‘Just wrong,’ ‘Burn them!’ On the eve of Spurs clash, Colchester fans react to the latest arrival in the club shop

League Two Colchester United play Premier League Spurs tonight in the third round of the Carabao Cup and not surprisingly the Essex outfit are looking to maximise the commercial opportunities from the fixture.

Big cup games are a massive income generator for lower league clubs, but their commercial activities around the visit of a Premier League giant are often unpopular with certain sections of a club’s support, and it appears Colchester is no different. The club has come in for criticism from some fans for ‘cashing in’ with increased ticket prices and over the policy on ticket availability.

Clubs are often on a hiding to nothing in such situations with it being impossible to please everyone. Criticism often comes from the club’s most loyal supporters who feel threatened and concerned the big cup game fan will get a ticket ahead of them, causing them to miss out.

 

Stoic tales of fans commitment and the miles travelled over the years are widespread on social media during the lead up to big cup matches with many asking why these fans here for the big occasion cannot come every week.

Another recent phenomenon of this sort of evening is the sight of hawkers outside stadiums selling unofficial merchandise, including the dreaded half and half scarf. However, the U’s commercial department has managed to stay one step ahead of the game and announced on Twitter the arrival of official half and half scarves in the club shop a full week before the visit of the U’s illustrious opponents giving fans plenty of opportunities to snap one up.

It is fair to say the announcement got a mixed reaction on social media as the following selection of responses on Twitter illustrates.

 

Podcasts

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.