TOWN fans will have to dig around 10 per cent deeper to watch their heroes next season.

A premium matchday seat will rise from £21 to £23 with an adult season ticket in either of the main stands going up from £330 to £360. And the price to sit in the Town End also rises by £2.

Chief executive Mark Devlin acknowledges that price increases are never going to be welcomed by supporters but insists it is a question of meeting the rising costs of running a football club.

He said: "In terms of season ticket prices you are looking at an increase of about 10 per cent.

"However, there are incentives still in place such as the 'fan get fan' scheme where season ticket holders will save 20 per cent if they introduce a new season ticket holder."

As for matchday prices, Devlin knows there will be those who are unhappy at the prospect of paying £23 to watch Division Two football next year, should Town fail to win promotion.

He said: "I appreciate there will always be a section of fans who are upset when we put prices up. Human nature tells me that.

"Unfortunately the fact is that as a football club you have to look at paying your way. We don't have a benefactor to pump millions into the club.

"We have to go one of two ways. We either try to raise the revenues coming in, which includes putting your prices up, or do you cut your costs even further?

"In our case that means do you continue with a youth policy, a reserve side and have a smaller first team squad?

"Sadly, we have put the prices up. It is the cost of trying to run a professional football club, a club that we all hope will be in Division One next season."

Devlin said promotion would open up greater revenue streams but also lead to higher costs, one of which is players.

He said: "We have had to try and look at ways of getting revenue in that will match our aspirations and to try and achieve a break-even position.

"If I don't charge more then I am going to be driving this club in only one direction and that's not a direction any of us want to go."

Devlin said it would have been impractical to wait and see which division Town were in next year before announcing prices.

He said: "Say we lost at the play-off semi-final stage, supporters wouldn't be getting the prices through until the last week in May.

"Do I give people just seven days to take up an early bird offer?"

One bone of contention for fans has been a uniformity of price across the two main stands, with no concessions for the wings.

Devlin said: "We looked at that situation but the cost of operating it, stewarding it and making sure people sit in the seats they are given, prohibits us from doing that."

Supporters want to see a successful team and money generated from ticket sales will aid Andy King.

Devlin said: "The budget will be such that Andy can continue to have a competitive team.

"Obviously we will need to invest more money than we've invested this year if we are a Division One side."