Mt Smart Stadium

We were at the Foo fighters last last night. First off could not get a drink and we were there 40 minutes before hand. Four tills to serve a whole stand is unbelievable. The sound was terrible also and out of sync could not make out what Grohl was saying half the time. I would recommend not going to a concert here ever! Because I live near the stadium I will try to see the warriors I hope that experience is better.

Well at least it’s not called Ericsson Stadium anymore. Of course now it’s «home of The Warriors». I don’t really care too much for sport but have been here many times over the years for concerts, including of course the now sadly defunct Big Day Out.
We loved to hate The Supertop so now we miss those sweaty times in The Boiler Room, never to be had again.
My brother actually used to work here as the groundsman so had his 21^st birthday party in the function rooms. Fun times. I came here during high school for Athletics Days. Less fun times. Still, Mt Smart Stadium is one of those places in Auckland that just ARE — and despite its generic nothing special-​ness, it’s a part of our city and we are fond of it. Well I am anyway.

Going to Mt Smart always seems a little less … grand then its nearby brother, Eden Park. This could have something to do with the surrounding area, or the fact that the Government/​Council didn’t spend hundreds of millions of dollars doing it up, but the niggle remains. However, once you are inside nestled in one of the stands cheering on your team of choice, all worries are forgotten. They also used to hold the Big Day Out, and I remember well all the ladies sneaking into the men’s toilets because the lines were too long. Or so they told me.
This is the official home ground of the Warriors, and apparently the owners have invested quite a bit of money into the place, with a focus on building up the team at the moment. The way they performed last year, that could be money well spent. Regardless of whether they win or lose, a trip to Mt Smart is well worth it, even just for the chance to crack a few dad jokes about the name.

I always think this place looks a little sad. Whenever I’ve been to the Warriors here I always look around and see all the empty seats. it’s a little depressing. But the main gripe I have with this stadium is that there are never any parks! This is incredibly frustrating. Eden Park, being in the middle of a residential area, has a pretty decent excuse for not having parks. But Mt Smart, not only is it very rarely packed, but it’s also in the middle of an industrial area. How hard can it be to build decent onsite parking for a stadium? They may find that if they did this there would a lot more people who might hire the venue or who’d actually come to the games.

Mt Smart is a giant event, arena and function centre situated near Penrose, in Auckland. Although it is usually the site of rugby games, I came here to see the place completely and utterly transformed into what looked like a giant, four-​legged beetle with alien-​like globular obtrusion’s on its back. This was, of course, the stage set up for the U2 & Jay-​Z 360 tour held there a few years back.
Although it was completely packed out, the overall experience was good. There was no rowdiness or unnecessary pushing or shoving in the crowd, which may be because the layout of the stadium on that night was designed to prevent this. Then again, we were up in the stands, it may have been a different story down below.
The fact that the stadium was completely converted from sports field to concert venue says something about Mt Smart’s versatility as a venue.

Mt Smart is the home of the mighty Warriors, and the home of stadium rock in Auckland. It’s a worthy enough home for both. The atmosphere for a Warriors game is generally better than a rugby union match — the fans are a bit more hardcore, a bit more knowledgeable and much less inhibited. This makes for an always enjoyable, sometimes rowdy arvo or evening out at the league. Music-​wise, it comfortably takes 30 – 40,000 for a big gig, and as far as stadium rock goes it does the job. Coldplay here last year was up there with the best gigs I’ve been to, and U2 have played here a couple of times too. It’s where the bands go if they’re too big for Vector. However, the venue does need work. Exiting after Coldplay was borderline dangerous with the crowd crush, so that needs sorting. Also the stands are generally a little dilapidated and league fans probably deserve a better ground.