Harlequins have officially confirmed that due to the on-going industrial action by the RMT the planned Big Game 14 against Bristol Bears at Twickenham Stadium on 27 December has been cancelled
Bristol's game against Harlequins, two days after Christmas, will still go ahead but will now move to the lower capacity Stoop Stadium.
Original tickets to The Big Game 14 are now not valid for the fixture with the match on general sale.
The times of the double header between the two clubs' men and women's sides remain the same:
Harlequins Women vs Bristol Bears Women, 13:30 K.O
Harlequins Men vs Bristol Bears Men, 16:15 K.O
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Big Game 14 will now take place in early March and see a change of opposition with Harlequins playing a double header against Exeter Chiefs at Twickenham on March 4.
Harlequins Women vs Exeter Chiefs Women, 12:00 ko
Harlequins Men vs Exeter Chiefs, 15:00 ko
A statement from Harlequins explains the club's reasoning behind the cancellations:
'The club have been working closely with South Western Railway through the RFU, Premiership Rugby and all key stakeholders to understand the impact of the current RMT industrial action. Despite 27 December not being a designated day for industrial action, the club has been informed this week that mainline train services into Twickenham station will not operate at all on the event day, alongside severe restrictions across the train and underground network feeding the local area.
'The club has been advised on crowd safety concerns that it would not be safe to deliver the much anticipated sold-out Twickenham stadium event.'
More than 70,000 tickets for the match had already been sold.
Harlequins CEO, Laurie Dalrymple explained: “We are devastated to have to move Big Game 14 from its annual festive place in the calendar because of this strike action. We know how special this event is to our local community and this was due to be our biggest and best ever event.
"I can assure our supporters that we have worked tirelessly to find any way to stage the event on or even near the 27 December, reducing capacity, laying on buses or developing a park and ride scheme to name a few. Ultimately we must put the safety of our supporters and those working at the event first and it is clear that without the functioning rail network, we cannot safely deliver a large scale event at Twickenham. The scale of the closures across multiple key train stations, train lines and tube lines is unprecedented and a much bigger impact that other recent smaller strikes on Twickenham match days. It is out of our control and we have sadly been left with no choice to postpone the fixture”.
“Big Game is the biggest annual club rugby event in the world and we know our supporters will be extremely disappointed by the postponement but we are happy to be able to offer a superb alternative plan for Big Game against great opposition as we take on Exeter Chiefs Men’s and Women’s teams at the home of rugby on 4 March.
"We will bring back all of the usual Big Game activities that our fans love, with live music, free fun fares, the famous player walkover and a day packed with fun and entertainment. We will also move some of our LGBTQ+ Pride activities that were planned for this weekend into the Big Game event. We are effectively moving the entire event from 27 December to Saturday 4 March. All purchased tickets will be valid and we hope that our supporters will swap their tickets to the new event – we really need your support as Big Game is a critical part of the Club’s DNA and financial performance”.
All ticket holders for Big Game 14 will be contacted today by the lub and provided options regarding their tickets.
Quins have worked closely with the RFU to add over 1,000 additional car parking places for supporters wishing to drive to the event, alongside the usual 1,000+ places the Club normally use on match days.
Additionally all local matchday parking restrictions will be lifted the RFU has confirmed. The club has also confirmed an additional shuttle bus service to and from Richmond mainline stations pre and post match will operate and will share details shortly.
Dalrymple explained: “Many of our supporters live within walking distance from The Stoop or travel by car or their own means. With a 14,800 capacity, and supported by the additional parking from the RFU, we are able to deliver the match day. While this will not be the full event day of Big Game, we will deliver two brilliant rugby matches and all of our usual pre match entertainment, live music, pyro and light show. We thank Bristol Bears for their understanding at this late change and we hope to see a packed Stoop full of supporters enjoying the festive season and the superb atmosphere of The Stoop”.
For a full Q&A about tickets and refunds follow the link here.
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