Wairarapa is set to host New Zealand's biggest hockey tournament next year.
The Hatch Cup national primary schoolboys' tourney is open to the top 24 under-13 teams in the country.
Hockey Wairarapa executive officer Kelly Govans said yesterday there was a "very, very good chance" the 2011 edition would be played at
the Clareville complex, probably in August-September.
"We haven't got final confirmation yet but, yes, I'd say there is a very, very good chance it will be coming here," she said.
"I'd put it at 95 per cent - that's how certain it looks."
Govans said the installation of a second all-weather turf at Clareville had been a huge factor in Wairarapa even being in the reckoning for tourneys the size of the Hatch Cup.
"We wouldn't even be considered but for having the two turfs. It's an absolute essential for tourneys like this," she said.
"One turf and you wouldn't be thought about."
Another plus for the Clareville venue had been the new pavilion opened earlier this year.
The upstairs balcony provided excellent viewing for both turfs, something that Govans said had already attracted much favourable comment from spectators.
"We've actually had people comment that our pavilion is in a class of its own in that respect," she said.
Govans said it would not only be the hockey fraternity who would benefit from the Hatch Cup being played in the Wairarapa.
It would mean hundreds of visitors converging on the province with big spin-offs for local businesses, motels, hotels, camping grounds, restaurants and the like.
"You always get loads of parents and other family members attending tournaments for this age group and obviously they will also shop, eat and sleep in the region," she said.
"It would be huge for the whole region, absolutely huge."
