Free Football At The KC Stadium This Saturday

If you're heading to the KC Stadium this Saturday for Hull City's Championship fixture against Bristol City then stay in your seat afterwards as the Tigers' Under-21's will be taking on the Robins' youngsters.

Kick-off is scheduled for 5:15pm and free admission is available to those not coming to the senior match from arounnd 5pm onwards.

It's a nice idea from City, one they have tried before, as it gives the Under-21's the chance to play at the main stadium and in front of a decent-sized crowd, even if people only stay for half-an-hour or so afterwards.

Academy Manager Tony Pennock told the official club website: "To have the opportunity to play on the first-team pitch is obviously a big thing for everyone involved and will be vitally important for the players' continued development. 
  
"It is great experience of a pressure situation for our young lads - playing at the KC Stadium in front of our fans. It’s also a chance for the players to show that they are capable of playing well in these types of situations."

It also shows the quality of pitches that most clubs have nowadays with Rugby League also being played at the ground. On Easter Monday there were games played in both codes at Wigan's DW Stadium.

'Operation 515' at Frome Town FC

Formed in 1904, Frome Town FC started life in the Wiltshire Premier League and have been based at Badgers Hill since that date, the stadium now bearing the name of the Blindmans Brewery, whose website (I know, I'm being diverted away from the football) certainly makes you fancy a beer.

In March last year I wrote about 'Operation 500' as the club offered Pay What You Want admission for the visit of Hungerford Town in the Southern League Premier Division.

512 came through the turnstiles for that fixture and now, Frome are looking to go three better with ‘Operation 515’ when Stratford Town are the visitors on Saturday 9 April. Admission will once again be Pay What You Want for the 3pm kick-off.

Welsh Cup Semi-Final Double Header On Saturday

The JD Welsh Cup has reached the final four and both semi-final ties are set to take place this Saturday, April 2nd at the Latham Park home of Newtown AFC, with kick-offs scheduled for 1pm and 5:15pm.

All four remaining clubs are from the Welsh Premier League, Port Talbot Town (at the end of a hugely difficult week for the town itself) having been drawn to face Airbus UK and holders The New Saints set to meet GAP Connah’s Quay.

Adult admission, to cover both matches, is priced at just £8.

FAW Head of Competitions Andrew Howard said: "The opportunity to hold the JD Welsh Cup Semi Final double header provides us with a feast of football.

"I hope the event develops a strong following amongst Welsh football fans and this decision will be vindicated by the attendances and also the standard of football on show on the excellent Latham Park surface."

Stocksbridge Park Steels

Close to home for this one as Stocksbridge Park Steels host a 'Pay What You Want' game for the visit of Romulus in the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Division One South on Saturday 9 April, kick-off 3pm.

I like Bracken Moor, perched high atop the valley in Stocksbridge, a town located a short distance from Sheffield and easily accessible from there via the Supertram and its associated bus link. The ground offers a number of different vantage points, a cosy main stand and superb views to the hills beyond.

The club themselves were formed in 1986 from a merger of the Stocksbridge Works team which originated from the town's steel plant and Oxley Park Sports and they have worked their way up from the Northern Counties East League, reaching the top division of the Northern Premier League until relegation in 2013/14.

Of course, I am contractually obliged to mention Jamie Vardy in any article about Steels, where the England man can be seen on the team photographs in the club house, boardroom and tea bar (also the place where Tony Mowbray brought a half-time cuppa for John Rudge on the day I watched Coventry City's Under-21's take on Sheffield United back in November).

Update: England Win at Leek Town FC

A superb attendance of 2,727 at Harrison Park, home of Leek Town FC, on Saturday afternoon saw England Under-17's defeat Finland to make it two wins out of two in their European Championship qualifying round having beaten Turkey at Chesterfield on Thursday evening.

A proud day for the Staffordshire club, one that will have taken a lot of hard work from many people as the requirements for hosting international football, at whatever level, can be exacting.

Leek are in action at Harrison Park against Newcastle Town on Easter Monday while England Under-17's round off their series of matches against Ukraine at the Pirelli Stadium home of Burton Albion on Tuesday evening. Kick-off is at 7pm and admission is priced at £3 Adults and £1.50 Concessions.

Update: Folkestone Invicta Enjoy A Perfect Day

With everything set up for them to clinch the Ryman League Division One South title on Good Friday, Folkestone Invicta FC took the decision to reduce prices for their home game against Walton & Hersham.

And what a day they had as 1,545 spectators came through the turnstiles of the Fullicks Stadium in bright sunshine to witness a 6-0 victory for the home side which moved them on to 99 points for the season and an unaissalable lead over Dorking Wanderers.

Speaking to the official club website, director Cliff Egan said: "The crowd exceeded all expectations and it’s just a thought that if half the number who attended yesterday’s game returned each week we could really push this club towards the National League."

The champions move on to Easter Monday and a local derby at Herne Bay where the hosts will be having a 'Pay What You Want' fixture on 5 April against Ramsgate with all proceeds going to the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Trust after the original fixture had to be abandoned at half-time because of a serious clash of heads between players from either side, both of whom have since been given the all-clear.

Start The Week With A Match

Some ideas for Bank Holiday Monday and the following day…

Monday 28th: An Easter Monday special offer at Hastings United who host a Sussex derby with Peacehaven & Telscombe at Pilot Field. Admission has been reduced to just £2 Adults and £1 Concessions. Under-18’s go free as always and season ticket holders attending the match will receive a 5% discount voucher off the cost of their 2016/17 ticket.

Chorley FC take on Stalybridge Celtic at 3pm and a special offer ticket is available that covers this game and the two remaining home matches against Gainsborough Trinity (April 9) and AFC Telford United (April 30) which gives a saving on normal admission prices.

In the Midland Football League, AFC Wulfrunians are offering free entry to their game against Rocester at the Castlecroft Stadium.

There are also three Women’s Super League fixtures scheduled.

In WSL1 champions Chelsea host Liverpool at Wheatsheaf Park in Staines, kick-off 2pm. Tickets are priced at £5 Adults and £3 Under-16’s and Over-65’s and there are also 3,000 2015/16 Chelsea shirts to be given away to those attending. 

Tuesday 29th: Brentford Under-21’s meet Barnsley at Griffin Park with free admission to the 1pm kick-off.

Under-12’s go free and Under-16 admission is £1 as Coventry City host Colchester United at the Ricoh Arena in League One, kick-off 7:45pm. The Sky Blues also have a ticket offer in place for their final three home matches of the season, against play-off rivals Millwall, Bradford City and Sheffield United, which gives a saving on normal admission prices.

England Under-17’s finish off their trio of qualifying matches for this summer’s European Championships when they meet Ukraine at the Pirelli Stadium home of Burton Albion. Tickets for the 7pm kick-off are priced at £3 Adults and £1.50 Concessions.

Scotland Under-21’s meet Northern Ireland in a European Championship qualifier at Saint Mirren with kick-off at 4pm.

Tickets, which are priced at £5 and £2, are available on a 2 for 1 basis when bought in advance and anyone going to the senior Scotland game against Denmark at Hampden Park later that day can claim a free ticket for the Under-21 clash.

Hastings United FC

Having existed, under various names, since 1894, Hastings United FC currently ply their trade in the Ryman League Division One South but are in the mix for promotion via the play-offs this season.

They host a Sussex derby on Easter Monday (kick-off 3pm) against Peacehaven & Telscombe.

Admission prices have been reduced to just £2 Adults and £1 Concessions with Under-18’s getting in for free, as is the case throughout the season at the Pilot Field.

Staying in the same division, the champagne is on ice at Folkestone Invicta FC and the Ryman League Division One South title could be clinched as early as this Friday when a victory over Waltham & Hersham will see the Kent side move on to 99 points and an uncatchable lead over Dorking Wanderers.

Adult admission has been cut from £9 to £5, Concessions from £5 to £3 and those aged between 5 and 16 can come in for free with a paying adult.

An Incredible Few Days For Huddersfield Town

Huddersfield Town's £179 Season Card offer, made available by chairman Dean Hoyle for 2016/17 with the Terriers set to bag increased television revenues for next season, was always set to be a popular initiative but the club have found themselves blown away by the demand from supporters.

The tickets went on sale last Thursday (17 March) with fans arriving at the ticket office from 4:15am onwards to make sure of their seat at the John Smith's Stadium for next season.

Fast forward to the close of business on Monday and 11,000 had been shifted, in person, on the phone and online.

Having initially discounted prices to £179 for adults, £69 for 8-17 year-olds and £23 for under-8's, Huddersfield set a target of 10,000 sales but with that figure having been and gone, Mr Hoyle has extended the deal to the next 4,000 people who buy.

“The speed of sales is a record for the Club; unprecedented, even for the £100 Centenary offer back in 2008," he told his club's official website on Tuesday.

“It’s been an amazing few days at the Ticket Office and I’d like to thank everyone who has already bought their Season Card."

Huddersfield's offer has been made under the #WagnerRevolution as their new head coach makes his mark in West Yorkshire.

I think the £179 offer would have been hugely successful anyway but results like Saturday's 4-1 away win in a local derby at Leeds cannot do it any harm!

http://www.htafc.com/news/article/huddersfield-town-201617-season-cards-wagnerrevolution-3007819.aspx

Folkestone Invicta FC

The champagne is on ice at Folkestone Invicta FC and the Ryman League Division One South title could be clinched as early as this Friday when a victory over Waltham & Hersham will see the Kent side move on to 99 points and an uncatchable lead over Dorking Wanderers.

Formed in 1936, Invicta's modern-day history really began in 1991 when they joined the Kent League and then in 1997 when Neil Cugley took the managerial reigns.

Cugley is still in charge and after seeing his side finish runners-up in the past two seasons and then suffer play-off heartbreak there has been no let-up this time around.

So, plenty of reasons to get to the game on Good Friday even if Folkestone hadn't reduced prices, which they have.

Adult admission has been cut from £9 to £5, Concessions from £5 to £3 and those aged between 5 and 16 can come in for free with a paying adult.

With Gillingham's home game against Walsall having been postponed because of international call-ups, Gills supporters are more than welcome at the Fullicks Stadium as Invicta look to break the 1,000 crowd barrier.

And the first 100 children will get an Easter Egg. What more could you want?

Staying in the same division and staying in the Garden of England where Herne Bay FC have made a fine gesture after their game against Ramsgate was abandoned on Saturday after a clash of heads between two opposing players required both road ambulances and the Kent Air Ambulance to have access to the pitch.

Both of the players involved have been given the all-clear and the match will be replayed on Tuesday 5 April at 7:45pm. Admission will be on a ‘Pay What You Want’ basis with all proceeds going to the Air Ambulance Charity.

Wembley Finals Update

I’ve recently highlighted a couple of upcoming dates at Wembley Stadium and this weekend has seen the line-up finalised for one of them and another step closer taken in the other.

The first ever Non-League Finals Day takes place under the arch on Sunday 22 May with the FA Vase and FA Trophy played on the same day and a combined admission ticket available for both matches with children under-16 priced at just £1.

The Trophy is the competition for those clubs at the higher reaches of the Non-League game although it has struggled for prominence in recent years as the opportunity (and reward) for automatic promotion to the Football League has grown and teams in the National League (Conference) have concentrated more of their efforts on that prize.

However, the chance to lift silverware at Wembley will always have an allure all of its own and this season’s final will be contested between Grimsby Town and FC Halifax after they saw off challengers from outside the National League in the shape of Bognor Regis Town and Nantwich Town respectively.

The presence of two ‘Phoenix’ clubs in the FA Vase semi-finals has generated plenty of interest and Hereford FC and Salisbury FC played in front of over 8,000 spectators in their two legs, Hereford just coming out on top and sure to bring an army of fans to Finals Day.

They will play Morpeth Town of the Northern League, winners over Bowers & Pitsea and keen to extend a proud tradition of clubs from the North East having won the competition.

Wembley will once again host the FA Women’s Cup Final after a successful first time at the venue in 2015 and Sunday saw the bulk of the Fifth Round ties played after Manchester City defeated Liverpool on Saturday evening.

Arsenal, Chelsea, Reading, Sunderland and Notts County from WSL 1 also won through on Sunday and will be joined in the last eight by Aston Villa of WSL2 and Sporting Club Albion who won at Brighton & Hove Albion in the battle between the only two teams from outside Women's Super League left in the competition.

Children go free to this year’s final, which will be held on Saturday 14 May.

Sixth FA Women’s Super League season Set to Start

The first round of fixtures in the 2016 FA WSL season take place on Wednesday 23rd and Thursday 24th March with the competition having expanded to 19 teams for the forthcoming campaign with the promotion of Sheffield FC from the Premier League.

 

Champions Chelsea begin the defence of their title away to newly-promoted Doncaster Rovers Belles on Thursday, just a few days after the teams meet in the FA Cup with 5th Round fixtures taking place this coming weekend.

 

Reading FC are the other newcomers to WSL1 and they begin on Wednesday evening with a trip to Arsenal.

 

The official FA WSL website has an easy-to-navigate fixture list with links to the online ticket pages of the relevant home clubs and a quick glance at the first set of fixtures shows that Adult admission is no more than £6 at any game.

Spelthorne Sports FC

Clubs at Non-League level are often about so much more than just the first team, as important as it is for them to be competitive at whatever level of the pyramid that they play.

That is clearly the case with Combined Counties League side Spelthorne Sports FC.

‘The Spelly’ were formed in 1922 and the club have enjoyed a successful few years with promotion to the Premier Division and success in the Middlesex FA Intermediate Cup.

But, a look at the club website shows how much more is going on with teams of all ages represented and, to celebrate 10 years of youth football there will be free admission this Saturday (19 March) for the first team game at home to Westfield FC and lots of activities going on prior to the 3pm kick-off.

No Bull, An Easter Special At Alvechurch FC

The reformed Hereford FC have made plenty of headlines in the Non-League game this season, the Bulls having attracted large crowds to Edgar Street and taken plenty of supporters to away games in the Midland Football League.

A trip to Wembley is also tantalisingly close after Saturday’s 1-0 victory in the FA Vase semi-final first leg against another ‘Phoenix’ club Salisbury FC.

But, Alvechurch FC have designs on the MFL title themselves and Saturday’s hard-fought victory against Walsall Wood put Church two points clear at the top of the table having played the same number of games as Hereford.

This article was written before Tuesday night’s action but, no matter what, Easter Monday’s game at Lye Meadow between Alvechurch and Hereford is set to be a big one.

Ground capacity for the all-ticket clash has been set at 1,500 with 900 tickets allocated to Hereford supporters. Admission is priced at £8 Adults and £6 Concessions but Alvechurch are offering a deal which will allow their fans to buy tickets for the Hereford game and Easter Saturday’s home match against Heanor Town for a total price of £10 Adults and £6 Concessions.

More details on the official club website

International Football Coming Up

England Under-17’s are in a four-team qualifying group for the European Championships, which take place in Azerbaijan in May, and the FA are hosting all of the matches in England's section over the next week or so

First up for the Young Lions are Turkey at Chesterfield’s Proact Stadium at 7pm on Thursday 24 March, tickets priced at £3 and £1.50 and available direct from the Spireites.

Leek Town FC will host England on Saturday 26 March against Finland, kick-off 3pm with admission (by ticket only) priced at £3 Adults and £1.50 Concessions.

Harrison Park is also the venue for Ukraine against Finland on Thursday 24 March, also at 3pm. Admission is free to this game but tickets must be obtained in advance.

An update from the club gives details of how to get your tickets, with over 1,700 having been snapped up to date.

England round things off against Ukraine at Burton Albion on Tuesday 29 March, again admission is £3 and £1.50.

The Keepmoat Stadium home of Doncaster Rovers hosts England Under-20’s against Canada (a change of opponent) on Easter Sunday, 27 March at 4pm. Tickets are priced at £3 Adults and £1.50 Concessions.

Staying in South Yorkshire, England’s senior Women host Belgium in a European Championship qualifier at the New York Stadium in Rotherham on Friday 8 April at 7:55pm, tickets are priced at £5 Adults and £2.50 Children.

And, Scotland Under-21’s meet Northern Ireland in a European Championship qualifier at Saint Mirren on Tuesday 29 March at 4pm. 

Tickets, which are priced at £5 and £2, are available on a 2 for 1 basis when bought in advance and anyone going to the senior Scotland game against Denmark at Hampden Park later that day can claim a free ticket for the Under-21 clash.

Banbury United FC, Hitchin Town FC

Banbury United FC are back on these pages again after a ‘Football for a Fiver’ offer attracted 589 to the Spencer Stadium for the recent game against Winchester City. 

That was the Puritans highest home attendance for almost six years and the club have decided to repeat the offer (which is a halving of the usual adult admission price) for their next two home matches, against Shortwood United on March 19th and Tiverton Town on March 26th. 

Admission is £5 for all Adults with Under-16’s admitted free for both games with some fun activities planned for the Tiverton match on Easter Saturday. 

Saturday's 3-1 victory at Slimbridge kept Banbury on top of the Southern League Division One South & West, ahead of Cinderford Town albeit having played a number of games more.

And a welcome return to the blog for Hitchin Town as they plan another ‘Pay What You Want’ fixture when St Neots are the visitors to Top Field on April 23rd in the Southern League Premier where Hitchin currently occupy a play-off place.

The Canaries are hard at work raising funds for new floodlights at their fine old ground and, as at the recent ‘Pay What You Want’ match against Frome Town, any monies received over and above the club’s budgeted figure for the game will be put into the fund.

A short while ago, the fund stood at nearly £14,000 with the target being £30,000.

Next Week's Affordable Football

As always, this is just a fraction of what is going on out there. Keep up to date with us on Twitter and keep an eye out for your local club.

Monday 14th: The various County Cup competitions remain well contested and both Chorley FC and Lancaster City will be keen to lift the Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy when they meet at Bolton's Macron Stadium. Kick-off is at 7:45pm with tickets priced at £8 Adults and £4 Concessions. 

Tuesday 15th: On the same theme, Ebbsfleet United welcome Charlton Athletic to Stonebridge Road for a Kent Reliance Senior Cup semi-final at 7:45pm. Prices are £5 Adults, £3 Concessions and £1 Children. 

It's a busy time of year for many clubs in the lower divisions and Non-League who have seen a lot of fixtures postponed over the Winter. Newport County host Hartlepool in a re-arranged League Two clash at Rodney Parade and are offering two tickets for the price of one in all areas of the ground. That means admission from as little as £7.50 in the North Terrace.

Friday 18th: Chelsea travel to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers in the first leg of their FA Youth Cup semi-final. Admission is priced at £5 Adults and £1 for Over-65's and those 17 and under with kick-off moved to 7:45pm for live TV coverage on ITV4.

The first leg of the other semi-final between Manchester City and Arsenal kicks off at 7pm at the City Academy Stadium. Cityzens can go free, admission otherwise is £3 and £1. 

Saturday 19th: MK Dons home game against Brighton & Hove Albion has been designated as the club's Family Fun Day with Adult tickets reduced to £12 in all areas and Under-18's just £1.

Liverpool Ladies FA Cup tie against Manchester City has been moved to Saturday with a 5:30pm kick-off at the Select Security Stadium in Widnes. Tickets are priced at £5 Adults, £2.50 Concessions and £12.50 for a Family when purchased in advance.

Sunday 20th: The rest of the FA Women's Cup ties take place with Yeovil Town Ladies of WSL2 hosting top-tier Sunderland at Yeovil Town's Huish Park ground. Admission to the 2pm kick-off is priced £5 Adults and £2.50 Concessions.

Some Final Thoughts On Coventry City Crowds

For the first time this season, Coventry City's attendance for a League One home fixture at the Ricoh Arena dropped below the club's 'break-even' figure of 11,000, announced in the summer, when 9,942 watched the game against Rochdale last weekend.

The Sky Blues may have lost four games in a row to drop out of the play-off places but the season as a whole has had numerous positives to it, from the goals of Adam Armstrong to the signing of Joe Cole.

Attendances at the Ricoh have been another cause for cautious optimism with the club having priced season tickets well in the summer and then announced a clear pricing structure for matchday admission.

That has meant that nobody watching a match at the stadium this season, including away supporters and those who pay cash on the turnstiles, has spent more than £20 on getting in which I think is fair for League One football.

Results on the pitch have undoubtedly helped as City started the season with three wins on the bounce and stayed in the top six until Tuesday night's reverse at Shrewsbury Town but the pricing structure has undoubtedly helped to repair a little bit of the broken relationship between supporters and the club hierarchy.

I do feel that clear, affordable prices on a regular basis is a better model than the occasional low-price match and interestingly, the club ran quite a few price promotions last season with £10 Adult tickets (whereas other matches could cost £25 for an Adult ticket) but have done so on only one occasion this time around, for the pre-Christmas fixture with Oldham Athletic. 

Under-12's will go free and Under-16's admission will be £1 for the Easter clash with Colchester United.

The Vanarama Big Day Out at Wembley Stadium

With the Non-League season set for a grand finale at Wembley on Sunday 22 May, when the FA Trophy and FA Vase finals are held together on the same day for the first ever time as part of Non-League Finals Day, the national stadium will also host the most important match in the calendar one week earlier.

The National League promotion final is a scaled-down version of the Championship play-off final with the winners moving into the Football League and sharing in increased commercial revenues and the vanquished facing up to another season at the same level.

Last season’s game, between Bristol Rovers and Grimsby Town, attracted a record crowd of 47,029 which was partly because two well-supported clubs had made it to the final but the figure was also boosted by around 7,000 ‘early-bird’ sales to mainly neutral supporters who purchased before the two finalists were known.

That was the first time the offer had been made and this year, fans have until the end of March to buy tickets at the reduced price of £20 Adults or £10 Over-60’s with each ticket purchased qualifying for one Under-16 ticket free.

Speaking to The Non League Paper this week, National League media & partnership support director Colin Peake said: “The whole drive is to make it more of a family day out and enhance the fans experience, whichever club they support.

“(Last year) neutral fans were placed on the far side of Wembley at level one. This year, the tickets will be at level two – the best seats in the stadium – and early bird purchasers can choose what block they want to be in.”

Tickets for the 4pm kick-off on Sunday 15 May can be purchased directly from Wembley Stadium.

The Spirit of 1949 as Yeovil Face Sunderland

It was one of the biggest FA Cup shocks of all time as Sunderland, the ‘Bank of England’ club were humbled 2-1 by Southern League Yeovil Town on the famous Huish slope in 1949.

The old ground may now be a Tesco supermarket but its name lives on at Huish Park and that is where FA WSL2 side Yeovil Town Ladies will look to cause an upset against WSL1 Sunderland in the 5th Round of the FA Women’s Cup.

Tickets for the game, scheduled for Sunday 20 March at 2pm, are priced at £5 Adults and £2.50 for Concessions and Children.

Seven other 5th Round ties take place on Sunday 20th with this being the stage of the competition where the WSL1 sides enter proceedings.

Holders Chelsea travel to newly-promoted Doncaster Rovers Belles in a game that will take place at the Keepmoat Stadium. Tickets for this one are priced at £6 Adults, £1 Concessions and a Family ticket is available for £12.

The FA Women’s Cup Final takes place at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 14 May with tickets free for children aged 16 and under.

Brackley Town FC

Currently playing for a fourth consecutive season in the National League North, the highest level they have reached in their proud 125-year history, Brackley Town FC, from a small Northamptonshire market town more often associated with Formula One, are currently battling to preserve that hard-won status for another campaign and received a boost on Saturday with a 2-1 win away to Lowestoft Town.

They enjoyed a good FA Cup run earlier this season, holding League Two side Newport County to a 2-2 draw at St James Park in front of 1,707 but attendances have dipped below 200 on occasion and the club are hoping to boost numbers by offering free admission to the home game against Bradford Park Avenue on Saturday 12 March.

Quoted in the Buckingham Advertiser, manager Kevin Wilkin said: “We need to string some results together if we are to break clear of the group around the bottom and the next home game is crucial. I hope supporters and people in the town, perhaps who have never been here before, will come along and cheer the players on.”

Will TV Money Distort Admission Fees?

Earlier in the week, I wrote about Huddersfield Town and their decision to make 10,000 season tickets available for 2016/17 at an Adult price of £179, backed by the increase in television revenues that the Terriers can expect to make if they remain in the Championship.

That is the same price as AFC Telford have announced (see the article below) and shows that the increasing value of television rights could make comparison between admission costs at various levels of the game, in a survey such as the BBC’s ‘Price of Football’, increasingly hard to carry out.

Now, there is unlikely to be much crossover between the two clubs named but what if, for example, Wolves decide to follow suit and offer a season ticket below £200 for 2016/17 and attract a couple of hundred floating fans from the local area.

At Non-League level, gate money and spectators then spending bit more inside the ground is crucial both for survival and prosperity, a key element of a club’s budget for the year and something that requires a great deal of thought as to what kind of figure is both reasonable and profitable.

Talk of how live television coverage can affect attendances has been around since the first broadcasts were beamed into our homes but now, in addition to wall-to-wall coverage (even the Thursday night slot is now being regularly filled by Championship matches), the value of the rights could lead to a distortion in ticket prices that makes it cheaper to attend football the higher up the game you go.

That is not, in any way, intended to be a criticism of a club such as Huddersfield or the offer that they have made, one which rewards supporters who have stuck with the club for many years and may attract others who could otherwise be lost to their armchairs.

AFC Telford United

Formed in 2004 to replace the folded Telford United, it has been a rollercoaster decade and a bit for the new club, rising from the first division of the Northern League through to the Conference and back now to the National League (Conference) North where the Bucks are currently involved in a scrap for survival.

Those are only the bare statistics, behind which is the huge effort it takes to get a club, especially one that is owned by its own supporters, off the ground and then keep it afloat both on the pitch and in the local community.

For 2016/17, AFC Telford United have cut season ticket prices by 24% for Adults (£179) and 33% for Concessions (£136) for those supporters who purchase by the early bird deadline of 26 March.

A detailed explanation on the official club website sets out the aims of the offer, to attract new and lapsed fans of course with attendances having dropped sharply after relegation from the top tier of Non-League football but also to help build further links with the local community, and also of the club’s ambitions for the next four years or so.

Next Week's Affordable Football

Monday 7th: Monday 7th: Reading Under-21's are in action at the Madejski Stadium and their 7:05pm kick-off against Chelsea has free admission for all spectators.

Tuesday 8th: From personal experience of Coventry City leaving Highfield Road, I know how quickly the final season at a ground can pass and it only seems like five minutes since I wrote about West Ham United and their Europa League opener against FC Lusitans of Andorra.

There is another good opportunity to watch a game under the lights at Upton Park when the Hammers Ladies take on Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Women's Premier League at 7:45pm with tickets priced at £5 and £1 for Under-16's.

Shrewsbury Town host the faltering Sky Blues in a League One game that was rescheduled when the hosts reached the FA Cup 5th Round and anyone who attended the Greenhous Meadow for the Manchester United match can watch the Coventry game for a 50% discount as the Shrews look to build on the interest generated by that occasion.

Hearts Under-20's get to play on the Tynecastle turf as they meet Dundee United in the semi-finals of the Little Big Shot Youth Cup. Admission to the 7pm kick-off is £5 Adults and £1 Concessions.

Friday 11th: Chelsea Under-21's are in action against Leicester City at Aldershot's EBB Stadium. The kick-off is at 7:05pm and admission is priced at £3 and £1 with free entry for both Chelsea and Shots season ticket holders.

Saturday 12th: 'Pay What You Want' day at Didcot Town FC as they entertain Bashley in the Southern League.

Manchester City Under-21's are set to take on Sunderland at the Academy Stadium. Kick-off is at 1pm and tickets are £3/£1 and free for Cityzens.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle host Hamilton Academical in the Scottish Premiership with the Caley Jags looking to build on the positive impact of their 'Pay What You Want' game earlier this year. 

Under-16’s will be admitted free when accompanied by an Adult or Concessions ticket/season ticket holder. There will also be plenty of activities going on around the ground.

From Bradford City to Huddersfield Town, Affordable Football in West Yorkshire

Bradford City's season ticket initiative has been featured many times here on Affordable Football since I started the blog in July 2013 and rightly so.

Attendance figures this season have once again shown the success of the Bantams offer and how it has proved itself relatively resistant to events on the pitch (although City have moved up the League One table in recent weeks and are threatening to overtake my own Sky Blues in the play-off places).

And, across West Yorkshire, Huddersfield Town have taken the plunge and announced their season ticket prices for 2016/17, the headlines clearly being made by an Adult cost of £179 for a whole campaign of what should be Championship football with the Terriers, despite some inconsistency, responding well to the methods of new head coach David Wagner.

8-17 year-old tickets are priced at £69 and it is £23 for Under-8's. 

And that is it, simplified, low prices across the board with chairman Dean Hoyle telling the Huddersfield Daily Examiner that an improved financial situation and extra cash from TV rights mean it is time for everyone, himself, the club and supporters, to 'step up'.

“We will use £1m of that extra money to re-engage with the fans through unbelievable savings on season-cards – initially for the first 10,000 bought, and we expect a big take-up.

“And the other £1m will be put back into the football costs – and maybe more if we get a better take-up on the tickets than we expect."

The prices are obviously what catch the eye (dare I say they could even have been pitched a little higher for a season of Championship football) but it also the honesty that the club have shown in making the offer that appeals.