THE LEINSTER Branch have begun the allocation process of the 7,500 tickets they will receive from the ERC today for the Heineken Cup final against the Leicester Tigers on May 23rd.
The breakdown will see 4,000 going to current season ticket-holders, 2,000 shared amongst committee members, the squad, the schools, the clubs and 1,500 going to sponsors, patrons and Club Leinster (corporate).
A more precise breakdown of tickets was not available for public consumption. A lottery system will be in place to divvy out the 4,000 tickets amongst the 9,000 Leinster season ticket-holders. A family ticket-holder (1,700 such members) can apply for four tickets but may only receive one in the draw. Regular members can apply for one ticket as opposed to the six they could originally purchase from Ticketmaster.ie ahead of the semi-final against Munster in Croke Park when 35,000 tickets were available to each province.
It has already been revealed that 35 per cent of the 45,000 tickets already sold for the 67,800-capacity Murrayfield went to Irish addresses. The majority of these are believed to be Munster fans but a ticket exchange system may yet supply the Leinster Branch with additional tickets.
Leinsterrugby.ie provided further information on the process last night as they attempted to avoid the embarrassing and confusing scenario that preceded the quarter- and semi-finals.
“Please note that if successful (in the lottery), tickets will have to be collected from Leinster Rugby offices by Saturday May 16th,” read a statement.
“Credit card details from your season ticket account will be used to hold tickets but they must be paid for on collection with cash or cheque. Breakdown of ticket prices are not yet confirmed but by entering the lottery you are agreeing to pay a maximum of €46 per ticket. Please note that entry into this lottery is not on a sale or return option and any tickets allocated must be accepted, this is due to the short time-frame involved for distribution of tickets. Due to volume, any emails received after the deadline or without the correct subject line and season ticket information will not be entered or replied to.”
The branch also noted no service charge will apply on the 7,500 tickets and that it will not be possible to assign seats next to other season ticket-holders.”
The small number of tickets is down to the ERC ensuring they avoid a similar scenario to the 2003 and 2005 European Cup finals when the all-French club finals at Lansdowne Road and Murrayfield attracted 29,000 and 51,326 respectively – both significantly short of each stadium’s capacity.
Tickets for the final are currently available on eBay for up to €500 a pair.
The announcement of the 2010 final venue is expected in the days leading up to the Leinster versus Leicester decider but stadium director Peter McKenna was able to confirm the IRFU have not sought to put Croke Park forward as a potential option.
Meanwhile, Shannon captain Fiach O’Loughlin is a major concern ahead of the AIB All-Ireland League final against his former club Clontarf at Thomond Park this Saturday due to a fractured jaw.
“I was pretty much ruled out for the rest of the season by our doctor,” said O’Loughlin. “It is 50-50 for the weekend. The injury has healed up very well and I am just hoping it can do a lot more healing before the weekend.”
O’Loughlin featured with the north Dublin club for two seasons, including an appearance in the 2006 final defeat to Shannon.
