Munster fans to benefit if Leicester switch Cup venue
Leicester are contemplating moving the game from their base to the Walker Stadium half a mile away to accommodate up to 32,000 people.
The Welford Road capacity is just over 16,000 while the football pitch has room for twice that number.
With Munster supporters entitled to 25% of the tickets, that would boost travelling support from 4,000 to 8,000 people.
But the decision is not yet a forgone conclusion according to Tigers’ chief executive Peter Wheeler: “We are looking at the situation but we have to carefully balance the pros and cons. Leicester and Munster have two of the biggest fan bases in the competition, and even though it is only a quarter-final I reckon we would fill Twickenham between us.
“There is a financial issue here, but while the Walker Stadium is only a stone’s throw away, we certainly don’t want to give up any advantage we might have by playing at Welford Road. It’s a pretty special ground.
“I think Munster have proved over a few seasons that the opposition, and that includes us, shouldn’t give them presents because they will accept them.
“Still, it is logical that we should examine our options because I do know of the terrific interest in this game amongst our own supporters. “Right now we know the match will be played on the weekend of April 11,12 and 13. As yet we don’t know whether it will be on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
“That will probably be dictated by the television people and, of course, we would have to make sure that the alternative stadium would be available. I expect we will have examined all our options and make up our minds within the next 24 hours or so.”
Wheeler expressed amazement at Munster’s advancement to the last eight of the tournament. “I really did expect them to win the match but never thought for a minute they could do what they did.
“It was a stunning victory and from what I have seen, an absolutely fantastic occasion.
“I would have been really proud to be associated with a victory of that magnitude. In Leicester, we have had a fair degree of success but I’m not sure whether we ever pulled off a victory of that type against such odds.
“I’m delighted to have us paired with Munster, even more delighted to play them at home because I wouldn’t really fancy having to travel to Limerick.
“The Heineken Cup has turned out to be a superb tournament. We were lucky enough to win a couple of titles and Munster have found that luck hard to come by. But they proved on Saturday they are one of the great sides.” Vanquished Gloucester were also proud of the support they enjoyed in Limerick.
“Even though we hardly got a look in, I think the fans gave it their best shot,” said director of rugby Nigel Melville.
“It was tough going and they were drowned out by the Munster contingent. But we do have a great fan base. Some of them were shocked by what happened on the pitch but it all came down to experience in the end.
“Munster have been there and done that. It’s our first season in Europe and it has, eventually, proved to be a learning curve.
“What we now have to prove to ourselves is that we are capable of learning from this harsh lesson, make sure we go on to win the Premiership and qualify for Europe again next year.
“I would hope that we are better prepared in 12 months time because, obviously, we took our advancement to the quarter-finals for granted.
“Hopefully, we know a lot more about ourselves after this game than we did before it. There are no sour grapes. We were beaten by a much better side, by a team that knew what they wanted to achieve and how to go about getting what they wanted.”
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