Amid the hype of the Rugby World Cup, 12 other rugby teams are preparing for their biggest tournament of the year.
Not one of the players has a sponsorship deal - nor do any of the players weigh more than 65kg - but come September 25, some possible future All Blacks will be battling it out in Queenstown vying for top honours in the World Junior Rugby Festival.
Global Games director Tyrone Campbell, of Auckland, said the inaugural South Island tournament had attracted 12 teams from the South Island to compete over two days at the Queenstown Events Centre this month.
The festival was held in Taupo for the first time last year, and there are plans in place to hold next year's two tournaments within a week of each other.
Mr Campbell said this year the "double-edged sword" that was RWC 2011 had hampered plans for the cohesive festivals. Although the children were excited about the RWC, the cost of travel had proved too much for North Island teams to make the trip south, he said.
Instead, the inaugural Queenstown festival would feature teams from Queenstown, Arrowtown, Invercargill, Taieri, Dunedin, Mackenzie, Oamaru, Timaru and Wanaka, plus four teams from Christchurch, Mr Campbell said.
"Those young kids [from Christchurch] have had a hell of a time of late, so it's really important they have a good time [in Queenstown].
"They are really, really looking forward to it. For a lot of them they're coming down to Queenstown for the first time.
"It's not just about the rugby, it's about coming and having a good time. It's a holiday as well."
Mr Campbell said next year one team from South Africa and teams from Australia would be competing - possibly in both the Taupo and Queenstown tournaments.
"We want to make them [the Taupo and Queenstown festivals] both fully international."
Seeding games for the under 11 and under 13 teams will be played on September 24, with finals to be played in Queenstown the following day, before the South Island World Junior Rugby Festival champions are announced - four weeks to the day before the 2011 RWC champion is decided.
