Alysha Burgess and Reagan Redford, with their children Kenzie Redford, 5, Ellie MacKenzie, 12, and Peyton Redford, 7, can't wait for the Cup to begin. Photo / Tania Whyte
The flags and banners are up, tickets are selling fast and the buses are here. A world-class event begins this weekend as the Women's Rugby World Cup 2021 kicks off in little old Whangārei.
It's been 11 years since the last world-class rugby event of a global scale took place in Northland, with the 2011 Rugby World Cup drawing crowds to the area as we painted the town red. (This year's event is still branded as the 2021 Cup, despite it being delayed a year due to Covid-19.)
Te Rarawa Women's Rugby Club coach Te Kura Ngata-Aerengamate said the much-anticipated event reminds her of why the sport is important to her.
"I started playing with my cousins at five years old," she said. Twenty-six years later and she's still involved in the sport.
"The reason I keep going back is the relationships and friendships that you form, the fun that rugby brings and the opportunities that I've received from rugby."
Ngata-Aerengamate, a front-rower who played for New Zealand for seven years, said furthering her involvement in rugby by stepping into a coaching role has enabled her to "offer those opportunities to others" and "allow them to receive what I have".
Te Rarawa is the home club for four Black Ferns players, including Krystal Murray, who is part of this year's World Cup squad.
"What we've learned through being in that high performance [environment] is that we can bring it to the community," said Ngata-Aerengamate.
She believes young girls can be inspired to join the sport by seeing the Black Ferns in the media.
"They'll be looking at it and aspiring to be a part of it," she said.
"I think we should support our women because women's rugby and girls' rugby is the fastest growing sport in Aotearoa at the moment."
For Northland Rugby chief executive Cameron Bell, the event is a unique opportunity to boost the numbers of young players in the region.
He hopes that families get to see "a real exposure of skills and passion" on the field.
"The more youths that can come, the more rugby pathways we can create," Bell said.
"They can replicate what the likes of local Black Ferns players Krystal Murray and Portia Woodman have achieved.
"The calibre of athletes taking part is really good. Players from some of the countries are professionals so you get to see high-quality athletes and skills on display.
Bell's personal plea to the public: "Please bring your kids along to see what they can aspire for, even if they can play for the Kauri that would be massive."
Whangārei mum Alysha Burgess, partner Reagan Redford and their four daughters Ellie MacKenzie, 12, Indy MacKenzie, 8, Peyton Redford, 7 and Kenzie Redford, 5, can't wait to watch the triple header tomorrow and the quarter-finals.
"Our girls have been lucky enough to have the opportunity to play rugby at school which has got them interested in the sport, Ellie has even attended a few tournaments with school," Burgess said.
"Having a family of girls, it was an automatic decision to get tickets to the RWC as we knew they would want to be in on the action.
"It has been such a highly talked-about event at school and more so now with the excitement of Ladi6, it is wonderful hearing so many Northlanders talking about going to the games and supporting all the teams."
As Northlanders, Burgess said they were naturally really looking forward to seeing Northland-born Black Ferns stars Woodman and Murray on the field.
This year's Women's Rugby World Cup marks the first time the event has been held in the southern hemisphere.
Research commissioned by Sport New Zealand showed that the awareness of female athletes is much lower than for their male counterparts, specifically in team sports.
Just one in three New Zealanders regularly watches women's sport, with more than 53 per cent not expecting to engage in women's sports within the next year.
As a result, Sports NZ last month launched a campaign, "It's Time", in a bid to increase the visibility of women's sports.
"Greater awareness and engagement in women's sport in Aotearoa now will mean this generation of female players and athletes can, and should be, an inspiration to the next," Sport NZ chief executive Raelene Castle said.
Businesses throughout the Whangārei town centre are showing their support and preparing for what could be a busy weekend and month as the matches occur.
Some locals are disappointed at the lack of decoration and enthusiasm, and they're encouraging people to get more involved.
Megan Johnston at Shirley's Photo Centre said this year's Rugby World Cup is a "big event for Northland".
"I'm putting photos up to show our girls they're valid," she said.
"I'm going to all the games. We've got to encourage women to participate in these events because if we don't, nobody will go to them."
Duty manager at Dicken's Inn, Chanelle Jones, said the event is something to be enjoyed by everyone.
"Covid ruined everyone's social life. People have missed out on so much, so it's a good excuse to get together," Jones said.
The restaurant and bar will be decorating the area with flags and banners, encouraging locals to come along and watch the games if they don't have tickets. Three TVs are set up in the restaurant and bar, meaning fans won't miss out on any of the action.
She said it's a good opportunity for the elderly to participate, who often don't know how to access live sports.
Although she won't be attending any matches due to working, Jones said the environment in her workplace makes up for "missing out".
"I really like to be in the environment of watching other people enjoying it. I get more enjoyment out of seeing the customers' faces when they're passionate about it."
"You hear the screams and you know someone's done something right," she reflected.
A mother of two, Jones said the event is "empowering for the younger generation" showing that "rugby isn't just for males".
Six teams will be in Whangārei this weekend as the World Cup kicks off. That's around 250 visitors to the area to cater for - factor in followers of the sport, and it's obvious that Whangārei is going to see an increase in visitors.
Whangārei Airport manager Mike Chub said he's seen an increase in the month of September with flights, and he puts it down to the World Cup.
"Mondays and Tuesdays we got used to having a missing flight but suddenly they're on," he said.
Covid restrictions have seen a decrease in flights, but the month of September saw a record high of over 10,500 people flying in and out of Whangārei.
The Northland Events Centre will host three matches tomorrow ; the USA versus Italy, Japan vs Canada, and Wales vs Scotland.