Matthew Lindsay on Saturday
St Mirren have shown merit in valuing supporters over Old Firm cash
THERE is not very much that Celtic and Rangers fans ever find themselves in agreement on. That has been driven home once again in recent days as the, er, debate over the Connor Goldson handball incident at Ibrox on Monday has raged. Gore Vidal v William F Buckley Jnr it has not been.
But supporters of both Glasgow clubs were united in their outrage and condemnation earlier this season when they realised their ticket allocations for the cinch Premiership matches against St Mirren at the SMiSA Stadium had been slashed.
The decision to restrict them to just one stand – they had always previously received at least two – was described as “ridiculous”, “shameful” and “quite sad” by incensed followers of their near neighbours on Twitter.
The Paisley outfit probably wished they had banned fans of their Parkhead rivals altogether when they came calling in September – chanting “if you hate the royal family claps your hands” during the minute’s applause to honour the late Queen Elizabeth II before kick- off was appalling.
The three- stand retention policy, though, has worked well for St Mirren both on and off the park. Stephen Robinson’s team, roared on by the majority of those in the 6331strong crowd, recorded a 2- 0 win over Ange Postecoglou’s side, who had not been beaten in the league for 364 days, that afternoon.
They followed that up by drawing 1- 1 with Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men in November in what proved to be the Dutchman’s final match in charge.
To date, they have won six, drawn three and lost just one of the 10 matches they have played at the SMiSA in the Premiership in the 2022/ 23 campaign and are sitting in fifth place in the table. Finishing in the top six for the first time is an achievable objective.
Would St Mirren be flying so high if their home games had been like away games when they hosted the
biggest clubs in the country? Marcus Fraser, their experienced defender, is convinced it gives them an important advantage. “I think it does help,” he said last year. “It means more of our fans come to the games and it’s louder when we’re on the ball and on the attack.”
There have certainly been some empty seats in the three stands set aside for the home support. But a scheme was launched to help cover any commercial shortfall when, in response to numerous complaints from their diehards, they made the move in the summer. Hundreds of
Buddies have paid the £ 30 they asked for. The season- ticket holders who were unhappy about being shifted from their regular seats when Celtic and Rangers were the visitors are happy with the development and pleased that The Tony Fitzpatrick Stand is no longer housing The Green Brigade and The Union Bears. So far, then, restricting their opponents to just 1493 briefs has been a resounding success.
Their bold experiment should give St Johnstone and a few other top- flight clubs a little food for thought going forward. There has been a furious backlash to both the Perth club’s decision to give three of the four stands at McDiarmid Park to Rangers supporters in their Scottish Cup fourth round match a fortnight today and ticket prices being set at £ 30.
Ultras group Fair City Unity boycotted the first half of their Tayside derby match against Dundee United earlier this week. Many likedminded individuals are threatening not to turn up at the cup tie in protest as well.
The number of St Johnstone fans in attendance – and in the region of 4000 filed through the turnstiles for their festive encounters with Hearts and United – is likely to be substantially reduced because of the ill- feeling which abounds.
It is a complex matter. Both clubs have to agree on how much they will charge to gain entry to the game because the gate receipts will be split 50- 50. It was not their call to charge £ 30 to get in. But giving over three sides of the ground to their opponents very much was.
How will Callum Davidson’s side – who beat Van Bronckhorst’s charges 2- 1 in the Premiership back in November when the normal allocation of tickets was in place – fare against Michael Beale’s team with those in the North Stand, East Stand and the Ormond Stand all cheering on the Ibrox giants?
The club which lifted the Scottish Cup in 2021, after a quarter- final victory over Rangers in Govan, will be 1- 0 down before kick- off in what will be their first home game in the competition since their historic triumph. Is it any wonder there has been such fury in the Fair City?
The St Johnstone hierarchy should strive to engage in more meaningful dialogue with their fans in future and endeavour to come up with some innovative long- term solutions to the complicated issues which they undoubtedly face.
St Mirren have shown them what can be achieved by putting their own supporters first.
Their experiment should give St Johnstone and other top- flight clubs a little food for thought