Queenstown has been missed out on the international cricket calendar this year, but venue organisers have vowed the region will get the Black Caps back again.
The Queenstown Events Centre will not host the usual New Year's Eve battle between a visiting international side and our own Black Caps due to New Zealand Cricket's summer schedule.
The centre's events and venues manager, JD Marrable, said although it like to have been in the mix, there would be international fixtures played here again.
"There is a future of international cricket here in Queenstown, but it was just the calendar didn't fit.
"We will definitely get an international [match] back here. The Black Caps' touring calendar was a bit thin," Mr Marrable said.
The events centre will instead host the domestic twenty/20 match between Otago and Wellington on December 31 and the Otago Volts will play the Central Stags in the Plunket Shield on February 17.
The town usually pulls a crowd of up to 12,000 for international fixtures, compared with only 2500 for last December's twenty/20 match.
Mr Marrable does not think getting people to the match will be an issue, because of the sparse New Zealand cricket schedule in the area. The South Island will see only one international match this summer, the one day international at Dunedin's University Oval on February 3.
"Less cricket will mean more people, I guess."
The centre's turf manager, Peter Domigan, said the snow of the past four days should not hinder preparations for the arrival next month of the English, Irish, Georgian and Romanian Rugby World Cup teams.
With only 15 days until the four sides begin their training, the snow will be only a "minor hiccup", said Mr Domigan.
"It takes four to five days for the snow to clear. We're quite confident we will be fine."
- Olivia Caldwell
