Judgement Day fans will be able to buy bespoke programmes relating to the team of their choice at Principality Stadium on Saturday.
Organisers have taken the unique step of printing four different covers to cater for the expected 60,000-plus crowd.
Gareth Anscombe, Rhys Webb, Tyler Morgan and Jake Ball all get top billing in equal measure with distributors expecting programme sales to match Judgement Day 2016 and once again surpass the demand at Wales’ international matches.
The cover 'boys’ are depicted at iconic venues in their respective regions with Cardiff Blues fly-half Anscombe shown at the Cardiff Bay Barrage, Ospreys scrum-half Webb at ‘Worms Head’ in Llangennith, Scarlets lock Ball at the Burry Port Lighthouse and Dragons back Morgan pictured in front of the Transporter Bridge in Newport.
Saturday will be the fifth Judgement Day and sees Cardiff Blues take on Ospreys at 2.45pm followed by Newport Gwent Dragons versus Scarlets at 5.15pm, with both lower and middle tier tickets sold-out at Principality Stadium and £10 tickets in the upper tier now available in limited numbers.
However, this will be the first rugby event at the stadium where four different match programmes have been available.
The programmes provide team news and also feature interviews with each of the regional coaches Steve Tandy (Ospreys), Danny Wilson (Blues), Wayne Pivac (Scarlets) and Kingsley Jones (Dragons).
They are priced at just £5 each and all variants will be available at each of the 44 sellers on duty around the stadium throughout the day.
Organisers have also announced that Welsh singing duo 'Into The Ark', finalists on The Voice, will perform live ahead of the opening JDV match.
Another record breaking turn-out is expected for the annual back-to-back Welsh derbies after last year’s 68,262 attendance.
And Welsh Rugby Union Chairman Gareth Davies has called on supporters to fill the national ground to its rafters and make history once again, for JDV:
“The Judgement Day event has grown year on year and we are proud to say it has now become a ‘must visit’ fixture in the annual sporting calendar of both die-hard rugby enthusiasts around Wales and those event goers who know a good day out when they see one.”
Tickets for Judgement Day V are available at £10 per person from the WRU website (where print-at-home is available) or in person from the WRU Ticket Office on Westgate Street which is open from 0930hrs on Friday and Saturday.
STAT ATTACK - JUDGEMENT DAY
CARDIFF BLUES
- Cardiff Blues have used 48 players in their four Judgement Day game.
- No player has started all four matches.
- Scrum half Lewis Jones is the only player to have been involved in all four matches – twice as the starting scrum half and twice as a replacement.
- Josh Turnbull played for the Scarlets in 2013 and 2014 and then the Blues in 2015 and 2016.
- Matthew Rees played for the Scarlets in 2013 and then for the Blues in the next three seasons.
OSPREYS
- The Ospreys have used 48 players in their four Judgement Day matches.
- Dan Biggar is the only player to have started all four matches.
- James King, Scott Baldwin and Jonathan Spratt have featured in all four games as a starter and replacement.
- Sam Parry was a replacements for the Dragons in 2013 and 2014 and then for the Ospreys in 2015 and 2016.
- Dan Lydiate (2013) and Dan Evans (2013) both played for the Dragons before the Ospreys.
NEWPORT GWENT DRAGONS:
- The Dragons have used 55 players in their four Judgement Day Matches.
- Only two players have started all four Judgement Day games to date – Jack Dixon and Taulupe Faletau.
- The Dragons have used four different half-back pairings and had four different outside halves in their Judgement Day matches
SCARLETS
- The Scarlets have used 47 players in heir four Judgement Day matches.
- Only Liam Williams and Scott Williams have started every game. Ken Owens has started three teams and been a replacement once.
JUDGEMENT DAY RECORDS
Team Records (Match)
Most Points: Ospreys 40 v (Blues 2016)
Most Tries: Ospreys 6 v (Blues 2016)
Team (Overall)
Most Wins: 4 Ospreys
Most Tries: 14 Ospreys
Most Points: 114 Ospreys
Individual (Match)
Most Points: 19 Steve Shingler (Scarlets v Dragons 2016)
Most Tries: 2 George North (Scarlets v Dragons 2013), Rhys Webb, Hanno Dirksen (both Ospreys v Blues 2016)
Individual (Overall)
Most Tries: 2 George North, Scott Williams, Ken Owens (Scarlets), Rhys Webb, Hanno Dirksen, James King (Ospreys), Josh Navidi (Blues)
Most Points: 49 Dan Biggar (Ospreys)
Yellow Cards
Blues: None
Dragons: Taulupe Faletau 2013 v Scarlets; Nic Cudd, Tyler Morgan v Ospreys 2014;
Ospreys: Ryan Jones, Jonathan Spratt v Dragons 2014;
Scarlets: Liam Williams 2014 v Blues; Peter Edwards v Dragons 2016
Red Cards
Blues: Robin Copeland 2014 v Scalets
Dragons: None
Ospreys: None
Scarlets: Liam Williams 2014 v Blues
