Armagh GAA fans go the extra mile for final tickets

The countdown is on and demand has reached fever pitch in the hunt for tickets to Armagh's All-Ireland final showdown against Galway on Sunday.

A second allocation of tickets was made to clubs on Tuesday, the Armagh County Board has confirmed, after fans spent the day trying to get word that they could go to the game.

Previously only 240 tickets were available to each club in the orchard county, with supporters calling in favours from friends, family, and fellow fans around the world.

Fergal O’Brien said he has now secured a ticket for himself for the All-Ireland Final from an “anonymous source” after sending requests to friends from around the world to get one.

“I now have two tickets for myself and my son Eoghan and we will be sitting together in the Cusack Stand at the final,” he said.

“Eoghan is over the moon that we will be together.

“I am wishing everyone else success in getting one.”

“My son Eoghan, who works in London, and I were at the Kerry semi-final and an hour after he left, he rebooked a flight from London to come back for the final," Fergal told BBC News NI.

Before securing a ticket for himself, Fergal "put in friendship favour requests from Kerry to Donegal, Limerick, Cork, Dublin".

He even asked a friend in Ottawa in Canada, but they had already "gone to a fan in Galway”.

• Race for Sam a marathon for Armagh's veterans
• 'Everyone's on a high': Armagh gears up for final
• All-Ireland Football Final - all you need to know

Demand has outstripped supply in Armagh, with one club, Carrickcruppen, posting on social media early on Monday that it had received requests for 932 tickets, urging supporters to be patient.

“Please continue to look for tickets anywhere you can as we will not meet all requests," it added.

Tickets for the All-Ireland Football Final are not available through general sale.

Before knowing that he would be able to attend, Fergal said "if you are not connected to a club, it is very hard to get one".

“I would have been the culture officer at Mullaghbawn GAA Club for 10 years. I don’t want special favours - there are other people deserving," he added.

"I would be at the back of the queue - but I would like to be in the queue!"

The public relations officer with Armagh GAA, Finbar Burns, said the county had been inundated with ticket requests from across the island of Ireland and beyond.

“Some of them are from the Armagh diaspora who have not been to a game in years," he added.

“It is our first All-Ireland final in 21 years, since 2003, and it has reignited a passion in them.

“Even the amount of emails I have received personally, you would think I was a ticket machine.

“It is great the interest but unfortunately there will not be a ticket for everyone.

“I got an email from Boston in the US from somebody who used to go to every match, they are returning home for the final.

“There was also someone from Central Europe who was at the quarter-final and semi-final who has booked a flight to the final already.”

Each county receives an allocation of tickets which is filtered down to their clubs.

Earlier this year the GAA announced an increased pricing structure for the All-Ireland football and hurling finals.

Stand tickets now cost €100 (£85), an increase of €10 from 2023. Tickets for the Hill 16 terrace are €55 (£46), up €5 from last year.

The 2024 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final takes place on Sunday 28 July at 15:30 BST.

For those not lucky enough to get a ticket for the match at Croke Park in Dublin, you can watch it on the BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and BBC Two Northern Ireland. Coverage begins at 15:00.

On Monday, Translink announced it had an additional "bus special" from Newry, departing the city at 11:00 BST on Sunday and returning at 20:00, with "seats being quickly snapped up".

It said other special services put in place for the All-Ireland GAA football final had already "proved popular", with two special trains, a bus special from Armagh and another bus special from Newry "all sold out".

Translink has also increased capacity on the regular Enterprise service to support fans.

It recommends that passengers pre-book their bus special to the final as soon as possible to secure a seat.

“Enterprise services, which have been enhanced, are also exceptionally busy that day and we recommend that people looking to travel book in advance," the company added.

I’ve spent most of the day at Carrickcruppen GAA club between Camlough and Bessbrook - which is a real hotbed for GAA - and this Sunday’s All-Ireland final is all anyone can talk about.

Particularly the tickets.

As with every other club, tickets are limited and demand is outstripping supply so hundreds of fans here will inevitably be left disappointed.

But with rumours of a second batch of tickets being allocated to GAA clubs coming true, many are feeling hopeful.

Others have said that while they’ll be disappointed if they don’t get a ticket, they’re excited to watch the Orange County fight for the Sam Maguire.

Caroline Loughran, who's a member of Carrickcruppen GAA Club, is "on the hunt" after being unable to get a ticket for herself and two of her children, despite her husband and son receiving tickets.

"I'm still hoping; fingers, everything crossed, that we get tickets," she said.

Caroline says "it's tough" that some fans won't be able to attend.

"We've been to a lot of games all year, and it's just disappointing that the club hasn't received enough, even half the amount that they need to cover all their members."

Someone who has been "lucky" enough to get a ticket is coach Ciara McGill, but none of her family have been able to get their hands on any, so she has to go to Sunday's final by herself.

"They're basically like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. They're gold dust, but I think it's a bit of a blood bath to get tickets," she said.

"I'm texting half the country now for my family members. I'm married to a Donegal man so I'm calling in favours all over the place. Anybody I know... but unfortunately they're not coming up with the goods," she added.