Media release

Chroesawa at Hamilton Cymraeg rugby heigia

Posted On: Thursday, 17 June 2010

Old Boy Warren Gatland will return to his Hamilton school with the Wales rugby team before they take on the All Blacks at Waikato Stadium next weekend.

The public are invited to attend the Welsh team’s open training session at Hamilton Boys’ High School, 10.30am, on Wednesday 23 June.

Wales arrives from Dunedin on Sunday and spends all of next week here ahead of the third and final game in the Steinlager Series on Saturday, 26 June.

It will be an opportunity for the players to get to know the city and home town of coach Warren Gatland, where they will spend two weeks during next year’s Rugby World Cup.

The All Blacks will also conduct some community visits in the Waikato during their stay here. Further details will be released as they become available.

Waikato Rugby Union Marketing Manager Kyla Lange says: “we are a proud rugby city and region and this is a great opportunity to show both teams the passionate support we have. It is always a privilege to have two high calibre rugby teams playing each other at Waikato Stadium, known as one of the best rugby venues in the country.”

Less than 3000 seats are still available for the Wales v All Blacks test and can be purchased through mooloo.co.nz and ticketek.co.nz. These seats range from $50-$60 for adults with children $20.

“We encourage people to snap up these last available seats. We want to replicate the atmosphere and excitement of previous tests. There may be some people in our region who have not experienced test match rugby – it’s not too late to seize this opportunity,” added Ms Lange.

People attending the match are being urged to allow plenty of time to get to the venue and to be seated by 7pm when the pre-match entertainment starts. Special Hamilton ambassadors will be positioned around the entrance points to Waikato Stadium to guide people in the right direction.

There will also be a large contingent of Welsh media in the city and Tourism New Zealand will show them what the region and city has to offer including the new Maori garden at Hamilton Gardens.

ENDS