Lord of the Dance
Ticket deadline extended for Ireland - England clash amid friendly fears
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Ticket deadline extended for Ireland - England clash amid friendly fears

THE Football Association of Ireland has extended the ticket application deadline for Ireland fans wishing to travel to next month's friendly with England at Wembley.

The deadline extension follows some concern in England that the May 29 friendly could become a flashpoint for violence following the ugly scenes involving Millwall fans at last Saturday's FA Cup semi-final in Wembley.

The Lions placed unsold tickets on general sale in the run up to the game, meaning non-Millwall fans may have found themselves among Millwall supporters.

The subsequent hooliganism has sparked fears that London-based Irish fans buying tickets late could find themselves in home sections of the ground.

However, following discussions this week, the FA and the FAI are confident that Irish fans buying in England will be safely directed to the away end when purchasing online.

The FAI have also decided to give Irish based supporters further time to buy from their allocation of 10,000 with only around half of those tickets so far sold.

Their deadline of April 26 for ticket applications has now been pushed back  to May 6.

A large security presence is expected for the game considering it is the first meeting between the nations since English hooligans disrupted the aborted 1995 friendly between the two sides at Lansdowne Road.