Silence of the vuvuzelas - trumpets banned from Steamers games

For sale - 900 blue-and-gold vuvuzelas. Brand new, available immediately ... just don't use them at a rugby ground near you.
After an outcry from fans, the Bay of Plenty Rugby Union (BOPRU) has bowed to the harsh bray of the vuvuzela, with the noisy plastic trumpets not welcome at home games this season.
BOPRU chief executive Jeremy Curragh said they'd sold around 100 of the 1000 they'd ordered in January but were now offering refunds and had taken the rest off the shelf.
Saturday's first ITM Cup home game of the season against Auckland at Baypark in Tauranga would hopefully be a vuvuzela-free zone.
"When we first ordered them, we never dreamed they'd cause as much controversy as they did at the football World Cup, and we've listened to the public feedback since we started selling them here," Curragh said.
"It's just commonsense for us to stop selling them - we want our home games to be an enjoyable experience for all our supporters and certainly don't want anyone coming away annoyed."
The union introduced the 2ft long noise-maker at the pre-season rugby match against Taranaki in Whakatane. Though popular with young fans at the game, the public reaction was swift and vehement.
Vuvuzelas have already been banned from Wimbledon, the Melbourne Cricket Ground and various Rugby World Cup venues, including Eden Park and Wellington's Westpac Stadium.
At 127 decibels, the instrument is louder than a drum's 122 decibels or a referee's whistle at 121.8 decibels.
That's nothing, says rogue Steamers mascot Terry Leaming, aka Hori BOP. "I don't know why they'd want to bring in an exceptionally loud, windy and annoying instrument when they've already got me," Leaming laughed.
"I reckon they looked at 1000 vuvuzelas up against Hori BOP and went with the lesser of two evils, though it must have been a close-run thing.
"One thing's for sure though - if Auckland think they're going to slip quietly on to Baypark and slip out with a win, they've got another thing coming. There's going to be some noise all right and they'll be rolling back to Jafa-land with their tails between their legs."
Curragh, meanwhile, admits the publicity around the vuvuzela has more than made up for the financial hit, though there's still the small issue of what to do with several boxes of the trumpets. "If anyone has a good idea of what to do with them, we'd love to hear it," he said.
Tickets for the Auckland match are on sale through the union's office, website or Hunting and Fishing outlets.