Stadium Development

[Keen Blade]

This , I struggled to get my son and myself tickets for Wembley, knowing it wasn’t going to come close to sell out, dragged it out way to long with families unsure if they could go, only have to look across the city and our porcine neighbours wheel out granny ffs who attends once every ten years, the ticketing for randoms like me is a nightmare to navigate, I rarely go for good reasons, when I do I try and bring my son, I have attended matches since 1986, have brick in the wall, buy merchandise every year, have had membership for me and my son and still struggle, students who’ve just rocked up in the city and the like need a pathway into our stands, it’s just to much dicking around, can’t make plans as you don’t know wether you can get a ticket, which we all know you can get at every single match this year.

I have a ST on the kop and seeing the big spaces on the BLUT is so disappointing when i know they could be filled with occasional attenders if the price was dropped a bit and the bureaucratic obstacles removed.

 

[Oohaah! Bob Bookah!]

1981
I went to half the home matches that season, we were comfortable mid table virtually the whole season.
Our away record that season was rubbish but our home record that season was really good: played 23 won 12 drawn 6 and lost just 5.
2 of those 5 defeats were our last 2 home matches of the season.

No one even thought about relegation. Even in the final week there needed to be a string of unlikely results for us to be relegated
but incredibly all the teams threatened with relegation started hitting promotion form in the last 3 weeks
and we were relegated on one of the highest ever points totals. We even went down on a +2 goal difference.

The end of the season was the lowest we've been in our history but the season it's self wasn't as demoralising or depressing as last season.

2023
Last season home record was played 19 won 2 drew 4 lost 13.
We scored 19 goals and conceded an incredibly bad 57 goals, that's averaging 3 goals conceded every single home game.

This must be the worse season in our history when before the match starts most of our fans are convinced we don't stand a chance.
What made it worse was ironically, under Wilder we started most matches really well, playing front foot football, giving it a go creating a few early chances. Then they'd catch us on the break and score with their 1st shot on goal. We've still push for an equaliser playing reasonably well
but we were too open at the back and would unluckily go 2-0 down. Then heads would drop and in the 2nd half we looked really poor.

Put it this way I've never known so many Blades walk out leaving matches at half-time, as there was last season.
I was watching matches with zero hope and accepting we have no chance, never known anything like it.
If we're promoted again....we'll be much better prepared next time and will at least be competitive.

Regardless of league form, getting relegated to the fourth division for the first and only time must go down as the worst season in the clubs history which is the point you made.

 

[Sheffsteel]

Regardless of league form, getting relegated to the fourth division for the first and only time must go down as the worst season in the clubs history which is the point you made.

81 was technically the worse regards league position, to be relegated that season was totally out of the blue, a real shock.

but 24 was technically the worse regard results and performances on the pitch.
Didn't we lose something like 4 consecutive games by 5 goals or more, creating a record. Stuff like that can put off fans off attending again for months. It's the most depressed I've ever felt watching us, a really tough watch and not enjoyable in the slightest.

Many older Blades (including me) say the best season they ever had supporting United was in 1982, when we were the Man Utd of division 4
and I'd agree. The club bottomed out and that promotion really galvanised the fans.
Still remember the night we played Bradford City there was 24,593 at a 4th division match.
Same night league leaders and reigning European Champions Liverpool played at home to Birmingham in front of 24,224.

Thats a unbelievable stat to think any club in the bottom tier (league 2) can attract more on the gate than a massive club like Liverpool, in their prime, who were top of league playing an important league match.

 

[Bladeloyal]

Anyone with a problem badger the fan reps on the liaison committee that's what they are there for ,to facilitate change for the good ,there was a survey about ticketing which wasn't acted upon.

 

[ColinHill]

I have a ST on the kop and seeing the big spaces on the BLUT is so disappointing when i know they could be filled with occasional attenders if the price was dropped a bit and the bureaucratic obstacles removed.

I go on BLUT most matches (switch my ST from Kop) and i think the same about the empty spaces on the Kop

 

[Sheffsteel]

I go on BLUT most matches (switch my ST from Kop) and i think the same about the empty spaces on the Kop

Could be worse, at least the South stand is officially sold out every match
and even the John Street stand and BL corner stand is always close to a full sell out every match.

 

[BalticBlade]

I go on BLUT most matches (switch my ST from Kop) and i think the same about the empty spaces on the Kop

I've sat in every bit of the ground over the years and my BLUT is my stand of choice.

 

[Bladeloyal]

Could be worse, at least the South stand is officially sold out every match
and even the John Street stand and BL corner stand is always close to a full sell out every match.

The south stand always baffles me g and h always shows sold out but only 75%full

 

[PrestwichBlade]

I've sat in every bit of the ground over the years and my BLUT is my stand of choice.

Agree, best view by some margin

 

[YES Blade]

It's almost as if the club don't understand how support grows.
A person doesn't suddenly say "I'm going to start being a Blades fan" all on their own. And go though all the computer registration bollox.
They get invited / encouraged to go by a friend and then maybe enjoy it and start to develop a liking for going.
So you have to make it easy for them to go on a casual basis at first.
So a registered Blade with a purchasing history should be allowed to buy an extra ticket or two for such friends without any faff.

Is it really that difficult for someone to sign up to the ticket sales website? If using a website is a barrier to them going, I reckon actually getting off their arse and attending the match will be a bigger challenge!

 

[PrestwichBlade]

Is it really that difficult for someone to sign up to the ticket sales website? If using a website is a barrier to them going, I reckon actually getting off their arse and attending the match will be a bigger challenge!

I don't think he's referring to the person/people making the purchase, but the 'guests'. It seems a bit daft if I'm going online to buy 4 tickets, to then discover that I need to ask the other 3 people to register and then let me know their membership number or whatever. There might be a reason they have to do this? I don't know if this is the norm for other clubs?? You're right though, it's not a major hassle, but it might be enough to put people off following through with it all or do it again in the future.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Is it really that difficult for someone to sign up to the ticket sales website? If using a website is a barrier to them going, I reckon actually getting off their arse and attending the match will be a bigger challenge!

For some, NOT ALL, it’s an excuse. Bit like the BladesMad poster who’d tell you at the drop of the hat that he would never set foot in BL while McCabe was involved.

Still never been.

The main protagonist on here hasn’t been for years and his fantasies about jumping in the car with his mates, ticketless and shooting off to the game on Saturday morning - when we were selling out every away game in the great escape under Bassett and tickets were like gold dust - show he needs taking with a large pinch of salt. And smelling salts. (Not poppers Greasy Chap Butty calm down)

 

[JJBlade]

It is daft the system we have in place. Got friends up that weekend, one a man u fan (st holder there) fancied coming to watch the game against Derby. Cant get him a ticket. £38 plus his couple of pints and a pie lost because the system doesnt work right. Wont be sold out either!

Absolutely stupid
In what world does someone think that a person who never watches United, but would like to occasionally will buy a ticket and sit on his own all day.
How utterly stupid do you have to be to see 5,000 empty seats for every game and sit there scratching your bollocks and wondering why

Those 5,000 tickets, it's practically the same ones every game because they're shit, should be just given away two, three and four at a time so that a family can go to the game and sit together.
Anything is better than having them empty. And here's the knock on effect, every seat taken up will generate more urgency for people who are on the verge of going to get their arse in gear

 

[JJBlade]

For some, NOT ALL, it’s an excuse. Bit like the BladesMad poster who’d tell you at the drop of the hat that he would never set foot in BL while McCabe was involved.

Still never been.

The main protagonist on here hasn’t been for years and his fantasies about jumping in the car with his mates, ticketless and shooting off to the game on Saturday morning - when we were selling out every away game in the great escape under Bassett and tickets were like gold dust - show he needs taking with a large pinch of salt. And smelling salts. (Not poppers Greasy Chap Butty calm down)

Another dig at me I assume.
I went to hundreds of away games on a whim in the late 70's and through the 80's and even half of the 90's

A mate stayed at my Mum and Dad's house Friday night after we'd been out drinking, when we were sat having some breakfast with me Mum and Dad we just said "shall we go to Wolves"
So we got in the car, drove down there, paid to get in and watched the match,
won 2-1 as well

 

[YES Blade]

I don't think he's referring to the person/people making the purchase, but the 'guests'. It seems a bit daft if I'm going online to buy 4 tickets, to then discover that I need to ask the other 3 people to register and then let me know their membership number or whatever. There might be a reason they have to do this? I don't know if this is the norm for other clubs?? You're right though, it's not a major hassle, but it might be enough to put people off following through with it all or do it again in the future.

I realise it’s for the guest, I just still don’t see how it would be difficult. You send your mates a link to the website, they sign up and send you their details to link them as friends/family.

Our average attendances over the last 10 years are some of our highest in our history, which to me shows that the ticketing system really isn’t an issue.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Another dig at me I assume.
I went to hundreds of away games on a whim in the late 70's and through the 80's and even half of the 90's

A mate stayed at my Mum and Dad's house Friday night after we'd been out drinking, when we were sat having some breakfast with me Mum and Dad we just said "shall we go to Wolves"
So we got in the car, drove down there, paid to get in and watched the match,
won 2-1 as well

I was clearly referring to 90/91. The 2-1 win at Wolves was Oct 89.

But that’s a different story from last time, there were four of you then.[/QUOTE]

 

[Sean Thornton]

I realise it’s for the guest, I just still don’t see how it would be difficult. You send your mates a link to the website, they sign up and send you their details to link them as friends/family.

Our average attendances over the last 10 years are some of our highest in our history, which to me shows that the ticking system really isn’t an issue.

The odd thing is the time some spend moaning about it ad nauseam, they could have registered themselves and got all their mates signed up as well. If you aren’t that bothered about watching United at Wembley, or even in normal games, it’s an easy excuse.

 

[PrestwichBlade]

I realise it’s for the guest, I just still don’t see how it would be difficult. You send your mates a link to the website, they sign up and send you their details to link them as friends/family.

Our average attendances over the last 10 years are some of our highest in our history, which to me shows that the ticking system really isn’t an issue.

Not saying it's difficult, just seems an unnecessary step, which along with all the points bollox is enough to put folk off. Might just be me though, but it appears not. Can't deny attendances are excellent, but there's clearly 3-4k go unsold, just think we could do more to make it easier to get shut of them.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Not saying it's difficult, just seems an unnecessary step, which along with all the points bollox is enough to put folk off. Might just be me though, but it appears not. Can't deny attendances are excellent, but there's clearly 3-4k go unsold, just think we could do more to make it easier to get shut of them.

With restricted view seats l doubt we’d be selling an extra 3/4000 for many league games this season apart from the obvious one and maybe if there’s a promotion push for the top two towards the seasons end.

 

[YES Blade]

Not saying it's difficult, just seems an unnecessary step, which along with all the points bollox is enough to put folk off. Might just be me though, but it appears not. Can't deny attendances are excellent, but there's clearly 3-4k go unsold, just think we could do more to make it easier to get shut of them.

I can’t imagine it really makes much, if any difference, maybe a handful of people might not go.

I’m of the opinion that if someone can’t be arsed to sign up, then the chances of them becoming a fan are pretty much zero. For that reason, I don’t see the point in changing things.

 

[JJBlade]

I was clearly referring to 90/91. The 2-1 win at Wolves was Oct 89.

But that’s a different story from last time, there were four of you then.

[/QUOTE]
Yes, what part of it happened hundreds of times through the late 70's. 80's and even 90's didn't you understand ?

Hardly any games were all ticket, they were all standing up, and if you made your mind up to go, you got in the car and went

 

[alcoblade]

That’s 2 games. 25k blades this time. And let’s not forget. The prices are reasonable. We haven’t lost. We are very much imo fancied to go up. We are not been ripped off like pigs. We have a far better team than pigs We have a far better stadium than pigs. So where is everybody? Or do we start supporting when we are top 6 ??

Have you seen our match day prices these days?

 

[alcoblade]

I can assure you I’m probably more of a blade than you will ever know. lol. But I call bullshit when I see it. I always have always will. I. Don’t listen to stupidness from blades pigs Leeds or Liverpool fans. All my circle of mates. Tbf they all same. I can’t listen to bollox. It makes me laugh.

He's not the first to suspect this though.

 

[Keen Blade]

That’s 2 games. 25k blades this time. And let’s not forget. The prices are reasonable. We haven’t lost. We are very much imo fancied to go up. We are not been ripped off like pigs. We have a far better team than pigs We have a far better stadium than pigs. So where is everybody? Or do we start supporting when we are top 6 ??

Despite my inbuilt aversion to the sty and my love of the Lane , in what respect is our stadium better ?
We all acknowledge that our kop has a crap rake , has 3 viewblocking posts , gives no knee-room & shit catering.
When you look at our kop from the Lane end , I have never understood why we had to have that 3rd viewblocking post which is only a short distance in from the post at the R-hand end.
Really bad design is our kop.
The sty's kop has only 2 viewblocking posts and the upper half has a much increased rake giving a better view - despite having a cramped footprint , its conversion to seating was done way better than ours.
Their north & south stands are both bigger with more accessible catering.
Yes the Leppings Lane end is the site of a major disaster.
I fully expect to get pelters for this post but as a kop ST holder , and being objective , i wish our kop was as good as theirs.

 

[SRA76]

He's not the first to suspect this though.

it dunt really matter in long run. lol. I’m too old to give a fuck. I remember when I use to sit and talk daft every time someone said Wednesday were a far bigger club than us. I use to get upset Fact is they actually were. Now they really not, but the one thing any right minded football fan, blade or otherwise can’t do is slag their support. It’s the one thing they cling to and for good reason. If that makes me a pig so be it lol

 

[Charlieblade]

The majority of posts on this page have nothing to do with the thread title of stadium development.

While the physical structure is aging, nothing will happen until the training ground is up and running, and the academy status upgraded.

Some fans would be up in arms if the club invested in anything but new playing staff.

Perhaps a thread needs to be devoted to hiring professional, non footballing administrators, in order to resolve ticketing and seating issues?

In the meantime, money has to be spent on issues already mentioned, before a penny is spent on stadium development.

The alternative is to keep complaining about it, until the ground is closed for safety reasons.
I rest my case.

Shall we keep the hotel closed until it shows a ROI?

 

[Greasy Chap Butty]

The majority of posts on this page have nothing to do with the thread title of stadium development.

While the physical structure is aging, nothing will happen until the training ground is up and running, and the academy status upgraded.

Some fans would be up in arms if the club invested in anything but new playing staff.

Perhaps a thread needs to be devoted to hiring professional, non footballing administrators, in order to resolve ticketing and seating issues?

In the meantime, money has to be spent on issues already mentioned, before a penny is spent on stadium development.

The alternative is to keep complaining about it, until the ground is closed for safety reasons.
I rest my case.

Shall we keep the hotel closed until it shows a ROI?

Playing staff, player development, scouting network. academy etc all should come first.
That's why most of us go, short, medium and long term.
I'm against a development that involves the closing of a stand for anything like a season.
If the kop pillars can be removed in the closed season great. Likewise with concourse work.
But no way do I want any developments so desperately to close whole sections for a season or more.

 

[ancientblade]

With restricted view seats l doubt we’d be selling an extra 3/4000 for many league games this season apart from the obvious one and maybe if there’s a promotion push for the top two towards the seasons end.

can never understand why the club dont sell restricted view tickets at a tenner whos gonna pay 30/40 quid to sit behind a pillar or a wall

 

[Sheffsteel]

it dunt really matter in long run. lol. I’m too old to give a fuck. I remember when I use to sit and talk daft every time someone said Wednesday were a far bigger club than us. I use to get upset Fact is they actually were. Now they really not, but the one thing any right minded football fan, blade or otherwise can’t do is slag their support. It’s the one thing they cling to and for good reason. If that makes me a pig so be it lol

But you're sticking your fingers in your ears and ignoring facts....which is very much pig behaviour.
So with respect I'll highlight a few facts......instead of denying them.....how about quoting facts to back up your opinion.

You say Wednesday are far bigger than us.....when the facts prove this in incorrect.

The reality is that Wednesday were slightly bigger than us during the 20th century (over 100 years of history)
and United are slightly bigger than Wednesday on just about every stat during the 21st century (present day).
History does matter......so of course overall, Wednesday are slightly the bigger club...but it's closer than many think..hence why the rivalry is so strong.....neither club can dominate the other for too long...so there's regular cycles.

Here are a few big club historical facts to compare...feel free to add any others
Seasons in the top flight: United 63 seasons SWFC 66 seasons:
Seasons in 2nd tier: United 47 seasons SWFC 45 seasons
Seasons in 3rd tier: United 11 seasons SWFC 11 seasons
Consecutive seasons in the top flight: United 37 seasons SWFC 16 seasons
Major titles: United (5) 1 title and 4 FA cups SWFC (7) 4 titles and 3 FA cups
Seasons in Europe: United 0 seasons SWFC 3 seasons
Historical average attendance United 19,471 SWFC 21,516
Highest ever attendance United 68,287 SWFC 72, 841
Lowest post war attendance United 6,647 SWFC 6,905
Head to head record in league United won 43 SWFC won 36........with 39 draws

This century United edge SWFC on average attendances and overall league record.
However United are far out in front regards finances, record transfer purchases and sales, the Academy set up, even the women's team. Arguably even the stadium has moved ahead.....yes Hillsboro is still an iconic stadium but historical/ antiquity is the overriding word. For example their north stand was built in 1960 and the concourse areas are incredibly small and old fashioned. Last time I went.....when you were taking a piss...it was open to the elements and you could see the terraces houses at the back of the stand.

 

[South Sea Blade]

Playing staff, player development, scouting network. academy etc all should come first.
That's why most of us go, short, medium and long term.
I'm against a development that involves the closing of a stand for anything like a season.
If the kop pillars can be removed in the closed season great. Likewise with concourse work.
But no way do I want any developments so desperately to close whole sections for a season or more.

We're gonna have to do it one day.....timing on things like this is everything, but you can only kick the can down the road for so long.