The British and Irish Lions and Ospreys tight-head will be joining the Millennium Stadium crowd on Friday evening after he was sidelined due to a calf injury during the opening series game against South Africa.
Devoted family-man Jones, seen on Twitter first as ‘Husband to Nicole and Father to Isla’ thinks it is ‘fantastic’ that the WRU has reached out to a younger audience, offering tickets for families (2 adults, 2 children) priced at £60 and tickets for Under 16s at £10 for this weekend.
Up to 12,000 tickets for children have been sold and almost 3,000 fans will attend on family passes for the meeting with the South Sea Islanders.
Speaking of his own fond childhood rugby memories, Adam said: “It’s fantastic that the WRU are promoting cheaper tickets for families and children for the Tonga match. I’ve got great memories of going along to rugby games with my Mam and Dad when I was growing up and as a player there’s nothing better than looking up into the stands after a win and seeing my own daughter Isla with my wife Nicole and the grandparents smiling and cheering back at me.
“Isla followed me to New Zealand for the Rugby World Cup at just a few months old and after her second birthday came down to Australia for the Lions Tour. She’s a regular at the Liberty Stadium as well as the Millennium.”
He added: “I think rugby is a great family occasion and I’m sure families all over Wales will be taking advantage of the £10 tickets this weekend.”
The national sport of Wales already attracts a significant percentage of young supporters. According to BBC statistics, coverage of the RBS 6 Nations in Wales attracted 15% of Under 24s compared to the 12% UK figure.
The WRU is hoping to expand the fledgling fan base even further with the new ‘print at home’ ticketing initiative which allows supporters to purchase and print their tickets at home via www.wru.co.uk/tickets , right up until 10 minutes before the game kicks-off at 7.30pm.
The initiative was piloted successfully for the Argentina match last week when 3,000 fans printed their own matchday tickets. For the Tonga match this number has soared to 5,500 with 48 hours still to go.
Head of Sales and Marketing Craig Maxwell said: “Rugby is a game to be enjoyed by all the family and this Friday’s fixture against Tonga is a great opportunity to introduce children to international rugby with tickets available for under 16s from £10 right up until kick off.
“The schools and rugby clubs across Wales have shown huge support for child-friendly fixture in recent years but we also urge parents to get involved, making it an evening out for all the family and helping us to engage the next generation of rugby lovers in Wales.”
This season the WRU has launched a range of initiatives aimed at engaging children with rugby activities.
For the Dove Men Series, fans were introduced to superhero dragon, Scorch, the new digital mascot which has been designed to reach out to children across all age groups as well as entertain existing supporters in its different guises.
Scorch is the image of the new match-day experience at the Millennium Stadium, the star of TV adverts for the Dove Men Series, a brand new graphic novel, in digital and print, and has its own app with an interactive story and games.
Fans at the Tonga match on Friday will be hoping to see Scorch on the big screen for the ‘Try’ ‘Conversion’ and ‘Penalty’ films – signalling success for Wales and boosting that extra carnival atmosphere that is renowned at Welsh rugby’s spiritual home.
Adult tickets are available for Wales v Tonga priced at £25. Fans can also buy tickets for Wales v Australia on Saturday 30 November via www.wru.co.uk/tickets
