Perhaps a sign of the times as rising ticket prices put off travelling supporters from watching their team away in as large numbers as they used to.

Manchester City have always had good away support, so its a big surprise to find out that they have not taken their full allocation for their forthcoming trip to St Mary's on 7th December, they have sent back a batch of around 600 tickets which are now on sale to Saints supporters and are sure to go fairly quickly given that most other areas only have odd seats available.

So why are Manchester City supporters not filling up the away section as they have done on previous visits, it could be that it comes on the back of a trip to West Bromwich Albion a few days earlier in an evening fixture, but probably one of the big reasons is cost or at least perception of the cost.

The Football Supporters Federation is currently campaigning against ticket prices for away supporters and urging clubs to take part in their £20's Plenty initiative, the gist being that clubs should agree reciprocal arrangements with each other to allow away fans tickets to be lower than the rest of the ground, some clubs have already taken up this whilst others have ignored it completely.

So it seems that Manchester City fans consider £40 too much to watch their team at Southampton, but the reality of the situation is that they filled the section last season when it was only around £1.50 cheaper and that for a Saturday evening televised game at that.

So why the lack of enthusiasm for the fixture only 8 months later ? personally I feel that supporters of Clubs in the Premier league are reaching breaking point, on the face of it most clubs aren't that much dearer than last season, most like Saints had a small increase of £1-£2 per ticket, this shouldn't break supporters pockets, but many are starting to feel that they are being taken for granted and being milked by their Clubs, with an extra £20 million in revenue coming into each Premier Club this season, why do the fans have to be squeezed that little bit more.

The end result is that attendances are down, especially in away sections, the writings on the wall and unless the club's read it and take notice attendances will drop, as I said Saints last season only increased the price a little, but despite it being our best ever start to a Premiership campaign and indeed the makings of our best season in around 30 years, St Mary's has seen an average of 3,000 empty seats in the home sections so far this term.

Of course a certain proportion of support will only turn up when things are going well and will disappear as quickly as they arrived when things start going badly, but whats happening across the premier league at the moment is bucking that trend, the people turning their backs on the game are the long term die hards fed up with increasing prices, last season many clamoured for the ground capacity to be increased, this season there aren't many people who can put up a good argument for that.

So Manchester City, a club known for its great away support are sending tickets back for away fixtures that last season they filled, there are a lot of questions that need asking here and unless clubs ask themselves those questions, and I mean all clubs here Im not pointing the finger at Saints, and then answer those questions honestly then the decline will continue.

Photo: Action Images

truthfulsaint added 12:12 - Nov 18 I think the glory hunters whose away form has been dreadful are a little scared of a hammering. Why pay forty quid and have to fork out for a box of tissues on the way home?
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halftimeorange added 12:21 - Nov 18 I think it is cost. Here in Southampton live streaming of Prem games in pubs and clubs is becoming more regular. Why travel to Manchester if the fixture had been reversed three weeks before Christmas. Okay, you lose some of the atmosphere but you still see your team and you don't strain your resources.
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Blue added 16:20 - Nov 18 Good evening Saints fans... It's not about the cost of this particular game, I can assure you, it's an accumulation, we just played Chelsea and West Ham away, both on tv, both sold out at £58 and £52 per game respectively, we have West Brom away a few days before too, as you have stated, plus there is quite a few doing Bayern Munich away in the midweek after, myself included. Added to that, xmas just a couple of weeks away. I will be there, but it's a local game for me, I live down here, I have a season ticket at City. and truthful saint, if we as City fans were scared of a hammering, we'd still be in the 3rd division, as nobody would have carried on attending. I'm looking forward to the game, as I always do, but I doubt we will win. Nice to see Saints doing well, keep it up!

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Zambucco added 16:32 - Nov 18 I do sometimes wonder about the thinking of the decision makers, full grounds = great atmosphere, attracts a wider audience. There are many who simply can't afford the costs. Cup games are only attracting small crowds, at least the early rounds are. Why not £10 for adults £1 for kids? The twenty is plenty is a great idea, when you consider the possible lost revenue on the returned 600 tickets, surely this could be factored into the initial prices. Okay in this instance they may be bought by Saints fans, but at full cost. My thought is that supporters should boycott all away games that do not support the twenty is plenty scheme, and it may just may, make the boards sit up and think about it. But I doubt that considering the revenue from TV. As a kid away games were affordable, bundling into a tranny with a mattress in the back, paying at the turnstile and still afford to go up the Top Rank afterwards!

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cityfanbrian added 12:07 - Nov 19 its a sign of the times unfortunately. City have 10 games in December, the Month which includes Christmas. Its not just the ticket cost as the travel cost too.
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Mushty added 13:52 - Nov 19 It's fair to say City have an expensive few weeks coming up on their travels but this is no longer unusual, the cost of going to football, particularly away, has now got ridiculous. We're away to Newcastle, Cardiff and Everton in December, covering nearly 1,500 miles in the process and all the costs involved. How many are just going to stay and watch it in the pub? A very easy option these days, football should hurry up and take note, the warning signs are there.

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