Planes, trains or automobiles - the fans making the pilgrimage to the hurling final at Croke Park tomorrow don't mind how they get there as long as they arrive with that all-important scrap of embossed card. A ticket hasn't been this coveted since Charlie fancied a visit to Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.
Golden ticket-holders are taking advantage of the 2,100 extra train seats from Cork to Croker which sold out within two hours on Tuesday morning, according to Mr Barry Kenny of Iarnrod Eireann. Kilkenny fans were more relaxed about the journey, and some train tickets were still available on that route yesterday.
Those who missed a seat on the train had to be quick to catch some of the planes that have been specially chartered by travel companies for the day. A spokeswoman for Lee Travel in Cork city said that it managed to fill a 117-seater Boeing in just five days at £115 a head. For fans hitting the road in their cars tomorrow, Conor Faughnan of AA Roadwatch was advising an early start to cope with the expected congestion and tailbacks around the Naas Road and Croke Park.
"Coming from Cork, motorists are advised to allow 4 1/2 hours for the journey, while Kilkenny fans should give at least two hours. Oh, and up the Dubs," said a slightly confused Mr Faughnan.
Transport was the least of the fans' worries at Billy Morgan's sports bar in Cork city centre yesterday where the search for match tickets was reaching fever pitch. Some were being exchanged for several hundred pounds.
Meanwhile, an automated voice at Pairc Ui Caoimh states coldly that there are "no further tickets available".
In Langtons Bar in Kilkenny the story was much the same. "The team have been coming here for their dinner after training, and the hunt for tickets is beginning to get desperate," said the bar manager.