A lifelong Ipswich Town fan, disillusioned with the club, has been left angry after he told officials he would not be renewing his season ticket – and received just a 14-word reply.

Karl Dawson is one of 7% of season ticket holders who have so far decided not to renew – and feels things have gone so badly wrong on the pitch this season he can no longer bear to watch week after week of poor entertainment.

He expressed his views to the club – asking for his letter to be passed on the Blues’ board – explaining fully why he would not be renewing his and son Lee’s season ticket for next term and expected a fair reply in return dealing with his points and trying to retain his custom.

Instead, the email reply simply said: “I can confirm that your season ticket will not be renewed for next season.”

Mr Dawson, managing director of Port Express Ltd, at the Port of Felixstowe, said the reply was “unacceptable” and “nonchalant”.

He said: “I think the club needs a reality check and needs take a long hard look at itself and relationship with the town and supporters.

“I could not believe that reply. I would have expected a business – any business – receiving a complaint, being told a customer would no longer buy your product, to apologise, try to entice you back, say ‘hope you will visit us again’.

“Whilst I didn’t for one minute expect them to come back agreeing with my points of view I would have expected a response of sorts either defending or justifying their methods, at the very least a response portraying some sympathy for losing long-term supporters of the club.

“Whether they are treating me as a supporter or at worst a revenue paying customer the response that I received is unacceptable and just goes to confirm my fears for the club.”

Mr Dawson said after feeling buoyed by Town’s form at the start of the season, he had been dismayed by the way they had played in recent months – “negative and unattractive” and “boring slow-paced football with the ball spending more time in the sky than it does on the pitch”.

He said: “Your club is your club and you stick with them. I have been watching Ipswich Town for more than 40 years and I appreciate we cannot all be Chelsea or Man Utd. I am a businessman and I understand how these things work and that Ipswich cannot chuck millions or billions of pounds at the team.

“But recently it’s been a dour spectacle. I know only one team can win a league but you still expect to be entertained, even in those games you lose – you expect the players to have a go and try to win. Why can we never come out of the blocks and go for the opposition? It’s got to the point where enough is enough.”

Ipswich Town media manager Steve Pearce said Mr Dawson would initially have received an automated response to his letter.

The club was currently compiling data from a large number of letters from people not renewing their season tickets and would be assembling in due course a team of people to contact them personally and try to persuade them to change their minds.