Tickets for the derby

[axel smeets]

I don't know where they'll come from, or where they've gone, but I do know one thing.
Put any single problem in front of a large number of Sheffield United fans and they'll think fuck it and not bother. Even making a game all ticket in the good old days would have major repercussions at the Lane when it wouldn't anywhere else because so many people can't be arsed if they have one small hurdle to overcome.

Our away followings are down, the downtrend coincided with the loyalty points system that was introduced when we got to the Premier League.
Why would our previous and traditionally good away followings suddenly become poor away followings for our once every fifteen year top flight season ? And it hasn't improved since.
An away trip nowadays takes a lot of planning, you can't just make your mind up on Saturday morning, jump in the car and go like we used to do years ago.

The boardroom should understand our fans mentality by now. Get 2000 tickets with loyalty points restrictions and we'll sell 1800 of them.
Get 3000 without loyalty points restrictions and we'll not have enough

The loyalty points system has been in place for 12 years, and has been tested in 3 Divisions.

So basically then, the reason we don't sell out is because our fans are thick as fuck, and if we had no loyalty points, we'd be taking 4000 everywhere we played?

I will say it again - the only time the issue of loyalty points is even mentioned is when we have maybe 3 out of 23 away games where demand outstrips supply.

When I first started going to away matches in the late 90s, there was no points system, and we certainly weren't taking thousands away from home. We weren't regularly in the early 2000s either.

 

[Topplayersleave]

You don't seem to, with your 'woe is me' and Private Fraser 'we're doomed' persona.

So no loyalty points or similar and a general free for all for any big game.

Great plan that!

The keenest fans will always be first to get tickets, that's what makes them the keenest fans.
And I think you'll find that I said "THE LOYALTY POINTS SYSTEM SHOULD COUNT, BUT ONLY BE USED FOR BIG GAMES"
There's no need for it at run of the mill away games, it restricts sales by restricting time to plan

 

[Balham]

Too right, I've been to Manchester Derbies, Glasgow Derbies, Liverpool Derbies, games for which tickets are like rocking horse shit.
And we'll end up with 40,000 wanting to see the game but only 28,000 actually getting in, with 4,500 empty seats

4,500 empty seats of which 3k+ would be down to ridiculous "safety" restrictions placed by the backwards, inward looking SAG and SYPD. It's a debate which has been had numerous times but how can the Manchester derby take place with a row of stewards separating the fans but games at the Lane need a third of the Bramall Lane end netting off?

Admittedly, it's one of the most intense rivalries in Britain (if not the world) but even so, the level of restriction is way over the top.

 

[Topplayersleave]

The loyalty points system has been in place for 12 years, and has been tested in 3 Divisions.

So basically then, the reason we don't sell out is because our fans are thick as fuck, and if we had no loyalty points, we'd be taking 4000 everywhere we played?

I will say it again - the only time the issue of loyalty points is even mentioned is when we have maybe 3 out of 23 away games where demand outstrips supply.

When I first started going to away matches in the late 90s, there was no points system, and we certainly weren't taking thousands away from home. We weren't regularly in the early 2000s either.

More than we are now though
A shit football team had better away support than a good one

Wendy and Leeds by contrast are much worse teams than they were back then, but their away support has increased

Sounds sensible enough, obviously no other overriding factors

 

[Sean Thornton]

I don't know where they'll come from, or where they've gone, but I do know one thing.
Put any single problem in front of a large number of Sheffield United fans and they'll think fuck it and not bother. Even making a game all ticket in the good old days would have major repercussions at the Lane when it wouldn't anywhere else because so many people can't be arsed if they have one small hurdle to overcome.

Our away followings are down, the downtrend coincided with the loyalty points system that was introduced when we got to the Premier League.
Why would our previous and traditionally good away followings suddenly become poor away followings for our once every fifteen year top flight season ? And it hasn't improved since.
An away trip nowadays takes a lot of planning, you can't just make your mind up on Saturday morning, jump in the car and go like we used to do years ago.

The boardroom should understand our fans mentality by now. Get 2000 tickets with loyalty points restrictions and we'll sell 1800 of them.
Get 3000 without loyalty points restrictions and we'll not have enough

The drop down the leagues has nothing to do with it then?

You do know that you used to have to go down to the ticket office with an ST stub for away tickets for big games? Did you just jump in the car and shoot over to Liverpool in the SF under Warnock? You had to make an effort then and a lot less now.

Prior to the last PL season, when were we regularly taking 5/6000 away?

If the missing fans you're talking about don't have 500 points , they've been missing since before the PL season.

We've sold out for Derby and Forest. So how does that work with your 2000/1800 theory?

 

[Maidenhead]

The keenest fans will always be first to get tickets, that's what makes them the keenest fans.
And I think you'll find that I said "THE LOYALTY POINTS SYSTEM SHOULD COUNT, BUT ONLY BE USED FOR BIG GAMES"
There's no need for it at run of the mill away games, it restricts sales by restricting time to plan

And it staggers the sales for the ticket office that wouldn't be able to cope if 3000 people all wanted to buy tickets on the same day.

 

[Sean Thornton]

More than we are now though
A shit football team had better away support than a good one

Wendy and Leeds by contrast are much worse teams than they were back then, but their away support has increased

Sounds sensible enough, obviously no other overriding factors

Leeds away support hasn't increased since they were a good side.

 

[Topplayersleave]

And it staggers the sales for the ticket office that wouldn't be able to cope if 3000 people all wanted to buy tickets on the same day.

The internet eliminated the problems of queuing in every industry on the planet, including football, well at most clubs anyway

 

[Topplayersleave]

Leeds away support hasn't increased since they were a good side.

I think it has by virtue of the fact that they can get higher allocations at many Championship stadiums.
But it wouldn't matter where they were, if given the tickets they'd sell them, no matter where it was.
The last time they played Blackburn they took 7,650
We would have taken more if it was a Saturday but not noticeably many more, because the loyalty points system would have resulted in slow sales for the 2000 we applied for, then it would have been to late to get a noticeably bigger allocation

 

[Maidenhead]

The internet eliminated the problems of queuing in every industry on the planet, including football, well at most clubs anyway

You don't think people still go down to the ticket office to buy tickets anymore?

And does the internet take them off the printer, stuff them into envelopes and post them all out?

 

[blackydog]

"Prooaaaaaammmmmms five quid"[/QUOTE]
Can only buy one if you have 1000 loyalty points

 

[Maidenhead]

Our average away support for the first 10 away games last season (only figure I could find) was 2,080.

Where's the problem?

 

[Sean Thornton]

You're spot on topplayersleave plus you can't now as a season ticket holder buy a ticket for your mate not on the system, it's had a huge impact home and away this season and means we're top of the league and will have empty seats for the pig game, I can hear the song now!!!!!

All someone has to do is register. Then be added to an STH account. It's hardly difficult. If anyone can't be bothered to do that they can't be that bothered about watching the team.


From the OS


If you would like to purchase tickets for family and friends online, you can do this by adding them to your 'family and friends' in the 'My Account' section, to add existing you will need the customers surname, postcode and customer number alternatively you can register a new customer.

To purchase tickets for family and friends over the telephone or in person please have all their appropriate customer details readily available in order for our operators to quickly find/add them to the ticketing system.

 

[Maidenhead]

I think the only people that have a problem with the system are those that don't have 500 loyalty points.

There's probably no more than 2 or 3 games a season that first time visitors can't get tickets for and by definition they're the best attended and highest risk games, personally I don't see a problem with that either.

Better safe than sorry.

 

[axel smeets]

More than we are now though
A shit football team had better away support than a good one

Wendy and Leeds by contrast are much worse teams than they were back then, but their away support has increased

Sounds sensible enough, obviously no other overriding factors

Leeds and PCR both have always had decent away support. That is historic. In the 20+ years I have been watching SUFC, I have seen the away support increase considerably from when I first started attending.

Your argument is that people can't get up on a Saturday morning and decide to go away like they used to, because of the loyalty points.
You then argue that if we had no loyalty points, every game would be sold out anyway.

Therefore eliminating any possibility of getting up on a Saturday morning and going away anyhow.

 

[ShockingBadBuy]

The loyalty points system creates a "Can't be bothered" scenario

One thing that was always excellent about our support was travelling on numbers

Even when our home support was down to 10,000 in the bad old days a sizeable amount of that support travelled away from home

The loyalty points system started when we got to the Prem and immediately resulted in poorly attended away games at Tottenham and Fulham, and it didn't get much better throughout the season except for the games at the big clubs

Our away support is way down since its introduction thats all I'm saying

And if smaller allocations are still not being sold out you have to wonder why it exists in the first place.

We'd sell more per game on a free for all basis than the loyalty points system where everybody has to wait their turn and then in the end think "fuck it"

I don't know where they'll come from, or where they've gone, but I do know one thing.
Put any single problem in front of a large number of Sheffield United fans and they'll think fuck it and not bother. Even making a game all ticket in the good old days would have major repercussions at the Lane when it wouldn't anywhere else because so many people can't be arsed if they have one small hurdle to overcome.

Our away followings are down, the downtrend coincided with the loyalty points system that was introduced when we got to the Premier League.
Why would our previous and traditionally good away followings suddenly become poor away followings for our once every fifteen year top flight season ? And it hasn't improved since.
An away trip nowadays takes a lot of planning, you can't just make your mind up on Saturday morning, jump in the car and go like we used to do years ago.

The boardroom should understand our fans mentality by now. Get 2000 tickets with loyalty points restrictions and we'll sell 1800 of them.
Get 3000 without loyalty points restrictions and we'll not have enough

Surely there are multiple factors in play, here, as there are with any shifts in social behaviour? Ascribing a downturn in numbers travelling away today to the introduction of loyalty points 12 years ago (when Prem status for that year meant a big hike in away ticket prices) is pretty reductive.

1) Cost of tickets and travel. I went away for years, and took my kids. My circumstances are different now. I can barely afford our season tickets, and hardly ever go away.
2) Novelty of Champ wearing off after last season.
3) Prevalence of mustard-throwing, air-conditioning wrecking, coked up twats away from home makes it a far less enjoyable experience than it used to be.
4) ifollow, other streams, etc.

There's four factors, off the top of my head. There will be plenty others.

 

[Topplayersleave]

You don't think people still go down to the ticket office to buy tickets anymore?

And does the internet take them off the printer, stuff them into envelopes and post them all out?

Yes many people that support Sheffield United still go down to the ticket office on the last Thursday of the month to buy a ticket
And the ticket office do the dirty work, I'm sure they also sweep up, make the tea, take messages, and do the work involved in running an office too.

 

[Sean Thornton]

You don't think people still go down to the ticket office to buy tickets anymore?

And does the internet take them off the printer, stuff them into envelopes and post them all out?

What are those queues on matchdays?

 

[Maidenhead]

What are those queues on matchdays?

I've no idea.

My season ticket reincarnates itself at the start of every season and the postman brings me my away tickets.

 

[Topplayersleave]

Surely there are multiple factors in play, here, as there are with any shifts in social behaviour? Ascribing a downturn in numbers travelling away today to the introduction of loyalty points 12 years ago (when Prem status for that year meant a big hike in away ticket prices) is pretty reductive.

1) Cost of tickets and travel. I went away for years, and took my kids. My circumstances are different now. I can barely afford our season tickets, and hardly ever go away.
2) Novelty of Champ wearing off after last season.
3) Prevalence of mustard-throwing, air-conditioning wrecking, coked up twats away from home makes it a far less enjoyable experience than it used to be.
4) ifollow, other streams, etc.

There's four factors, off the top of my head. There will be plenty others.

Supporters of all clubs have the same problems
Our away support is down in spite of having a good team.
I'm looking for reasons behind it and find the restrictions of the loyalty points system contributes to it.

Having said that I agree that there has to be a loyalty points system in place, I've never said that it shouldn't be.
It's just that there has to be a better and quicker way of implementing it

 

[Maidenhead]

Yes many people that support Sheffield United still go down to the ticket office on the last Thursday of the month to buy a ticket
And the ticket office do the dirty work, I'm sure they also sweep up, make the tea, take messages, and do the work involved in running an office too.

So the ticket office are very busy and obviously couldn't cope with a twice a month scramble for first day away tickets for season ticket holders.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Leeds and PCR both have always had decent away support. That is historic. In the 20+ years I have been watching SUFC, I have seen the away support increase considerably from when I first started attending.

Your argument is that people can't get up on a Saturday morning and decide to go away like they used to, because of the loyalty points.
You then argue that if we had no loyalty points, every game would be sold out anyway.

Therefore eliminating any possibility of getting up on a Saturday morning and going away anyhow.

Logic ain't gonna work here...

 

[Maidenhead]

Supporters of all clubs have the same problems
Our away support is down in spite of having a good team.
I'm looking for reasons behind it and find the restrictions of the loyalty points system contributes to it.

Having said that I agree that there has to be a loyalty points system in place, I've never said that it shouldn't be.
It's just that there has to be a better and quicker way of implementing it

Maybe they could add people to their register the first time they go to a game, allocate them a number, and then add points to their account for every subsequent purchase?

How easy would that be?

Whoops, I think that's what they do, if only people weren't so keen to circumvent the system.

 

[Topplayersleave]

Leeds and PCR both have always had decent away support. That is historic. In the 20+ years I have been watching SUFC, I have seen the away support increase considerably from when I first started attending.

Your argument is that people can't get up on a Saturday morning and decide to go away like they used to, because of the loyalty points.
You then argue that if we had no loyalty points, every game would be sold out anyway.

Therefore eliminating any possibility of getting up on a Saturday morning and going away anyhow.

Of course people used to make their minds up on Saturday morning
We've done it no end of times. Before all ticket games and loyalty points we'd often make our minds up in the boozer on Friday nights, and I know lots of others did as well
Our away support has fallen since 2006-7 and there has to be a reason why considering that this is our best team for many years

Most away games prior to that had a very healthy following from United and most clubs fans if they're being honest would admit this. Except for our own of course

 

[Sheffsteel]

Maybe they could add people to their register the first time they go to a game, allocate them a number, and then add points to their account for every subsequent purchase?

How easy would that be?

Whoops, I think that's what they do, if only people weren't so keen to circumvent the system.

But isnt there a cost of £30 to register making the price for casual/ neutral fans £61 for a ticket on the Kop.

 

[Topplayersleave]

Maybe they could add people to their register the first time they go to a game, allocate them a number, and then add points to their account for every subsequent purchase?

How easy would that be?

Whoops, I think that's what they do, if only people weren't so keen to circumvent the system.

Of course they do
And it's not for me that I am discussing this.
I'll go on record now and say I will never go to another away game in my life because I'm no longer interested in doing that. I've done my bit travelling around.
Unless it's Wembley I'm not interested anymore

 

[Maidenhead]

But isnt there a cost of £30 to register making the price for casual/ neutral fans £61 for a ticket on the Kop.

Nope, that's if you want the benefit of a membership card and it's not needed to buy a ticket for any game.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Of course people used to make their minds up on Saturday morning
We've done it no end of times. Before all ticket games and loyalty points we'd often make our minds up in the boozer on Friday nights, and I know lots of others did as well
Our away support has fallen since 2006-7 and there has to be a reason why considering that this is our best team for many years

Most away games prior to that had a very healthy following from United and most clubs fans if they're being honest would admit this. Except for our own of course

So did you make your mind up Friday night or Saturday morning? What if , because we had good support, there were no tickets left?

 

[snootyfenooty]

Maybe they could add people to their register the first time they go to a game, allocate them a number, and then add points to their account for every subsequent purchase?

How easy would that be?

Whoops, I think that's what they do, if only people weren't so keen to circumvent the system.

If there are any restrictions to wanting to watch a random game or forcing people to jump through hoops by registering, creating on-line accounts or paying membership fees, they simply won't bother. I'm thinking forty-odd thousand students on our doorstep here. I bet there's no more than a handful at any given game. What a wasted opportunity. The city also gets out of town visitors believe it or not who would consider going to a game on spec as many of us have done in the past when holed up in another city. As I've mentioned many times before, this is just another example of small town attitude and lack of creative thinking by the club. This is reflected in some of the comments on this thread where posters assume it's just lazy arsed Unitedites who couldn't be bothered registering who are the only ones affected by the ticketing policy. FFS open your minds a little bit.

 

[Sean Thornton]

If there are any restrictions to wanting to watch a random game or forcing people to jump through hoops by registering, creating on-line accounts or paying membership fees, they simply won't bother. I'm thinking forty-odd thousand students on our doorstep here. I bet there's no more than a handful at any given game. What a wasted opportunity. The city also gets out of town visitors believe it or not who would consider going to a game on spec as many of us have done in the past when holed up in another city. As I've mentioned many times before, this is just another example of small town attitude and lack of creative thinking by the club. This is reflected in some of the comments on this thread where posters assume it's just lazy arsed Unitedites who couldn't be bothered registering who are the only ones affected by the ticketing policy. FFS open your minds a little bit.

There are a group of six students who sit near us regularly None from Sheffield.

How many of these city visitors do you reckon are around? Bearing in mind you think only five students attend ?

Just as many hoops to jump through to join on here. That doesn't seemed to have stopped some on here who can't be bothered to do the same to watch the team.

(Exiles, expats and dogs excluded)