Events cancelled as NZ mourns

Wellington, March 16 

A raft of top class sporting events were cancelled in New Zealand as a traumatised nation started burying the dead from the worst peacetime mass killing in its history.

While one National Rugby League match went ahead in Auckland on Saturday, a horse racing meeting, a top class rugby union match, a Test match, and string of netball games were all scratched from the schedules in the wake of the attack.

“This isn’t about cricket,” New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White said when discussing the cancellations in his sport. “It’s about something much bigger and much more important than that. It’s about life, it’s about respect. It’s about family and community. Cricket and sport takes a backseat to personal welfare,” he said.

The Super Rugby clash in Dunedin between the Otago Highlanders and Canterbury Crusaders, who are based in Christchurch, was called off on Saturday out of respect for the victims and their families. The Canterbury cricket team, one of six first-class sides in New Zealand’s domestic Plunket Shield competition, also chose not to play their final round match in Wellington, which handed the title to Central Districts. Canterbury were the only side with a mathematical chance of catching Central Districts in the final round of games, but their decision not to travel to Wellington for the match starting on Sunday gave the title to last year’s winners.

Chief executive Jeremy Curwin said Canterbury Cricket had consulted with the players, who were given the opportunity to make their decision whether to play the final game as individuals or collectively.

New Zealand internationals Martin Guptill and Lockie Ferguson, who play first-class cricket for Auckland, also withdrew from their team’s match against Otago in Dunedin.

While the Dunedin Super Rugby match was called off, the Waikato Chiefs and Wellington Hurricanes did play a 23-23 draw in Hamilton, on the North Island, on Friday night. All Blacks and Hurricanes scrumhalf TJ Perenara admitted, however, that the minds of the players had also been elsewhere.

Attack will change fabric of intn’l sports hosting

Auckland: The Christchurch mass shootings will have far-reaching implications for hosting sporting events in New Zealand and elsewhere, according to New Zealand Cricket CEO David White, who said the impression of the country being a “safe haven is gone”. “This is shocking. This will change the entire fabric of international sports hosting. I think everything changes now,” White said. “We’ll certainly be having to look at our security in depth. I think the idea of New Zealand being a safe haven is gone now. We now have to be very, very vigilant — all the authorities and sporting organisations, absolutely,” he added. 

White said, “They’re shaken up all right. They’re shocked like everyone else. New Zealand Cricket’s thoughts were with Christchurch and people affected by the shootings. We are shocked and appalled, as I’m sure all New Zealanders are.” — Agencies

CALLED OFF

• Third Test: New Zealand vs Bangladesh 
• Super Rugby clash: Highlanders vs Crusaders 
• Plunket Shield final: Canterbury vs Central Districts 
• Martin Guptill, Lockie Ferguson withdraw from their First Class game in Dunedin
• A horse racing meet
• A few netball games 

TRAUMATISED BANGLADESH TEAM LEAVES NEW ZEALAND  

Christchurch: The Bangladesh cricket team on Saturday left New Zealand, hours after escaping death by a whisker in the deadliest terror attack in the country’s history. Leaving behind Friday’s scary experience in Christchurch, the Bangladesh cricketers were relieved to be boarding the flight back home. The Bangladesh players and management departed Christchurch on Saturday, travelling from their central city hotel to Christchurch Airport in the team bus under police escort. Bangladesh’s support staff were scheduled for a later flight. — Reuters

"It will certainly take some time for us to get out of it (the state of shock) after the experience we had here. It is better that we are returning... because everyone’s family is worried. I just hope after returning home we can overcome the trauma with time" —Tamim Iqbal, bangladesh cricketer

"In future, whenever we send our cricket team abroad we will do that after examining and reviewing the security matters of the host countries" —Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh PM