New Zealand Rugby prepare back up venue for Bledisloe Cup test in Auckland

New Zealand Rugby are planning for an alternative venue to the Bledisloe Cup game against Australia scheduled on 18th October.

Earlier, the North v South game was moved out of Eden Park to Sky Stadium following Covid-19 restrictions and now the second game of the series is also in doubt.

According to he New Zealand board, the pre-sales for the opening game of the series in Wellington will start on Tuesday while the ticket sales for the Auckland game will be announced on 5th October provided government announcing restrictions to move to Level 1.

NZR General Manager Professional Rugby & Performance Chris Lendrum said Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin will be the alternate venue to the game if the restrictions are still in place in Auckland.

“We are confident the match will go ahead at Eden Park, but we are also making responsible contingency plans as we have all the way through Covid-19.

“Our preference and intention is to play the match at Eden Park, but if we can’t have crowds due to Alert Levels we will look to move the match to Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin.

“Our primary concern is the health and safety of our fans and we will be guided by the advice of Government and health authorities when Auckland’s Alert Levels are reviewed on Monday, October 5”