Ospreys bosses are urging supporters to take advantage of the value for money season-ticket deals on offer as they revealed details of a small rise in adult matchday admission prices at the Liberty Stadium for 2010/11.
Having held matchday prices at 2008/09 levels for last season, rising overheads have inevitably meant that prices will increase slightly for the coming season, with Category A tickets up £3 to £28 and Category B and C both rising by £2 to £24 and £20 respectively. Concessionary rates for next season have been set at £12 (Cat C), £17 (B) and £20 (A).
Reaffirming the region's commitment to youth, a new 'Kids for a Quid' initiative is being launched for next season in the Family Stand, where juniors (16 and under) accompanied by family adults within the family stand are entitled to tickets at just £1, keeping down the cost for a family to follow the Ospreys despite the increase in adult prices. Unaccompanied juniors (of secondary school age or above only) can purchase tickets at just £5, but only within Category C areas.
However, after confirming the price rises, management at the region reiterated the fantastic value of a season-ticket, with the cheapest working out at under £10 a game if you attend all 17 matches - less than half price. With a monthly payment option also available, allowing fans to spread the costs over the course of the season, it means that all supporters will be able to benefit from the value for money packages, regardless of their personal budget.
As Managing Director Roger Blyth pointed out, the season ticket packages offer tremendous value even if you can't make every match over the course of the season. He said:
"As a board of directors we've thought long and hard about matchday prices this season, and unfortunately, with rising costs we were in a position where a rise was inevitable. Thankfully though, we have been able to keep those rise to a minimum. When you compare ticket prices at the Liberty Stadium, we believe that even with an increase, our prices compare very favourably to other clubs in the Magners League and Guinness Premiership. Our top price of £28 also puts us in line with the Swans, who we share the facility with.
"When we were setting prices for the season, we wanted to ensure that our regular supporters weren't penalised in anyway, and I think that the season-ticket packages we have put together are evidence of that. They really are tremendous value and I would urge as many fans as possible to seriously look in to investing in one this season. The Category C Early Bird adult price of £165 has been well documented, if you are a supporter who knows that you will get to every game over the course of the season it means that you are paying just £9.70 per match instead of £20 and I don't think anyone could argue that to see top flight rugby and some of the best players in the world game for less than a tenner is incredible value for money.
"We do get a lot of feedback from people saying that they would buy a season-ticket but they can't get to every game so they don't feel it offers them value for money, or that it isn't worth it. To those, I would urge you to reconsider. Again, using Category C prices as a guide, if you only manage to attend nine games in a season, paying match by match that would cost you £180 - £15 more than a season-ticket purchased before the Early Bird Deadline of July 18th. It only takes nine games over a season to be in profit as it were, plus you get the added convenience of having the same seat secured week in week out, you don't have to go out of your way to purchase tickets when you need them, and you aren't at risk of missing out for our big games. If you get to one or two extra games, then you are well in profit.
"In terms of saving money and getting best value, season-tickets make so much sense. I have to stress that we never want to increase ticket prices unless absolute necessary, and in our discussions on this occasion we were always sure that we wanted to soften the blow by increasing the value of our season-tickets to encourage more people to invest. The reaction from supporters has been fantastic and the level of sales over the first three weeks has been extremely encouraging.
"With extra initiatives such as the Kids Go Free season ticket offer, or Kids for a Quid matchday ticket prices, along with the Introduce-A-Friend deal we really are working hard to make watching the Ospreys as affordable as possible for everybody. With such an exciting Heineken Cup draw and two extra games in the Magners League as we look to defend our title, everybody at the Ospreys is looking forward to next season and, hopefully, our excitement will be shared by supporters who will continue to snap up season-tickets ahead of the Early Bird deadline."
With the introduction of Benetton Treviso and Aironi to the Magners League for next season, the package offers better value for money than ever. Season-tickets cover 11 Magners League fixtures in the regular season (not play-offs), Heineken Cup group matches against Munster, London Irish and Toulon, LV= Cup pool stages and a pre-season friendly, with 15 of the 17 games guaranteed to be at the Liberty Stadium.
Following the success of the scheme last year, the Introduce-A-Friend initiative will once again be operating, potentially allowing adult supporters the chance to watch the Ospreys all season completely free of charge, while all juniors (16 and under) can claim a free season-ticket in the Family Stand if accompanied by a paying adult - you can't get better value than that!
Adult season-tickets start at just £165, with OAP's and students paying just £125, when purchased before the Early Bird deadline of July 18th.
SEASON TICKET BENEFITS
• Free entry to 17 Ospreys matches (15 guaranteed to be at the Liberty Stadium), including Heineken Cup pooplus all age grade fixtures staged within Ospreylia
• Savings of up to 51%! Watch 9 games, and you’ve more than broken even!
• Guarantee your seat for the whole of the season… no more queuing for match tickets.
• Kids for Free! All juniors can secure their season ticket for NOTHING if accompanied by a paying adult in our family stand.
• Introduce 3 new friends and get your season ticket free (or 25% off for one new friend, or 50% for two new friends)! (3 new friends' tickets must be of equal or greater value than your own existing ticket... please see online terms & conditions for more detail).
• Full automatic membership in our new Ospreys Supporters Club (keep eye on website for more details)
• 10% discount on all additional tickets purchased for matches covered by the season ticket
• 10% discount on all Ospreys merchandise purchased at the Liberty Stadium Club Shop
• Priority booking for all Magners League & Heineken Cup progression matches & any away match tickets put on sale
• Automatic entry into ticket ballot for purchase of Welsh International home matches
• PLUS - Finance option available… spread the cost of your season ticket over 10 equal monthly instalments (less than £18 per month for a full adult ticket)!
Existing season-ticket holders have until 30th June to secure their current seats.