Board desperately needs to reconnect with the fans

Another week, another two defeats, writes Wolves blogger Tim Spiers.

Going to Wolves matches these days is a pretty soul destroying exercise.

Turning up at Molineux or travelling across the country, having paid hard-earned money for your ticket, travel, etc, but knowing your team is going to lose – where on earth is the logic in that?

It's akin to handing over a large cheque to Simon Cowell and having him incessantly berate you and tell you you're totally worthless, while you sit there and take it.

I can't imagine us scoring more than one goal in a game, conceding fewer than two or even earning a solitary point between now and May 13.

Utterly depressing.

The end of the season simply cannot come round quickly enough now – let's just get these remaining games over as quickly as possible.

Wigan's shock win over Manchester United was yet another reminder of what might have been for us, had we even stayed close to being in contention.

When Mick McCarthy was sacked in February we were only in the bottom three on goal difference and were two ahead of the Latics, who have since won 11 more points than us from just eight matches.

Yes, all told, it's a miserable time to be a Wolves fan.

But not only are performances (in terms of quality, for at least the effort and endeavour has been there in the past two games) and results on the pitch at the lowest possible ebb, relations are strained off the field too.

The chasm between the board and the supporters is yawning wider than the audience at an Alan Shearer stand-up show.

Meanwhile down the road our stripy neighbours are offering cheaper season tickets – yes cheaper – for Premier League football next season.

In an age where football supporters are taken for granted, referred to as a five-digit number instead of a name and asked to pay extortionate and unjustifiable prices which have risen hundreds of percent above the rate of inflation, this was a fantastic gesture.

The amount of money in question – £50 off across the board – may not be a huge amount but it's the principle, and the reasons, behind the reduction which impressed me.

"Attracting the next generation of supporters is pivotal to the club's future success," Albion chief executive Mark Jenkins said, as he announced that under-17 season tickets would range from just £99 to £119 in four of the ground's five sections next year.

But here's the most pertinent quote: "We were very mindful of both the tough economic climate and the high level of youth unemployment."

A chief executive sympathetic to the needs of his club's supporter demographic, imagine that.

With the West Midlands hit harder by the recession than any area of the country – and showing few signs of recovery – paying to watch football has become far more difficult for fans of Wolves, Albion, Birmingham, Villa and Walsall.

For me it's become a luxury, and one I can barely afford.

It was a close call as to whether I renewed for next season and it was in more of a sense of duty, rather than reason, judgment or logic, that I did so.

Just 12,150 (down from 14,780 a year ago) took up the club's much-trumpeted early bird offer and the prospect of thousands more buying a Championship season ticket this summer looks remote.

With relations at such a low ebb, Steve Morgan and Jez Moxey desperately need to reconnect with the fans ahead of what could be another traumatic season if things aren't done correctly before August.

But going back to Albion for a moment, here is the key aspect of the prices they've just announced – they're not just for renewing season ticket holders, they're for new applicants too.

That means that anyone who, for reasons known only to them, voluntarily chooses to support West Brom, can buy a Premier League season ticket for an average price of £399, compared to an average discount early bird price of £420 for Wolves.

Now don't get me wrong, in the overinflated football climate Wolves' early bird prices are still more than reasonable, and the price-freeze for the past few seasons has been very much appreciated.

But summer prices? Excessive, to say the least.

Last year any season ticket holder who didn't buy the early bird (which ranged from £376 to £496 depending on where you sit) had to pay between £493 (behind the goals) and £595 (Billy Wright Stand) to renew.

For new applicants the figure increased by roughly £30 in each stand, up to a maximum price of £636 – hardly an enticement to attract new fans.

And by the way, unlike the club, I'm including the £6 carriage/booking/administration fee in these prices.

We have 18,019 season ticket holders this season, meaning that 3,239 bought a ticket last summer, for Premier League football.

If Wolves replicate those same 'summer' prices this year, can you imagine another 3,239 paying an average price of £536 to renew, or £568 to buy a new Championship season ticket? Absolutely no chance.

When you compare those numbers to what West Brom are offering this summer, they're worlds apart.

Now those 3,239 tickets will have earned the club, at a rough guess, £1.8million – If they'd been at the early bird prices, that figure would have decreased by about £500,000.

So Jez, what I'm saying is, if you want to reconnect with your long-suffering fans, if you want to show that the supporters still mean something to this club, that we're still relevant and valued, how about taking a leaf out of Albion's book and offering a gesture of goodwill?

Extend the early bird offer to this summer and make it for all supporters, not just those who renew.

And while you're at it, offer some discount prices for juniors, so that another generation of potential Wolves diehards don't fall by the wayside and 'support' Man United or Arsenal by watching them on the telly every week.

Yes, you might take a hit of a few hundred thousand pounds.

But you might, just might, sell a big chunk of season tickets and start creating an atmosphere or positivity around the graveyard of morbidity that is Molineux.

And boy, does this club need a boost.