CHIEF executive Tony Rowe has defended the rise in prices to watch Exeter Chiefs in the Premiership next season.

Season tickets for adults in the Grandstand have gone up from £280 to £540 — an increase of 93 per cent.

And match day prices in that stand have gone up from £24 to £39, with the discount for children taken away. They will now pay the full price, not £10.

Rowe said the club had spent a long time working out their prices and he felt they represented value for money.

With 2,400 seats in the main stand, the club want to sell that at a premium price to help fund their ambitions on the pitch.

Corporate sponsors will take up half the stand and will also have use of the members' bar before kick-off.

Adult season tickets in the South Stand have gone up from £230 to £415, East Terrace prices are now £350 (£205 last season) and ground £280 (£180).

With the North Terrace recently built and terraces being put either side of the Grandstand, season tickets in those areas cost £305 and £350, respectively.

There are discounts in all areas of the stadium for existing season ticket holders who renew by the end of June.

Adult match day prices have gone up by around 50 per cent, with seats in the South Stand costing £30 (£20) while places on the East Terrace cost £25 (£17), North Terrace £22 (£17) and ground £20 (£15). The South West and North West terraces will cost £25.

There are discounts for children and students in all areas apart from the Grandstand.

Rowe said: "There is a big jump from the Championship to Premiership in terms of the prices clubs charge.

"We have aligned our prices with other Premiership clubs and season ticket holders will get to see a lot more games this year.

"I think ticket prices are value for money for what we are going to see at Sandy Park and the facilities are better than some other Premiership clubs in some respects."

The most expensive season tickets at Premiership champions Leicester are £495, while Gloucester charge £445 for the most expensive seats.

However, Rowe said the established clubs could charge less as they have bigger grounds. Sandy Park can fit around 10,000 people in, with a quarter in the main stand.

"We are talking about premium seats in a premium facility," said Rowe. "That's what we are selling at Sandy Park, it's not sub-standard.

"Leicester have increased their capacity and they've decided they want to keep prices lower.

"If you have got mountains of covered seats you want to fill them out every week. We have got just 2,400 seats in the Grandstand and we want to sell them properly — half of them will be corporate anyway."

With the new terraces to go either side of the Grandstand, only a few hundred ground tickets will be open to the elements. Rowe thinks that adds to the quality of what the Chiefs offer at Sandy Park.

"We've gone away from ground tickets," Rowe said. "We will have more covered standing next season and it again comes back to the fact the product we are selling is a premium product."

Some of the club's supporters have expressed concern at the increase in prices.

Simon James said: "I think everyone expected prices to go up this season but I don't think many people thought they would go up that much.

"It makes the Chiefs one of the most expensive clubs to watch next season, but I think a lot of people will still pay it because we want to see them play in the Premiership."

Stephen Bowles added: "The increase is a bit more than I was expecting, but that's the cost of promotion. All clubs in the Premiership charge more (than clubs in the Championship) so that's what we have to expect."