An opportunity to pay tribute to their loyal supporters and bring something new to sports entertainment is the driver behind the Trident Homes Tactix double-header extravaganza both on and off the court.
The Tactix round out their 2022 campaign with back-to-back ANZ Premiership games, hosting the Magic on Sunday and the Pulse on Monday night, and aim to bring something special in the build-up to both matches.
With their chances of making the Finals Series extinguished in Round 11, Tactix General Manager Haidee Stratford said it was important the team put out a strong performance to thank their home crowd after what had been a season hit hard by the impacts of Covid.
“It’s been another tough year, on the back of two difficult years impacted by a pandemic,” she said. “We’ve felt it as a team, but our fans have also done it hard, so we wanted to say thank you to our supporters who have backed us, but also have some fun.”
A curtain-raiser Fast5 game will kick off the action at Christchurch Arena on Sunday in what Stratford described as a carnival atmosphere set to take over the venue.
Black Caps Todd Astle and Ish Sodhi will step out onto the Fast5 court alongside fitness gurus Leece and Jess from Move It Mama and members of Mainland’s National Netball League team.
“It’s all about fun but it’s also a great pre-cursor to the World Series Fast5 tournament that is coming to Christchurch this year,” Stratford said.
Christchurch Arena will host the international event from November 5-6 and Stratford said changes to the rules of netball’s modified version would be used in the curtain-raiser including the removal of the power play and inclusion of double points during the last 90 seconds of every match.
“There is so much that’s going to be happening here this weekend – it’s going to be a great atmosphere, and we’d just like to say thanks to everyone by having some fun.”
The celebration continues with a carnival themed half-time entertainment package including an aerial silks artist and plenty of give-aways for the crowd.
A dance party will get things moving on Monday night when the Tactix host the Pulse to bring their ANZ Premiership season to a close.
DJ Jeremy Meates will get the party started with a 10-minute dance set where everyone in the stands will be encouraged to show their moves with glow sticks to set the atmosphere.
“We want to be innovative with sports entertainment and lift the bar of the way these events are produced, and I think by bringing the fun and a different vibe as part of that package – along with a quality ANZ Premiership match on court – we can do that,” Stratford said.
“We are lucky with our sport that our fans can get up close and be a part of the action which is really exciting.
“We’ve been in the mix in the last few weeks to push for that Finals Series, but the results haven’t gone our way so I know the team will want to go out on a real high as a way of saying thank you to our fans for supporting us this year.”
- The Trident Homes Tactix meet the Magic at Christchurch Arena on Sunday at 4.10pm and the Pulse at Christchurch Arena on Monday at 7.15pm, both games live on Sky Sport.
