AusLeisure

Christchurch City Council's Hagley Oval turf management team has been recognised for its outstanding work preparing Hagley Oval for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.

The team, led by Hagley Oval head grounds person Rupert Bool, were presented with the highly-esteemed award 'International Pitch of the Year' at the New Zealand Cricket awards dinner in Auckland on Wednesday (1st April 2015).

Christchurch City Council Recreation and Sports Unit Manager John Filsell says this is the first time the accolade has been awarded to a brand new ground and highlights what an achievement this is for the team.

Filsell explained “the commitment and dedication of Rupert and the Hagley Oval turf management team over the past three years have been truly inspiring.

“The improvements to Hagley Oval make it unrecognisable today compared to three years ago and this is down to the countless hours of hard graft put in by Rupert and the team.”

Parks Unit Manager Andrew Rutledge says it's a fitting reward for the Hagley Oval turf management team and Hagley Oval is a great legacy for the people of Christchurch.

Rutledge added “the team has done Christchurch proud delivering a first-class international standard cricket pitch for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, but just as important, this pitch is here to be enjoyed by all Hagley Park visitors and cricketers of all grades and ages for years to come.”

Hagley Oval staged the prestigious opening game of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 between New Zealand and Sri Lanka which was broadcast live to a global audience of over 1.2 billion. It also hosted two other pool matches featuring Pakistan, The West Indies, England and Scotland.

13th February 2015 - 2015 CRICKET WORLD CUP OFF TO A GREAT START

3rd September 2014 - NEW HAGLEY OVAL PAVILION TAKES SHAPE

Support our industry news service
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

As an independent publisher, we need reader support for our industry news gathering so ask that - if you don't already do so - you back us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine and/or our online news.