Kiwis get first bite at 3N cherry
Fri, 03 Oct 2008 09:11
The Tri-Nations, heading into its 14th year, will kick off in New Zealand next year, following confirmation of the fixtures for the 2009 tournament that were released by the executive of SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby) on Friday.
The tournament will kick off in Auckland on July 18, with the meeting between defending champion All Blacks and the Wallabies and also concludes with a fixture between the same opponents in Wellington nine weeks later, on September 19.
South Africa open their campaign against the All Blacks in Bloemfontein on July 25 – the first time since 1976 that the New Zealand will have played a Test match at the venue.
The Springboks also play New Zealand in Hamilton – the first time the nations will have met at the venue.
Tri-Nations Fixtures 2009:
(all kick-off times are local)
July 18: New Zealand v Australia, Auckland (19.35)
July 25: South Africa v New Zealand, Bloemfontein (15.00)
August 1: South Africa v New Zealand, Durban (15.00)]
August 8: South Africa v Australia, Cape Town (15.00)
August 22: Australia v New Zealand, Sydney (20.05)
August 29: Australia v South Africa, Perth (18.05)
September 5: Australia v South Africa, Brisbane (20.05)
September 12: New Zealand v South Africa, Hamilton (19.35)
September 19: New Zealand v Australia, Wellington (19.35)
