Within seconds of the public window opening for the England inbound tour at the end of the year, days one to four at Newlands were completely sold out, with similar immediate scarcities reported for prime seating blocks at the Boxing Day Test at SuperSport Park in Centurion and the Wanderers in Johannesburg.
Image: Matthew Jordaan / File
I logged in to the CSA/Ticketpro website on May 18, expecting to purchase tickets for the Test match between South Africa and England at Newlands, starting on Jan 3, 2027.
Cannot express my disappointment and disgust at what I found; probably less than 10 scattered seats left in the whole stadium, with none available as soon as I tried to select one. So, for the first time in 50 years, I have been unable to purchase tickets at Newlands using the CSA/ WPCA prescribed non corrupt route.
How utterly sad....Using the internet, and with basic research, I was able to figure out why, and even more disgusted! So you have chosen to pre-sell your tickets at a higher price to British agents and their clients/fans. As an avid and faithful Western Province and Proteas Cricket fan, my days go back to Eddie Barlow and the great New Year's rivalry with Clive Rice and his team, seated on the lawn behind the pickets in Castel Corner.
We ate delicious ham sandwiches for 20c, drank Castle by the case in the hot sun, and relieved ourselves in good spirits at the outside urinals on the Kelvin Grove end of the Railway stand. It was a tragic oversight by the CSA and WPCA to miss the traditional New Year's test at Newlands last year, but devoted fans like me and my family "forgave" you and filled in with Provincial games and the T20 games, though, as true cricket fans, we still missed the test.
Somehow, many of us knew that the missed test last New Years was an ominous sign of Newlands and CSA changes that will eventually copy and transform to the overseas trend in sport to pick prices and revenue over family and local fans. Fortunately, there is television, and though not nearly the same, it will provide for a satisfactory and certainly less stressful solution. For old times sake, we certainly wish you all the best as you make this money driven and selfish transformation: hopefully, the English and other overseas companies and fans can also provide you with an adequate and consistent income not only for Test matches, but also for your domestic leagues, T20s and the ladies league matches at Newlands.
This experience will certainly convince loyal and passionate fans like us to view Newlands on some form of social media rather than in person. Just like us, you will need to accept the rapid evolution of streaming, which will make payments and revenue very difficult for you; perhaps then you will miss loyal fans like us!
Note: You are not alone: it appears the Vineyard Hotel was booked by the English fans and their agents as well. We have traditionally reserved a few days with them for our family over the Newland Test days each year. When we tried to book for this test period several months ago, there were no vacancies, a long waiting list, and a requirement to book at least 7 days in advance.
Another example of blatant gouging, but as with cricket, we accept the changes of the times, will move on and find alternative vacations and accommodation. Like you, they too have forsaken loyalty and tradition for money.
Llewellyn Schwegman