"Most people in Hawke's Bay, outside the hockey community, probably don't realise how big this is and what a coup it is," said Bruce Mactaggart, the executive chairman of NZ Entertainment and Events Corporation.
It is the brainchild of Mactaggart who broached the tourney idea with Netball NZ CEO Hilary Poole, who was familiar with hockey at a national level, after the international body, FIH, approached Hockey New Zealand to host the world championship when India lost its rights in September 2011.
"Hilary approached me and it was do-able. The event was enormously successful for Hockey NZ and FIH."
The quality of facilities and TV audience were pivotal, striking a chord with FIH.
"With the men competing in Ipoh, Malaysia, each year [Azlan Shah Cup] there was no equivalent for women at that time anywhere in the world."
The FIH proposition found traction with the Hawke's Bay Regional Council, Hastings District Council and regional sports park trust, who trumped up with funds.
"I was at the regional sports park watching athletics one day when I was speaking to [Hastings mayor] Lawrence Yule and asked him if he'd consider hockey," he revealed, not long after an article in Hawke's Bay Today caught his eye on the province losing the velodrome bid to Waikato.
He said his wife, the late Robyn Mactaggart who succumbed to cancer in late-2012, was passionate about hockey.
She coached Bay school and development teams and the couple, who arrived from Australia five years ago, were instrumental in the "micro sponsorship" of the Black Sticks men and women's teams to the London Olympics.
Bruce Mactaggart, who was on the Australian Open tennis organising committee in Melbourne for nine years, said the facilities at the regional sports park made it possible to turn the hockey turf into New Zealand's first tier-one venue.
"It has dressing rooms, drug-testing facilities and media centres all helped save millions of dollars into what was relatively minor works to meet tier-one requirements."
Mactaggart said it was a great opportunity for players to savour elite competition within the country and overseas as well as watch world-class teams compete.
World-class tournament officials and referees will be in control, including three whistle blowers who have officiated at the London Olympics - Amy Hassick-Baxter (USA), Michelle Joubert (South Africa) and Miao Lin (China).
It is envisaged the international segment will evolve into an eight-nation one next year. Requests are coming in from schools, including Australia, and reps teams. An independent study on the festival's economic impact had revealed international teams had already booked thousands of motel and hotel room nights, especially in Napier.
The festival has enticed men and women's teams such as Australian Country, NZ Seniors, NZ Masters (35-plus,) NZ Maori and NZ Indian to compete against Bay rep sides. These teams will play in Hastings as well as the Park Island turfs in Napier.
The Bay Invitation Women's captain, Erin Weber, who has three national titles with North Harbour after playing for five years in Auckland, said it was exciting to know the Bay would become a world-class venue.
"It's great that top teams can come to experience the Bay, too," the 26-year-old former Napier Girls' High School pupil said.
The midfielder/striker, who feels she might be getting a little old for a Black Sticks berth but "you can never say never", said it would be great to see the venues packed when the tourney begins.
Weber said it would be a great treat to watch international teams compete here.
"You don't often get teams such as Argentina and Australia come here so hopefully we'll fill the stadiums."
Gisborne Girls High School, Havelock North High School, Iona College, Napier Girls High School, Taradale High School and Woodford House will play round-robin games leading into and during the international tournament in an invitational under-17 secondary schoolgirls' tournament.
Finals matches for all three competitions will be held at the Unison Hockey Stadium across the final weekend of the festival.
