Option 4 - just buy 2 tickets from Fulham for the 'neutral' section right next to the away section & mostly full of other blues anyway.

I can't really agree with your complaint, which basically seems to be that the box office wouldn't sell a ticket for a season ticket holder to somebody who isn't a season ticket holder - quelle surprise! I'm also surprised you didn't consider calling first to clarify before making such a long trip - although it does seem rather obvious that as your wife isn't your lad she won't be entitled to a ticket on the back of his junior season ticket.

John,

I'm sorry but EFC was correct not to sell you two adult tickets: you didn’t qualify. if you had read the website, this would have told you so; I have no sympathy for you at all.

This year I have purchased a child season ticket for my son just so I can get him away tickets easier. In the past, I have had to purchase adult tickets every time for all the London away games so I saved money by buying a season ticket. You can't buy a cheaper season ticket and expect to have the advantages of an adult ticket.

The header to this post is an unfair portrayal of our club. Why do you make a 40-mile round trip to the club, why not use the box office direct or via the website, much easier.

There is of course option 5.
Buy the adult and junior ticket then get your wife to dress up as a schoolboy Krankies style.

I can't see the problem at all to be honest.

Yes, I agree that Everton are usually shite at this type of thing and make a shambles out of the simplest of task, but in this case I think they're right.

What would happen if your bird got a ticket for a lad that actually HAS HIS OWN season ticket bud...?!

I'd go with option 6 - FUCK IT OFF, SAVE YOUR CASH AND STAY AT HOME INSTEAD. Hows that.....?!?!?

Or Option 7 - Move to Spain....

COYB.

Dennis Stevens...........Brilliant post!

Yeah whilst it's annoying John, I can't see what the club have done wrong here?

"Belief beggaring"? I'd suggest that every other club applies exactly the same rules. As for a "40 mile round trip" to the box office...must take hours?

John sorry pal but you are just in the wrong - the lesson here is take your lad to the footy and don't try to earn extra brownie points by blagging your missus with a london trip when all you are interested in is Fulham.

To Andy 920

Calm down, calm down lad! It's me that meant to be p*ssed off. Clearly I'm not getting much sympathy on this one, but as you say COYB!

Sorry John not much sympathy here. As far as I know Everton don't make any money on away tickets so they're not losing any.

Option 10:- Get another season ticket number form someone who's not going, simples.

As for the 40 mile round trip, maybe you should take an overnight bag and stop off half way.

John, for what it's worth, mate, I'm with you on this one. Everton have a family-friendly policy, including a family enclosure. In your case, the family has two seats allocated, one with a child discount, and when your child reaches the relevant age, he has to pay adult prices. This entitles you to two tickets at Fulham, one as a child discount. If you want both Fulham tickets for adults, you simply pay both at adult prices. That should be the Everton, family-friendly, fan-friendly, customer-orientated line.

To Brent 930

Glad someone at last understands what I'm on about. I'm not trying to deprive anyone adult or child of their right to attend the game or pay less than I should. All I wanted to do was pay an adult price for my family's junior ticket so that my wife could go instead of the lad. Simples really!

I do understand, John, but feel you're expecting the clubs ticketing process to follow your logic & in this technological age we live in that ain't gonna happen. Back in the day when things were just done by people then your request would probably not be a problem, but now everything is computerised. So, if you have 1 Adult & 1 Junior season ticket & try to buy 2 Adult away tix through them the computer will inevitably say "No!"

There is also the argument that if your lad isn't using his season ticket to acquire an away ticket, then for someome else to use his season ticket to do so means that they're leapfrogging the general sales queue. Although I'm sure this happens all the time & wouldn't normally be picked up were it not for your particular circumstances.

Sorry John, you are trying to use a child's season ticket to get an adult ticket for an away game. we usually sell out our away allocation, so I can't see what your complaint is.

As Dennis says above, if we were dealing with a person and paper tickets getting handed out, I doubt there would be a problem. the computers deals with the tickets and it will probably generate an error message, as you are trying to get a ticket that doesn't match the information they hold.

You are entitled to a kids ticket on the season ticket, not an adult one, you are trying to use the season ticket for your nefarious plan to gain brownie points with the missus....shame on you!

Dennis #933 "There is also the argument that if your lad isn't using his season ticket to acquire an away ticket, then for someome else to use his season ticket to do so means that they're leapfrogging the general sales queue. "

Is his wife jumping the queue or just in the queue? ok I can see that it could end up as her, a non-season ticket holder getting a ticket before a season ticket holder. But if you look at this from the level of the family not just the individual, then the Ballinger FAMILY are not queue jumping. And that's why I felt it appropriate to talk about FAMILY-friendly policies (sorry for the caps).

Brent, the simple fact is that you can only buy a child's ticket with a child's season ticket. It's not a complaint worthy issue and the club isn't doing anything different than all other football clubs, but because we Evertonians love sticking the boot in, we get this post having a go.

The reality is that Everton FC have done nothing wrong, yes it would be nice to see a little common sense sometimes but they have acted fairly in this matter.

John & Dennis.

John has a point and I'll illustrate how this refusal is inconsistent. Reference the Chelsea away game cup replay the season before last. 6 of us (adults) wanted to go and we had 5 adult and 1 junior season tickets. I rang and asked for 6 tickets together and explained these were for 6 adults. The girl at the box office said no at first and when I explained we would pay "full price" (even though they were reduced for the replay) she referred it on and came back and accepted the request and I paid for 6 adults.

That game we had 6,000 travelling fans and could have sold more. No pragmatism as far as I can see from the club. Bottom line is whilst it has been said the club don't necessarily make money on away games, my understanding is if they don't sell their allocation they have to pay the difference. The club needs to be flexible imo.

Brent, I see your point, but I believe that season tickets are sold to the individual - can you even get a match day family ticket?

John,

I had the same problem in the 2009 semi-final, my grandson was out of the country and couldn't go, so I went to Goodison and explained my predicament and could I use juniors ticket for an adult? Like you, I hit a brick wall.

I asked to see someone else to explain my situation and met Mr Grey Suit; he said there is nothing you can do about it. I explained that earlier in the season Junior couldn't attend a league match, and my brother went to the box office with his season ticket and paid the extra money for his seat, Mr Grey Suit said that is allowed, so I asked him what is the difference, but he couldn't answer me.

After much arguing with this creature, I left Goodison fuming. When I got home I phoned the FA and explained my predicament. After about 20 minutes, I was put through to the ticketing department, I told them the same story and they were flabbergasted at Everton's stance.

The FA man told me to purchase the dad and lads tickets and on the day of the game go to the box office and upgrade juniors ticket for an adult one. So simple, but when is the last time the clowns running our great club used commonsense?

So go back to Goodison, purchase your dad and lads ticket, go to the Fulham box office and they will upgrade your junior ticket for an adult one.

Tony Kelly is right: you can buy the junior ticket and upgrade at a later date. However, the policy is clearly flawed and does show a lack of concern for the customer by the club.

If you upgrade at Fulham rather than at Goodison, who gets the money?

It seems that the rules actually hamper increasing revenue which is shortsighted at best.

I have worked in ticketing for 25 years and know that 'computer says no' is a lazy excuse. Even if the purchase is linked to a season ticket number it is not impossible to perform the transaction and then return and resell at the higher price.

It may be that this issue only affects a few people but that doesn't mean it doesn't matter.

Two messages for the club: care more; make more money.

John, I think you are wrong.

Why should your missus get a ticket before others who have been to more games? The season ticket entitles that particular person to have priority for an away ticket – it’s not supposed to be transferred to anybody else.

Now obviously, on the quiet, we all do transfer tickets to other people, but you can hardly make a song & dance about it & blame EFC for their intransigence, when they are only doing what they are supposed to do.

Tony (947) I seem to recall that with wembley tickets you paid whatever was the advertised price depending on whether you were a junior or adult or OAP but that there was nothing on the ticket that said there was a restriction. So you could actually get in as an adult having only paid for a junior/OAP. Of course you wouldn't have realised that until you'd paid and got your ticket.

Can people not split season tickets? I mean, a grown woman can't use a ticket priced for a young boy but it seems reasonable for 2 grown men to go halvesies on a ticket. Each goes to half the games. The club wants to make tickets more affordable. If ticket sharing doesnt already exist, it seems to me like it would be a good idea.

John, It is just possible that Mrs Ballinger phoned the ticket office whilst you were on your Michael Palinesque journey, reminding the EFC staff of their ticketing policy and how unfair it would be for an adult season ticket holder to be deprived of a ticket, thus ensuring herself an unfettered couple of hours shopping in the nearby west end while you are at the match. I suspect the hospitality package would have been cheaper!

Leave your wife shopping in London? You might want to remortgage. cheaper to go for option 3

The first post that mentioned the neutral area is spot on. I sat there a few years ago and the Evertonians outnumbered the Fulham fans.