JIM SPENCE: Dundee derby ticket prices – how much is too much for a football match?

How much is too much for a game of football?

Dundee United will find out when the tickets go on sale for the Premiership opening day derby v Dundee.

The top price at Tanndice will be £34.

There’s a real danger for football in the long run in pricing supporters out of the game.

While season books at most clubs are reasonable when taken over the course of an entire season, and concessions are also available, it’s prices for walk-up home fans and visiting supporters where the bulk of criticism comes.

‘Delicate balancing act’

What’s too dear for some fans will be acceptable for others depending on the depth of their pockets.

Supporters always have choice whether to stump up or not but many who may feel that they’re being overcharged will still dig deep out of tribal loyalties.

Running a top flight football club isn’t a cheap affair and the tensions between charging prices which strike a fair balance is a delicate balancing act.

Supporters want their clubs to sign quality players and the only way the clubs can do this is by having the income needed to meet player demands.

Even with concession prices, some fans will feel ripped off while others will accept the ‘going rate’ as they do when they attend any concert or festival.

So how much is too much will be answered one way or another when the derby tickets go on sale; if they don’t sell out they were overpriced; if they do they weren’t.

Dundee United new boy’s setback

Injury is sadly part and parcel of the professional footballer’s life.

Very few players will go through their careers without some harm, however few are as infuriatingly vexing as the hamstring injury suffered by Ryan Strain, Dundee United’s new wing-back, and which is the curse of the pro footballer.

The Aussie international was stretchered off the pitch in the midweek match v Stenhousemuir, suffering with the game’s most common ailment, which afflicts players far more than any other on-field set-back, including knocks, sprains, and twists.

The increasing physical demands on players mean that the ‘hammy’, a vital requirement for the explosive power needed for constant short sharp bursts of speed, comes under intense strain, no pun intended, in every match.

The growing stresses on players’ bodies with crammed fixture lists leads to fatigue, and in turn that means insufficient time to rest and recuperate, leaving players more susceptible to the harm, and those sustaining the injury at more risk of a recurring problem.

In last season’s Premier League in England there was an increase of around 96% for hamstring injuries compared to the previous campaign, with 53 suffered; three more than injuries to knees ankle, and foot, combined.

It’s estimated that one in five pros suffer a hamstring injury in any given season, with around a third of those injuries re-occurring.

It’s sadly an increasingly common part of the game for the modern player but one which can blight careers.

Hopefully Ryan’s setback is merely a temporary one from an injury which is exasperating and which can be the bane of many a player’s life.