Munster ‘would love’ visit to Déise

MUNSTER chief executive Garret Fitzgerald yesterday admitted the prospects of a Magners League or Heineken Cup game being played outside Cork and Limerick were poor in the short term, but added that playing a friendly or pre-season game somewhere like Waterford was something Munster “would love to do if we could”.

The appearance of Declan Kidney and the Heineken Cup at the launch of the redeveloped Regional Sports Centre in Waterford last week led to speculation in the southeast that the European champions may play a game there in the near future.

But yesterday Fitzgerald outlined the obstacles in the way of any such proposal.

“We’ve discussed it,” said Fitzgerald.

“We have discussed it before with people involved in rugby in the Waterford area. But given our contractual agreements now with the Magners League, it’s not as easy as just deciding to move a fixture.

“Second, with our efforts to attract large numbers of ticket holders, in which you’ve sold large numbers of season tickets in advance for a venue they’re supposed to attend, it’s now a much bigger consideration to move a fixture than it was four or five years ago.

“If people buy a ticket for a particular location, then there are commitments involved. Then you have pitchside advertising, branding and so on, all of which would have to be moved. So that makes it a very difficult proposition.”

However, the Munster boss didn’t rule out the possibility of the European champions playing in Waterford at some point in the future.

“But there’s possibility of looking at playing a friendly fixture or a pre-season game somewhere like Waterford, and it’s something we’d love to do if we could.

“But a competitive game is a much harder proposition than it used to be.”