Wales’ autumn series fixtures and kick-off times have now been officially confirmed by the Welsh Rugby Union and pre-registration for tickets for the Millennium Stadium clashes in November with each of the three Tri-Nations superpowers and Rugby World Cup 2011 Pool D opponents Fiji will open to the public from 12.00 noon tomorrow (Wednesday).
The campaign will be played out on three Saturdays in November plus the now traditional Friday night fixture (Kick-off 7.30pm, Friday, 19 November) which sees Fiji come to Cardiff in the penultimate match of the series.
It all starts with Australia in town on the first Saturday of the month, kicking off at the ever popular time of 2.30pm in front of a likely capacity Millennium Stadium crowd.
Seven days later Warren Gatland and his men face the World Champion South Africans, also at 2:30pm, in the second leg of a gruelling schedule which pits them against the top three teams in world rugby and the Fijians – who themselves currently lie just a place behind Wales in 10th spot in the IRB World Rankings.
And it’s Wales’ World Cup bogey team up next for the third game of the series – the side responsible for ending then coach Gareth Jenkins’ 2007 RWC campaign – for that Friday night clash before the series’ climax against New Zealand as the campaign reaches its crescendo at 5.15pm, on Saturday 27. November.
Last autumn 52,500 tickets were snapped up over the four match series to some 16,000 pre-registered customers, before a limited number went on public sale. Over 3,000 members of the general public secured All Blacks tickets via this method – the only way non-rugby club members and non debenture holders could get their hands on tickets.
In the end both the All Blacks and the Wallabies fixtures last season sold-out the Millennium Stadium, with approximately 60,000 turning out to watch Wales beat Samoa (on a Friday night) and Argentina.
The WRU has historically prioritised access to tickets to its 245 member clubs, but this relatively new arrangement sets an early deadline for applications for tickets to the Union and those tickets not taken up are then released to fans who have pre-registered their interest, before those that remain – if any – go to public sale.
Due to the success of the WRU’s pre-registration process numbers have grown consistently since its 2008 launch and over 25,000 Welsh rugby fans successfully pre-registered for tickets to the 2010 RBS 6 Nations.
“This system has proved incredibly popular with members of the public who often operate under the common misapprehension that tickets for the big games are not available to them,” said Welsh Rugby Union Group Chief Executive Roger Lewis.
“Last season more people watched live rugby matches at the Millennium Stadium than anywhere else in the world and those fans have a real feast in store this November.
“It is true that we offer our clubs first refusal on tickets and it is possible for that uptake to sell-out the Stadium, but in practice we always have a certain amount coming back to us and this system allows fans who are not members of clubs to register their interest early and gives them a really good chance of getting hold of the tickets they want to the games they want.
“We have the top three teams in world rugby coming to Cardiff to face a Wales side thirsting for a Southern Hemisphere scalp, after a tour to New Zealand which left both the players and the fans wanting more.
“We also have the mouth-watering prospect of facing the Fijians in a match which could lay down a marker for the Rugby World Cup. Our meeting with Fiji in 2011 will go a long way to defining our World Cup campaign, just like it did in 2007, and Warren and his players have the chance to strike first and really set the tone as our World Cup countdown begins in earnest.”
WRU Head of Group Compliance Julie Paterson introduced pre-registration for fans in 2008 following a review of ticketing systems of the past three seasons. She added:
“This system does not take your money at the point of registration and allows members the option to pay for any tickets that are unclaimed by our member clubs and debenture holders prior to the games.
“The process allows fans who are not directly linked to clubs to register their interest and get the first chance to buy any tickets that are unclaimed by our member clubs.”
At the point of registration fans are asked for their name and contact details only and will be given a pass-code to access and pay for tickets to the games when they are released.
Tickets for the three Saturday matches at the Millennium Stadium in November – against the Wallabies, the Springboks and the All Blacks in turn – are priced at £25, £40, £60, £65 and £70, to watch Wales take on Fiji on Friday 19th November fans will be charged £10 (concession), £20 or £25.
To pre-register click the website link at www.wru.co.uk/tickets which invites fans to join a priority list for access to any tickets not taken up by the WRU member clubs and debenture holders.
Millennium Stadium hospitality packages are also available now priced from £99 plus vat per person at www.millenniumstadium.com or call 08443 722 722 to speak to someone about hospitality.
Wales Autumn Series Fixtures 2010:
Wales v Australia, Millennium Stadium, Saturday 6th November, Kick-off 2.30pm
Wales v South Africa, Millennium Stadium, Saturday 13th November, Kick-off 2.30pm
Wales v Fiji, Millennium Stadium, Friday 19th November, Kick-off 7.30pm
Wales v New Zealand, Millennium Stadium, Saturday 27th November, Kick-off 5.15pm
