St Johnstone chairman accepts 'certain criticisms' over Rangers ticket row as fans prepare to boycott

St Johnstone chairman Steve Brown has told angry supporters he accepts “certain criticisms” over the decision to hand Rangers a large ticket allocation for Saturday’s home Scottish Cup fixture.

St Johnstone chairman Steve Brown has addressed concerns of fans ahead of a planned boycott of the Rangers match this weekend. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group)

The Perth club has given up three stands to away fans for the fourth round tie at McDiarmid Park, with home spectators restricted to the Main Stand, while ticket prices have been increased to £30 for adults and £20 for concessions.

Some season ticket holders have also been forced to give up their usual seats. The move has sparked uproar with reports claiming only 300 home tickets have been sold after St Johnstone fans announced they planned to boycott the fixture.

In a statement signed by the St Johnstone chairman, Brown stopped short of making an apology but stressed that supporters concerns will be taken into consideration in future.

It read: “The seating arrangements and pricing for the forthcoming Scottish Cup tie against Rangers has been met with a huge amount of negativity and hostility from a number of our valued fans.

“The Club has endeavoured to respond to the various communications sent to the Club both by way of email and telephone over the last fortnight, and the Club is aware of the views of various sections of fans both from Social Media activity and Press reports.

“The decisions made in respect of this Cup tie were taken with the best interests of the Club at heart. However, we totally understand the frustration our supporters feel and their level of disappointment.

“On reflection, the Club accepts that certain criticisms levelled against the decisions have merit and going forward the Club will take this feedback into account in considering both pricing and seating arrangements in future fixtures. Our supporters can be absolutely assured of this.

“Whilst we hope to see as many of our supporters as possible inside McDiarmid Park on Saturday to support Callum and the players in this important Cup tie against Rangers, we understand and respect our supporters who choose not to attend on this occasion.”

St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson has also expressed frustration with his club’s decision to hand Rangers three stands.

Speaking after his side’s 1-0 defeat to Dundee United on January 2, he said: “As a player, I used to love it when you had both stands full of St Johnstone fans.

“I sympathise with supporters. For me, it’s not great in that way. I want the best chance for us to get through in the cup, for me that would be two stands of St Johnstone fans. So yeah, I’m a little bit frustrated.”