Ireland surpass 'incredibly special' marker for Aviva Stadium clash

Ireland‘s ticket sales for their Guinness Women’s Six Nations clash with Scotland at Aviva Stadium have surpassed the 20,000 mark.

The Round 5 fixture will be Ireland’s first-ever standalone fixture at the Dublin venue. The last time Ireland played at Aviva Stadium was in 2014 when they registered a 39-0 win against Italy as part of a double-header.

This comes after Scott Bemand’s side set a new home attendance record of 9,206 at Galway’s Dexcom Stadium in Round 2 as Ireland beat the Italians 57-20.

Ireland captain Erin King said: “It’s incredibly special to see ticket sales pass 20,000 for our first ever Six Nations match at Aviva Stadium. We have been working hard to grow our Green Wave for a number of years now and through our hard work, performances and results, we want to inspire and excite supporters of all ages to get behind us.

“We saw in Galway on Saturday how significant home support can be for us as a team and there is huge motivation within the group to continue to grow and develop our support base, and just as significantly show the next generation of young players what is possible.

“We have big two matches between now and 17 May to focus on, but we can’t wait to step out at Aviva Stadium next month, feed off the energy of our supporters and be part of an occasion that will inspire more fans, more players and even bigger days ahead.”

This weekend Ireland travel to Clermont-Ferrand, where they will be hosted by François Ratier’s France at the Stade Marcel-Michelin.

It is a repeat of the two teams’ clash at last year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final. In torrid conditions at Sandy Park, Ireland watched a 13-0 half-time lead slip against France, who ultimately won the contest 18-13 and progressed to a semi-final against England.

The game was not without incident either as France’s Axelle Berthoumieu was retrospectively banned for a bite on Aoife Wafer and Manae Feleu was also banned for a dangerous tackle.

France have won both of their Women’s Six Nations matches against Italy and Wales so far this Championship. The only real contenders to end England’s hopes of an eighth consecutive title in a row, a win this weekend could be a major statement of Irish intent.

In Round 4, Ireland will host Wales at Belfast’s Affixed Stadium before travelling to Dublin for their Round 5 encounter with Scotland.