The quality of Apia Park rather than its capacity is of most importance to New Zealand Rugby officials, who have given the thumbs up to the venue for next week's Test against Samoa.
The crowd size for the historic All Blacks Test on Wednesday is estimated to be 8000-10,000 after construction work on temporary stands was reportedly halted for safety reasons. The crowd will be at least 4000 people less than initially estimated.
NZ Rugby chief executive Steve Tew says his organisation has regularly assessed the venue for player safety and logistics since the Test was announced in September.
The work carried out had met their requirements and he isn't anticipating any problems.
"I know that the reconstruction work that they've done has brought the capacity down and I'm not sure that there's ever been an official count at a previous match anyway," he said.
"So I think the key is that they have spent quite a lot of money upgrading the ground and it'll be in great shape for next week."
The cost of the cheapest tickets to the Test of 40 Samoan Tala ($A20) has attracted local criticism for being too expensive in a country where that sum is about an average day's pay.
Tew says the prospect of playing at a venue that isn't sold out was no concern of NZ Rugby.
"It's completely a matter for the Samoan Rugby Union, as is any other Test match we play offshore."
The match is the first official Test the All Blacks have played in the Pacific islands.
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