Moncton has its first games of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup under its belt.
And though it’s largely been heralded as a success, there are some kinks to work out.
Just ask soccer fan Sarah Currie, who was thrilled to see both of Tuesday’s games, but less pleased about missing nearly half an hour of the first game due to lineups at the stadium.
“I think everyone showed up at 10 to 2 p.m., and then they just weren’t prepared for that many people there, but we got in,” Currie said.
“We missed about the first 25 minutes of the match.”
Currie entered by the stadium’s rear entrance, but the main entrance was no better.
Part of the problem has been pinned on the shuttle service provided to get people to the Coliseum.
The city says the free shuttle service began three hours before the first match at 2 p.m., but as kick-off approached it was overwhelmed by people wishing to use it.
City of Moncton spokesperson Isabelle LeBlanc says it was shortly after 1 p.m. that the number of fans began to overwhelm the shuttle service.
“Everybody converged to the Coliseum and we started getting some backlog so we brought in more buses in order to alleviate the long line,” LeBlanc said.
She says the city is working to improve the situation for Saturday’s games, but reminds fans of the other options available for getting to the stadium, including city transit and on-site parking that’s available for a fee.
Meanwhile, others look back on Tuesday’s games saying they went smoothly overall.
Marc Grandmaison, a photographer experienced with events of this size, says it went well from a media point-of-view.
“I think it helped a lot that the fact that … most of us went through last year with the under 20 girls, so this year went very good,” he said.
From a fan’s perspective, Currie agrees.
“It was great, even aside from the rain and a little bit of wind, I had a really great time. … I think they made it very professional and it was really exciting,” she said.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s David Bell
