Although certain clubs still have active fan groups who don't lie down and take it up the rear when it comes to ticket prices and merchandising, in the main the average Premier League fan does not protest too much, but in German that is not the case.

In the 1970's it was English football supporters who led the way when it came to showing our European peers how to support a football team in terms of singing and noise, even back in the 1990's it was the English who showed the World that we would not be taken for granted by our club's with the advent of fanzines and independent supporters association's and at Southampton we were leaders in both.

But in the past decade or so in the main the English have lost their way as supporters whereas the Europeans have surpassed as to a massive extent. Anyone who has attended a game in Europe will tell you that the rest of Europe have got their act together and their support is now very impressive and makes the average Premier league game look like a library.

But it is not just about noise in the grounds, it is about how the fans groups organise themselves and let their clubs know in very specific ways that they will not put up with being taken for granted.

A great example of this was shown at the Emirates last night when a significant amount of the travelling Bayern Munich support refused to enter the stands till a pre set time after the kick off, this left a big area of empty seats with only a series of banners displayed in them spelling out the words

"£64 a ticket, but without fans football is not worth a penny"

To their credit Arsenal fans applauded them, but the reality is that they and most other clubs do little else but look on in wonder, one are the days when a supporter of a Premier League club stood up for himself for fear of persecution by his club.

But as much as abroad it has created a brilliant atmosphere at games and bred loyalty in a club's support far beyond just results, in England it has gone in the opposite direction and bred a generation of supporters to whom club loyalty is not the first and foremost thing, but it is all about being in the Premier League.

Club's know this and so they push things to the limit in terms of price, Arsenal charging £64 for a ticket is the tip of the iceberg and merchandising is just as bad, when Saints were in the Championship a replica shirt was £39, promotion to the Premier and it went up £10 overnight.

So perhaps English supporters should take note of the Bayern fans last night, I know the clubs should, because football is boom and bust and although the likes of Arsenal think their future is secure, then likes of Saints and 75% of the Premier League are dependent on being in that League for the money, but high prices put off the hard core fan and that is the one who truly keeps a club in business.

The 32,000 who pack St Mary's these days may not have had that chance if not for the 17,000 who kept going in the season the club went into administration, indeed the club would not have gone into administration if half of the 15,000 who had disappeared since the club had been relegated had stayed loyal and kept going week in week out.

Yes our predicament had a happy ending, but we were lucky and it is not happy for most teams who get relegated from the Premier.

Photo: Action Images

IWOZTHERE added 12:19 - Oct 21 That's German organisation for you! Can't see our fans being that organised!
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bstokesaint added 12:29 - Oct 21 I think it's fair to say we're a nation of whingers and whiners, but when it comes down to the crunch we don't know how to go about it. Supporters don't want to 'hurt' their own club. The Bayern example was a good way of demonstrating.
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halftimeorange added 12:37 - Oct 21 When I moved closer to the halfway line at the beginning of our first season in League 1 I was in the Outer Wings. Back in the Championship I was in the Outer Centre. First season back in the PL I was in the Premium seats. During those seasons I never moved but the prices did - from £290 to £738. The Sky money for staying in the PL has impacted on every financial aspect of our clubs. You must survive up there at all costs - and some of those costs are passed onto us. I'm sure that if I gave up my seat it would immediately be taken but it's the fans who struggle to come to games at all who really suffer.

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SonicBoom added 21:32 - Oct 21 That will be the German fans that bought the tickets, travelled to England, then missed the first five minutes yes? How is that showing us anything?
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IWOZTHERE added 23:26 - Oct 21 I can't believe I'm defending Germans, SonicBoom.....but in this case it looked like they felt strongly enough about something that they were prepared to sacrifice their own enjoyment in order to make a point. I think it's called 'sticking to your principles'.
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SaintBrock added 14:21 - Oct 22 Real world chaps and chaises, pay the piper if you want to hear the tune!
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SaintBrock added 14:23 - Oct 22 No doubt the whingers would be all too happy to pay £300 to see One Direction for 90 minutes? Supply, Demand that's how it works.
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SaintBrock added 14:32 - Oct 22 Ralph said the other evening, categorically no stadium expansion in the foreseeable future... Of course not, he has 32000 seats to sell, 32000 x £25 (ave) = ...but if demand outstrips supply soon as no doubt he expects that it will, he may be salivating at the prospect of 32000 x £50 (ave) or even 32000 x £75 (ave). In other words 2 or 3 x the income from match days without spending a penny. So you can see why they are in no hurry to expand to 45000 seats when supply may exceed demand. All as One? Let's stop kidding ourselves it's all about them not us.

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