Palmerston North will host the final of the Chatham Cup for the first time after Memorial Park was selected as the venue for the Sunday August 28 showdown between Napier City Rovers and Wairarapa United.
The 84th final of the 89-year-old knockout football competition became an all Central League affair after Napier City qualified for their sixth final by beating Dunedin's Caversham 2-1 at home and Wairarapa notched an upset 1-0 semi final win over Bay Olympic in Auckland to extend the club's best-ever cup run.
Those results confirmed that the Chatham Cup final would be hosted outside Auckland for just the second time in a decade and New Zealand Football Grant McKavanagh said a neutral venue in the Manawatu was the logical choice.
"The Chatham Cup final is a special occasion in any club's history and we wanted to give equal opportunity for fans from both clubs to attend the showpiece of winter football," McKavanagh said.
"Memorial Park is a couple of hours drive or less for all supporters and a final in Palmerston North presents a rare opportunity for football fans in the Lower North Island.
