Hutt Recreation Ground


Hutt Recreation Ground is a football, cricket and rugby union ground in Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand. The first recorded cricket match held on the ground came in 1949 when Hutt Valley played Nelson in the 1948/49 Hawke Cup.
A single List A cricket match was played there in 1971 when Wellington played Central Districts in the 1971/72 New Zealand Motor Corporation Knock-Out, which Wellington won by 47 runs. The ground later held its first first-class match during the 1976/77 Shell Trophy when Wellington played Northern Districts. Wellington defeated the West indies in a three-day match at the ground in February 1980, with Ewen Chatfield claiming 13 wickets for the match. Between the 1976/77 and 1985/86 season, the ground held fourteen first-class matches, the last of which saw Wellington play Canterbury. Between 1982 and 1990, four Women's One Day Internationals were held there.
In rugby union the ground is used by the Hutt Old Boys-Marist, while in rugby league the Wellington rugby league team has played there. It is the home ground for the Hutt Districts cricket club. In 1976 the ground hosted the Men's Softball World Championship. The ground has also hosted international football matches, including a match in the 1987 Trans-Tasman Cup between New Zealand and Australia.
The grounds are owned by the Hutt City Council and managed for them by Downer.
In September 2014, it was announced that A-League club Wellington Phoenix would host three matches of the 2014–15 A-League at the ground due to their permanent home ground, Wellington Regional Stadium, being temporarily unavailable whilst hosting the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Temporary seating increase the venue to 9,000-capacity.