PHOTOSPORT

Shaun Johnson stops for a photo with Christchurch league fans following the Warriors victory over Manly.

A hefty defeat and a 'home crowd' cheering for the opposition hasn't put Manly off returning to Christchurch.

The Sydney-based side took a home match to the city on Saturday night and a crowd of 17,357 turned out at AMI Stadium to see the first NRL game in Christchurch since 2016. 

Manly have a commitment to take a game to Christchurch in 2019 with an option for another in 2020 but Saturday night's promoter is confident the relationship can last much longer.

Justin Wallace, director of Walco Events, said to draw a crowd that was just over 400 tickets short of a sellout was an overwhelming success.

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"Some of the comments I had from Manly supporters and management was that they were really amazed at the number," Wallace said.

Manly struggle to pull in punters on a large scale at home in the competitive Sydney entertainment market and the Christchurch crowd was easily its biggest gate of the season so far.

PHOTOSPORT

David Fusitu'a takes a selfie with league fans following the Warriors win over Manly on Saturday night.

Just 6000 turned up to Lottoland aka Brookvale Oval to watch Manly go down to Newcastle earlier this year.

Getting close to a sell out crowd was a proud moment for Wallace - a former Canterbury league representative.

"It was a great crowd, a great atmosphere and all us 'leaguies' found our way back to Rugby League Park, the spiritual home of our code in the city," Wallace said.

Manly coach Trent Barrett said his side's 14-34 loss to the Warriors had nothing to do with taking the home game on the road.

"It was a really good week just a disappointing result," he said.

Barrett confirmed the club's commitment to the annual Christchurch game and said the city had been extremely hospitable.

Manly arrived in Christchurch on Tuesday and have been active in the community with junior league clinics, school visits and dinner functions.

"They've really embraced the city, they've embraced the activities that we wanted to do, especially around junior rugby league," Wallace said.

Getting near capacity had proven to be more difficult than the Panthers and Warriors game in 2016 but Wallace believes there is potential to increase the numbers significantly when Christchurch finally gets a new purpose-built stadium.

"If we can put the right things in place then Manly will definitely be coming back to Christchurch for a lot longer," he said.

Wallace, who praised the effort of the entire Manly club for its effort in making the Christchurch venture a success, is keen to develop the relationship further to provide opportunities for young league players in the South Island.

An auction at a function on Thursday night raised several thousand dollars and the intention is to use the proceeds to send promising players over to Manly to help develop their careers, Wallace said.

"We're looking to develop a few anchors so that Manly really do treat the South Island and Christchurch as their second home," he said.

Warriors coach Stephen Kearney said Saturday night's match was a great opportunity to showcase the NRL in the South Island and getting a win for a crowd that was dominated by Warriors fans was a bonus.

"I know there's a big rugby league following here in the South Island, over the West Coast and here in Canterbury so it's great to be able to come here put on a performance for them here," Kearney said.

Wallace also confirmed he would be working with Manly on new initiatives to increase the number of Manly fans travelling from Australia for the annual match.

On the eve of Saturday's match, Wallace told Stuff that a Christchurch Airport report, based on visitors coming from out of town, estimates the economic benefit of the game to be worth around $10 million to Christchurch.

 - Stuff