THE Brewers chairman has responded to a minority of fans who have expressed dissatisfaction on social media with the decision to allow Derby fans into home terraces yesterday.
Ben Robinson said: “The pre-season friendly against Derby County is a popular curtain-raiser to the new season for both sets of fans and it has always taken place in a good spirit on and off the pitch.
“We have always allowed fans to mingle and there have not been any issues. There are many fans who support both clubs.
“We always take advice from the police on fan security which we take very seriously but as this was a pre-season game and there was a big interest from Derby supporters we believe this was the best way of ensuring as many fans as possible enjoyed this popular fixture. There was a record attendance for this fixture and we couldn’t have accommodated all the Derby fans in the away sections of the ground.
“I strongly refute that the club was being greedy by doing this. We have a long track record of being fair to the fans on prices and big games such as the Manchester United match in the FA Cup show this.
“We do apologise however to any fans whose enjoyment of the game was spoilt in any way as a result of having Derby fans in the home areas.”
The chairman added that fans’ views are important to the club which is why supporters can help shape club policy – not only through the annual fans’ survey but also through the regular fan engagement workshops (two of which took place recently).
He said: “The club listens to the fan’s views and we believe the engagement workshops are the best place to express views so that we can take on board constructive opinions.”