When the news is restricted to beaches, roads, and swimming accidents there is always an opportunity for some fantasist to air an idea. The most recent example is the call for a new sunken stadium on Auckland’s waterfront. It’s an idea that has surfaced from time to time in the past, starting in 2006 when Helen Clark’s government tried hard to shift the principal venue for the 2011 Rugby World Cup from Eden Park to downtown. The idea collapsed, and a considerable sum of public money was invested instead in Eden Park. It is a name synonymous with New Zealand Rugby, and to be found in several rugby-loving towns around the world. I remember staying in a French pub in La Rochelle where the public bar was named “Eden Park” and was covered in bits of rugby memorabilia belonging to the Kiwi-loving owner.
