St Johnstone fan group the Fair City Unity have called out the Perth club and Rangers over ticket pricing for the upcoming Scottish Cup clash between the two sides.
Saints announced last week that they would hand over three of McDiarmid Park's four stands to the visitors for the match and pricing was also confirmed at £30 for adults and £20 for all concessions.
The announcement was met with fierce criticism from the St Johnstone support and there is talk of a complete boycott from home fans.
The Fair City Unity took part in a silent protest against the announcement during Saints' home match with Dundee United at the weekend.
Dundee United (Home) 02/01/2023 pic.twitter.com/Yk9cNmmNe8
— FAIR CITY UNITY (@faircityunity) January 5, 2023
And today in a further statement, the group have confirmed that they will continue to fight for fair and affordable ticket pricing.
They said: "On Monday, 2 January 2023 against Dundee United, Fair City Unity demonstrated against the recent announcement of ticket allocation and pricing ahead of the club's first home Scottish Cup fixture since winning the competition in 2021.
"The group was made aware of the club's decision prior to the announcement being made public, strongly rejecting the decision and highlighting the backlash envisaged from across the support which has come to fruition.
"For the first half of the match, the group participated in a silent protest along with leaving our traditional section empty, encouraging other fans who also congregate in the area to do likewise and support our action.
"With acknowledgement from the club, the group has in recent times supported the local community during the current cost of living crisis and will continue to do so.
"Therefore as a group we are disappointed in the £30 / £20 ticket pricing structure, and direct blame at both St Johnstone Football Club and Rangers Football Club who had an opportunity to make the match affordable for all fans, particularly due to the current cost of living crisis and also to compensate for the unwanted kick off time and TV coverage.
"The group will continue to fight for fair and affordable ticket pricing structures at all St Johnstone matches in order to make football affordable for all fans."
St Johnstone announced the ticketing plans with a statement of their own.
It read: "The Club can today announce ticketing details for our forthcoming Scottish Cup tie against Rangers at McDiarmid Park on Saturday, 21st January (kick off 5.30pm).
"After talks between both clubs and the police, we can advise that for this particular match, the St Johnstone support will be accommodated in the Main Stand only with the visiting support accessing the three other stands in the stadium. Tickets will be priced at £30 for adults and £20 for concessions.
"All our season ticket holders will be given a priority window to purchase Main Stand tickets for the game and details for this will be announced next week.
"All ticket sales for the visiting support areas of the ground will be handled only by Rangers FC.
"Ahead of this announcement, talks have been held with some of our supporter groups to explain why we have taken the steps we have for this particular match.
"We realise these arrangements will inconvenience some of our supporters and apologise for this but we look forward to a healthy backing from the Main Stand as we have enjoyed on similar such occasions in the past."
