Extortionate train fares and ridiculous kick-off times - following Man City has never been harder

Don't you just love the FA Cup? In an age when professional football can feel so far detached from reality, there's something rather grounding about participating in a knockout competition that has existed for 151 years, is older than many teams (including Manchester City) and has provided many fans with their favourite football memories.

The magic of the cup is somewhat lost when you're faced with the prospect of a 500-mile round trip on a Sunday and train fares of up to £260. Depressingly, the disdain with which away supporters in this country are treated is nothing new, but City's cup tie with Southampton this weekend has brought the issue back to the fore.

On Sunday, City will travel to St Mary's for their FA Cup quarter-final clash with Southampton, with the game scheduled to kick-off at 3pm. Interest is high among City fans given the club's struggle to win the competition in recent years, and given that Southampton have twice taken points off City in the league this season, it's understandable that many are keen to witness in person what should be a tight match.

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However, not for the first time this season, City fans have found organising travel to the game far less straightforward than it really ought to have been. The date and time of the match was only confirmed on March 7th, giving Blues less than two weeks to make their travel arrangements.

Such short notice has resulted in astronomical costs. A quick search on Trainline earlier in the week revealed that the cheapest open return ticket available from Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton Central on Sunday 20th March (that would get supporters to the ground