Winter of discontent
On and off the field Taranaki Rugby has had a year to forget. Helen Harvey reports.
Annus horribilis is Latin for a horrible year.
The Queen had one in 1992. Taranaki Rugby had one this year. Taranaki Rugby boss Jeremy Parkinson prefers the term ‘perfect storm’, while Supporters Club president Grant Hassall opted for ‘‘the winter of discontent’’. Either way, everyone is glad it’s over.
But the financial fallout from 2018 could last for years.
Issues with Yarrow Stadium, the Taranaki Bulls’ home ground, meant fans were relegated to the ends of the park. Not happy, they stayed away in droves, pushing gate takings right down. And the bill for injured players alone topped $250,000.
Any other year the business would have sustained that, Taranaki Rugby Football Union (TRFU) boss Jeremy Parkinson said.
‘‘The province has worked hard over 15 years to build $500,000 in reserves. But what we’ve faced is the perfect storm – in income and then expenses and, yeah, we’re in a very challenging situation.’’
Taranaki Rugby is a $4.5 to $5 million business, Parkinson says.
‘‘This year commercial income levels at the stadium are down 20 per cent, which is a huge adjustment in a very short space of time.’’
Season members have dropped from 1600 in 2017 to less than 700. The message is loud and clear. People do not want to watch rugby from the ends of the ground, he says.
‘‘They want to watch it from the traditional angles from the sideline and they want to be able to see all of the action and they want to be close to it.’’
In 2017, when the Bulls defended the Ranfurly Shield against Manawatu, 7500 walked through the gate putting $68,000 into TRFU’s coffers.
But for the 2018 shield game against the same opposition only 3500 fans turned out, sinking the takings to $18,000 – a drop of $50,000 on one game.
And no one knows if the stadium situation will improve next year.
Asked if at least one stand would be open for next year’s Mitre 10 cup, Taranaki Stadium Trust trustee Mike Nield says they don’t know.
Investigations into repair/ reinstatement options are ongoing, he says.
The problems with the stadium first emerged in December 2017 with the news the TSB Stand needed earthquake strengthening, so it was thought there would be no access to just the main stand during the 2018 season. But then in June a geotechnical report revealed the ground stability of the bank beneath the West Stand was a significant earthquake risk, so the whole stadium was closed to the public.
The TRFU paid for $100,000 for marquees and a custom-built cover for 2300 seats on the southern terrace, but even that didn’t go to plan. Delays around shipping the cover because of typhoons, coupled with problems getting it signed off, meant it didn’t go in until towards the end of September.
Parkinson was diplomatic when asked if the TRFU was going to try to get compensation from the Taranaki Regional and New Plymouth District Councils that own and run the facility, saying the councils were ‘‘sympathetic to the situation.’’
‘‘We thank the council for providing a facility,’’ he said.
For next year the union is working on a plan for sideline seating, Parkinson says. ‘‘What we will try to do is create a little boutique venue inside the field at Yarrow Stadium, so that we can bring everyone close so they can watch team perform.’’
And hopefully next year the team will perform, because the horrible year wasn’t confined to the sidelines. After finishing in the top four for the last four seasons, the amber-and-blacks managed two wins from 10 games and were relegated to the second tier Championship for the first time.
First, inspirational captain Angus Ta’avao was lost to the All Blacks. Then the team was ravaged by injury and used 39 players over the season, blowing out the player budget. Five Super Rugby players never set foot on the park, but the TRFU still had to pay them.
And the lower grade players who were brought in as injury cover didn’t come free. If a player is assembled for more than three days they are paid $1250 a week as part of the New Zealand Players’ Association collective employment agreement.
The union is undertaking a comprehensive review of the season, which involves everyone from players to management. And the coach.
Willie Rickards has had a baptism of fire into his first season as head coach.
The year 2050 may be more than 30 years away, but unless action is taken now, New Plymouth’s city centre may struggle to get there in good health.
Councillors Shaun Biesiek and Alan Melody are looking to the future and say they don’t want to see New Plymouth following the lead of Hamilton, which needed millions of dollars to turn around its city centre after the out-of-town Base Mall opened.
In a nutshell, they want more people in a busy central business district (CBD), Biesiek explained.
‘‘It’s actually the time to do it now,’’ he said. ‘‘If we look at Hamilton, Hamilton’s a classic example. Last time I was there, probably two years ago, there was nothing there.
‘‘They’ve had to spend millions on this, buying buildings and redesigning areas and turning their city round.
‘‘From what I’ve heard they’ve done a nice job, but we don’t want to get to that point.’’
Biesiek and Melody lead ‘CBD 2050’, a partnership between the district council and businesses, retailers, developers and building owners.
They have invited all of those stakeholders to a workshop on October 30 at which they will discuss what New Plymouth needs to thrive over the coming decades.
Proposals could include turning the often-empty second floors of buildings into accommodation, which would bring more people into the central streets, or more green spaces where people could sit on beanbags and have their coffees.
The council’s 10-year District Plan, which controls the way land is used and developed, would stop the ‘crawl’ towards Bell Block and maintain the CBD, Biesiek said. The plan is set to be officially signed off early next year.
He said this was why planners were putting in development applications, such as for the former Ravensdown site, now.
Under the plan the Valley wouldn’t be able to extend and new business and retail development outside the CBD would struggle to get consent.
‘‘They’ve ring-fenced it and said ‘that’s the CBD’. Anything outside of that can’t happen so we don’t get that constant creep. It’s about bringing things back in.’’
A percentage of parking fees, including Saturday fees of $310,000 a year, will help fund the CBD 2050 plan.
It will continue the work of the See It In the City project, which brought pop-up events, such as the ice-skating rink, to the central city and allowed the business owners to capitalise on the extra people.
Similar discussions will also be held for Waitara, Oakura and Inglewood, he said.
They plan to video the October 30 meeting, and possibly stream it live over the internet.