Highlanders: NZ's best supported team
NEWS: The 2018 attendance figures revealed the Highlanders’ had the highest average home crowd across all five Super Rugby franchises.
On average 15 667 people attended Highlanders’ home games during the season; a significant statistic given the southernmost franchise draws from the smallest population of all five teams.
“To achieve the highest national average attendance for home games is a huge endorsement of the number of passionate fans we have in our region.
It’s often said by the players and team management how much they appreciate our home fans and we certainly believe they are the number 1 in the country and when we see statistics like this it really just confirms it for us.” said Highlanders CEO Roger Clark.
“We certainly put a lot of emphasis on the event experience and we believe the whole entertainment package is the best of its kind at Super Rugby level and of course the Zoo is a very unique experience in NZ rugby terms.
“Of course, we are extremely fortunate to have a covered stadium as it tends to produce great sporting spectacles. The games are always played in guaranteed perfect conditions, so we get to witness the full range of skills the players’ possess and again the stats show the ball is in play on average for more minutes per game at Forsyth Barr Stadium than other venues, which is great for the fans.”
The Highlanders home programme in 2019 has seven games at Forsyth Barr Stadium and one at Rugby Park Stadium in Invercargill. The first regular season home game will be against the Brad Thorn coached Queensland Reds in Dunedin on Friday, February 22 and will conclude against the Waratahs on Friday, June 14 in Invercargill.
Highlanders home fixtures:
Friday, February 22: v Reds, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Saturday, March 16: v Crusaders, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Friday, April 5: v Hurricanes, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Saturday, April 20: v Blues, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Saturday, May 4: v Chiefs, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Saturday, May 11 v Jaguares, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Friday, June 7: v Bulls, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Friday, June 14: v Waratahs, Rugby Park Stadium, Invercargill
