London Irish ticket fiasco
 Four years
ago over 40,000 London Irish fans celebrated in Twickenham after their
side captured the Powergen Cup with a convincing win over Northampton
Saints. The Exiles faithful were expecting a similar presence at this
year’s European Challenge Cup final against Gloucester but the ERC
governing body has blown such expectations out of the water.
The final to be held on May 21 will take place at the Twickenham Stoop
Stadium, home of Harlequins Rugby club. However the ground sitting in
the shadow of RFU headquarters has a capacity of just 12,500 giving London
Irish just 5,500 allocated seats, barely enough to cover season ticket
holders.
Gloucester too are furious as they have approximately 8,500 season ticket
holders and feel the ground is far too small for what’s sure to
be an electric final.
Ken Armstrong, Chairman of the London Irish supporters club believes Irish
could easily have attracted a minimum of 30,000 fans for the final. He
said: “We’re all gutted. We’ve tried everything possible
to get the ERC to change the venue but they’ve refused to budge.
It’s a real shame for supporters who aren’t season ticket
holders. In this great season we’ve had wonderful support but most
fans will have to watch the final on television on the 21st. I don’t
think the powers that be thought the final would end up being between
two very well-supported sides and it’s a shame for both clubs and
for rugby in general.”
Paddy Lennon of London Irish has also spoken of the club’s disappointment
with the ERC’s decision: “Over the past week both finalists,
London Irish and Gloucester Rugby, with the support of Premier Rugby,
have tried unsuccessfully to persuade the ERC to switch the final to a
larger venue that would accommodate the thousands of supporters of both
clubs that want to attend”.
Chief Executive of the club Ian Taylor added: “It’s disappointing
that our overtures to the ERC have been rejected. We now have to make
the best of what we have been allocated and have decided that our loyal
season ticket holders should have first option on tickets.”
The decision to host the final at the Stoop has been defended by Derek
McGrath, CEO of the ERC. He told reporters: “The objective set by
us at the start of the tournament was to give the European Challenge Cup
final the best opportunity to have a great atmosphere with a capacity
crowd — live on Sky Sports — and to therefore put the tournament
in the shop window. The process of selecting the venue began several months
ago. As the Challenge Cup currently does not have anywhere near the same
commercial weight as the Heineken Cup, ERC and Premier Rugby discounted
football grounds with a view to keeping the revenues within the game of
rugby.”
Due to an agreement with Sky Sports the final has a kick off time of 12.15pm
which will also make travelling arrangements for Gloucester fans difficult.
Some supporters of London Irish will gather at the London Irish’s
Four Provinces bar in Sunbury to watch the final. While hopes still exist
that they’ll have a chance to cheer on their side in person should
the Exiles reach the Guinness Premiership final later in the year.
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