New Plymouth’s Yarrow Stadium set to host first Super Rugby fixture since 2017

After a multi-year rebuilding of New Plymouth’s Yarrow Stadium, the venue will again be hosting top level sport when the Gallagher Chiefs host the Queensland Reds in the Super Rugby Pacific competition at the venue tomorrow night.

The Friday evening fixture at the home of Taranaki Rugby follows the rebuilding of the venue’s east and west stands as part of a $70 million upgrade program.

The investment followed the venue being shut down in 2018 after geotechnical testing on the ground beneath its west stand revealed it was a significant earthquake risk. The east stand had been closed in 2017 as a result of structural instability identified following an earthquake in November 2016.

With the repaired west stand reopened in September 2022, local winter season football and rugby union has been played at the venue since March.

Managed by the New Plymouth District Council (NPDC) on behalf of the Taranaki Regional Council, the venue’s operators have a vision for it to be “the best regional stadium in New Zealand that regularly hosts local, regional, national, and international sports and entertainment events.”

Speaking in February, NPDC Group Manager - Community and Customer Services, Teresa Turner advised "it’s an exciting time being able to bring large events back to Yarrow Stadium and it will be great for Taranaki to be a part of the first of many major events in the venue.

"The venue can currently seat more than 12,000 people and it will be awesome to see the stands filled with local supporters and visitors looking to be a part of a vibrant sporting atmosphere.”

Lighting and Playing Surface
In addition to the structural work, lighting at the Stadium has been replaced with new LED floodlights installed on the existing light towers and grandstand roofs by Arnold Jensen Electrical (AJE), a long-established Christchurch-based contractor, and Signify (formerly Philips Lighting).

The main pitch was also replaced with GrassMaster hybrid turf - a blend of natural turf grown through and among artificial fibre that give the pitch a longer life with shorter recovery times that can triple the amount of weekly playing time compared with conventional turf.

Similar to systems already in use at Auckland’s Eden Park and ASB Stadium, Hamilton’s FMG Stadium, Wellington’s Sky Stadium, Christchurch’s Orangetheory Stadium and Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr stadium, GrassMaster hybrid turf offers a lifespan of up to 15 years and up to 1000 playing hours a year.

Auckland-based FieldTurf was responsible for the installation, supported by design consultancy New Zealand Turf Management Solutions (NZTMS).

Images show the Yarrow Stadium as its rebuild approached completion. Credit: Taranaki Stadium Trust.