It has to be said that the attendance at St Mary's for the start of this season hasn't been as good as it could have been, now lets fill it out again on the back of our best result in a decade.

It times gone by a Carling Cup game at St Mary;s used to see decent crowds, the prices would be reduced and it wasn't uncommon to see crowds of double the attendance for last night's game against Bristol City, but in today's Premier league the price rise is king and not just at Saints but at many other club's, crowds have been affected by increased ticket prices that has alienated some supporters who are no longer able to afford exorbitant prices for tickets and replica shirts.

But I think its more than that, yes prices went up yet again this season, but why have the packed houses of the second half of last season not been replicated in the first few games of this, I cant believe that an extra £1.50 a ticket is making that much difference to whether someone goes or not.

To be blunt there should be more incentive to go this season than last, Saints spent £35 million in the summer, they made three key signings and made a statement of intent that they were going to step up a level and that all from players up to the boardroom believed that pushing for European qualification was possible, if you read the internet there are plenty that share this opinion, yet this hasn't manifested itself in ticket sales so far this season.

In the two home games played so far the attendance has been significantly down on the corresponding fixture last season, for the visit of Sunderland last term, arguably played on the worst weekend for attendances all season, ie 3 days before Xmas, there was a healthy 31,275 in the ground, yet for the opening first team Premier League game of this season, a first chance for many to see our £35 million's worth of talent, not to mention on the back of a good away win on the opening day, the attendance was only 29, 596, almost 2,000 down on last year's.

Similarly the second game of the season against West Ham, OK this was a televised Sunday game this year, but 28,794 was almost 3,200 short of the same game not six month's earlier.

OK I do accept that there are a lot of things that are stopping fans going to the game, not least the combination of high prices and the availability to watch the game in many of the local pubs who now show them live, but those factors were still there last season, so why the big drop, especially when you factor in the feel good factor and our good start to the season.

As I mentioned earlier the League Cup also see's a big drop, 1,300 more watched last seasons home tie with Sheffield Wednesday than turned up for last nights game with Bristol City almost exactly a year to the day.

On Saturday we host Crystal Palace, an attractive fixture in that they are as close to us in terms of distance than all but Chelsea & Fulham in this League, not to mention its on the back of a good win at Liverpool, at time of writing a quick glance of the on line ticketing system shows that there are around 1,800 tickets still available in the home sections for this one, this of course doesn't include the corporate areas which have been very bare for the opening two fixtures, when Crystal Palace last played here two seasons ago the attendance was 31,524, Ok it was on a Boxing Day which always sees a decent turn out, but if we don't see a bigger attendance on Saturday for this game than back then, there is something seriously amiss.

These are happy days to be a Saints fan in terms of ambition and League position, the team have given us something on the pitch its now time to show our support off it, if we cant sell out the normal seated areas for a game like this, then when can we ?

There is nothing better than St Mary's stadium when its packed to the rafters and there isn't an empty seat in the house, it happened for much of the second half of last season, although it helped that we played most of the big clubs during that timescale, on Saturday we had arguably our best result in the Premier League indeed any league in well over a decade, there are no excuses for this one, lets see those last remaining tickets snapped up and then we can get on with the business of beating Palace and making it a decent start to the season.

Photo: Action Images

simmo400 added 13:05 - Sep 25 2nd season syndrome Nick. First year up we all want to see where we are among the best. Euphoria of promotion...........etc. This year is back to mid table. Watching teams come here for a draw and try snatch a win, these tactics i get but as a spectacle its boring. Hoping for a cup run.......FA or other is realistically are chance of a fans day out. Premier is great for owners and payback for investment..........but most would agree I think that the excitement of Championship football with promotion and a great chance of a play off at Wembley mot fans would take. Even if we could make Europe who could afford it ??? Most are stuggling now.

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slynch added 13:15 - Sep 25 I'm staying at home so I can be the first to watch the funny, post match interview with that comedian that Palace have employed for the last few months.
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Butty101 added 13:35 - Sep 25 If you are going to compare like for like - you need to mention that both Sunderland and Westham didnt bring as many as they did last season
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brady100 added 14:07 - Sep 25 Bloody Hell Simmo...why dont we all go and jump of a cliff.....
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LeSaint added 14:39 - Sep 25 I agree with Simmo. It is not just about the price, it is about value for money. Football is now an entertainment business, and frankly, there has been very little entertainment in the last few games I went. After the Sunderland game I decided not to bother going to watch West Ham as I was expecting the same dire show. It seems I was right (I didn't bother watching on TV either). The results are great, but if it is just about the result, I can get it for free on the internet. For me, the so called best league in the word has been disappointing so far, and bar a few exceptions, it seems to be the case all around the country, judging by the empty seats...

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LesVivian added 15:24 - Sep 25 Perhaps a lot of people don't like the policy of buying success. Look at Blackburn a good few years ago, and Chelsea's stagnation. Man City didn't do very well last year, following the previous year's 'bought' success. And don't even think of Pompey's bought success!! The main saving grace at Saints is the fact that young, English players are getting in the team; a young team takes time to mature, but certain people are impatient - they want a return on the money spent: 'bought success'!

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brady100 added 16:33 - Sep 25 Cheer up, your obviosuly not a proper fan if thats your attitude, yes the first two home games have been poor and dull but thats more a reflection of the teams we where playing and their tactics.
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LeSaint added 17:37 - Sep 25 I suppose that the comment from brady100 is aimed at me. The debate is about why there are empty seats at StMary's and perhaps if instead of putting your "proper fan" blinkers on you actually thought about it, you'd realise that this might be one of the explanations. But I see that you agree with me about the games being poor and dull and I also agree that it was mainly due to the other teams' tactics, but that does not make it better. And lastly, you may have enough spare money to spend £50+ on 2 hours of poor and dull; well good on you, but it isn't the case for everybody, proper fan or not.

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saintmark1976 added 17:47 - Sep 25 I think that the giveaway is that crowds are down nation wide not just at Saints. It may just be an extra £1.50 or so per game but that has pushed the cost to a tipping point.Many fans simply can not afford to go to every home game, let alone away fixtures. Particularly when you add in the cost of fuel and car parking.Lots of fans simply do not have the money any more.Those that do are beginning to vote with their feet and spend it on other cheaper forms of entertainment. I went to last nights game and paid £18.00 to watch a Saints second eleven struggle against a poor (but enthusiastic) Bristol City. Was it value for money? In my opinion "No". What was it worth? £10 to £12 at best, which I venture to suggest was a view taken by many who chose to stay away. Would i pay £18.00 for a similar fixture if we are drawn at home in the next round? Regretfully "No" again. No product or business is immune from the laws of supply and demand and professional football is beginning to find this fact out. The interesting question is how the clubs deal with the problem going forward. Perhaps they are just starting to get the message with attempts to encourage more away support by subsidized coach travel and reduced ticket costs. Will Saints follow or lead the way forward or are the management still of the opinion that they have a captive market which they can continue to ignore?

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brady100 added 14:27 - Sep 26 Im not questioning the financial implications that ticket prices have on attendance, my questioning of your loyalty to your team was aimed more at you said you didn't even watch on TV as you thought it would be rubbish. In some respects you where right but surely you should always support your team.
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simmo400 added 15:48 - Sep 26 I support my team home and away although from the live games at the pub. Id guess i see more of saints than a majority of the season ticket holders. I did have a season ticket for the previous 3 seasons but I feel my £35 per game entitles me to a day / evening in the pub to watch Saints. I should add that if Saints were relegated last season I would have kept my season ticket as the games would not have been shown on the TV. Does that make me a SAINTS SUPPORTER or not ???????????

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