I've been Villa-obsessed since 1994, but I've only been to Villa Park once, and that was 24 years ago. So as up-to-date as I've always been with Villa on the pitch, I've been very much the outsider looking in on matters pertaining to ticket prices and the match day experience, things that do not effect me directly. That said, I commiserate with all of you who feel aggrieved by the club over these issues that have cropped up lately.
Purslow always struck me as someone to be wary of, despite his credentials and the positives he brought to the club. And I'm also wary of Heck. I doubt either had/has any authentic affinity with Villa supporters. The disconnection has obviously led to a chasm between the brass and supporters. It seemed to me from my vantage point that the long term Villa supporters were the glue of the club over the tumultuous late Lerner-Xia-relegation-early NSWE period. But now that the club has it's shine back, that supporter-led stewardship gets short shrift by the people crunching numbers at the club. And that disrespect is a damn shame, as expressed so well by Mr. Fear.
I understand the economics involved and why the club is desperately trying to maximize revenue. But the lack of transparency, insensitivity and disrespect shown towards long time core support damages "the brand" in ways are more difficult to gauge than a negative quarterly P&L report.