Rugby World Cup: Giant ball 'crashes' into Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle's "ball in the wall" is to celebrate the Rugby World Cup

A giant rugby ball has "crashed" into the wall of Cardiff Castle to mark the start of the Rugby World Cup.

Rugby fans were greeted with the sight on Friday morning as the city prepares to host eight matches as well as a month-long Fanzone event at Cardiff Arms Park.

The first two matches at the Millennium Stadium are on Saturday and Sunday.

But visitors to Cardiff have been urged to plan ahead with roads and transport services set to be busy.

A bus strike has been suspended, but some services will be diverted.

Post-match queuing will operate at Cardiff Central train station with park and ride sites available for drivers.

In the first of eight fixtures at the Millennium Stadium, Ireland v Canada kicks off at 14:30 BST on Saturday and Wales will take on Uruguay at 14:30 on Sunday.

There is no dedicated spectator car parking near the Millennium Stadium other than for blue badge holders

Arriva Trains Wales said in a statement on its website extra capacity has been added to its services in the Cardiff-area.

However, it warned services "will be busy over the whole weekend and there may be standing room only on many trains".

"In particular, for fans travelling to Cardiff from Bridgend, Pencoed, Llanharan, Pontyclun and Cwmbran, Pontypool and Abergavenny, these services are likely to be extremely busy by the time they reach these stations," the statement said.

Arriva is advising customers to catch the earliest trains as possible in order to arrive in plenty of time for the game.

Post-match queuing systems will be in place at Cardiff Central Station, while Cardiff Queen Street will close at 16:00 after both the weekend's games.

Train passengers have also been advised to buy tickets in advance to avoid extra congestion.

Wales will take on Uruguay at the Millennium Stadium on Sunday

Pre-book

Park and ride sites across Cardiff will be running five hours before kick-off until four hours after the final whistle on each match day, according to official advice, however, spaces must be pre-booked.

Cardiff Bus has announced diversions to some city centre services from 12:30 to 18:30 on Saturday and Sunday.

People travelling during the tournament have been urged to follow the @RWC2015Travel Twitter handle for regular updates.