Stockport County have issued a statement confirming that they will be lowering their ticket prices ahead of next season after a raft of complaints from fans.
Following their promotion back to the EFL, recent refurbishment to the stadium and the “rising costs” across the board over the past couple of seasons, County saw fit to increase matchday prices ahead of the new campaign whilst still hoping to “minimise the price rises for season ticket holders.”
As a result, the club decided to raise the standard walk-up prices for adult tickets from £20 to £22 — not a huge bump, to be fair but every penny counts; however, when it came to the most in-demand fixtures, prices were increased to between £25 and £27.
Unsurprisingly, with the current cost of living crisis affecting everyone, many fans described the hike as everything from “laughable” and “outrageous” to “pricing the average fan out of [going to games]“. Issuing a response to the backlash, the Greater Manchester side are now course-correcting.
As the Hatters’ statement reads: “Our season ticket holders are very important to us and are an integral part of the club, so we believed their loyalty should be prioritised where possible. We also appreciate not everyone is in a position to afford a full season ticket and we wish to remain accessible to all supporters.
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“We have listened to fans’ feedback and on reflection, this increase for these high-demand fixtures was too high and, as a result, we’ve made some changes to the prices and structure…
“It’s always difficult balancing rising costs, affordability for supporters and our mission to make the club long-term financially sustainable.”
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Sharing their newly revised matchday prices, here’s how much it will now cost to go and watch a Stockport County game:
Adult season tickets are £435 or £405 for existing members renewing (Credit: Stockport County)
Parting on a message recognising supporters’ patience, the club ended their statement by saying, “We won’t always get it right but we’re a club that listens to fans and we can’t wait to have you back at Edgeley Park next season. Thanks for your ongoing support.”
Many fans understand the club’s ambitions and desire to climb further back up the pyramid, only narrowly missing out on back-to-back promotions into League One at the of this past season, but the consensus seemed to be that the initial figures were simply unreasonable for tier four football.
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While the majority are still very much of the long-standing opinion, “twenty’s plenty”, it’s good to see the club engaging with their supporters so directly, swiftly and honestly.
In contrast, at the top end of English football, some fans are even struggling to get a spare ticket off their mate…
Manchester City have announced a special away day fan zone for festive fixture
Danny Jones
In a real added bonus for away fans making the roughly two-hour journey to their only fixture over the festive period, travelling Man City supporters are being treated to a dedicated away-day fan zone for their upcoming game against Nottingham Forest.
Now this is the kind of backing we want to see from big teams.
That’s right, for those visiting Nottingham for the meeting against the fellow Premier League side and one-time European Cup winners, Manchester City will be putting on a special and exclusive fan zone.
Confirmed on Christmas Eve ahead of the match this coming Saturday, 27 December, the club revealed a quick glimpse of the pop-up supporters’ park.
As detailed in the announcement, the public events space known as ‘The Nest’ will be open exclusively to away-ticket holders heading to the City Ground.
Perfect for a quick pit-stop before and after the clash, the venue is one of the closest you’ll find to the stadium itself and, better still, is located roughly just a 10-minute walk away from the railway station.
There will be a huge bar offering a wide selection of alcoholic and soft drinks, plus plenty of street food to enjoy. Here’s hoping the players don’t indulge in too many of those this Christmas, especially following Pep Guardiola’s ‘fatty’ comments.
They kick off at 12:30pm, but will everyone make the weight?…
Once again, Man City have advertised this as an away-day ticket-holder-only event, so we would probably call ahead and double-check if you’re a Blue who just so happens to live/be in the area and want to go along.
It also goes without saying that this will serve as an ideal and presumably trouble-free place to celebrate after the result, as it’s a strictly sky-blue event and we’d wager the title contenders and serial trophy winners to come out on top.
So, if you needed any extra assurance that making the approximately 81-mile trip to Nottingham, we’d say potentially going top at Christmas and cheersing a few pints with your mates on a would-be concourse designed just for you is plenty of added motivation.
As for those of you staying firmly in Greater Manchester this holiday season, there’s no reason you can’t still have a little away day of your own:
Featured Images — Manchester City (via X)/The Manc Group
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Manchester City youngster Claudio Echeverri set for another loan spell
Danny Jones
Manchester City youngster Claudio Echeverri is set for another loan deal this January following a disappointing time in Germany.
The South American youth product has spent the first half of this season out on loan at Bayer Leverkusen, but has struggled not only to make an impact but even to enjoy any real steady playing time.
Following reports earlier this month by The Athletic‘s Seb Stafford-Bloor that announced Echeverri’s loan would return to his Man City, it appears as though all parties concerned haven’t exactly gotten what they want out of the deal.
With that in mind, not only has his short-term agreement been cut short, but Echeverri is now set to join another City Football Group (CFG) club on a temporary contract, where he can crucially be assured more regular minutes.
As confirmed by the ever ubiquitous transfer insider, Fabrizio Romano, Claudio Echeverri is now set to join Girona temporarily from the Premier League side.
Romano writes that “the Argentinian talent leaves Bayer Leverkusen after loan deal interrupted — as Echeverri was not playing.”
Stating that the 19-year-old will officially become a Girona FC player from 1 January onwards, he will no doubt provide some much-needed offensive firepower for the struggling Spanish side, with the Catalan club currently lingering in the La Liga relegation zone.
Following a somewhat reverse pattern of fellow forward, Savinho (who was signed by the French CFG franchise arm, Troyes, before being loaned to Girona and eventually bought by Man City), the attack-minded player remains a highly-rated youth prospect but has yet to fully announce himself.
He scored the first goal for his parent club back in June; it’s fair to say it was a bit of a corker…
Fast forward to now, though, and Echeverri will spend at least until next June representing Girona – no doubt dropping straight into the starting lineup as soon as possible.
At the moment, there is no suggestion of any permanent clause included in the agreement, but either way, ‘El Diablito’ is still a CFG asset, at the end of the day.
With that in mind, we’re sure they’ll move him around the sporting network however they see fit in search of a breakout spell.
Do you think it’s a good move for the young starlet, or would you like to see him back in Manchester, fighting his way into matchday squads?
Danny Jones -
22nd June 2023 
