Posted by Saints Fan on 29/4/2003, 20:48:25
217.39.3.248

(Excerpt from Saints web-site - 29th April 2003) Saints have lodged a furious official protest against Manchester City's disgraceful decision to restrict them to just 1300 tickets for the final game of the season. And they have even threatened to sue City who have flouted Premier League regulations by slashing the Southampton allocation for what will be the last league game at Maine Road. Tickets are like gold dust in Manchester for what is sure to be an emotional and historic occasion and City asked Saints not to take their full compliment of 3,000 seats. But when Southampton turned the request down flat and insisted on their full quota, City hid behind "safety considerations" and sent just 1305 tickets. Understandably Saints are livid at a decision which they privately suspect had been taken weeks ago - and which City would not have reversed under any circumstances. Now they are looking for instant and major retribution. Saints want the Premier League to: *ban the selling of the "missing" 1695 tickets on safety grounds; *impose a substantial fine as a deterrent to other clubs attempting to flout the regulations for their own end; *consider deducting points from City. They have also reserved the right to take legal action to recover any prize money they may lose on the result of this game - on top of any fine levied by the authorities if it is proven the integrity of the competition has been compromised. Chairman Rupert Lowe slammed City saying: "It is an absolute disgrace. We believe City have hidden behind a safety committee smokescreen in order to secure more tickets for their own fans. "That is just not right. It is a distortion of the competition and puts us at a serious disadvantage for a game which could have a lot of prize money on it. "It is also very unfair on our supporters who traditionally turn out in their numbers for the final away game. Many go in fancy dress and make it a day out. They are now going to miss out on a big occasion." Managing director Andrew Cowen has fired off a stinging letter to the Premier League accusing City of breaching paragraph 7.1 of their Customer Charter. He is seething that City were able to safely police a volatile local derby with United but supposedly cannot cope with 3,000 Saints fans who have an exemplary behaviour record and who would be in party mood ahead of the FA Cup final and with no fear of relegation. The ultimate irony is that City and the Greater Manchester Police actually asked the Premier League to allocate them a low-key final fixture - and even singled out Southampton as preferred opposition! Around eight weeks ago Saints firmly turned down City's request for them to reconsider their application for their full allocation. Further debate failed to resolve the wrangle so it went to the Premier League for a decision. They came down in favour of the visiting club but now City's safety committee have ruled that only 1305 tickets should be made available. Bizarrely that number of tickets were dispatched from Maine Road prior to the Premier League's final meeting with City and its safety group yesterday! Of those, 149 are obstructed view, 11 are for disabled supporters and 60 are complimentaries for the players leaving just 1085 unobstructed view seats for sale. These will be allocated to Saints supporters who have been to most away games this season and the club are currently trawling through the database to work out the most deserving cases. They will all receive letters inviting them to purchase a seat for the clash on Sunday May 11. Cowen fumed: "With all the hassle over FA Cup final tickets, this is the last thing we need! "We are absolutely furious at the flagrant breach of rules designed to keep the competition fair. The denial of our rightful allocation will give City an unfair advantage in a game which could have a lot of prize money riding on it. "If we lose out on that as a result of this game then we reserve the right to recover what could be a very considerable sum - on top of the punitive damages we feel the League are duty bound to impose. "This denial for once only 'safety' considerations is a distortion of the competition. Every club faces occasional fixtures where additional measures are needed to meet risks of public disorder and it is up the host club to take whatever steps are necessary to comply with the rules. "I have some difficulty in believing that the risk of public disorder at this game is so great that the fixture cannot be managed at any price! "We had a similar problem two years ago for our last ever game at The Dell - but we played it strictly by the book even though our capacity was less than half of City's. "There was never any question that we would not honour our obligation towards Arsenal and if extra costs were involved as a result of that then we took it on the chin. "Premier League regulations are quite specific. City must be capable of meeting rule 7.1 irrespective of the opposition or whether it is the last game at the stadium."