World Cup - news thread

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I

Iverson

Team Captain
May 4, 2002
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93 days to go... :)


RWC tickets on sale next month
About 500,000 tickets will go on sale on 18th August, for all 48 matches of the RWC. For more details go here: http://www.rugby2003.com.au/ticketing/buy.asp

Wallabies will camp in Darwin
Darwin's the place for the wallabies build up to RWC. NT missed out on hosting any rwc games, but will instead serve as a base for the wallabies preparation in defending the webb ellis trophy.

Tonga chase league stars
Tonga is looking to acquiring English Super League stars Vainikolo and Vaikona to help out their backline for the world cup. Tongan coach Jim Love realises that his side is lacking out wide, and so acquiring the two league wingers would add much needed pace. Both Vainikolo and Vaikona are keen to play for Tonga in the world cup, but first they have to overcome their contractual obligations with the Bradford Bulls.
 
The ARU should put heaps of money into Victoria and get some of the Victorian boys interested in the game........

There are plenty of kids here in Victoria who have great bodies for league and union and are missing out on playing these codes....they just need nurturing........it would pay off.

How about using your influence?
 
The numbers:

The numbers:

100 days to go
40,000 overseas visitors expected
2,000 Georgians are expected
2 million spectators
77 ball boys, 3 ball girls
1,000 volunteers
2,500 cast and crew at the Opening Ceremony
4,000 national and international media
40 team liaison officers
20 teams
600 players
64 hotels
36,000 room nights
980 coach trips
900 rugby balls
700 tonnes of freight
170 cars
150 training venues
100 tonnes of ice
28 scrum machines
900 team laundry washes
8000 personal laundry washes
100,000 litres of fluids for players
500 square metres of props to be used in Opening Ceremony


2000 Georgians!.......that's a big suprise!
 

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Originally posted by Ms.Storm
How about using your influence?
Click to expand...
I've got no influence in the ARU but if I did I would be pushing to get rugby played in the schools.

I'm sure there is a lot of victorian boys and girls that wouldn't mind trying out a sport they mainly see on tv. If you can instill the game in them when they are young, you'll end up with better and knowledgable fans.
 
Originally posted by Mint Condition
2000 Georgians!.......that's a big suprise! [/B]
Click to expand...

No... thats a massive surprise :cool:

I would have loved to go and see the Georgians play and meet some of their fans, but they aint coming my way :(
 
Union is huge in Georgia - spectator wise it's number one (though playing wise it lags a little behind soccer and basketball).

Back on the topic of the VRU - there have been Wallabies from Victoria (think Weary Dunlop), plus I'm pretty sure there was at one time a Wallaby captain from Melbourne. I'll check up on that. Certainly there are a lot more kids down here playing union than league.
 
Originally posted by Richoagain
Back on the topic of the VRU - there have been Wallabies from Victoria (think Weary Dunlop), plus I'm pretty sure there was at one time a Wallaby captain from Melbourne. I'll check up on that. Certainly there are a lot more kids down here playing union than league.
Click to expand...

Should keep an eye out for Tamaiti Horua (plays flanker for the Brumbies).

He is a Melbourne boy and played the game while growing up there. He captained the Aust.U21 side in last years U21 world cup, and he could possibly become captain of the wallabies one day.

He had a really good super 12 season this year and I believe he is just going to get better and better - he has a lot of potential.
 
I was ****ed off to find that my beloved Scotland wasn't going to play in Melbourne, so I planned to make a trip to Sydney for a match, but I missed out on tickets in the ballot, so now I plan to buy a ticket when the next lot come on sale and then I shall make the trip North to sing my lungs out

O'FLOWER SCOTLAND
 
Originally posted by Iverson
Should keep an eye out for Tamaiti Horua (plays flanker for the Brumbies).

He is a Melbourne boy and played the game while growing up there. He captained the Aust.U21 side in last years U21 world cup, and he could possibly become captain of the wallabies one day.

He had a really good super 12 season this year and I believe he is just going to get better and better - he has a lot of potential.
Click to expand...

Isn't Joe Roff a Melbourne boy too....am sure there are a couple of others too.
 
Originally posted by MoffOnTou
2000 Georgians? Is that from the same publicist that said that 55,000 international tourists would be turning up? :D

100,000 Days to go? Awesome, can hardly wait! :D

Cheers,
Moffo
Click to expand...

The initial projection was for 40 000 but was then increased to 55 000 after strong early sales. Recently though they've slowed after Iraq and the increased prices that have been put on the official travel packages and the projection is back to 40 000. 2000 Georgians must have already bought official packages which is great.

All up though the amount of visitors will most definately be more then 40 000 (if that's how many people buy the official packages) because there are a lot of people who will come out and buy tickets through friends and relatives that live here.
 
Originally posted by Mint Condition
All up though the amount of visitors will most definately be more then 40 000 (if that's how many people buy the official packages) because there are a lot of people who will come out and buy tickets through friends and relatives that live here.
Click to expand...
Very true.

I would say a large amount will be going through family and friends - especially kiwis, brits, and south africans.

I would say there will be lots of backpackers attending the games too.
 
Originally posted by Ms.Storm
Isn't Joe Roff a Melbourne boy too....am sure there are a couple of others too.
Click to expand...

you are absolutely right Ms Storm.

On the Brumbies website it says he was born in Heathcote, Victoria. I think though he played all his rugby in Canberra.
 

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http://rugbyheaven.smh.com.au/articles/2003/07/09/1057430283843.html

Package prices a World Cup bugger for Kiwis
By Anthony Dennis
Thursday, July 10, 2003

It's been a torrid World Cup for New Zealanders - and the kick-off whistle
for the All Blacks' opening game is still three months away.

First they lost sub-hosting rights to stage the event with Australia and now
it looks like the New Zealanders have been double-crossed out of even being
able to cross the Tasman to watch their beloved All Blacks compete.

But the biggest losers of all may turn out to be not the New Zealanders but
Sydney's tourism industry, counting on the World Cup to lift it out of its
doldrums.

Travel agents across the Tasman, reflecting similar complaints by
counterparts in England, say that New Zealanders in their thousands are
baulking at official World Cup travel packages, which they believe are
overpriced. One New Zealand agent described World Cup package sales, with
less than 100 days to go, as "dreadful".

Packages are priced up to $4000 per person for the final in Sydney with
minimum stay stipulations compelling fans to stay longer than they would
prefer. The agents say nearly $2000 is being charged for some pool match
packages with just a few nights accommodation in Sydney.

New Zealanders are being charged "northern hemisphere rates" for packages
with the International Rugby Board imposing as much $NZ1000 ($890) in
licensing fees on top of expensive ticket and travel costs, putting packages
out of reach of "heartland Kiwi rugby fans", agents complain.

A spokesman for the Australian Rugby Union, organisers of the World Cup,
said that the issue was important. He said New Zealanders have shown their
preparedness to attend big rugby events in the past, such as the
competitively priced Bledisloe Cup, which this month will attract 4000 New
Zealand visitors to Sydney.

"It's in everyone's interests to try and find a solution for the New Zealand
fans because it's a rugby-mad market," the spokesman said.

A Sydney tourism official said the sluggish take-up of official packages in
New Zealand could have implications for the projected visitor numbers to
Australia for the event as well as for the ARU's revised forecast of 40,000
visitors from an original of 55,000.

"We are unhappy about the situation," said Auckland-based Bart Seward,
events manager for Gulliver Holidays, a travel agent appointed by organisers
to sell official packages.

"We're going to see fewer New Zealanders coming across to Australia for the
World Cup. It's not going to do the event any good because people have
developed a perception that it's too expensive."

New Zealand rugby fans are certain to find their own way to Australia for
the event. But if they cannot get tickets through friends or relatives
bought in Australia, the only other means is through the official World Cup
travel packages.
 
Moff, I'd take a guess that the majority will come from the UK and NZ and then South Africa and France. As it eludes to in that article posted by Auckmel it seems though that most of the kiwi fans will be making their own way over. I think its an odds on bet that the All Blacks and England will have the most support come world cup time in any case (after the Wallabies). I'd guess that the English side probably convinced a few more people to come down and watch them after their two wins down here in June.

If you really want to know you could email the ARU I guess.

I don't know if there's a specific world cup address but the general enquiries address is rugby@rugby.com.au

You're a bloody cynical bugger ;)
 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/international/3052249.stm

"Japan name World Cup squad"

Japan have named four New Zealanders among their squad for October's Rugby World Cup in Australia.

Stand-off Andrew Miller, centres Reuben Parkinson and George Konia, and lock Adam Parker have been selected by the Japan Rugby Football Union.

A miserable run of results recently has seen Japan lose three matches against Australian club teams, as well as going down to the United States and England A.

They will not play again until the World Cup, where they face Scotland, France and Fiji in Group B.

"We played enough tune-up games, more games than we did last year," said JRFU spokesman Hiroaki Shukuzawa.

"It is not a problem how many games we played in preparation. The problem is we didn't get a good result.

"Before the previous World Cups, we played tune-up matches against Hong Kong and Spain, but I'm not sure whether it was a good preparation or bad.

"We decided that it would be better to improve through practice what was revealed as our weakness in these tune-up games."

Head coach: Shogo Mukai
Backs: Yuji Sonoda (Kobe Steel), Takashi Tsuji (NEC), Andrew Miller (NZL/Kobe Steel), Keiji Hirose (Toyota Motor), Toru Kurihara (Suntory), Hirotoki Onozawa (Suntory) Yukio Motoki (Kobe Steel), Reuben Parkinson (NZL/Sanix), Hideki Namba (Toyota Motor), George Konia (NZL/NEC), Daisuke Ohata (Montferrand/FRA), Junichi Hojyo (Suntory), Tsutomu Matsuda (Toshiba Fuchu), Takashi Yoshida (Suntory)
Forwards: Shin Hasegawa (Suntory), Masahito Yamamoto (Toyota Motor), Masaaki Sakata (Suntory), Masao Amino (NEC), Masahiko Toyoyama (Toyota Motor), Ryo Yamamura (Kanto Gakuin University), Koichi Kubo (Yamaha Motor), Hajime Kiso (Yamaha Motor), Hiroyuki Tanuma (Richo), Adam Parker (NZL/Toshiba Fuchu), Yasunori Watanabe (Toshiba Fuchu), Naoya Okubo (Suntory), Takuro Miuchi (capt/NEC), Ryota Asano (NEC), Takeomi Ito (Kobe Steel), Yuya Saito (Colomiers)
 
Just on the expense of those RWC packages for overseas fans here is proof that it is pricing out fans who want to come out. It seems to me like the IRB have shot themselves in the foot on this one.

These are a couple of posts from Rugby fans in Europe answering the question of whether they were going to the WC.

Looked into it CFC, but the expense was crazy - I even found a tour operator prepared to offer just the intercontinental flights and tickets w/out accomodation or internal travel, but the cost was virtually the same - deposit for a house levels of money. Just doesn't seem to be a sensible way to do it. Had a look at getting tickets internally via mates in Oz, but the only way to get tickets to the later stages is to buy pool tickets and hope you get lucky in a draw. Not trekking round the world on that basis.

Rob

AND

I'm a BA Shareholder, have been for years. I asked them for packages for down under - and was referred to QANTAS. Q were very polite, but they ought to have been at those prices!! I then thought, "Right I'll take "da Boss" along to New Zealand!". Cut a long story short - the prices were still too much! Straw, bless her, was a mine of information and help, but the end result is a resigned and fatalistic acceptance that my hopes of RWC2003 trips and excitement were only pipe dreams. We have just booked a cruise .......... When we come back, I'll watch it on the box.

It's a shame
 
Originally posted by Mint Condition
Moff, I'd take a guess that the majority will come from the UK and NZ and then South Africa and France. As it eludes to in that article posted by Auckmel it seems though that most of the kiwi fans will be making their own way over. I think its an odds on bet that the All Blacks and England will have the most support come world cup time in any case (after the Wallabies). I'd guess that the English side probably convinced a few more people to come down and watch them after their two wins down here in June.

If you really want to know you could email the ARU I guess.

I don't know if there's a specific world cup address but the general enquiries address is rugby@rugby.com.au

You're a bloody cynical bugger ;)
Click to expand...

Cynicial, moi??? Naaa, usually not, but seeing it came out of John O'Neill's mouth i have to take it with a grain of salt. You know the man, he does have a tendency to say things that aren't exactly on the money :D

Still, maybe its just me, but i can't see that many people coming over here for the sole reason of going to the world cup. I know the poms and kiwis will have huge support, but they both have big ex-pat populations in Australia and personally, this is where i think most of their support comes from. Being down to Bondi lately? The kiwis and poms have taken over the place!

Cheers,
Moffo
 
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