FAI strikes deal over extra tickets for Wales game in Cardiff

The FAI has announced that it has reached an agreement with the Football Association of Wales to secure a larger than normal allocation of tickets for Ireland's last game of the current World Cup qualifying campaign in Cardiff.

The game, on October 9th, is expected to be played in the Cardiff City stadium which has a capacity of just 33,280 which would entitle the visitors to around 1,800 tickets.

But given that demand is likely to far outstrip that, the two associations have struck a reciprocal dealt in relation to the two qualifying games and so the FAI will be guaranteed around 3,500 tickets, significantly more if the game is moved to the larger Principality Stadium (formerly Cardiff Arms Park).

Ireland’s only other remaining way game is against Georgia in Tbilisi on September 2nd where away tickets are unlikely to be nearly such a major issue but the FAI has indicated that talks on its allocation are in progress.

Wales travel to Dublin on March 24th and the Spanish publication AS has suggested that Gareth Bale is now on course to miss that game as his ankle injury is more serious than had been first thought.

The paper estimates that he is now likely to return for Real Madrid in April although his operation earlier this week is said by his club to have gone well and there has no indication from the player himself of a delay to the original 2-3 month timeframe.

Clean sheets

Elsewhere,

Alan Bennett

has won the last SWAI/

Airtricity

Player of the Month award for 2016 with the

Cork City

defender recognised for his performance in the FAI Cup final in which his side beat arch rivals

Dundalk

.

“I really am very proud to win this award,” said the 35 year-old.

“I’m humbled, to be honest. We finished the season exactly how we wanted to by winning the FAI Cup and to get this too caps it off. We’ve had a great year, Seanie [Maguire] finished as top scorer, we kept 21 clean sheets from 33 games and I think we can hold our heads up high.

“Ronan Finn got man of the match in the final so to be recognised like this is very nice. I’m already looking forward to the start of pre-season to get back into action. We’re back training in the first week of January and then we’ll have the Presidents Cup soon after. I can’t wait to get going again.”

The aim for City next year will be, once again, to leapfrog Stephen Kenny’s side in the league table and Bennett, who is already signed up for the campaign, appreciates the scale of the challenge but believes the cup victory will provide the impetus required to spur the southerners on.

“For the club, for John [Caulfield], it was great to win something meaningful and it has re-energised everyone at the club. We have got to keep upping our own game because Dundalk are only going to get better.

“For the fans and the media, it’s great to have us both pushing and it is a genuine rivalry. I’d like to think there is a healthy amount of mutual respect there, too. I was just thinking about the Presidents Cup the other day and that got me going again. I went to the gym straight away because of that.”

New contract

Paddy Barrett is the latest member of the Dundalk squad to sign a new contract with the club. The 23-year-old central defender who arrived at Oriel Park two years ago, scored six goals in 31 league appearances for the club in 2016 and will now stay on for t least another 12 months.

“I am delighted to re-sign at the club,” he said.

“Stephen Kenny came to me a while back looking to sign me back and I always wanted to stay here. It’s a great club and the success that we had in 2016 was great. We want to repeat that over the next few years. The future for Dundalk is bright. I want to be a part of that.”