Rugby: The green surrounds of the Aviva Stadium will become a sea of blue and red come early October when Leinster and Munster square off in the first Irish provincial derby of the Magners League campaign which will take place at Irish rugby's new 50,000-home on Lansdowne Road.
The game has an evening kick-off of 7.30 on Saturday, October 2nd and is sure to generate huge demand as the Leinster faithful move across Ballsbridge from their home of several years at the RDS to run out in the new, pristine surrounds at Lansdowne Road.
The match will provide the likes of Brian O’Driscoll, Paul O’Connell, Ronan O’Gara and Jamie Heaslip their first taste of the new stadium ahead of Ireland’s autumn international programme.
“Leinster have enjoyed many outstanding moments in Lansdowne Road down through the years and we are confident that this double-header will kick-start an exciting new era for the province in the Aviva Stadium,” said Leinster chief executive Mick Dawson.
Leinster will also take on Clermont Auvergne at the Aviva in their Heineken Cup Pool Two game on Saturday, December 18th (kick-off 5.45pm).
“We were proud to stage ‘The Last Stand’ against Ulster in December 2006 and we are grateful to the IRFU for enabling us to use this outstanding facility.
“Obviously we remain committed long-term to the RDS, an arena which continues to serve the province so well and has become a real fortress for the team and our loyal supporters. But the move for these two games to the Aviva Stadium presents an enormous opportunity for those who can’t readily access tickets to top class rugby across the province."
Ticket prices for the two matches start at €30 with redcued family rates available. All 13,000 Leinster season ticket holders will be accommodated for the two fixtures and will be given first refusal for extra tickets for the Munster game.
If tickets remain after Munster’s allocation is taken into account they'll go on public sale from Monday, August 23rd at 10am from www.leinsterrugby.ie and Ticketmaster outlets nationwide.