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THE MONEY ISSUE 19-4-07
Tom Warnock
This week I'll be straying away from talking about the Boro, as many a fan has lost interest in the 'let's see who the worst north-east team in the Premier League is' campaign.
After checking the fixture list, and comparing it to my hectic Uni schedule, I concluded that the Villa game was probably the last game I could make my way to this season. But with funds low and time at a premium, I decided to stay away.
In fact a tenner bet on Villa would've been a better choice. Even if it had lost I'd still be twenty pounds better off than if I bought a ticket, and if it won, then quids in, and I wouldn't have missed a thing.
So here's my tip for the week - don't go to the match, instead back the opposition and sit back and enjoy the sunshine in the garden. Now before I'm accused of not being a real fan, I'd like to point out that if it were a fiver a game I'd have been a season ticket holder for a decade by now. I know for a fact that I'm not alone in this view, just ask the bloke next to you at the next home game, or if there's no-one there, try the next row.
This trend spans right across the Premiership, but are the crowds really falling that much, or is the real decline in the quality of what we're paying for?
Now if money is so important to football clubs and in particular Middlesbrough Football club, then why it is that week after week we surrender nearly half a million per place by putting in sub-standard performances?
And where is the justification for donating a hard earned thirty quid to eleven millionaires who've can't even overcome the likes of Manchester City, West Ham and Aston Villa - who were all below us when we played them.
No-one would pay for an awful meal, or to see a dire film, and no-one would idolise Z-list celebrities, so why do footballers get away with a millionaire lifestyle in exchange for 3-1 reverses in front of the paying public. For once the blame must lie entirely with the players. Too often managers are the victims, and there is no-one who can criticise Southgate's efforts in his inaugural season in management.
Every fan that puts forward his or her money to support the team deserves full credit and plaudits, and my qualms aren't with my fellow fans, because where we spend our income is a personal choice, but one thing is for sure, the players don't deserve our money. Even Englands 'elite' don't even warrant their pay packets, never mind our bottom half experts that we call professionals.
I'm sure the current state of affairs is due to change because supporters simply can't afford to go, and the core of the game's support is being priced away from the game. To watch Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium for a category 'A' fixture would cost between £60 and £95. Hard to believe I know.
If all those who have no choice other than to watch on a pub television were inside the stadium, there would be a better atmosphere and less empty seats. The Premier League is the most expensive in Europe, and the quality just doesn't justify this whatsoever.
There is no better opportunity for prices to fall, with the increase of money being offered to Premier League clubs. The reality that each Premier League place is worth £500,000 must be in the back of Steve Gibson's mind as we look to the summer transfer window. And if it was me, I'd be in that dressing room telling the players to earn their keep, and for once, to give the fans something back.
And email me through the contact page.
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