My only time at Anfield was a hospitality ticket - which I'm a bit embarrassed about mentioning given the attitude towards them and also to an extent getting why that exists, but I was determined to go once before Jurgen leaves and was getting nothing from the ballots and late availability, and I felt a bit like I'd rather give the money to the club than a tout. Got the absolute cheapest one I could and nightbussed it back because I couldn't also justify the cost of staying overnight, and went to Homebaked rather than buying something to eat in the lounge (would have gone for a drink somewhere if I wasn't on my own in the rain!). I met a couple of people in the lounge who were over from Texas - they came over a few times a year, in and out for the games, and there was no way to organise the flights etc without the advance notice hospitality gets them. A few of the people sat around me had travelled from Scotland, again probably seeing it as a once in a blue moon thing like me. I guess it's the consequence of tickets being scarce - I'd nightbus it up and down every fortnight if I could but the tickets aren't available, so people in the same position will go once or twice and not necessarily know the songs or even be used to going to see games live. If that makes sense.
If that money I paid meant that someone local could get a cheaper ticket, or the revenue from my row of seats meant the prices didn't have to go up for ST holders, that would be great for everyone and I'd be all for it. If they removed that option altogether and earmarked those seats for young locals who could then go on a regular basis, even if that meant I'd never go to a game at all, even better. Or if it went into the pockets of the staff behind the bar and in the ground. But it doesn't seem to be the case.