Wait for new stadium goes on years after use-by date

Seven years after Christchurch’s deadly earthquake, the Crusaders are preparing to defend their Super Rugby title at a temporary stadium built to last only five years.

In those awful days following the February 22, 2011 earthquake that claimed the lives of 185 people, scaffolding, seats and pre-fab changing rooms went up at the former Rugby League Park in Addington in fewer than 100 days. The quick refresh of the stadium was one of the success stories of the region — a shining light among the gloom and uncertainty.

But now the stadium has outlived its use-by date and the Crusaders and most rugby supporters in the city would dearly love some clarity as to when a new stadium — effectively an events centre — will be built.

The city which missed out on the Rugby World Cup in 2011 will not host an All Blacks test this year — that honour has effectively gone to Nelson, which will host Argentina in September — because AMI Stadium’s 18,000-seat capacity simply isn’t enough.

Last year, the city hosted a match between the Crusaders and British and Irish Lions but not a test against the tourists. One of the trademarks of the stadium is its coldness and inhospitable nature on typical Christchurch midwinter evenings.

There is some hope on the horizon. Megan Woods, the Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration, has said she hopes to make a decision on the stadium at the end of April.

“We would like to have some certainty then,” Crusaders chief executive Hamish Riach told the

Riach has always had to tread a fine line in terms of appearing to be too demanding while the city’s residents battled broken houses and insurance issues, but most there agree it’s time for some progress on an important piece of infrastructure.

Lancaster Park, the former AMI Stadium, on the eastern edge of the central business district, is earmarked for demolition following a protracted insurance dispute, something familiar to many Cantabrians.

A large central city site of seven hectares has been earmarked for a sports stadium and Riach and the Crusaders would dearly love one a football-specific pitch with a retractable roof. Anyone who has sat in a wintry southerly blast at their existing home would concur.

Riach said there are wider issues — it’s not just about rugby.

“Every weekend it seems that people are heading away from the city to attend events that Christchurch is missing out on. It is frustrating. It’s not only rugby, it’s wider than that.

“We live in New Zealand’s second largest city and are missing out on all kinds of entertainment.”

The Crusaders, who won their eighth title when beating the Lions in Johannesburg last August, play the Chiefs in their first game of the season at AMI Stadium today.

Asked how long he thought construction of a new stadium might take once it gets the green light, Riach said: “That’s the great unknown.”