Temperatures were hitting Below Zero at Gander Green Lane home where tickets to Sutton United’s historic FA cup tied with Arsenal went on sale for regular fans on Sunday morning . Hundreds of football fans stood there in gusty winds for nearly FIVE hours to secure their tickets.
The pitch and the stable were queued around by the supporters to latch onto their golden ticket to the club’s biggest day.
Borough Sports Ground having an artificial 3G surface expected over 5000 fans to glut in for the Monday night clash on February 20.
Sutton chairman Bruce Elliott had an absurd task of telling the fans that they would be equitable for only one ticket per season pass. But the veteran was amicable when answering the concerns of those queuing.
Nearby Crystal Palace was initially suggested for the fixture but Elliott was quick to dismiss those exhortations as he was keen on keeping the “ROMANCE ” of the tie alive by localizing it on home soil.
Having faced AFC Wimbledon and Leeds at home in previous rounds ,Elliot declared:” It’s absolutely nonsense. It has never been discussed or mentioned as a possibility.”
“We have a meeting tonight and for some reason they thought it was going to be on the agenda. Even if we wanted to move the FA are keen they don’t want a change. They want teams drawn out of the hat first to play at home. It’s just the way it is. Changes can be made if a pitch is not safe , but we’ve shown that we can have games here. There is nothing different about the tie, except for the team we are playing.”
