Chaotic scenes marred the distribution process yesterday as some 50,000 fans went in search of tickets for today's crucial first leg of the Germany 2006 World Cup qualifier between Trinidad and Tobago and Bahrain that kicks off at 6.30 p.m. at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.
Tens of thousands of people nationwide started their search for a ticket to one of the biggest occasions in T&T's footballing history, a few thousand of those from as early as midnight Friday.
But tens of thousands of those people went away disappointed.
Chaos reigned as people hustled and bustled to the four ticket distribution venues-Hasely Crawford Stadium in the North, Arima Velodrome in the East, Skinner Park in San Fernando and the Sportworld in Scarborough, Tobago-in the hope of garnering a priceless ticket.
Many didn't.
At the "Hasely Crawford", an insufficient police presence coupled with a marauding throng of hungry ticket-seekers made for a disorganised scenario.
People jumped the inadequate railing, late arrivals "skipped" in front of fans who had been there from as early as 4.30 a.m. and those who were detected and then ejected by the scant police on site eventually returned to their "spots" once the officers-some mounted on horses-diverted their attention elsewhere among the lines leading to the five turnstiles where tellers peddled the "big match" tickets.
The crowd, some three-thick, had snaked around the Jean Pierre Complex, along Wrightson Road Extension and all the way to the area opposite Movie Towne.
Estimates put the crowd at 20,000.
The size of the crowd and the lack of necessary tickets to satisfy the overwhelming demand forced the police to lock the main gate of the Stadium on Wrightson Road Extension, leaving thousands stranded outside on the pavement or spilling on to parts of the Foreshore.
Also, the four-ticket-a-person limitation imposed by the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (T&TFF) seemed to be openly flaunted as many patrons were seen buying more than their allotted quota.
In fact, some policemen and MTS staffers were seen, without concealment, purchasing tickets on behalf of patrons who had solicited their "help".
Scalpers were also seen giving people money to purchase tickets for them or would purchase them, in one instance for as much as $300 for an uncovered ticket, as soon as patrons emerged from the front of the turnstile booths.
Late yesterday afternoon, an e-mail was circulating claiming that those interested can purchse an uncovered stand ticket for $500 and covered stand ticket for a whopping $1,000 a pop.
Two fights broke out at the Stadium when frustrated fans were advised that tickets were sold out some time round 10 a.m.
One self-proclaimed die-hard fan claimed that after arriving there at 5.15 a.m. with "approximately 200-250" people in front of him, he was told tickets were sold out.
"The maths just didn't make sense," he proclaimed. "I found that very strange and I was shocked that I didn't get a ticket although I was that close."
The scenes were even more chaotic in Arima where there were complaints of people buying their quota then forcing their way back into the line to secure a further four tickets.
It also happened that patrons, who had camped out at the venue from the wee hours of Friday morning, were forced to watch later-arriving people jump to the front of a second queue that was belatedly started.
Local Organising Committee (LOC) Germany 2006 Ltd marketing manager Peter O'Connor said that some 12,000 tickets were traded at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, while approximately 4,000 each were sold at the Arima Velodrome and Skinner Park, while 700 tickets were allotted to Tobago.
The rest of the 24,000 tickets have been distributed to sponsors, players, officials, and those of high-standing like President of the Republic of T&T, Max Richards.