Previous crowd numbers at the stadium were broken by squeezing in an extra fan to bring the attendance at Saturday’s showpiece up to 81,601.
The lucky fan was Tigers supporter Toby from Blackheath, London. Toby and four of his friends were allocated the best seats in the house to watch the game between Tigers and London Irish after he won a newspaper competition to be fan number 81,601.
Toby soaked up the atmosphere from pitchside seats in the West Stand. He also he sat next to en-Northampton, England and Lions player Martin Bayfield, the co-presenter of ITV’s Guinness Premiership highlights show, at half-time to discuss team performances and predict the final score.
Toby said: “Being here as the extra fan and breaking all previous crowd records at Twickenham is a real honour. The fact that I get to sit pitchside with my mates for the Guinness Premiership Final is a bonus. The noise in Twickenham when it is full is immense.”
Bayfield added: “The Guinness Premeirship Final has become one of the most sought after tickets in the sporting calendar so it is no surprise that we’ve broken last year’s attendance figure with a crowd of 81,601.
“The Guinness Premiership Final has an unrivalled match atmosphere with supporters from all clubs rubbing shoulders in a fun, family-friendly environment.”
