A devastated dad said a decision by the Newcastle United box office has left his twin sons unable to get tickets for the Carabao Cup final.
Steven Liddle, 43, and his 13-year-old boys Sonny and Lennon have season tickets in the family section at St James' Park. The trio have attended three out of four of the cup games at home this season.
This would have put them into period three allocation for tickets to the final at Wembley. They should have all been able to purchase tickets for the game on February 8.
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However Steven said the box office put all three tickets for one of the cup games onto his account - making it look like his sons had only attended two cup games instead of three. This meant the teenagers dropped into period four and were both unsuccessful in the ballot.
Steven said he is now the only one with a ticket for the game against Manchester United on February 26. It is the first time the Toon has reached a cup final for more than two decades.
The fabric maintenance engineer, from Washington, said: "It's been horrific for me, it's an absolute nightmare.
"I've had to go home from work and tell two upset boys that they aren't going to Wembley. Having to explain that to my twin boys has absolutely crippled me.
"Both of them were crying because it means everything. We have already built it up and we have two family rooms booked. I'm gutted I'm not going to be there with my boys."
Steven, Sonny and Lennon have had season tickets together at the ground since the boys were four years old.
Ahead of the Bournemouth cup game in December last year, Steven was unable to purchase their normal season ticket seats online. He said he visited the box office and was told that their seats had been sold by the club.
The dad-of-three said he was given three new seats in a different area of the ground, however all three of their tickets were put onto his account. He said he did not realise what the box office had done until he signed on to purchase their cup final tickets.
Those who qualify for period three are season ticket holders who have attended three or four home Carabao Cup matches during 2022/23. The decision to put all the tickets onto Steven's account made it look like his sons had only attended two cup games, while he had attended three.
He was devastated to learn that his boys had been dropped to period four (the ballot) - season ticket holders that have attended one or two home Carabao Cup matches during 2022/23.
Steven, who is married to office manager Paula, 45, said: "I know it's a cup game but I just expected to be able to sit in my own seat. I ended up taking time out of work to visit the box office and they sorted three tickets elsewhere in the ground.
"They put all three tickets on my account rather than on their accounts. I just don't know why the box office did that. Now it looks like they have only been to two games and I have been to three, which is wrong.
"My bairns should have been with me all the time in period three. It was a massive mistake - a massive error."
Steven said he contacted the box office about the situation and was told he could either drop down to the ballot with his sons or he could purchase his ticket and, if his sons were successful in the ballot, they would all be seated together.
He said he opted to purchase his ticket as he hoped it would give his sons a better chance in the ballot. However Steven was left heartbroken when his sons were not offered any tickets.
He said he has still not decided whether he will attend the game yet due to the situation which his family had been put in. He has raised concern about how the ticket system has left adults and their children unable to attend the final together.
He said: "I just feel like I have been robbed. It's so disappointing when we have had season tickets for years and we haven't missed many games.
"To make things worse other kids they know, who have been to one game, have got tickets. They were talking about it at school and they came home upset.
"It's just caused stress in the house, unnecessary stress really. The boys are like 'Do you have to go, can you not stay up here?' It's so upsetting, I feel hard done by, by the club I love."
The family said they have contacted the club about the issues they have faced but are yet to hear back.
A Newcastle United spokesperson said: "We are very sorry that many of our supporters around the world have not been able to secure match tickets on this occasion. We appreciate that every Newcastle United supporter wants to be there to support the team at Wembley and we offer our sincere apologies to anyone who has been left disappointed.
"Unfortunately, demand has greatly outstripped the supply of tickets we have been allocated for the Carabao Cup Final and we are unable to obtain more. With this in mind, we considered our options around ticket sales very carefully and worked hard to ensure tickets were made available to supporters in as fair and equitable a way as possible.
"Accordingly, we established a set of priority periods based on eligibility criteria - heavily weighted towards season ticket holder status, number of loyalty points and Carabao Cup ticket purchasing history during the current 2022/23 season.
"97% of the tickets available within the priority periods have been purchased by current season ticket holders, with a very small allocation made available to members and supporters with a purchase history in the Carabao Cup. This is in line with our on-sale policy throughout previous rounds of the competition.
"In addition, a small allocation has been allocated to our hard-working full-time staff, our players and coaches’ families, our owners and our official partners at a ratio that benchmarks favourably in comparison to other clubs that have reached domestic cup finals in recent years.
"We appreciate this will be little consolation to any supporter who has missed out, but we hope the above information is helpful in understanding how tickets have been allocated. Your support is truly appreciated."
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