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New Zealand Football: FIFA turf set for Petone

AUCKLAND, New Zealand —A new state-of-the-art FIFA football turf in Petone will add up to 600 more matches to the winter football calendar in Wellington and will form the basis for a lower North Island football hub.The $2 million upgrade of Memorial Park is funded by $550,000 of FIFA Goal Project funding, a $500,000 investment from Hutt City Council, $450,000 from Capital Football with the balance to be made up from community funding or sponsorship.Work on the redeveloped ground, which will house New Zealand Football's Central Technical Centre and the headquarters of Capital Football Federation -could begin before Christmas.Memorial Park will be the third FIFA Goal project to be facilitated by New Zealand Football, following successful turf redevelopments at Auckland's North Harbour Stadium in 2007 and Canterbury's ASB Football Park which was completed last month. \Access to facilities is the major constraint to football's growth not just in numbers but also in terms of quality