17 Oct 2011

Massive crowds see famous win at Auckland fanzones

5:28 am on 17 October 2011

Auckland Council officials say the crowds at the city's downtown fanzones have been the biggest since the Rugby World Cup's opening night.

Nearly 20,000 people were at the fanzones at the Queen's and Captain Cook wharves for the semi-final of the Rugby World Cup between New Zealand and Australia.

Council officials said there were close to 10,000 people at other zones around the city.

The All Blacks match against the Wallabies at Eden Park sold out with 60,000 people attending.

Auckland Council says the logistics of the night went without a hitch and there were no public transport delays, unlike the opening night when trains came to a standstill.

About 75% of people used trains, buses or taxis to get to Eden Park.

Auckland Transport says people took advice by leaving early for the city.

Crowds were well behaved, with only two arrests at Queen's Wharf and none at the stadium.

Eleven people were evicted from the stadium for disorderly behaviour or intoxication and two were evicted from Queen's Wharf.

The crowd at the stadium is thought to be the largest since the Test against the Springboks in 1956, which was watched by a record 63,000 people.

About 10,000 people gathered at Queen's Wharf, the Wynyard Quarter and Captain Cook Wharf for France's 9-8 semi-final victory over Wales on Saturday.