I Could Not Resist

This evening a message popped up on our community chat group and I could not resist and bought the tickets. This was just too tempting and I have not been to an international rugby test match for a good few years now. This was just too tempting to ignore even if it is only against the Aussies who are no longer seen as the enemy or threat they once were.

Maybe famous last words or possibly tempting fate being too over confident we shall see how this one plays out. The Aussie sports teams are normally very decent and the hope is their rugby can bounce back sooner than later. World rugby needs the the Southern Hemisphere super powers to keep the cocky Northern Hemisphere teams in check and to keep locking out the World Cups.

The match is a sell out at the Ellis Park Stadium which is in the center of Johannesburg and not such a great area. The last time I watched a game here was the 1992 Currie Cup Final between Transvaal and Natal with Natal winning 14-13. At the time I was on a two week course and decided not to fly home for the weekend and to stay and watch the rugby. In those days we were given free tickets due to being sponsors of the Winfield Rugby Super 12 event.

With Ellis Park being in such a bad area I will be taking a taxi to and from the stadium and will not be bar crawling outside. There are two tickets so I will drag my son along for the day and will be in the stadium around lunch time with the kick off at 17.10 local time.

If you thought I was over exaggerating here is the AI overview from Google advising you to organise transport in and out of the stadium. Johannesburg is a no go zone and I very rarely visit and would only go if armed. I would put Johannesburg city center on par with Maputo in Mozambique for being a sketchy place to walk.

Ellis Park Stadium is located in Doornfontein, a suburb of Johannesburg that has a reputation for crime. While the stadium itself is generally considered safe, with security measures in place, the surrounding area can be problematic, and crime is a concern for those attending events. Many people recommend using park-and-ride services or other organized transport to get to and from the stadium, rather than relying on personal vehicles or walking.

source

The World Cup Football stadium known as the Calibash normally hosts the overseas music bands and plenty of people have returned to their cars to find them missing. Perfect for thieves knowing you are gone for a few hours and they can help themselves. Policing is non existent and you are on your own so you have to taxi in and out to any event such as these.

It was just the other week I was looking at the UK Autumn Internationals for the dates of the rugby test matches at Twickenham between England and South Africa and possibly New Zealand. To my surprise South Africa skips England this year and has saved me some money as the tickets are not cheap with one expecting to pay £160 each. By the time you have taken the train and had a few drinks and a meal you are looking at a good £500 for the day out for 2 people.

The tickets I have for this weekend in comparison cost £80 for two so 25% of what it costs for Twickenham. Games in England have always been pricey and can recall paying £100 back in the 1990's for normal internationals and not the added on Word Cup pricing. Then I was offered tickets for any of the internationals due to being a referee and was one of the perks sitting with the dignitaries on the cushioned seats.

With my Saturday now planned I have something to look forward to and instead of watching the game on television I will enjoy the atmosphere of the game as you cannot get that on the couch.

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