Game Over; Most of us have had enough

[Jim Chimmerney]

I don't think the club has got the faintest idea how pissed off people are but are going to find out in the next month big time.
I also get the sense that the club doesn't really care. It's just a financial exercise to repay an already very rich owner from now on.

No doubt they're looking at the 25,000 average, the fact we've somehow clung onto the fringes of the play-offs and presuming things are OK. As you say, ST renewals will be interesting and, if they pan out as a lot of us suspect, it could come as a huge shock although they'll probably put it down to the recession rather than looking at the main reasons why people are voting with their feet.

What was it last season, around 19,000 ST's ? I reckon we'll be lucky to get 2/3rds of those if the current apathy continues and no changes are made.

 

[AlienWoodward]

No doubt they're looking at the 25,000 average, the fact we've somehow clung onto the fringes of the play-offs and presuming things are OK. As you say, ST renewals will be interesting and, if they pan out as a lot of us suspect, it could come as a huge shock although they'll probably put it down to the recession rather than looking at the main reasons why people are voting with their feet.

What was it last season, around 19,000 ST's ? I reckon we'll be lucky to get 2/3rds of those if the current apathy continues and no changes are made.

There are more games than I care to remember where it has been a real chore to go this season.
I am not a supporter who goes for a beer first then the match,then another beer. Usually I go to watch the match then go home and out for a drink.
The ones who make a day of it are probably finding the match an inconveniance also if they're honest. I hear so many people say they are leaving it later and later until leaving the pub.
The other week against Reading I had no idea we were playing until about 6pm at night.
Out of a group of eight of us,five are currently not renewing next season. We are all season ticket holders for a lot of years who have seen some shit in our times,but we have never felt this pissed off before.
With all of us it is NOT about the recession.

 

[the magic man]

There are more games than I care to remember where it has been a real chore to go this season.
I am not a supporter who goes for a beer first then the match,then another beer. Usually I go to watch the match then go home and out for a drink.
The ones who make a day of it are probably finding the match an inconveniance also if they're honest. I hear so many people say they are leaving it later and later until leaving the pub.
The other week against Reading I had no idea we were playing until about 6pm at night.
Out of a group of eight of us,five are currently not renewing next season. We are all season ticket holders for a lot of years who have seen some shit in our times,but we have never felt this pissed off before.
With all of us it is NOT about the recession.

I definitely find the match an inconvenience now. I only go now as ive paid for my season ticket. No doubt i will renew next season as the match day to me is about the day out and the social aspect as much as the match, unfortunately the match now seems to spoil what has otherwise been a good day.

 

[Dog Blade]

I definitely find the match an inconvenience now. I only go now as ive paid for my season ticket. No doubt i will renew next season as the match day to me is about the day out and the social aspect as much as the match, unfortunately the match now seems to spoil what has otherwise been a good day.

Add me to that list - and most that I know
Worrying thing is a lot of them, unlike us, won't renew and I think Lenners is right - the club doesn't appreciate how pissed off / bored people are

Email from someone I know this morning who has been everywhere following The Blades...

It's been as bad here as it has at the Lane! Started to go in the right direction now thankfully.

I hate Blackwell too. Always telling porkies and looking for excuses! I've been missing home games and not been to one away match this season.

That sums up most I talk too. Quite sad really.

 

[lenners]

What the club completely failed to do was come up with anything imaginative to sell season tickets.
This year they really needed something like a reduction as and when sales passed 10,000 or 12,000 or even 15,000.
They needed to create interest, to do something unusual - it's not rocket science.
Instead, they did the exact opposite and gave us more of the same with price increases on top at a time when many are struggling for cash and utterly fed up with the football being dished up.
It's a failure of management.

 

[Oreyt]

it's not rocket science.

Hurray! :thumbup:

We just need Curtis to come back with ''I'M MAD WITH RAGE'' and it'll be just like the old place

 

[Grecian2000]

What the club completely failed to do was come up with anything imaginative to sell season tickets.

It would have been completely pointless.

I know a number of long term holders who are not renewing at present (I am one). None of them are citing recession as the reason.

There is only one "imaginative" move that will bring them back on board. No amount of discount, dancing girls or free pies will do it now I'm afraid.

 

[lenners]

It would have been completely pointless.

I know a number of long term holders who are not renewing at present (I am one). None of them are citing recession as the reason.

There is only one "imaginative" move that will bring them back on board. No amount of discount, dancing girls or free pies will do it now I'm afraid.

No it wouldn't be pointless. Bradford are garbage and in the 4th division but have sold shedloads of season tickets through being imaginative.
The failure is indicative of the general malaise at the Lane at the moment.

 

[Foxy]

No it wouldn't be pointless. Bradford are garbage and in the 4th division but have sold shedloads of season tickets through being imaginative.

Surely it's not so much imagination, but letting people in for sod all?

Let people in for sod all, we have a drastic loss in income, which doesn't really help matters. Then of course, at some stage, they have to go back up with a bump!

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

No it wouldn't be pointless. Bradford are garbage and in the 4th division but have sold shedloads of season tickets through being imaginative.
The failure is indicative of the general malaise at the Lane at the moment.

Aren't we quite close to our maximum amount of STs at the moment ? I'm sure Mark F said a few years ago that we had to leave a certain amount of seats free for 'normal' sales, away fans and corporates and that the max was around 21,000.

I think the problem will be renewals, not attracting new customers although the former will of course lead to the requirement for the latter.

 

[Micalijo]

Thing is Len, as you said, McCabe aint bothered if we sell 13,000 or 18,000.

In grand scheme of things it doesn't matter to him. He's got his Tevez money lined up, if we don't sell many tickets Birch will just trot out the line that we can't afford players because fans aren't turning up.

 

[Micalijo]

Aren't we quite close to our maximum amount of STs at the moment ? I'm sure Mark F said a few years ago that we had to leave a certain amount of seats free for 'normal' sales, away fans and corporates and that the max was around 21,000.

I think the problem will be renewals, not attracting new customers although the former will of course lead to the requirement for the latter.

Are you saying that we have fans who currently haven't got a ST but will buy one this summer?

I'd love to know how many full price individual match tickets we sell between now and the end of the season.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Are you saying that we have fans who currently haven't got a ST but will buy one this summer?

I'd love to know how many full price individual match tickets we sell between now and the end of the season.

No, I meant that the biggest problem the club has will be people not renewing and this is what they should be addressing. I certainly didn't mean that there's going to be a queue for new sales !

I haven't had an ST for a couple of years and to be honest, if things stay as they are, I'd think twice even if they reduced the price. Maybe because I have travelling costs as well but to be honest, there's plenty of other things to spend £50odd on when the product isn't delivering. It's 30 years since I started going to games on my own and priorties change but there's only so long you can blindly follow the team and I sense that even the younger fans with no ties are finding other things to do.

 

[SwissBlade]

Thing is Len, as you said, McCabe aint bothered if we sell 13,000 or 18,000.

In grand scheme of things it doesn't matter to him. He's got his Tevez money lined up, if we don't sell many tickets Birch will just trot out the line that we can't afford players because fans aren't turning up.

Totally disagree.

I think the ticket sales is a huge factor.

And the way you portray Birch is like a Strappon-esque character.

Are things really that bad????????????

 

[super_pig]

>Why do they feel the need to announce it?
have a heart guys.. cos he's bloody fed up.. he's probably hoping someone at the club will read it..
on another note.. its interesting to see that noone is now defending blackwell .. not even the staunchest happy clappers.. welcome to the dark side .. better late than never i suppose

 

[Micalijo]

Totally disagree.

I think the ticket sales is a huge factor.

And the way you portray Birch is like a Strappon-esque character.

Are things really that bad????????????

If ticket sales are a huge factor for McCabe then he'd better do something about Blackwell.

And yes I do see Birch as a powerless puppet type figure - just like anyone else would be in these circumstances of huge debt and declining interest levels amongs fans.

Things are very, very bad.

 

[lenners]

Surely it's not so much imagination, but letting people in for sod all?

Let people in for sod all, we have a drastic loss in income, which doesn't really help matters. Then of course, at some stage, they have to go back up with a bump!

Not really, we hardly have to give them away just use a bit of marketing imagination.
Saying something like a £50 cash back if sales reach a trigger number was just one example.
We've got several directors and senior managers at the Lane who get paid £100k plus to come up with this stuff.
Could have had a free ticket for the first home league cup and fa cup match as well.
Just ideas but something the club clearly couldn't give a stuff about.

 

[Toronto Blade]

Things will always be on the bad side when a club having one of the strongest defences in the league sells off its three best defenders!

 

[Bramley]

Do we have several Directors and Managers paid £100k plus? I love these throwaway facts you toss in Len.

 

[Pinchy]

>Why do they feel the need to announce it?
have a heart guys.. cos he's bloody fed up.. he's probably hoping someone at the club will read it..
on another note.. its interesting to see that noone is now defending blackwell .. not even the staunchest happy clappers.. welcome to the dark side .. better late than never i suppose

I'm not comfortable in a majority.

Give Blackie a 10 year contract. Make Quinn captain. Less of this fancy football.

 

[raul]

You could always fall in line behind BB in his campaign to take over at BDT Pinch...

 

[Pinchy]

It would be a privelege to serve such an intellectual giant, Raul. My humble services are his for the asking.

 

[lenners]

Do we have several Directors and Managers paid £100k plus? I love these throwaway facts you toss in Len.

McCabe's on several million a year now, Rockett/Birch, Capper, probably Green Army man all on or above 100k.
Chuck in a few others making a tidy profit on their oh so generous loans into the club and I think it's not unreasonable to expect them to put a bit of ferkin time, effort and imagination into how the club runs itself.

 

[SwissBlade]

If ticket sales are a huge factor for McCabe then he'd better do something about Blackwell.

And yes I do see Birch as a powerless puppet type figure - just like anyone else would be in these circumstances of huge debt and declining interest levels amongs fans.

Things are very, very bad.

Ok so we have quite different perceptions

McCabe & Ticket Sales - Depends on his own perception of Blackie, if he still thinks he's the man for the job, then he'll also think ticket sales will be good. But it takes us back to the question I keep asking, where are the club planning to go. Seems to me that the "Public" ambition of the club has gone.

Birch I see him as a man brought in to cut costs and reduce debt, not my idea of a puppet. I actually think he has less puppet qualities than the previous muppets.

Things are being painted as very, very bad but I don't think its as bad as it seems

 

[raul]

Blackies going nowhere unless we absolutely fall to pieces.

1) He's taking all the flak for the way things are going/have gone.
2) It'll cost money to sack him
3) It'll cost money to replace him, unless we want an out of work manager who'll do what he's told and be thankful he's in the job - which is pretty much where we are anyway.

 

[AlienWoodward]

Blackies going nowhere unless we absolutely fall to pieces.

1) He's taking all the flak for the way things are going/have gone.
2) It'll cost money to sack him
3) It'll cost money to replace him, unless we want an out of work manager who'll do what he's told and be thankful he's in the job - which is pretty much where we are anyway.

Well thanks for thet cheery summary

 

[raul]

Chin Down

 

[Bladesman]

Ok so we have quite different perceptions

McCabe & Ticket Sales - Depends on his own perception of Blackie, if he still thinks he's the man for the job, then he'll also think ticket sales will be good. But it takes us back to the question I keep asking, where are the club planning to go. Seems to me that the "Public" ambition of the club has gone.

Birch I see him as a man brought in to cut costs and reduce debt, not my idea of a puppet. I actually think he has less puppet qualities than the previous muppets.

Things are being painted as very, very bad but I don't think its as bad as it seems

Cheapest man for the job.

Seems to some how manage to get us around the play offs and keep the status quo in the championship.

 

[Trigger Blade]

McCabe's on several million a year now, Rockett/Birch, Capper, probably Green Army man all on or above 100k.
Chuck in a few others making a tidy profit on their oh so generous loans into the club and I think it's not unreasonable to expect them to put a bit of ferkin time, effort and imagination into how the club runs itself.

It's always the same isn't it len, it's all going great until you fall into the trap of involving yourself with facts.

The facts are that SUFC plc had two directors in the financial yeae 2008/09 who wer paid over £100k, Simon Capper (scraped in at £101k) and Jason Rockett-Science (£166k), presumably now replaced by Trevor Birch.

Kevin McCabe didn't take a salary at all, but he's ever so rich, so that's close enough I suppose.

Nobody's suggested an advert in The Star to sell STs yet......

 

[lenners]

It's always the same isn't it len, it's all going great until you fall into the trap of involving yourself with facts.

The facts are that SUFC plc had two directors in the financial yeae 2008/09 who wer paid over £100k, Simon Capper (scraped in at £101k) and Jason Rockett-Science (£166k), presumably now replaced by Trevor Birch.

Kevin McCabe didn't take a salary at all, but he's ever so rich, so that's close enough I suppose.

Nobody's suggested an advert in The Star to sell STs yet......

Don't worry Trig, I think when we're paying well over £200,000 for a chief exec and a chief operating officer, plus millions to McCabe, umpteen thousands more to directors in loan payments I think we're entitled to expect some decent management when it comes to selling season tickets.
You may think otherwise, that's up to you.
And I think you'll find there will be lots and lots of effort to sell season tickets in the coming months, very probably involving the Star.