NEWPORT chief executive Keith Grainger (pictured) has blamed new TV schedules for not bolstering Rodney Parade attendances this season.

But it's not the bumper home support that's the problem. The Black & Ambers chief executive says games moved to Friday nights are the main reason would-be travelling fans are staying at home.

And the lack of visiting support means a financial blow for the club. But Grainger hopes all that will change from tomorrow night when Welsh/Scottish League rivals Swansea come to town.

Up until yesterday, 5,500 tickets had been sold. "We would like to welcome 1,000-2,000 Swansea fans, but realistically on a Friday night that's a fairly aggressive ambition and that's maybe something we all need to look at," said Grainger.

"Whilst TV may want Friday nights, the average punter on the street wants Saturdays. "And while clearly we have to respect the need for some TV games, it would appear that, at the moment , everyone is going for Friday nights which makes it very difficult for travelling fans.

"That's particularly the case if you are going cross border, such as against Leinster, where you are probably going to have to take a couple of days off work and that isn't realistic.

"So, I think the game has to look at itself from the big picture. "Clearly, at club level, we need to help each other to market away games and look at travel arrangements for example, much better than we do now.

"So far we've been unfortunate in the run of away games. I don't think Edinburgh brought any fans this year, Toulouse had a disaster over there (a chemical factory explosion) so maybe people didn't feel up to travelling and they sold only 23 tickets.

"And Connacht didn't bring anybody because it was on a Tuesday night, which again is a ludicrous date, while Caerphilly aren't renowned for having a big travelling contingent. "That means so far the crowds at Rodney Parade have basically been a home crowd, and we are looking forward to having Swansea here and obviously Llanelli and Cardiff and so on.

"It could be a big end to the season with a number of top of the table clashes, but cash flow wise it isn't great right now."