Steve and Natt Di Rossi are encouraging people to have a drink and meet their future husband or wife. Photo: The Punt Hotel.
Forget swiping left and right – Riverina singles are once again being encouraged to put down their phones, pull on something green and meet potential partners the old-fashioned way.
Darlington Point’s Punt Hotel is the latest country pub to host a singles event, following the success of Junee’s hugely popular looking-for-love night that attracted hundreds of people from across Australia.
New owners Natt and Steven De Rossi will host a traffic light party on Saturday 8 August. There’s no entry fee or bookings – just turn up wearing green if you’re single and ready to mingle, orange if you’re keeping your options open and red if you’re happily taken, acting as a wingman or simply there for a drink.
“Some of the young people at our pub late on Friday night told us they wanted to do something like Farmer Wants a Wife or speed dating, so I thought we’d give the traffic light party a go,” Natt said.
A similar event at the Junee Hotel last month attracted people from as far away as Tasmania, with organisers scrambling to solve a last-minute “man drought” after women outnumbered the blokes. A social media plea prompted dozens of extra men to make the trip, turning it into one of the region’s biggest singles nights.
Love match. Alex (left), Michael and Craig found quality connections at Junee Hotel’s successful Traffic Light Singles Party in June. Photo: Marguerite McKinnon.
Natt doesn’t expect Darlington Point to have the same problem.
“We’ve had a lot of men express interest in doing this. I was very surprised at the age range – some in their 20s, 30s and a few over 40 wanted to do this, so all ages are welcome,” she said.
“I think a lot of people need an excuse to get out. We’ve had people from all over the place express interest – from Griffith, Whitton and Yenda.”
Shy singles who struggle to make the first move needn’t worry, with games planned to help break the ice.
“There’ll be a DJ on the night and we’ll have games where you have to pick a partner and team up. We also have a musical chairs game which is different from what you might expect.”
If Cupid smiles on the event, it may not be the last.
“We could certainly do a Farmer Wants a Wife there at some point. We’ve got enough farmers around these parts,” she said.
Original Article published by Oliver Jacques on Region Riverina.
