Sports Wank #2

- W(h)anganui Mayor Michael Laws hasn’t had much publicity lately, so it was only appropriate for him to publicly voice is opposition to the Meads Cup final between Wanganui and Mid Canterbury being played in Christchurch, Air New Zealand Cup territory.

 

In case you’re a little in the dark, this is the situation: Mid Canterbury finished on top of the Meads Cup table after the round robin, while Wanagnui ended up second. Both won their semi finals, and because Mid Canterbury were the top qualifiers, they have the right to host the final. However, their home ground, the Ashburton Showgrounds (managed by the Ashburton A & P Association) had already been booked for the A & P show. As a result the Meads Cup final will be played at Christchurch’s Rugby Park, but Laws says that the Heartland final should be held in a Heartland province, namely Wanganui.

 

In a way I do agree with Laws (which is probably the first sign of the Apocalypse). It does seem a bit silly to hold the final of the Heartland Championship in an Air New Zealand Cup province, particularly in a main centre already saturated with professional rugby. However, the reality is that the Mid Canterbury team earned the right to play the final in front of their home crowd. Yes, the Mid Canterbury fans are going to have to travel about 1 hour 25 minutes* to get to their home final, but that would be a hell of a lot easier than travelling to Wanganui. The Mid Canterbury players and fans are already dealing with the consequences of the Ashburton A & P Association’s cock up, and don’t deserve to be inconvenienced any further by having to travel to Wanaganui**.  

* Honestly, I didn’t know where the fuck Ashburton was until 5 minutes ago. Thanks Google Maps.

** Note: As much as I enjoy rubbishing Wanganui, I’m not doing it here. I’m just saying it’s a long trip from Ashburton (about 13 hours 15 minutes by car - thanks Google Maps).