Warmth of Irish heals hurt of All Black fans' lock-out

New Zealander Ben Thomson would have loved to have been in the stands of Lansdowne Rd watching the All Blacks' 45-7 thrashing of Ireland.

Instead, he sat in a Dublin pub watching it on the television screen - just one of 680 disappointed All Black fans turned away after fire forced the closure of part of the stadium.

The blaze had hit a tiny area under the North Terrace, but officials closed the entire area until a full inspection could be carried out after the game.

Mr Thomson was already in Dublin when the news broke. Through news media, the Irish Rugby Union had asked about 7000 North Terrace ticket-holders not to turn up at the ground.

But Mr Thomson did not sound too distraught when the Herald spoke to him yesterday morning. With the strains of some Irishmen doing a haka in the background, the 26-year-old mechanic said the excellent hospitality had more than made up for the initial disappointment.

"The Irish have welcomed us with open arms. The reception was great - it was just awesome."

He did not feel any animosity over the Brian O'Driscoll incident.

During the Lions' tour to New Zealand, the Irishman dislocated his shoulder after he was cleaned out of a ruck by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu.

Mr Thomson took comfort from the Irish union's assurance that tickets would be refunded. He was already looking forward to travelling to Scotland for the final match in the All Blacks' tour.

Last weekend, 600 All Black fans in Cardiff were shut out after their tour operator failed to produce tickets for the match.