Lansdowne Looking Forward To ‘A Huge Club Day’

Lansdowne are planning ‘a huge club day’ around Saturday’s Ulster Bank League Division 1A semi-final against Young Munster at the Aviva Stadium, with everyone from the minis up to the most veteran of supporters getting involved.

ULSTER BANK LEAGUE DIVISION 1A SEMI-FINAL: Saturday, April 25

LANSDOWNE (1st) v YOUNG MUNSTER (4th), Aviva Stadium main pitch, 2.30pm

Admission: €;10 for adults, €;10 for families, and children aged 15 and under get in for free. Tickets will be available to purchase at the desk in the car park or in the clubhouse – not at the gate.

It will be a very busy day for members of Lansdowne FC and they would have it no other way, as they cheer on Mike Ruddock’s senior team on the main pitch before the club’s sold-out annual dinner takes place in the evening.

Colin Goode, Lansdowne’s chairman of rugby, told Irish Rugby TV: “At the start of the year, that the target to qualify top four and to qualify top two to get a home semi. We want to be at home, we want all our minis here on the day, with face-painting, we’ll have the Six Nations trophy here hopefully, we’ll have our club dinner that night and we’ll have Young Munster come up and participate in the pre-match lunch. It’ll be a huge club day.

“It’s great, we love to see the club busy. We love to see people enjoying it, we love to see the young guys watching the seniors. They will do a guard of honour for the seniors. It’s what it is all about, the younger guys love it, all the kids, all the coaches.

It’s a reward for hard work all year. That’s what we want, it’s a home semi-final and we’d like all our supporters and members to be here to watch it.”

For matters on the pitch, Lansdowne head coach Ruddock feels it will be about ‘whoever takes their opportunities on the day’. Their number 8 and captain Ron Boucher has a lot of respect for Young Munster and the manner in which they finished the regular season with four straight wins to book their play-off spot.

“Young Munster always bring a physicality, they’ve a big pack, a mauling game. They’ve good counter attackers from deep. We’re expecting a battle, we’re expecting them to come up here and really test us physically,” said Boucher.

“But we’re looking forward to it as a challenge. These are the games that you want to play in and engage yourself when you’re playing against a tough opposition, and Munsters certainly are.”

It is two clubs with rich traditions, it is Dublin versus Limerick, and it promises to be an intriguing play-off tie. Kick-off is at 2.30pm.