Arena Manawatu
Encyclopedia
Arena Manawatu is the current name of the 180,000 square metre publicly owned recreational complex just west of the Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...

 city centre in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

It has three linked indoor stadium
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...

s, with movable tiered seating. Outdoor facilities include football fields and a speedway track with grandstand
Grandstand
A grandstand is a large and normally permanent structure for seating spectators, most often at a racetrack. This includes both auto racing and horse racing. The grandstand is in essence like a single section of a stadium, but differs from a stadium in that it does not wrap all or most of the way...

.

It claims to handle around 8,000 bookings per year, regularly catering for 36 different sporting codes in addition to annual or other infrequent events such as the "A & P Show", religious conventions and festivals.

The facility has had a number of international fixtures as of late; these include: Netball
Netball
Netball is a ball sport played between two teams of seven players. Its development, derived from early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. By 1960 international playing rules had been standardised for the game, and the International Federation of Netball and Women's Basketball ...

 between New Zealand and England
England national netball team
The England national netball team represent England in international netball competition. The team are presently co-captained by Karen Atkinson and Sonia Mkoloma, and were coached by Australian Sue Hawkins through to the end of the 2011 World Netball Championships in Singapore...

, Super Rugby games and a Hyundai A-League
A-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...

 game.

FMG Stadium

FMG Stadium is home to Manawatu Rugby
Manawatu Rugby Union
Manawatu Rugby Union is the governing body of the sport of Rugby union in the Manawatu rugby province. The Union is based in the city of Palmerston North but has a catchment area from nearby towns in the province, including Feilding, Rongotea, Linton, Bulls, Pahiatua, Dannevirke and...

. Generally one club game will be played on the ground per week, whilst it is the Manawatu Turbos
Manawatu Rugby Union
Manawatu Rugby Union is the governing body of the sport of Rugby union in the Manawatu rugby province. The Union is based in the city of Palmerston North but has a catchment area from nearby towns in the province, including Feilding, Rongotea, Linton, Bulls, Pahiatua, Dannevirke and...

' home ground. Since Manawatu Turbos
Manawatu Rugby Union
Manawatu Rugby Union is the governing body of the sport of Rugby union in the Manawatu rugby province. The Union is based in the city of Palmerston North but has a catchment area from nearby towns in the province, including Feilding, Rongotea, Linton, Bulls, Pahiatua, Dannevirke and...

 has been included in the Air New Zealand Cup, crowd attendances have been among the highest in the competition, averaging 7,000 per game.

The Stadium was the host of the 1987 Rugby World Cup
1987 Rugby World Cup
The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup. New Zealand and Australia agreed to co-host the first ever tournament with New Zealand hosting seventeen pool stage matches, two quarter-finals and the final with Australia being the junior partner hosting seven pool matches, two...

 game between Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...

 and Tonga
Tonga national rugby union team
The Tonga national rugby union team is nicknamed Ikale Tahi . Like their Polynesian neighbours, the Tongans start their matches with a war dance – the Kailao . They are members of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance along with Fiji and Samoa...

 on 29 May. Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...

 won 29–16.

It also hosted New Zealand's victory in their first test of the 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand.

The ground was a venue for the British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...

 on the 2005 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand
2005 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand
In 2005 the British and Irish Lions rugby union team toured New Zealand for the first time since 1993, playing 7 tour matches against first and second division clubs from the National Provincial Championship series, 1 tour match against the national New Zealand all Māori club, and 3 official test...

 with a game against Manawatu Turbos
Manawatu Rugby Union
Manawatu Rugby Union is the governing body of the sport of Rugby union in the Manawatu rugby province. The Union is based in the city of Palmerston North but has a catchment area from nearby towns in the province, including Feilding, Rongotea, Linton, Bulls, Pahiatua, Dannevirke and...

 on 28 June.

The stadium will also host two pool games in the 2011 Rugby World Cup
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Africa at a meeting in Dublin on 17 November 2005...

, in which New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 is the host nation. With the city's central location, large student population, the stadium's close proximity to the CBD, International Pacific College, as well as the New Zealand Rugby Institute (a facility in which the All Blacks used to use), the idea of basing a team and having a pool game in Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...

 is attractive.

Other users of the stadium include the Robertson Holden International Speedway, with the stockcar track encircling the field this is easy and it has been regarded as one of the country's premiere Speedway
Speedway
-In racing:*Oval track racing, motor racing on an oval track which turns in one direction*Cycle speedway, a form of bicycle racing*Motorcycle speedway, a form of motorcycle sport*Dirt track racing in New Zealand-Other uses:Placenames...

s. The national Teams Championships are often held there, bringing racers from all over New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

The YoungHeart Manawatu
YoungHeart Manawatu
YoungHeart Manawatu is a football club is based in Palmerston North, New Zealand. It participates in the ASB Premiership and their home ground is Memorial Park.- History :...

 association football team used to play at the ground, however they have since moved to Memorial Park, Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...

.

On 28 March 2009, The Highlanders (rugby) played a home game at FMG Stadium against the Bulls
Bulls (rugby franchise)
The Bulls, for sponsorship reasons known as the Vodacom Bulls, are a South African rugby union team competing in the Super Rugby competition. They are based in Pretoria and play their home matches at Loftus Versfeld...

. The game attracted a large crowd of over 10,000; one of the Highlanders' biggest of the 2009 season.

It was announced on 20 April that FMG Stadium would host the Wellington Phoenix
Wellington Phoenix FC
Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. The club competes in the Football Federation of Australia A-League. Ricki Herbert has been the coach since the club's inception to the A-League in July 2007. The current club captain is...

 in a home game against Sydney FC
Sydney FC
Sydney FC is a professional football club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and competes in the country's premier football competition, the A-League...

 on 12 December 2009 in the Hyundai A-League
A-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...

.

On 4 September 2011, The Manawatu Turbos hosted The Hawkes Bay Magpies in the ITM Championship Cup Final at FMG Stadium. Crowd attendants was 13,100.

Arena 2

Redeveloped in 2004, Arena 2 is a multipurpose indoor sporting facility, capable of holding exhibitions, conventions and entertainment events. It has been the host of International netball fixtures between New Zealand and Australia in 2004, international motor shows, conferences and is the home ground to the Manawatu Jets
Manawatu Jets
The Manawatu Jets, formerly referred to as the Palmerston North Jets, are a professional basketball team that play in the New Zealand National Basketball League. They play their home games at Arena Manawatu in Palmerston North, New Zealand. The biggest signed import to play for the Jets was Brandon...

 who play in the National Basketball League
National Basketball League (New Zealand)
The National Basketball League, often abbreviated to the NBL, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in New Zealand.There were 10 teams in the 2010 season with teams based in Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Invercargill, Nelson, New Plymouth, North Shore, Palmerston North,...

.

Capacity

FMG stadium has a capacity of 18,000. Meanwhile temporary seating is added sometimes for major events allowing the capacity to reach 21,000.
Minor upgrades are likely take place in early 2011 for the Rugby World Cup games later that year. Capacity will be increased.

History

FMG Stadium was formerly known as Arena 1 and was the venue for the first ever Super 12 rugby match in 1996, which was played by the Wellington Hurricanes and the Auckland Blues.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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