Rite of passage

I can't believe it has taken this long! Our girls have never been to watch the All Blacks play a test match...what is WRONG with their parents...LOL.

However, we remedied that fact last night by taking them to see the All Blacks take on Argentina at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton.

We got ourselves ready...faces painted and (mostly) 'all black' clothing on and off we set. A quick stop in Cambridge for an early dinner and then we were in Hamilton.

 

We found a car park pretty close to the stadium and joined the crowds heading to the stadium.

 

 

 

 As we got to the entrance of the stadium we were delighted to be entertained by South American dancers putting on a display for the crowds. Beautiful to watch and very professional!

 

 

We were a bit early! But the stands filled up quickly and there was always something to watch. And I need to thank adidas NZ for the tickets - a very generous gesture from a great company!

 

 

  We saw Moorehouse perform (finalists in X Factor NZ) and also Jackie Thomas (the winner). There was a display by a dancing studio and  also a giant rugby shirt that moved around the field!

 

Of course, no test match is started until the haka is performed-even more spine-tingling to watch in person. Then it was game on! To be honest, it wasn't the most exciting game to watch but the girls seemed to enjoy it-the atmosphere was great .Unfortunately, Ritchie McCaw had to leave the field due to a knee injury that looked mighty painful :(

 

 

 We saw passionate Puma fans urging their team on but to no avail. They really get into their supporting-they were continually singing/chanting and cheering for their team. This lot even had drums!!

 

 

Then it was all over and time to leave...well, not quite! This was the view from above the ground floor so we sat it out and talked to friends we saw. Watching the crowds was almost as entertaining as the game! We even spotted more people we knew and saw some interesting costumes.

Finally, the crush cleared and we were on our way home. It was after 10pm by the time we left Hamilton so two VERY tired girls fell asleep in the car on the way home.

What a great night out :)