Barmy Army will take Rotorua by storm

Rotorua publican Reg Hennessy struck it lucky when the building next to his establishment was pulled down.

"Sometimes in life you have an ounce of good luck," says a grinning Hennessy, standing outside his pub.

The reason for his good cheer: the vacant lot will soon hold a marquee that will help his pub play host to the Barmy Army in the week of the Lions opener against Bay of Plenty on June 4.

It's perfect timing for Hennessy who was facing the tricky task of using a rear carpark to help feed and water the famous army of Lions supporters, who have chosen his pub for official host status in Rotorua.

Rotorua is not only hosting the Lions match, but it is not hosting it in a way.

The Lions, much to provincial rugby's chagrin, are living in cities and making quick hits to the provinces. Who knows if they will even get within spitting distance of a Rotorua geyser.

So rigid are they in this that they will attend a powhiri at the Te Papaiouru Marae in Rotorua on the Sunday before the Rotorua match, then scarper back to Auckland.

Even the plan to hold clinics for kids the day before matches has been scrapped in this case. The whole Lions squad is expected to fly down on match day, with the players not involved in the game at International Stadium mingling with kids in Tauranga and Rotorua that afternoon.

Rotorua dipped out on two fronts because of the Lions' decision to stay in Auckland.

The Bay of Plenty team - who initially believed the Lions would stay in Rotorua - booked themselves in at the union's new base in Tauranga.

"We knew how big a deal the Lions would be and we didn't want to be scrapping each day for things in Rotorua," says Steamers manager Craig Morris.

When the Lions' plans became known, Bay of Plenty found that Rotorua hotels - who were searching for premium rates - had been block booked out.

As a consequence of being in Tauranga, Bay of Plenty won't even hold an open training session in Rotorua in another blow to tradition. Both public training sessions on the Wednesday and Thursday mornings will be held in Tauranga.

Coach Vern Cotter said Friday's captain's run at International Stadium - the only training session in Rotorua - would be closed to prevent distractions on the eve of the game.

This isn't exactly common knowledge around Rotorua and the news is greeted with a mixture of anger and indifference. The strongest reaction the Herald received came from one retailer, who said "what's the point if we're treated like that" when asked if he would be filling his window with the blue and yellow of the Bay. Another punter said it didn't matter to most people where the teams stayed.

The saga is a reminder of the friction which saw Tauranga replace Rotorua as the union's base, even though its 20,000-capacity stadium will only meet covered area and floodlighting standards by next year.

"Losing most of the big games has been a bitter pill to swallow for Rotorua," says sports shop worker Kevin Asplin.

"But we're still looking forward to this game. We're as proud about the Bay team as we ever were."

So while the Lions and Bay of Plenty may not be lodging in Rotorua, the Barmy Army certainly is.

The advanced guard, chief organiser Freddie Parker, visited Hennessy's pub last week as part of his nationwide tour to confirm arrangements.

Hennessy reckoned there might be about 3000 troops in town, but Parker told the Herald it could be up to 6000, with many in camper vans.

Hennessy will put on 30 extra staff and serve food and liquor - provided he gets the necessary licence - around the clock.

He'll be able to host about 800 people at a time in his pub, which will be adorned by an Army-supplied giant Lions jersey.

Not surprisingly, Hennessy didn't hesitate when this military madness knocked on his door. Match day will, of course, be the highpoint. Following the game, he will screen the Martin Johnson testimonial game from London and a one-day cricket match between England and Australia. It's safe to say that the Army, bolstered by a Welsh choir, should be in high spirits.

"I saw the Barmy Army when I was in Australia [in 2001] to watch the Lions play Australia," says Hennessy, who has been planning for a year.

"The Lions lost that game in Melbourne but it was still the happiest crowd I'd ever seen.

"They are nothing like the English soccer fans. They are there to enjoy it.

"I still don't think Rotorua knows what it's in for. It is going to be one big party and these guys are going to take a lot of looking after.

"Queen's Birthday is a big tourist weekend in Rotorua anyway. We won't have seen anything remotely like this since the third and fourth play-off in the 1987 World Cup."

At the start of this week, there were 8500 tickets still available for the 30,000 capacity ground, but more than 2000 have since been sold - a sign that the game is starting to come in to clearer focus.

Yet you'd hardly know they played rugby at all in Rotorua right now, let alone that the Lions are coming.

Search very hard, ie, venture into a souvenir shop, and you can find Lions jerseys and scarves.

There's hardly a Bay of Plenty jersey in sight though.

Yet the sports shop opposite Hennessy's pub has a window display featuring England rugby and Manchester United jerseys, and soccer balls.

"It will kick in about two weeks before the game. There will be a lot of blue and yellow but the Lions can do their own advertising," one retailer tells the Herald.

Rebecca Fitzell, who manages a sports bar, sums up some of the confusion surrounding the ballot for tickets when she says: "Everyone thinks the game is sold out ... apparently there will be 1000s of visitors coming through.

"The most common question I get asked is 'have you got enough beer stocked for the night'," says the 26-year-old Fitzell, born and bred in Rotorua.

"Everyone is quite excited about it and it's the big talking point now that it's getting closer.

"It's not about whether Bay of Plenty might win or not at the moment. Just the thrill of having it in little old Rotorua.

"I'm not a mad rugby fan but even I'm excited because how often does a small town get such a big event.

"This is something I'm never going to forget."

Winning and losing does loom large in the mind of the Bay of Plenty team however.

With the Chiefs out of the Super 12 semifinals, most players will get an extra two weeks to rest then work on set pieces and defensive strategies.

Cotter, the Crusaders forwards coach, may join them only in the final week when the emphasis will be on what Bay of Plenty rugby is traditionally famed for - free-flowing attack.

Cotter has a second-hand report, from someone who spoke to Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward, that the tourists will put out a top side in Rotorua with the aim of starting on a high note.

With little preparation and no lead up games, Bay of Plenty will rely on last year's methods which took them to the NPC semifinals, and old-style passion and flair.

Team manager Morris says: "Rugby folk are buzzing - it's part of every conversation. We want to give them a hell of a fright to start the tour.

"They would have originally thought 'oh well, they are mid-table, this should be a good confidence boost'. They would never have thought they would face a side with 11 Super 12 players.

"Bay of Plenty is known for hard, fair, enterprising rugby and we want to knock their confidence down, with the whole country behind us."

And while you would hardly know it right now, Rotorua's rugby fans should be leading the early charge by then.

* June 4 - Lions tour opener against Bay of Plenty in Rotorua

* 6300 tickets still available

* 30,000 capacity for Rotorua Stadium