New Zealand side Crusaders will play their Super 15 match against the Sharks at Twickenham on Sunday 27 March and the game will be a major part of the Red Cross fund raising weekend for the earthquake appeal. Tickets go on sale on today Tuesday afternoon, with £5 from each ticket sold going to charity. The Crusaders moved to Trafalgar Park in Nelson for last weekend’s 33-18 win over the Waratahs, but the 10,500 capacity limits ticket revenue.
An RFU spokesperson said: (quote) It is fantastic news that we were able to find a date that would enable us to host the game. Having some of the southern hemisphere’s best players on display at Twickenham will be a treat for all English-based fans of the Super 15. It is great to see the rugby family pull together for such a worthy cause and we would like to thank all our stakeholders for their flexibility and support in making this happen. We now have less than two weeks to get tickets sold so we would urge supporters to get online and buy soon. (end quote)
The Crusaders were forced to explore the possibility of switching their match after the AMI Stadium in Christchurch was damaged during the earthquake on 22 February. The stadium will remain closed while the damage is assessed,but is due to host seven matches in the Rugby World Cup with the first England’s Pool B match against Argentina on 10 September.
The match at Twickenham will be the first time Super 15 Rugby has been played outside the participant nations. In January, Wasps moved their LV= Cup match against Harlequins to Abu Dhabi in the first United Kingdom domestic fixture to be played abroad.