Citing safety and the recommendations of 'their engineering consultants', the IRFU today announced the closure of the North Terrace for the game on Saturday against Australia and the following week's encounter against Romania.

Last Friday, a fire in a 'void space' beneath the North Terrace meant that 7,500 ticket holders were denied access to the ground for the game against the All Blacks.

On Monday, it was reported in the Irish Times that the IRFU expected, 'to announce later today that the North Terrace will be open for the second instalment of the autumn internationals against Australia this coming weekend.'

Now however it appears that this fire, in a 'void space' under a massive mass concrete structure, was of sufficent intensity, to make that concrete structure unsafe.

This evening, an IRFU spokesperson, intimated that the North Terrace might be re-opened in time for the opening Six Nations championship clash with Italy in February.

The IRFU statement issued today said.

Following a survey of the North Terrace by the IRFU s Consulting Engineers, the Irish Rugby Football Union has been advised that the North Terrace at Lansdowne Roadhas again been declared out of use, for safety reasons, for the forthcoming permanent tsb internationals against Australia on Saturday next, November 19 and against Romania on Saturday week, November 26.

As a consequence, ticket holders will NOT be able to gain access to the North Terrace for these games and are therefore asked not to travel to Lansdowne Road.

Full ticket refunds will be made available, by means of the structures already in place for North Terrace ticket holders for last Saturday s Test between Ireland and New Zealand. Further notices will be put in National media.

The IRFU regrets that the remedial work they have been advised is necessary on a section of the North Terrace, can not be completed in time for the Ireland versus Australia and Romania games. Once more, the IRFU apologies to North Terrace ticket holders for the disappointment caused but the safety of our patrons must take priority in these circumstances.

The IRFU also states that, because the Ireland-Australia games is a sell out, it is not possible to accommodate North Terrace ticket holders elsewhere in the ground.

The North Goal Line area, immediately in front of the North Terrace, is not affected and ticket holders for those seats will again gain access by the stated routes indicated on tickets.