Donegal supporters urged to get tickets immediately as Tyrone game will be sell-out

Donegal’s Super 8 Senior Football Championship clash in MacCumhaill Park, in Ballybofey on Sunday week is set to be a sellout and supporters who are not club members are urged to get their tickets online immediately.

The game  is effectively a winner-takes-all clash with the prize for the victors a place in the All-Ireland semi-final.  

“It's like an Ulster final in the old days where an All-Ireland semi-final was the prize for the winners. It is by far the biggest game ever staged in the county or played in MacCumhaill Park,” Donegal chairman Mick McGrath told the Democrat.

“It's going to be a sellout and I would encourage Donegal supporters who are not members of clubs and normally get their tickets online or from SuperValu and Centra outlets, to continue to do so.

“I would also encourage them to do so early before they are sold out because we want a big Donegal crowd in MacCumhaill Park to get behind and support the team.

“Tyrone, as we all know, are well supported and they will have a big following so it is important that we (Donegal) need to get a big crowd in too.”

MacCumhaill Park has an official capacity of 17,520, the third largest capacity in Ulster behind St Tiernach’s Park, Clones and Kingspan Breffni Park, Cavan.

However, under health and safety rules when a game is deemed all ticket the official capacity is reduced by ten percent which reduces the MacCumhaill Park capacity for Sunday week’s  game to below 16,000 (15,768).

The MacCumhaill Park stand can hold 4,500 with the remainder on the terraces.

“Our allocation for the Stand is 500. That is after season ticket holders from the two counties (which is in the region of 2,400) and players’ families and officials are taken out of the allocation,” explained the chairman.

Donegal have just under 900 season ticket holders which is down significantly on recent years.

Donegal are still awaiting their allocation for the terrace and they won’t receive that until the clubs in the county put in their orders for tickets.

The fixture is a Croke Park fixture and is being run by Croke Park with an input from Donegal and the Ulster Council.

It will take up to 90 stewards to run the event with the stewards provided by Donegal and neighbouring counties.

Aodh Ruadh club man, Terence McShea, is the event controller and will have the responsibility for everything that happens inside the ground.