BLACKBURN Rovers chairman John Williams believes the club’s supporters will ensure their bold season ticket gamble pays dividends.

Rovers stunned the footballing world by slashing season ticket prices to the equivalent of £10 per Premier League game for next season.

In an unprecedented move to “bring football back to the people”, season tickets for the Blackburn End and Riverside have been reduced to £199 – ranking Rovers as the third cheapest in all FOUR divisions.

Almost 19,000 tickets have now been sold for the new season, Rovers record sales for more than a decade, leaving Williams anticipating a raucous atmosphere next season.

“This is the most attractive season ticket offer in years and in many ways it is a big gamble for us,” said chairman Williams. “To get it to work, both emotionally and financially, we needed the people of the area to get right behind us and swell our season ticket numbers.

“The reaction to the Crucial 3, whereby we offered the final three home games for a total of £20, was a huge hit with the fans.

“More than 4,000 took up the offer and we felt we needed a plan to make football at Ewood Park as affordable as possible to season ticket holders.

“Additionally we have all seen first hand what a difference it has made to the atmosphere on a matchday to have our own supporters behind both goals.

“The fans have responded and we believe the atmosphere they can generate this season will help us finish as high up the Premier League as possible.”