Just the ticket as Irish fans feel at Dome

THE thousands of Irish fans unable to get tickets for last week’s game against Australia in Melbourne’s Telstra Dome will have no such problems for Sunday’s quarter-final against France at the same venue.

Instead of having to watch the action on the giant screens in Federation Square or the city’s myriad of pubs, they will be locked inside this incredible, ultra modern 55,000 capacity stadium with the roof closed. The Australian Rugby Union, which along with the International Board did fans few favours with the exorbitant cost of tickets for many games, are now forced to acknowledge that the bank balances of Melburnians have taken a battering and that the event to miss may be the Ireland-France rugby confrontation.

Starting on Friday last with the International Rules match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (60,000), Australia v Ireland (55,000), Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup (140,000) and yesterday’s Oaks (60,000), these sports mad people are finding the price of World Cup quarter-final tickets a bridge too far. Of the four quarter-finals to be played at the weekend, the two in Melbourne have most tickets unsold. 9,500 were available yesterday for tomorrow’s clash of South Africa and New Zealand and 16,000 for France v Ireland on Sunday.