Back To France Pre-Season

By AlanQuin
June 16 2006

Just as the price of tickets has risen with promotion to the Premiership, so too has the cost of following Harlequins. As a new season looms, so too does foreign travel.

August sees Quins play two pre-season matches in the four team tournament being held again at Issoire, the other teams being Brive, Bourgoin and ASM Clermont (formerly Montferrand) and all teams which Harlequins have played before in European competition.  Final details are not yet available but it is understood that Harlequins will play on the 6^th and 11^th August at  Stade au Complexe du Mas in Issoire.

The stadium is the home of the local club which is in Federales Masculine 2, a level roughly equal to our National Three, and has a capacity of 5000.  It is presently one of the venues for the IRB Under-21 World Championship.

For those intending to make the expedition to watch these matches there appear to be two main means of travel.  British Airways flies from Heathrow to Lyon-Saint-Exupery Airport and that is two and one-half hours by road to Issoire.  Cost is approximately £140 return for the air fare and a car can be hired for the week for approximately 175 Euros. Both amounts quoted will probably vary over the next few weeks.

The alternative is by train via Eurostar to Paris and from there to Clermont-Ferrand, which is some 20 kilometres from Issoire, and the local train thereafter.  The fare is ridiculously expensive at about £350 return.

Hotels are plentiful and not expensive.  The Via Michelin site has good details at viamichelin.co.uk and then search on Issoire.

The remaining pre-season match will be against Ospreys at Swansea on the Bank Holiday week-end before the return to the Premiership at Twickenham against London Irish,