I set an alarm early this morning, to remind me that tickets for the play-off final were going on general sale online at 5-00pm.
So imagine my disappointment when I read in the Brum Mail that we’ve sold out.
And frankly, it serves me right.
I believe the lowest level of requirement to get a ticket was that you’d attended at least three games during this season.
And that you were only entitled to one ticket, even if you were a season ticket holder.
Given that I haven’t attended a single game, well…. I just don’t deserve a ticket, do I?
For what it’s worth, I think Villa have played this ticket thing exactly right.
If you had a ST, you were guaranteed a ticket.
Why should you get two? If your mate or partner was an equally big fan, they’d have had a ST too and would be entitled to their own ticket.
So that was 20,000 plus tickets wiped out at a stroke.
Which only left 18,000 or so for those who had attended a few games.
All pretty fair in my opinion.
But it wasn’t enough, was it?
I suspect with a bit of extra hype, we could have sold well over 50,000.
Which makes Wembley’s 82,000 capacity seem ridiculously small.
It’s always been a massive bugbear of mine, that the new so-called “home of football” doesn’t have at least a 100,000 capacity.
There are clubs that have bigger capacities, let alone national stadiums, after all!
But I digress.
This is all contrary to Fulham’s stance, where apparently their season ticket holders were allowed up to five (!) tickets.
Again this makes sense, as a quick glance shows that they only get around 19,000 fans on average and even at two per ST, they might struggle to sell their allocation.
Yet they have sold out.
Which all makes me wonder where the extra tickets will go/have gone.
There are either going to be a lot of “pretend” Fulham fans at the game or Villa might end up with a lot more supporters than we think, at the ground.
Which all brings me round to my situation, where I’m in the process of trying to get a couple of corporate tickets via a neutral source.
Let me explain, before you slate me.
My stance has been that AVFC are playing this correctly and if they’ve sold out, it’s my tough luck.
People who have attended deserve a ticket more than me.
I’ve also said that as much as I want one, I’m not going to go out of my way to get one.
I don’t think I’m going to get a ticket but even if I do, I’ll refuse to pay any exhorbitant price for it.
Don’t get me wrong, I could afford it.
But I refuse to, through principle.
It’s a disgrace that money affords you some kind of entitlement when it comes to footy.
So while I’m half-heartedly looking for a ticket if things just go right, so I’m not actually that bothered if I get one either way.
Let me do the sums here;
I smoke.
I like a drink while watching the game.
I like a comfortable seat, where I can go for a leak and get back in a minute.
I don’t want the hassle of travelling down to a shithole stupidly chosen area of London that will host the game.
And travelling down there would involve the whole weekend off, when I have work to do.
As opposed to the camerarderie of the build up and the game itself.
And the fact that I can say “I was there”.
My conclusion is that I’m getting too old for the dancing and jumping up and down stuff, which is what I enjoyed the most about actually attending the games.
All the hassle of getting there and back isn’t worth the effort for 90 minutes.
And that seat, sat in a nice comfortable area on the halfway line is in no way better than my seat at home.
Then add on that I’m not looking at a load of ants, if I watch it on the telly.
Do I need to mention the replays, after I missed it the first time?
So while I’m not madly bothered either way, God, I really want to go.
Yes, I’m a glory-hunter, I’m afraid, if it comes down to attendance.
But hey, I run a Villa site, which hopefully gives me a bit of credit.