The walking dead have joined specialist Ebola biohazard teams, superheroes and chain gangs as crowds arrive for the Wellington Sevens. The two-day tournament started at midday and fans were enjoying the colour and quirkiness on display, although crowd numbers were down on last year's event.
The Wellington Sevens boss is confident the Auckland Nines event last weekend hasn't taken a big chunk out of ticket sales for the capital's tournament.
Sevens organisers were happy with crowd behaviour today but it was a different story for crowd numbers. Just over 20,000 tickets have sold for the 34,500 seat Westpac Stadium.
Steve Dunbar, sevens general manager, said 500-600 tickets were sold today and a similar number was expected to go tomorrow.
Mr Dunbar said the sevens had given Wellington 15 years of "colour, vibrancy and success" and he was confident about the tournament's future.
He said research showed 70 per cent of sevens spectators were from the greater Wellington region so last weekend's Rugby League Nines was not a major factor on ticket sales.
"There's room for both events," Mr Dunbar said. "There may be some [people] who have been to the sevens several times and might go and try the nines, or vice versa."
Meanwhile, he said sevens organisers, caterers, security staff and police had been effective in preventing antisocial crowd behaviour.
Police Inspector Terry Van Dillen said supporters were enjoying themselves and behaving well.
"The way it's going at the moment is fantastic," he said. "A lot of people are having fun. We'll work through the venue ... then we'll move our resources into town and see how the town goes."
Revellers were expected to head to Wellington nightlife hub Courtenay Place to party both nights. The last match today, between New Zealand and England, wraps up about 9.20pm.
People caught smuggling in booze were denied entry and forfeited their two-day tickets. However, some were still trying, using methods arguably as creative as supporters applied to costumes.
Mr Van Dillen said one man was dressed up with bullets on a belt.
"They were all full of alcohol. I think they've taken them off him.
"So they come out with some good ideas on how to get [alcohol] in but I think the security and the police at the front are doing a good job."
At 4.30pm, Mr Van Dillen said there had been about 30 evictions and just one arrest, on the concourse outside the stadium for a "minor disorder" issue.
Shortly afterwards, a young man in a prisoner's costume and two dressed as surgeons were seen in handcuffs outside the stadium entrance.
Westpac Stadium chief executive Shane Harmon said more families were at the event than in previous years.
"This year's always a transition year and I think sevens is going to come back bigger and better next year in the lead-in to the Olympics."
He said organisers would meet after the tournament to figure out how to sell more tickets next year.
Colour and quirkiness galore
The walking dead have joined specialist Ebola biohazard teams, superheroes and chain gangs as crowds arrive for the Wellington Sevens.
The two-day tournament started at midday and fans were enjoying the colour and quirkiness on display, although crowd numbers were down on last year's event.
The Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tube Men were among those turning heads.
Image 1 of 13: The Kowhai Flowers, a group from Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland, arriving for day one of round 4 of the HSBCSevens World Series at Westpac Stadium in Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell
James Heal and Jess Howie, both 21, flew up from Christchurch with Rickie Nelson, 23 and Lucia Caves, aged 20. Their lime-green, pink, yellow and orange outfits were Mr Heal's idea.
The friends bought fluorescent fabric from a Spotlight store and assembled their outfits in a couple of hours. In the gusty Wellington wind, the group seemed close to getting airborne, their bright appendages waving about.
Mr Nelson was at the sevens in 2013 but his friends were attending the tournament for the first time. "Last time I found everyone just got along really well," Mr Nelson said.
Photo / Mark Mitchell
The group joked that the high winds made for "good air-conditioning" on this summer's day.
Helena and Murray Griffith travelled down from Whakatane for the tournament.
Mrs Griffith, wearing prison overalls with arrows, said the "atmosphere, the drinking and the rugby" were the best things about the sevens.
The couple had mixed views on how well the sevens was marketing itself and regulations in place to tackle antisocial behaviour.
"They've clamped down and I think it's making you feel a bit safer," Mrs Griffith said.
The couple said many people in the provinces often spoke of coming to the sevens but rarely made the effort.
"They've got to actively advertise it more in the provinces," Mr Griffith said.
Photo / Mark Mitchell
He said the NRL Auckland Nines, held only last weekend, had taken a chunk of fans away from the sevens.
Other groups entering Westpac Stadium today dressed up as firefighters, the Mario Brothers, Scottish Highlanders, ninjas, the Flintstones, and even a Billy T James, with his famed yellow towel and bushy moustache.
A few groups were enjoying a few drinks in pubs closest to the stadium before walking to the tournament. At Trax Cafe and Bar, about 1km from the stadium, a group of men dressed as surgeons, with scrubs and scrub caps, smoked in the garden bar.
