The construction phase of Eden Park's major re-development for Rugby World Cup 2011 was underway within hours of the All Blacks and Wallabies players and fans departing the stadium after their Bledisloe Cup encounter on August 2, 2008.
Demolition crews moved into the park at midnight to begin dismantling seats and removing fixtures, some of which had been purchased in a charity auction run by the Eden Park Redevelopment Board in July.
Demolition activity stepped up in the days following and as the heavy machinery moved in, Rugby World Cup Minister Clayton Cosgrove was on hand to lend his support and to officially launch the demolition of the South Stand and Eastern Terraces.
For Aucklanders, this was the signal that work was now well underway on the centrepiece project for Rugby World Cup 2011.
For others, it was also an opportunity to reminisce about the many great moments that had been witnessed by the famous old stand, including the first Rugby World Cup opening match and the final in 1987, the epic and infamous third Test of the 1981 Springboks tour, through to a decade of dominance by the Auckland and All Blacks teams in the 1980s and 1990s.
Rugby World Cup Minister Clayton Cosgrove briefs media on the demolition progress at Eden Park as the machinery moves in
With the last of the stand structures toppled in early September, the redevelopment contractor Fletcher Construction began transitioning to the earthworks required to establish the new three-tier South Stand and Eastern Stand, which will help lift the stadium capacity to 60,000 in time for the 2011 tournament.
The last pillar of the old Eden Park South Stand is tipped…and falls
