Carisbrook the early 2000s. Between 1884 and 2008 Carisbrook hosted 252 first-class cricket matches, including, between 1955 and 1998, 10 Test cricket matches. It was also the home ground of Otago United in the New Zealand Football Championship, which moved to the lower-capacity Sunnyvale Park for the 2008–09 season. The ground's final regular capacity was around 30,000, but has hosted crowds as high as 42,000 in the past with temporary seating. Until 1998 the sides of the Caversham bypass motorway allowed a free view of the ground and was known as the "Scotsman's Grandstand". Occasionally trains would slow to a crawl
History of the Highlanders (rugby union) rugby unions. The 1996 team was captained by John Leslie and coached by Gordon Hunter. Their first-ever Super 12 match was against the Queensland Reds at Carisbrook on 3 March 1996. Queensland were one of the competition favourites as they had won the 1994 and 1995 Super 10 championships (amateur predecessor of the Super 12) yet were defeated 57–17. They then defeated Transvaal 29–15 at Carisbrook before travelling to South Africa to defeat Western Province 52–25 in Cape Town. After three matches the Highlanders were undefeated and leading the competition. However, the following week at Loftus Versfeld Stadium they were