THST Discuss Reasons Behind Fans' White Hart Lane Silence

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters' Trust claim there are a number of reasons behind the fans' recent silence at White Hart Lane with joint chairman Darren Alexander blaming a number of factors as Andre Villas-Boas called for more noise from home games.

Spurs defeated Hull 1-0 at the weekend thanks to a late penalty from Roberto Soldado and while the side bolstered their attacking line-up in the summer they haven't been scoring many goals, finding the back of the net just nine times in nine matches.

Villas-Boas was quick to speak out about the fans' contribution to the game on Sunday after the win, claiming that they need to give more for the team to feel like they are playing at home. And Alexander has agreed with the manager that more noise is necessary at Tottenham though he thinks this is a long-term problem rather than a reaction to their lack of goals.

"He's representing the players, he's representing the club," he told the Tottenham & Wood Green Journal. "I don't think anyone can really argue with the fact that the atmosphere at White Hart Lane has been declining over the course of the last three, four or five years.

"We heard whispers around Christmas that the players had turned round to somebody and said they didn't enjoy playing at White Hart Lane any more.

"I think, later on, Brad Friedel and Michael Dawson went on the record as saying something similar - and these aren't the sort of players to make those comments on their own. They would be speaking on behalf of other people. If you remember, Clint Dempsey also said something similar."

Alexander says that while recent matches have been frustrating for Tottenham fans - the side missed out on Champions League football last season by a point to Arsenal, and the campaign before that they were denied the tournament despite finishing in the top four - it's more a money factor making fans feel like the match day experience isn't what it used to be.

"I think the problem is a whole combination of things - it's ticket prices, games being moved from their original times for a multitude of reasons," he explained.

"All the season ticket-holders are getting older too - the average age of season ticket-holders at White Hart Lane is 42 or 43 now - and the youngsters are being priced out.

"For a family to be able to go to a league game you're talking a minimum of £200, not including travel for a day out.

"But I think one of the greater reasons is the expectation on the players. In the 1990s when we had people like Gerry Francis, George Graham and Christian Gross, there was no expectation. We knew that if we were going to the football to have a good time then we would have to create that good time.

"Now, from the very first home game of the season - and it can be against Hull or Swansea or Norwich - you realise that one mistake in a game like that could be the difference, 38 games later, of qualifying for the Champions League and not qualifying. Ultimately that puts a lot of pressure on the players' shoulders."

While Tottenham have appeared to struggle in front of the net this season the side are currently in fourth place in the Premier League table and have lost just two of their opening nine games.

Villas-Boas believes that their performances at home will be improved by better support and Alexander agrees and says the Trust are working on bringing new ideas to the ground.

He said: "The atmosphere at White Hart Lane is something that we're working on with the club and with some of the other fans' groups. At the moment we're looking at banners and flags, and surfing flags to go over the Park Lane end. It's little things."