Summer reissue: Crowd entertainment at sports games is a hard task, but please let’s stick to T-shirt cannons and on-field japes instead of watching strangers smooch, eh? First published July 13, 2020. Funny kiss cam footage is a key element of any viral fail video compilation. A “she’s my sister” sign pulled out of a … Read more
A tiny minority of local residents – led by a former PM – are holding back the joy of hundreds of thousands, and millions in economic benefits. On Friday night Eden Park hosted a thrilling seesaw of a T20 between New Zealand and the West Indies. On Saturday the Tasman Mako secured back-to-back Mitre 10 … Read more
A small, loud minority who oppose change at Eden Park has been the voice of our neighbourhood for too long, writes Jeremy Todd. In our neighbourhood we have a sleeping giant, a kaumatua, a global icon and a vital contributor to our local community and our city. I am talking about Eden Park. This week … Read more
Crowd entertainment at sports games is a hard task, but please let’s stick to T-shirt cannons and on-field japes instead of watching strangers smooch, eh? Funny kiss cam footage is a key element of any viral fail video compilation. A “she’s my sister” sign pulled out of a pocket as the camera accidentally pans to … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Repeated blunders shake faith in quarantine system, report finds ministry was unprepared on PPE, and trade negotiations with Britain begin. New measures will be taken around the border quarantine system after a series of idiotic failings. Our live blog has the details, including the news that the health … Read more
In most of the world, the idea of gathering with thousands of strangers in a stadium is completely unthinkable. Many forests have been lost to internal reviews and newspaper columns diagnosing the plight of the Blues, and how to reinvigorate the fan base, but not one of them included “appalling global pandemic”. That 43,000 filled … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Covid-19 officially declared to be a pandemic, abortion clinic Safe Zones stripped from legislation, and Hauraki Gulf under extreme biodiversity pressure. Overnight, the World Health Organisation officially declared that the Covid-19 outbreak has become a pandemic, reports AP News. That’s a term defined as a disease spreading … Read more
Eden Park has been home to Kiwi sports fans for 120 years, but now it’s launched a new effort: to be a leading NZ venue for big music events. The battle between the managers of Eden Park and residents of the leafy streets surrounding the stadium is about to resume, with a resource consent application … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Andrew Little indicates justice system changes after reports, Auckland buses back on the road, and National release health proposals. Two significant reports for the justice sector were released yesterday. The first was Turuki! Turuki! Transforming our Criminal Justice System from the Chester Borrows-led Safe and Effective Justice Advisory Group. … Read more
In this bonus episode of The Offspin podcast, Simon Day takes a walk around Eden Park with one of the most unlikely legends of New Zealand sporting history. He probably shouldn’t have even been there. In the year before the 2015 Cricket World Cup, South African born Grant Elliott was a relatively obscure figure, in … Read more
John Tamihere has launched his first policy slate ahead of the Auckland mayoralty election, making a pitch for the conservative vote. Alex Braae was at Chamberlain Park golf course for the launch. John Tamihere has picked a side on some of Auckland’s most contentious issues around parks and facilities. Depending on your point of view, … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Christchurch attacks become political footballs overseas, major tech companies like Facebook under pressure, and concerns raised over continued spread of measles. The Christchurch mosque attack has become a political football in the upcoming Turkish election campaign. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has made inflammatory comments and played footage … Read more
The Wellington Phoenix managed to get a club record crowd when they last played in Auckland. Is the A-League missing out on a massive potential market? “Stand up if you love the Kingz, stand up if you love the Kingz…” rung out around Mt Smart Stadium for the very last time on Sunday 29 February … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: No good solutions for financial crisis at Eden Park, sharp response to NZ-China tourism stories, and Devonport fruit store owner faces heavy fruit fly costs. The biggest stadium in New Zealand is under severe, ruinous financial pressure. The full extent of Eden Park’s strife has been revealed, … Read more
For once, the Wellington Phoenix are actually cool. Alex Braae was part of a record crowd that went along to see them in Auckland last night. “Have the Phoenix always passed it around this much?” I was asking my mate, who was as bewildered as I was about what was playing out in front of … Read more
It may lack the sex appeal of a brand new city-centre build, but Mt Smart is Auckland’s rock star venue in waiting, writes Mark Thomas. An “orphan” is how the office of the auditor general described Auckland’s Mt Smart stadium in its critical review of a failed David Beckham-starred event in late 2008. A decade … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Police discuss logistics of legal weed, amount beneficiaries owe to MSD revealed, and a thorough rundown on why houses are unaffordable. With a reeferendum coming by 2020 at the latest, the police are starting to give serious thought to how they will go about their jobs … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: PM Jacinda Ardern touches down for UN meetings, gloom falls over mining, and that idiotic strawberry needle trend has made it to New Zealand. Jacinda Ardern has arrived in the USA for her first visit as Prime Minister, and there’s no shortage of issues on the … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Government gets timely economic figures boost, Whaitiri’s ministerial career is over, and tax working group hedges bets on capital gains. Sometimes the news just comes at you fast, and yesterday was one of those days. For the government, some of it was the best of times, and … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: A new medical cannabis bill has hit the member’s ballot, abortion on the agenda on Parliament’s forecourt, and justice minister Andrew Little’s message to Australia. There will be competing bills on medical marijuana, after National MP Dr Shane Reti released his own in opposition to the … Read more
It might have Helen Clark up in arms, but Eden Park neighbour Toby Morris can’t see the problem with live music at the stadium. Rising above the hedges and wooden villas it’s impossible to miss: a giant hulking pile of steel and bulbous clear plastic, like a space craft crashed into leafy Auckland suburbia. It’s … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Renewed call for a Māori seats referendum, Russel McVeagh report released, and the stoush between two leading NZers over a charity concert escalates. Acting PM Winston Peters has renewed and updated his call for a two part referendum on the Māori electorates. Radio NZ reports his comments made … Read more
Urban renewal, affordable housing and improved transport – all from a sporting event. Mark Thomas says rather than being a financial dog, the Commonwealth Games would give Auckland’s infrastructure planning some impetus. A government a little larger than New Zealand’s, with a capital city a bit smaller than Auckland, has just completed a six year … Read more
In 2015 Simon Day travelled to Adelaide to observe the inaugural day/night test. Yesterday, he caught the train to Eden Park to see the first pink ball test match played in New Zealand. I feel sorry for Neil Wagner. This summer the test specialist only gets to play four games for his country. That’s eight innings … Read more
Today New Zealand’s first day/night test match starts at Eden Park – part of a scheme to cure test cricket of its apparent terminal illness. Simon Day argues test cricket will never die. I’ve watched test cricket lie lifeless on its deathbed, just a few hundred people gathered at a rugby field to mark its … Read more