At the end of a miserable week for United, just 2,616 supporters turned up to watch the 2-0 defeat by North Queensland Fury.

The club had decided to cap the gate at 5,000 and close three sides of the ground. Owner Clive Palmer came out fighting in the days before the game, saying the measure was the sensible action to adopt and that United were not a club in crisis.

Supporters have reacted angrily to events and on Saturday night a small group of fans made a break for one of the empty stands during the second half before being escorted away by security.

Fans also made their feelings clear to owner Clive Palmer by unfurling a number of banners which included messages such as 'Scrap The Cap' 'Fans Not Dollars' and the 'Cap Is Crap'.

The only crumb of comfort for the home club was that they avoided the misery of earning the worst attendance in the A-League. That unwanted record remains with the defunct New Zealand Knights.