, who pointed out many of the changes occurring.

That included the new glass sand turf and preparations for the installation of eight lighting towers, which are three times more powerful that the ones currently in place.

Mr Snedden said it was important for him get a feel for the changes occurring at the park, which will host two matches (Italy against Russia and Italy against the United States) during the tournament.

He had no concerns about Nelson's preparations.

"I was thrilled with that.

"They're hitting the right level, meaning I don't think they are being extravagant and neither should they.

"They have raised it to a standard that will be great, not just for the tournament but beyond that."

It was the third time he had visited Nelson as part of World Cup preparations.

On this occasion, he met the Tasman Rugby Union, the World Cup steering committee and Mayors Kerry Marshall and Richard Kempthorne, among others.

Mr Snedden said he was aware of the debate in Nelson about the cost of the Trafalgar Park upgrade and the hosting of matches and teams in the city.

He said much of the money the city had spent was on things that needed to be done anyway, but the Rugby World Cup had brought the plans forward.

It was not a situation that was unique to Nelson, and for the money spent, what they were getting back was well worth it.

"We're not getting a whole lot of money from Nelson to bring matches here.

"It's not like they had to buy a match.

"It's sort of like they've said, `Right oh, we'll assist you with match management in a variety of different ways.'

"But what we wanted them to do was make sure they would invest in it, but invest in a way that had some ongoing benefits for the community.

"And Trafalgar Park is actually a good example of that ... that then sets that rugby ground up for the next decade or whatever."

Mr Snedden said that overall, preparations for the tournament were shaping up well.

However, he was feeling increasingly nervous as the date for public ticket sales approached. Applications for tickets for venues and teams open on April 27.

"We've got to sell 1,650,000 tickets. That's a hell of a lot of tickets to sell, many of which have to be sold in New Zealand."

The capacity of Trafalgar Park is expected to be about 20,000.

"We need to sell out both of these games, and I think we will."

- © Fairfax NZ News