Editorial: Clash may be a sign of the times

Rugby World Cup organisers can't be too happy about the football drawcard being played over the hill in Tauranga the same day as the Ireland versus Russia match at Rotorua's International Stadium.

The popular Wellington Phoenix are set to play at Tauranga's Baypark Stadium on the afternoon of September 25 and that evening Rotorua hosts its final World Cup pool game.

It could be a real toss-up for many Rotorua sports fans.

The World Cup is, well, the World Cup but Phoenix are hugely popular.

Our initial reaction would be to say that this clash of events really shouldn't have happened but the organisers of both say it was inevitable, and that they always consider what else is happening before finalising event dates.

Either way, it's going to be a bit of a shame for both games as both deserve big audiences.

Being only a few hours apart, however, people are going to have to make a choice: support the local event or head out of town.

It seems that sometimes these clashes are unavoidable.

This instance aside, these sorts of clashes are becoming more common and one of the reasons for that is a positive thing, it means there are more events being held in Rotorua and surrounding centres and it is inevitable that sometimes there will be clashes.

Events often provide economic benefits for the centre in which they are held and the Central North Island prides itself as a top location to hold events and host participants.

Event organisers should be making sure they do everything possible not to detract from their own event or someone else's.

Having two big events on the same day or same weekend usually means both miss out to some degree and the wealth should be shared, for the benefit of the wider region.