Turners Coachways, a company basedin Bristol have again hiked prices for fans going to games this season. An example is the forthcoming away game at Plymouth Argyle. Two people have to fork out £92 before they even buy a match day ticket and pay out for refreshments.

Two adults on top of the travel (from Swansea) will also have to pay £54 for two tickets and of course the extra charges applied at checkout. Very little change out of £150. And that’s just for starters.

Turners were the preferred coach partner of the Swans for the 2022/23 season. They’ve had this contract for two and a half years. Costs continue to mount, but it’s the genuine law abiding fan who takes the hit in their pockets. There have been issues with certain fans, anti social behaviour in late 2022, but these price increases are not in relation to that. In fact Turners stated that they would have ‘no hesitation’ to cease the service if this continued. Then this !

Behaviour is much better since then, away games though to Sheffield (twice this season) and now Plymouth all midweek will only attract a more disciplined away support. The fixture list hasn’t been kind at all to Swansea City. Swansea to Plymouth will take seven hours on Tuesday as a round trip from the city. Nearly four hundred miles overall. Swansea to Sheffield is a ridiculous journey for Swansea fans to make (twice) to Wednesday and United within three weeks of each other. Each trip includes ten hours of travel. You have to question the football league regards their agenda here.

However, those that complain about some of the away attendances in midweek possibly don’t have a family to consider, mortgage, rent, food costs, increased utility bills, council tax (extortionate) and so much more before they can consider what is described as family leisure time. Non league clubs are very much benefiting throughout the UK as a result.

Yes, many Swans fans don’t rely on the profiteering of coach companies. A sixty seater coach will gross £2,760 with the ticket price for ‘adults’ of course there will be deductions in seat price, and nobody condones Turners not making a profit. However, just as the South stand at the Swansea.com looks a bewildering environment for the lonely, there has to be an explanation. The club has sufficient finance to assist with discounts for away travel. A travel card would see people receiving discounts on the amount of times they travel, a subsidy of say £10 and a seasonal agreement on pricing at the start of each campaign in August isn’t rocket science. Turners have to understand that increasing prices mid season isn’t going to work. The publicity is negative, it will only encourage less fans to travel and if they do they will use alternative methods. Or is it a case they don’t care ?

In the realm of fifty two coaches will travel to Cardiff next month.

And there are many other coach companies in South Wales with fleets to compete with Turners.

Are Turners sending their coaches to Swansea from Bristol ? Is this being factored into the high level pricing this season ? We are of course hopeful there is no profit split with Swansea City Football Club. Is there anyone at Swansea City with a creative mindset who can take on some new ideas and implement a more attractive set of pricing for Swans fans to make the journey more affordable. Create those incentives at ‘the start’ of the season and bind in those agreements because this weeks announcements of increased pricing for away fans is totally unprofessional.

The club needed to get agreements in place last August. Even publish those prices for all away games (regardless of when the games are played, the distance is still the same) so at least the people being hit the hardest know what is coming, and how much it will cost. Have the Trust ever been consulted on this ? It is after all a’supporters trust’ who claim to have the aims of the fans at heart. What is their response ? Currently there is nothing on their website.

The pledge since new investment has come into the club of more ‘connect’ between the supporters and the Swans seems as far away as ever when these types of price hikes follow just a few weeks later. There has to be some form of incentive, and a far more clearer way ahead. Especially for those who we know personally who travelled to Sheffield on two occasions in midweek already this season. Then of course to Plymouth next week. Yes, the Swans have many fans all around the UK and abroad and these matters won’t concern them, but it concerns us.

It cannot continue when the very fabric of the Swansea support is being alienated by increased pricing that nobody envisaged was coming. And in a city where the average wage is £29,000 a year and a whole lot less for many in education as an assistant as an example. A police officer won’t reach the average pay of the city until their third year in service. The same for the fire service.

These are the types of issues a football club needs to get a grip with as soon as is possible, not to let them stew whilst home attendances fall as well. You can only hope something is being sorted out. The fans cannot bear the brunt all the time, they will just find something less costly and possibly more fun to do with their family when making crucial decisions on their leisure expenditure.

Photographs with permission Dimitris Legakis

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