Following a constructive board meeting last Friday afternoon and subsequent meetings, Cardiff Blues can now confirm that their fixtures against the Scarlets and Ospreys will be played at the Cardiff City Stadium.

The Blues recorded wins against Connacht and Ulster in front of crowds of 8,000 and 8,600 supporters respectively, when they played at the Arms Park. However, with some big Welsh derbies coming up, it was decided to give an opportunity for the maximum number of supporters the chance to get tickets for these crucial matches.

Speaking of the decision, Cardiff Blues Chief Executive Richard Holland said:

“Playing the Connacht and Ulster matches at the Arms Park has proved to be a very constructive exercise and certainly answers a lot of questions for us going forward.”

“We are fortunate that we are able to play matches at both grounds which offer us different facilities for the whole spectrum of our support.”

“We had a crowd of 22,000 for the Ospreys and 14,000 for the Scarlets last season and the maximum capacity at the Arms Park would be 9,000.”

“Therefore it makes sense for us to play these matches back at the Cardiff City Stadium which is our home and a fantastic facility and hopefully there will be a large crowd getting behind the team.”

“We still have 17years of our 20 year lease in place at the Cardiff City Stadium; however, we have listened to our supporters and played two matches at the Arms Park.”

“Obviously we now have a clearer picture of the possibilities for the 2012/13 season if we decide to play some of our matches away from the Cardiff City Stadium.”

Cardiff Blues captain Paul Tito added,

“The players all enjoyed playing back at the Arms Park which I think was a valuable exercise for the club both on and off the pitch.”

“There was a great atmosphere there and we would love to have that kind of noise at the City Stadium for these two matches as we continue to push for a play off place.”

“Obviously the most important thing is the match and when we play the Welsh derbies the crowd really get behind us and make that difference.”

“Hopefully there will be a big crowd and great atmosphere at the stadium as there was last year when we faced the Ospreys and Scarlets.”

Tickets for the Scarlets match are available now, online at www.cardiffblues.com/tickets or by calling the ticket office on 0845 345 1400.