WHAT’S ON: London Irish v Edinburgh Rugby, Saturday 14 October (kick-off 3pm)
European Rugby returns to the Madejski Stadium on Saturday 14 October with Edinburgh Rugby the first of London Irish’s European Rugby Challenge Cup rivals.
With under 13s for £1 throughout the stadium, it’s going to be a great day for all the family.
Here’s all you need to know:
Early Bird food and drink offer
We will be running an Early Bird food and drink offer in the Windsor Lounge before the match. You'll be able to purchase locally farmed pork and leek sausages with mash with a pint of beer/glass of wine/soft drink for just £8.50 between noon and 1pm. All the more reason to get to the MadStad early, enjoy the craic and make a day of it!
Player signing session
Members of our senior squad will be outside the front of the Megastore at 2pm to meet supporters and sign autographs. The players love to get to know supporters so come and say hi - and don't forget to bring something to get signed!
Digger's Dugout
For the Junior Exiles, Digger’s Dugout will be in the North Stand with free face painting, a bouncy castle and games, and you can pick up your free London Irish clap banner.
The Jazz Cafe
The Jazz Cafe in the East Stand will be open before the game from 12.30pm, at half-time and for an hour after the game. On Saturday the Jazz Cafe will also open for the public from 7.15pm until 1.30am for a Showcase event. Entry is free for all London Irish Members!
Live music
This week, Exiles favourite Ruairi MacManus will be at the Madejski Stadium with music on the pitch in the lead up to kick-off, at half-time and in the Club Room after the match.
Half-time
The Poo Ball Challenge will again be gracing the pitch at half-time! The person who gets the best of the giant rugby ball challenge will then get to play the London Irish Lucky Prize Board with the chance to win some fantastic prizes.
Club Room
The Club Room in the Princess Suite will be open as usual after the game with live music and a Q&A with Brendan Venter and some of the players.
Club Shop
Head to the Megastore to browse our replica kit, training range and leisure wear, including our new winter range to keep you warm as the weather turns colder. We've got everything from hats and coats, to scarves and wraps!
Fan Radios
Offering you access to the referee's mic throughout the match, the radios are just £10 and can be used at every Premiership club ground throughout the season. They will be on sale in the Megastore and at the programme selling points. The radios will also give you access to live match commentary during Aviva Premiership games. The batteries are replaceable, and they even double up as an FM radio!
Programme
Don't forget to pick up your London Irish programme for £4 from the programme sellers outside the Megastore and Gates 1, 7 & 8. This week the programme features an interview with London Irish scrum-half Scott Steele and all-time leading Premiership points scorer and new London Irish kicking coach Charlie Hodgson.
Got some old £1 coins to get rid of before they are no longer accepted on Sunday? Our programme sellers will happily accept your old £1 coins this weekend - so treat yourself to a programme on Saturday and use up those expiring coins!
Food and drink
There are a number of kiosks in the East Stand, Lower West Stand and Upper West Stand concourses selling a range of food and drink options including pies, hot dogs, gourmet burgers, pizza and soup, as well as crisps, chocolate bars and sweets.
A selection of hot drinks, soft drinks and alcoholic drinks are also available from the concourse kiosks including draught bitter, cider and Guinness and bottles of craft lager and real ale.
There are a number of meal deals:
- Hot food item & beer or wine: £8
- Snack & hot drink or soft drink: £3.50
- Hot food item & hot drink or soft drink: £5.70
TICKETS
Kids for a quid!
Tickets will be available on match day from £21 for adults with Under 13s tickets remaining just £1 from the Madejski Stadium Ticket Office or by calling 0118 968 1016 from 10am.
London Irish Membership cards are valid for this game.
TRAVEL
By car:
Parking is £10 at the stadium subject to availability. The Greyhound Stadium car park will be closed for this game. The Mereoak Park & Ride will be operating, for more information visit http://www.reading-buses.co.uk/park-and-ride/
The Madejski Stadium can be approached from the A33 Reading Relief Road which links to the M4 Motorway. Exit the M4 at Junction 11 heading for Reading on the A33. At the first roundabout, take the 2nd left onto the Reading Relief Road, passing the Stadium on your left. At the next roundabout (past McDonalds) take the first left onto Northern Way and follow signs to car parks. You can find a map here: http://bit.ly/2ysNpuZ
Please leave extra time for your journey because of roadworks around the stadium and on the M4.
By rail:
Due to work going on at Reading Station this weekend, there are a number of disruptions to rail services with rail replacement bus services in place on many lines. Please allow extra time for your journey.
From London Paddington, there are no direct services to Reading, you will need to change at Maidenhead for a replacement bus service. For those travelling from Oxford, there is a replacement bus service running between Didcot & Reading. From Swindon you can either take the replacement bus service for the whole journey or get the train to Didcot and then take the replacement bus service to Reading. From Newbury there is a replacement bus service between Theale & Reading. There is also a replacement bus service between Basingstoke and Reading. For those who travel through Basingstoke there is a replacement bus between Eastleigh & Basingstoke.
The lines from Gatwick Airport & London Waterloo to Reading appear to be running normally.
Reading Buses operate a frequent R1 service between the Southwest Interchange bus station by Reading Station and the Madejski Stadium on match days.
Buses depart from the Southwest Interchange up to 3 hours before kick-off and work as a frequent service until roughly 20 minutes before kick-off.
Returning from the Madejski, services depart from Northern Way after full-time and operate for around two and a half hours until 7.15pm.
Please note that you will need to pay in cash - £3.50 for an adult return and £2 for an Under 19 return ticket. Click here for more information.
Security
Please be aware that stewards will be carrying out bag checks on entry to the stadium. We encourage you to only bring a bag if necessary and to leave extra time to enter the stadium. Please note that alcohol is not permitted to be brought into the stadium.
If you aren't able to make it to the game tomorrow, you can follow the action at the MadStad on Twitter (@LiRFC) and Snapchat (londonirishrfc).
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