GAA refute queue chaos reports

The ticket allocation for the Munster hurling final was an absolute success despite allegations of widespread queue-jumping, according to County Board PRO, Bob Ryan.

“More than 5,000 tickets were sold last night,” he said. “Everybody who turned up at the grounds last night got tickets. That is it now — they are all sold.

“There was a huge crowd but you can never judge how many are going to turn up.”

When asked to respond to claims that some fans queuing for Sunday’s Munster hurling final clash with Tipperary were very annoyed at the lack of organisation at the grounds, Mr Ryan replied: “That is an absolutely ridiculous statement.

“I spent two hours in the queue yesterday evening between 7pm and 9pm and there were no complaints.

“It is just some people hyping up the situation, making a mountain out of a molehill and we are very annoyed by it.

“Maybe what you don’t realise is that all our members are amateur and everyone selling tickets there yesterday was working voluntarily.”

He added: “If people need tickets they are going to have to queue.”

“You would want to be pretty intelligent to find another way to do it. We are open to suggestions on how to do it differently. And if people can’t behave themselves in the queue then that’s a sorry state.”

Frances McCarthy from Mayfield, Cork and Barry Kelleher from Cathedral Road, Cork, joined the queue at 7.45am yesterday.

“When I joined the queue, we counted 67 people in front of us and then there were more than 100,” said Frances. “It’s crazy and ridiculous the way people are skipping the queue.”

Armed with sleeping bags, blankets, hot drinks, sandwiches and picnic baskets, the diehards were prepared for every eventuality — except the queue hopping.

Damien Kennedy, from Blackrock, took the day off work to secure a ticket.

“People just passed us out with their chairs,” he said. “It’s was a disgrace. The County Board should have been done more to sort it out.”

Article courtesy of The Evening Echo newspaper