It’s time the women’s game finally embraced one of football’s simplest concepts, and most treasured traditions: away ends.

The accepted norm of away supporters mingling with the home fans – often having no choice but to buy a ticket in the same areas – feels outdated.

While the overall crowd numbers in the Women’s Super League are still far below those of the men’s EFL where beer-fuelled, banter-filled, loyal bands of supporters travel in their thousands to support their team every single week, the numbers of travelling fans in the WSL has notably increased this season.

Led most prominently by both Manchester clubs’ vocal supporter groups in particular, coaches of away fans who want to travel the length and breadth of the country to sing together at matches are becoming more common. Similarly, it is not unusual for Chelsea’s supporters group to have a coach setting off at 5am for lunchtime away games up north, while Leicester are currently selling coach tickets for their trip to Manchester City as the culture of being a dedicated WSL fan evolves.

All of which points to the fact that it no longer makes sense for them to not be allocated a block of seats or a stand behind a goal. More to the point, travelling fans cannot currently buy a ticket for an away game through their own club’s website. Instead, they have to purchase a general admission ticket via the website of the home team, meaning they have to sign up for an account on that opposing team’s website too. For a Tottenham fan wanting to go to this month’s north London derby at the Emirates, for example, they’ll have to go through the indignity of signing up for an Arsenal account and brace themselves for unwanted emails advertising their least-favourite club.

That’s the case across the divisions, with the ticket pages on club’s websites tending to list home matches only. Scroll through clubs’ ticket pages and you’ll find only the home games listed for purchase. In Tottenham’s case, fans are directed to the home team’s website with the following message: “Any fans wishing to attend away fixtures and support Spurs Women, should go through the home team’s website to purchase tickets. This is normal procedure in women’s football and there isn’t likely to be segregation between home and away fans.”

And on that point about segregation, the fact that fans of opposing women’s clubs have for years been able to mingle together in the stands peacefully without any unrest remains a positive thing for the sport to be proud of. Most of the WSL’s 11-year history has seen games attract a family-friendly vibe in the stands – which has been a good thing for the sport, attracting a younger audience to help grow the game in the long-run – and the absence of any crowd trouble means there is certainly not yet any need to segregate fans from a safety perspective. That safe environment for everyone should continue to be encouraged.

But instead, what’s overtaking that sentiment at present is a growing desire from groups of die-hard, travelling fans to be allowed to sit or stand together in their own block or section of the stadium, to create more of an atmosphere. This season, it’s been evident some of them have been organising that of their own accord, unofficially congregating in an area together if they arrive early enough, but it’s not always the case.

Yet that scene of colour behind a goal, with flags, scarves and limbs ready to celebrate a goal, is something that would also greatly enhance how the product looks on television. Empty stands behind goals are not a good look for the WSL, compared to the sight of a goalscorer peeling away to celebrate in front of their own supporters. When this happens, goal clips take on an entirely different feel. Watching on from the press box at lower-league Bridgwater United in January, for example, when 2,500 fans were crammed into a sold-out Fairfax Park, the sight of Manchester United fans crammed in behind one goal with their flags draped over the railings helped give that day classic cup-tie feel.

In contrast – through no fault of the fans – when Arsenal travelled in significant numbers to Chelsea for February’s entertaining but goalless draw, when the Gooners were largely dotted around at opposite ends of Kingsmeadow rather than all standing together in one designated block. On Sunday at The Hive, Tottenham and Manchester City fans were all sharing the same stand, often chatting to the same drum beat. It’s friendly-natured, but you don’t get quite the same atmosphere, and the whole sport will benefit when that belatedly changes.