Originally Posted by
Ger Keville
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But Ireland fans have tonight strongly rejected Delaney’s claims, saying that the real issue is how the 3,200 tickets were distributed, not the initial allocation.
A statement released through YouBoysInGreen.ie tonight read: “While we agree with the FAI that an increased allocation was a preferable solution, this does not avoid the serious questions which have arisen over the systemic failure of the FAI ticketing in this case.
“Mr Delaney claimed that you need “the wisdom of Solomon to allocate tickets fairly”. This is clearly incorrect. All the FAI need to do is implement a clear and transparent ticketing policy and allocation system.
“Our upcoming opposition, Scotland, have such a ticket system in place. The FAI have repeatedly failed to implement such a system and now some of their most loyal fans are missing out on the biggest game in years.
“There has been widespread acceptance that the FAI were in a difficult position due to the level of interest in this game. The absence of a clear and transparent system and the inability of the FAI to adequately explain how many season tickets holders with extensive away records were rejected for tickets has led many to question the Association.”
According to BBC journalist Tom English on tonight’s Matt Cooper Show, the SFA believe Delaney has behaved ‘irresponsibly’ in directing the blame towards the Scots.
English also insisted that the game will be a sell out and the only reason there are still tickets on sale is because the SFA only release the final few thousand in batches on their website to create web traffic.
“They didn’t have to give Ireland anymore tickets. They complied with FIFA regulations in giving five per cent,” said English.
“They will sell these tickets in a heartbeat. They release them later on through their website to generate more traffic.
“It’s laughable for John Delaney to say they can’t sell it out. They can sell it out, it’s just the way they do it.”
According to one of English’s sources, the SFA think Delaney has behaved irresponsibly.
“The SFA feel Delaney behaved irresponsibly,” added English.
“By playing up security issues, he was trying to cover his own back, trying to shift the blame and the SFA are not having any of it.”
Going forward, Delaney has acknowledged that mistakes were made and they will be rectifies for future games.
"There is learning for us and I accept that mistakes were made," added Delaney.
"One of the guys inside the FAI just said to me the other day 'I took my eye off the ball' in certain cases and I have to accept that mistakes are made.
"What I tried to do in the Association was to rectify the situation over the weekend by buying corporate tickets at £125 and selling them back for £45."
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