Brown on tickets, budgets and Wright relationship

St Johnstone chairman Steve Brown has explained why the club will stick with the policy of giving Old Firm fans three stands of McDiarmid Park.

The arrangement was in place for yesterday’s match against Rangers and continues when Saints host Celtic in the quarter finals of the Scottish Cup this Sunday.

He told the BBC: “Well, unfortunately it has been picked up as a commercial matter, but that is just one consideration.

“Unfortunately, our home support do not go to the Rangers and Celtic matches. So we took a decision to offer another stand.

“There are other reasons for that. If there are televised games, we have got to promote Scottish football and we don’t really want empty seats. Under the rules – and trying to comply with the police – you can’t sell home tickets after the away tickets are sold.

“So we were getting individuals coming up – home supporters – trying to get tickets and we are turning them away. So we are getting that in the neck.

“So it’s led, unfortunately, to apathy from our own fans. Obviously, if you have a demand, you sell tickets. It’s as simple as that.

“Of course it is commercial but there is more to it than that.”

Ahead of the Gers draw, Brown also touched on the financial challenges facing the club before having his say on boss Tommy Wright’s recent frustrations about transfers.

He said: “I think it’s to do with the wage inflation. You look at England and the billion pound TV deals.

“Unfortunately that circulates north. It’s like an arms race as somebody phrased it and that just puts all of the wages up the way.

“So you are actually in an inflated market. The wages, it would be fair to say, do not relate to the skill level of a player. You have no choice.

“If you want a particular player, you have to pay the market rate and it is too high at the moment.

“We have over-egged it. I think our wage bill is the sixth in the league which is far too high. We can’t sustain that.

“We went for it at the start of the season, we thought we could get into the top six and have a cup run and, obviously, stay away from the bottom of the league.

“Unfortunately, for various reasons – some known, some unknown – we just haven’t performed. And that leaves a huge financial gap.”

Brown insists he enjoys a positive relationship with Saints boss Wright.

He added: “I still get on with Tommy. Tommy’s Tommy. It was seven or eight days [Wright’s comments] before the window shut, which was a bit premature.

“Most people know that deals are done on the last two days. He just gets frustrated. I spoke to him on the Sunday and he was a completely different guy.

“Kirsten [Robertson, Saints’ head of football] got a bit of stick, which was a bit unfair. Her remit was to reduce the wage bill so she is just doing her job.

“The manager wants more and more players in but he is not all that concerned about getting players out.

“That’s just football at the end of the day.”

Chairman Steve Brown watches the game from the stands.