Newcastle United Supporters Trust

News that the FA is considering scrapping cup replays in order to appease the Premier League and implement a winter break isn't likely to go down well with fans and will do nothing to revive the competition. The reasons for the failure of England's so-called golden generation are plentiful and spoiling the FA Cup won’t solve them.

• Read more on the FA plan to scrap replays here...
• Should FA Cup replays be scrapped? Vote on the FSF's homepage poll here (bottom right corner)…

Good news from Walsall as the club have rescinded bans on a number of fans who unfurled a banner aimed at chairman Jeff Bonser titled ‘Pension Fund FC’. Supporters alleged Bonser had financially mismanaged the club and spent too much time in the Med. They even threatened to ban one fan, Tom Lines, for holding up a banner titled ‘FREEDOM OF SPEECH’. The irony wasn’t lost on Tom who was so incensed he picked up the matter with the FSF and, two months down the line, the club has seen sense and overturned all bans. Clubs may have a legal right to ban people from their property but they should never forget what makes them in the first place – the passion of fans. Clubs can’t ask for that to be turned on and off when it suits them.

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Fans’ Parliament 2010 is almost upon us so if you plan on attending register here today! Taking place at Wembley Stadium on Saturday July 24th our annual conference will see guest speaker Declan Hill, author of The Fix: Soccer and Organized Crime, argue that corruption has reached the highest levels of our game and could yet destroy it. Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti will also speak at our workshop on policing and stewarding and there’ll be discussion unsustainable club debts and club governance, lack of safe standing, and England's 2018 World Cup bid.

Fans' Parliament is totally free and takes place at Wembley on Saturday July 24th - register today from this link.

The new season is only weeks away and fans are already penciling in away games. However many trips you’re planning though do not forget to check your team’s upcoming fixtures against TV and European schedules. There’s nothing worse than spending fortunes on outlandishly priced rail tickets only to realise they’re now useless as your team’s game has been moved from its original kick-off. TV fixtures are now confirmed until the end of November and if you follow a club due to play any Europa League contenders you’re especially vulnerable. There is sadly no contractual minimum notice that TV companies have to give before moving games and while we’d love to see fans compensated for disruption the best you can do it present is check, check and check again.

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Every quarter Virgin Money release figures from their Football Fans’ Inflation Index which basically measure the cost of going to games based on the price of a “match basket” – basically a ticket, pint, sarnie, transport and so on. The mythical “average” ticket price is, to us, as difficult to fathom as quantum physics and the growing of Michael McIntyre. Varying prices from club to club, the categorisation of matches, freebies, corporate prices, and season tickets all mean an “average price” says everything and nothing at the same time. Nevertheless Virgin’s survey is useful shorthand for showing trends and apparently costs have dropped to £84.89 from a high of £106.21 in October 2008. Good news, but does a few quid off here and there really make up for 20 years worth of spiralling prices?

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