FAN'S EYE VIEW: No 200 TV v terrace

For those of us who consume much of our football intravenously hooked to the television, the Christmas feast was a pleasure. It was, in many ways, a traditional footy Christmas. The turkey - this year Southampton - was ceremoniously dispatched and will continue to be devoured until well into the new year; an over-indulgence of alcohol produced a certain amount of blurred vision, which may explain some of the refereeing decisions. And most of us have now seen the theatre of our early season dreams turned into panto.

Additionally, like many of the enjoyable excesses of the season of goodwill - and I do not mean the Tottenham defence - it has often been accompanied by the nagging of a close relative. For those who enjoy the caress of the remote control, this means listening to the complaints of that insistent relation, the local terrace football supporter. Yes, heavens preserve the couch potato supporter from a righteous frying by those radio phone-in fans or good friends whose joy in life is to preach that theirs is the only true faith and to be a "real" supporter you need to have an umbilical cord attaching you to the ground.

Let us take this mentality to its natural conclusion. If supporters must come from a club's town or city then, logically, everybody and everything connected with the club should do the same. If being a local is the golden rule for following a team then it must also be a prerequisite for being on the pitch. The players should have been able to hear the sweet sound of the terraces roar as they emerge from the womb.

The same rule should also apply to finances. Sponsorship should come from a local firm and any cash should only be raised within the confines of the home town. Thus clubs, large and small, should have the local pub plastered across their chest and, in many cases, this would probably be more appropriate than their current sponsors.

Yet these financial arguments should be put into context. Money is only important if the terrace supporter wishes to see their team to win trophies, or at least the occasional match, to see top quality players and sit in comfort while watching the game. Without money players cannot be signed, wages cannot be paid and stadiums cannot be built.

In this sense a team's television fan base is vital to the modern game. For many years clubs have been dependent on revenues from TV companies, sponsorship and advertising.

Of course the terraced and television supporters have much in common. Most supporters pick a team at a young age and stick with that club, experiencing the frustration and heartbreak which that choice can bring.

Both types of supporter enjoy the game, both passionately support their team and, in the age of modern stadiums, both spend their time on their backsides as, in fact, we are all couch-potato supporters in 1997. More importantly, few of us actually only fit perfectly into either of these categories. Most fans of the small screen will also attend matches on occasions and 99 per cent of attending supporters also watch games on the television.

Now, in early January, the Christmas tree stands as bare as the rest of the season before us, its needles scattered at the bottom of the table like points dropped over the festive season. And as you swear your centre- forward fell from a cheap cracker, just remember, there is always the new year sales.