MacHale Park before the Connacht semi-final between Roscommon and Mayo last Sunday. Tom O’Hanlon/INPHO

Empty stand seats at Mayo v Roscommon due to sunshine, not ticket prices - Connacht CEO

John Prenty says 2,000 stand tickets were sold on the day but that spectators chose to watch the game in the sun.

IMAGES OF EMPTY seats at MacHale Park for the Connacht semi-final between Roscommon and Mayo were due to fans wishing to watch the game in the sunshine rather than issues with ticket prices, according to Connacht GAA CEO, John Prenty.

Several seats in the stand of the Castlebar stadium appeared to be unoccupied during Roscommon’s 10-point victory last Sunday. Independent Ireland MEP Ciarán Mullooly posted a video online illustrating the issue in MacHale Park on the day.

Stand tickets for the game were at a set price of €35. Terrace tickets for adults were €30 each, €25 for students and OAPs, while children’s terrace tickets were €5. Prenty previously explained on Midwest Radio that the pricing structure was due to “logistic” and “economic” reasons.

He discussed the issue again on Shannonside FM today, explaining that fans purchased stand tickets but decided to watch the game in the sunshine.

“There’s a tradition in Castlebar that if they get a stand ticket, they go over to the other side because of the weather. 80% of the stand were sold but 80% of the stand wasn’t accommodated on the day because people went out in the sun. It was cold in the stand last week.

“That happens very often in Castlebar. It’s a 30,000-seater stadium.”

When asked by presenter Joe Finnegan if it was possible that fans were purchasing tickets for elsewhere in MacHale Park due to frustrations over ticket prices, Prenty replied:

“Nothing to do with it because we sold the tickets. 2,000 stand tickets were sold last week.”

Listen to the full interview here

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