Mayor slams cup final ground decision

Wanganui Mayor Michael Laws is calling for his city to host the Meads Cup rugby final after labelling the decision to host the final in Christchurch "crazy".

No1 qualifiers Mid Canterbury are unable to host the match at the Ashburton Showgrounds because it has been booked for the annual A&P Show, the society of which manages the grounds.

So the Heartland showpiece will be in Christchurch on Saturday afternoon.

Laws has however hit harder than Wanganui's big No8.

"That is ridiculous. The showpiece of provincial rugby being played in a metro.

"And not even the top metro stadium, but at Rugby Park in Christchurch."

Laws said that Wanganui's home ground, Cooks Gardens, had proved itself as the premier Heartland venue.

"We had 6000 people at the final last year and everyone, including the Mid Canterbury boys, loved the ground, the atmosphere and the spectacle.

"If Mid Canterbury can't host the final, then it should be for the other finalist to do so, not transferred to a big city that is actually hosting an NPC semifinal the same weekend.

"That is just crazy," Laws said.

He said he had been approached by the chairman of the Cooks Gardens Trust Board saying that the venue was ready and that they could "sweeten the deal for the New Zealand Rugby Union as well".

"We loved having the Mid Canterbury team here last year, and they told me they loved being here.

"OK then; let's keep the Heartland final in the heartland and make it the spectacle that it should be."

Mid Canterbury chief executive Ian Patterson said the decision was not taken lightly but believed the outburst could be more about the mayor's profile than the game.

"When we realised there was a clash we first tried to shift the game to Methven but they also had a big event booked."

The Mid Canterbury board then looked at three options, shifting the game to either Timaru's Alpine Energy Stadium, Christchurch's Rugby Park or forfeit the game back to Wanganui.

Patterson said it was a `line ball' between Timaru and Christchurch but after talking to the team's management they had opted for Rugby Park.

"I guess you could say our decision was subjective but we thought we would pull a bigger crowd in Christchurch."

- © Fairfax NZ News