Connacht season ticket sales soar

CONNACHT’S season ticket sales have rocketed by almost 700% even though there is still a month to go before the start of the new season.

Last year Connacht sold 375 season tickets but sales so far have reached 2,500 and the Professional Game Board (PGB), which took charge of the Connacht side at the start of last month, is confident another 500 will be sold. The chairman of the PGB, Castlebar businessman Jimmy Staunton, who heads up the family retail business Elverys Sports, said they have been extremely encouraged by the volume of sales.

“There is real momentum,” he said. “We have got a few breaks, not least qualifying for the Heineken Cup. A lot of hard work has gone in over the past six or seven months and the response has been magnificent. It’s really encouraging and everyone is dying for the season to start at this stage.”

The PGB, a group of voluntary people with expertise in a variety of backgrounds, was appointed before Christmas last year and took charge on July 1 as Connacht and the IRFU set out a three-year plan for the professional game in the province.

Boosting crowd numbers at the Sportsground is one of the targets of the PGB and with Toulouse, Gloucester and Harlequins coming to Galway in the Heineken Cup, season tickets have been flying out the door.

“Last season 375 season tickets were sold but that has now reached 2,500 and we have set a new target of 3,000. It promises to be a great season,” added Staunton.

Eric Elwood’s side has also secured a new main backer with Mazda taking over from Bank of Ireland as title sponsors.

Picture: Eric Elwood: Will lead Connacht into the Heineken Cup.