Advertising pays off as couple inundated with ticket offers

IT always pays to advertise, particularly if you happen to be a die-hard rugby fanatic desperate for tickets to see your team play in a crunch European Cup match.

That's exactly what Ralph and Kathleen Hole did and it looks like paying off.

"Rain, hail or snow," said Ralph last night, "we will be at Thomond Park. On the terraces or the stands I'm not sure where yet."

The English couple advertised free accommodation in their luxury home for racing fans planning to attend Cheltenham festival week in March. In return, they looked for six tickets to tomorrow's clash with Gloucester in Limerick.

Engineer Ralph and teacher Kathleen, who live at Charlton Kings, placed the ads in a number of Irish newspapers. They offered accommodation for up to six people, including breakfast and dinner as part of the deal.

Hotels and B&Bs are already booked out for Cheltenham and, with the Hole family home just two miles from the racecourse, the offer enticed quite a number of Irish racegoers. It didn't hurt either, that their stunning home has five bedrooms and boasts a jacuzzi.

Like all good ideas, the plan for the house swap was hatched in a pub. "The phone hasn't stopped ringing," said Kathleen yesterday. "The offers have been coming in all morning. There was one bloke in Limerick with two tickets and he was hoping to get another two. We are looking for six altogether which I know is a bit of a tall order, but we would settle for four."

Their best bet so far comes from a Dublin racing fan who is prepared to swap his six priceless tickets in exchange for accommodation for him and four of his friends in Cheltenham. "He is going to ring back again later and hopefully we can work out the details.

"It was all Ralph's idea," said Kathleen. "He was drinking with his mates last Thursday night and suddenly he got this brain-wave."

Ralph is a fanatical Gloucester supporter while Kathleen, whose mother is from Macroom, Co Cork, is a Munster fan. Her late father, Jim Coughlan, was an ardent Gloucester and Ireland supporter. Ralph and Kathleen, along with six friends, booked flights to Ireland last October.

"We had two tickets and hoped to be able to get the rest without too much bother, but it proved much harder than we thought. Since then we have been trying everywhere for the rest but without success. This was our last hope," said Kathleen. "My husband was prepared to pay hundreds of pounds for tickets but there were none available."

Up to 14,000 people are expected to pack Thomond Park tomorrow for the European Cup clash which Munster must win by four tries to progress to the knockout stages of the competition.

Despite this tall order, the Gloucester team is anything but confident, according to Kathleen.

"Munster are dangerous on home ground and, remember, this is a crunch match for Gloucester as well."

Although she enjoys rugby, Kathleen is more of a racegoer herself. "Ralph is the rugby fanatic but I'm more into racing," she said. And to prove the point she offers a tip for the Gold Cup. "I think Best Mate will be hard to beat."

That might be just what Irish punters want to hear.