Styles forces Warriors to move out
Move over Warriors, Harry Styles is in town.
The Warriors will have to relocate their first NRL game of the 2023 season to Wellington on March 3 because their home ground in Auckland has been booked to stage a Harry Styles concert on March 7.
The Warriors announced on their social media account yesterday that Mt Smart Stadium was not available for the opening round clash against the Newcastle Knights, and they would play it at Sky Stadium in Wellington instead.
Despite the Warriors playing their game four days before the Styles concert, they stated they couldn’t play at Mt Smart because it was being prepared for the popular musician’s performance.
‘‘Mt Smart is gearing up for Harry Styles, so we’re taking our season-opener to @skystadiumnz in Te Whanganui-a-Tara,’’ the Warriors stated on Twitter.
The news is unlikely to please some Warriors fans, given their team has not had a full season at home since 2019 because of the border restrictions that were in place due to the pandemic.
Although the Warriors returned to Auckland towards the end of last season, they were forced to play the majority of their ‘‘home’’ games in Australia since 2020.
After hosting the Knights in Wellington the Warriors will travel to Sydney to take on the Roosters at Allianz Stadium – their first visit to the venue – before heading further north to Townsville to clash with the Cowboys.
This means the Warriors won’t play at Mt Smart until the round-four game against the Bulldogs at Mt Smart Stadium on March 26.