[Archived] The Old Gate Debate

[cletus]

Sunderland and Bolton should both be decent crowds for Rovers wehope

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My reasoning for my putting "one big gate there....guarranteed" is Bolton are doing well & usually bring a fair few from over`t`thill.....where-as a Sunderland 'doing well' would bring thousands from the North East.... BUT as we all know, they are pretty cr@p this year & it`s doubtful alot of their disillusioned fans will make the effort. I hope they do, but i doubt they will.

[Presty On Tour]

i wouldn't start worrying yet!!

we still have the big 4 to come to ewood, chelski, manky utd, arsenal and liverpuds!! also we have bolton and wigan at home for the derbys!!

these attendances should blow em away well i hope eh

[Yorick]

i wouldn't start worrying yet!!

we still have the big 4 to come to ewood, chelski, manky utd, arsenal and liverpuds!! also we have bolton and wigan at home for the derbys!!

these attendances should blow em away well i hope eh

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Those fixtures might blow us away too.

[Yorick]

More proof from our nearest and dearest that cheap tickets dont attract enough extra supporters to cover the financial loss incurred by doing so.

http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/lancashi...LARETSFAN0.html

[cn174]

The Boxing Day clash against Stuart Pearce's Manchester City is a complete sell out and due to a recent increase in the seating capacity at the JJB Stadium the attendance is set to create a Wigan Athletic and JJB Stadium record.

All 25,138 tickets for the game have been sold with City selling out their application a couple of weeks ago. The gate will take the average for the season to around 20,700 with Manchester United, Liverpool and Everton still to visit the stadium in the new year.

[theresonly1alj]

Do a double or quits for who finishes higher in the league, that should see you safe

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Ouch that would have been painful.

Let hope we can get some decent away form for the rest of the season.

[AggyBlue]

I didn't really say that, did I?

We're only half way through the season, plenty time to topple 'em

[Paul]

We have a very exciting 5/6 weeks ahead of us, so this is an observation on the cost of football, not a dig at the club:

Sunderland

Wigan

Portsmouth

QPR

Man Utd LC

Bolton

Man Utd LC - assume away price is the same as EP cost

Man Utd PL

Not to mention a trip to Newcastle as I'm just thinking about games that are local. My football watching family these days consists of one adult, and three lads aged 19, 17, 13. That translates to 3 adult tickets and one junior.

Using the cheapest tickets in Ewood the cost is a staggering £565, and to buy our usual seats in the FS it's a gob-smacking £697. We all have ST's so I'm only paying out for QPR, Wigan and Man Utd x 2 in the LC. This is going to cost £306. If I'd known about the Utd semis I might well have skipped Wigan and maybe even QPR, but I already have those tickets.

It will be very interesting to see which games folk chose to attend. If Ewood is to be full for the semi-final people are bound to miss other games. I'm afraid we can expect truely appalling gates against Portsmouth, QPR and Bolton. Those are the ones I'd skip if I was buying matchday tickets. How many people in Blackburn have over £550 to spare at any time let alone just after Christmas. I doubt we will sell out the semis.

The Rovers website states prices have been reduced for the Utd game. I'm not sure folk will react kindly to £25 as a reduced price. No doubt there has been a lot of negotiation with United but £25 is hardly a reduction.

As I have to fund all of this from ONE salary it doesn't take long to understand why fans stay away. Individual prices are irrelevant for families, it's always Dad who ends up paying. Now where's the credit card? or worse Where's the remote?

Prices are out of control and it is little wonder Rovers gates are dropping. I suspect the PL as a whole will suffer the same next year. To put it mildly it is simply ridiculous to expect people to pay these prices on a regular basis.

[stuwilky]

The same discussion took place in my household on Thursday evening. What to go to, what to miss. Already got Wigan and QPr tickets so will be going to those, but this missus has now decided not to come to EITHER semi final, as we simply cannot afford it. fortunately my bank manager was rather understanding this morning when I negotiated the extra cash I need, it was for "car repairs" though.

The new exhaust will have to wait!!

[Paul]

missus has now decided not to come to EITHER semi final, as we simply cannot afford it.

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Exactly the same here. Maria said she'll wait and see if we get to Cardiff as the money saved on the semis will pay for her final ticket.

[stuwilky]

Exactly the same here. Maria said she'll wait and see if we get to Cardiff as the money saved on the semis will pay for her final ticket.

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Mine just mumbled somethign about shoes....

But same principle!

[roversmum]

Mr Roversmum and I got a ticket for Wigan as a Christmas present (thank you JJ)!

Dearly want to go th QPR, and LC semis but probably will only manage one if lucky.

From the Roversworld interviews of the last few days, it looks as if at least Sparky and the lads are appreciating the fans' efforts.

[roversWASmylife]

Paul's right in the games coming up, especially the local ones.

I wasn't sure how the club would price people of my age, young adults for the semi final at home, for £10 it's fantastic.

I've been to every cup game apart from Leeds and a big thumbs up to the club who have priced it well.

If we can do well over the Xmas period and go into the local games with a bit of confidence, this might be the time, providing we do well to attract some of the fans who aren't at Ewood most Saturday's.

[Ste B]

The Rovers website states prices have been reduced for the Utd game. I'm not sure folk will react kindly to £25 as a reduced price. No doubt there has been a lot of negotiation with United but £25 is hardly a reduction.

Its a semi final for gods sake, Rovers cannot keep putting out cheap tickets for every game. We also have to agree pricing with the other team, who quit obviously have a debt to service nowadays. No doubt people who choose to miss the semi will be the first complaining when they cant get tickets at over twice the price for the final. OR complaining that we havent bid enough for Benny McCarthy.

Yes, theres a lot of games, but most of the home games can be paid for by spreading the cost by getting a season ticket. This cup represents our best chances of winning something, and puts a spark into a season where we would otherwise just be fighting for midtable medriocrity. Lets hope our fans get down to Ewood and get behind the team.

[ABBEY]

REP FOR MR B!

[BRFC4EVA]

Paul, do your older 2 kids not contribute for their tickets? Im sorry, im not trying to critize your parenting or anything, but im 19 and have been paying for my own tickets (throught money from job/saving bday and c'mas money etc) for the past 2 1/2 yrs since i was 16. If your paying all that money which you listed out, it is a damn lota money!

[cloggyjimmybrfc]

yes thats right my friends.its a semi final!

i too YET again are makin the long trip with my 3 year old to the semis,i was the "crazy one"who made the 1600 round trip from venlo,holland with my lad to the fa semi,after finishin night shift straight to the airport..and the rest youll know as it was well documented in the let(my boy was in the pic)

the day then was brilliant.apart from the lacklustre performance from us.the atmosphere was electric,i honestly didnt hear the @rse the whole game.

back to this cc semi,the problem is in my opinion theres too many games during this period and with the ticket sales more or less all comin out at once it is very difficult to pay out for all of them,and i for one expect the home games in the league to suffer crowd wise with the semis just round the corner,alas im fortunate enough to afford the semis(both)and i few in between,but it will still take a big chunk out my paycheck as i have extra to pay for the airport and train costs too.

all im sayin is fair enough if you cant afford it,but otherwise try to make that little extra effort,we all love the blue and white halves!

[Yorick]

The Rovers website states prices have been reduced for the Utd game. I'm not sure folk will react kindly to £25 as a reduced price. No doubt there has been a lot of negotiation with United but £25 is hardly a reduction.

As I have to fund all of this from ONE salary it doesn't take long to understand why fans stay away. Individual prices are irrelevant for families, it's always Dad who ends up paying. Now where's the credit card? or worse Where's the remote?

Prices are out of control and it is little wonder Rovers gates are dropping. I suspect the PL as a whole will suffer the same next year. To put it mildly it is simply ridiculous to expect people to pay these prices on a regular basis.

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Sure it's dear but cheap tickets never improved any attendance at Ewood imo. Burnley laid on cheap tickets for the Watford game but it didn't increase the crowd much. In fact in the LET Cummings was having a right old gripe at the Burnley 'faithless'. Here.......

Stephen Cummings column: Surely the shopping could have waited?

THIS column has not been reticent in its criticism of certain areas of Burnley Football Club's pricing policy.

The board's decision to slap a £3 tax on anyone buying a ticket on match day, for example, has proved counter-productive, alienating the very kind of supporter it was designed to attract.

So in the interests of balance, it's only right that the club should be praised for dropping admission prices to a very reasonable £10 in a bid to attract more fans to the Watford game.

They may have been slightly disappointed with the crowd of 13,185. OK, so the manager's wish to see 17-18,000 inside Turf Moor was a trifle optimistic, but with prices so drastically slashed, Kilby and co might reasonably have expected a crowd in excess of 15,000.

The stay-away supporters will presumably offer Christmas shopping as an excuse. But really - couldn't Auntie Doris's tartan slippers have waited another few days?

The disappointment is that the board listened to fans' complaints and acted in the festive spirit, but not enough supporters reciprocated. Sadly, there will always be an excuse for punters not to attend no matter when price cuts are made. Start of the season? Let's wait and see how they do. Mid-season? Not doing well enough. End of the season? Saving up for summer holidays.

The point here is that if the club has a responsibility to help out its supporters every now and again, then the supporters have a responsibility to help out their club when the opportunity presents itself.

Meanwhile, as you tolerate unwanted guests and trade unwanted presents next weekend, pare a thought for the chairman who will spend the Christmas period on the horns of a dilemma - whether or not to make funds available for a play-off push.

Burnley lie just four points off third spot and with half the season elapsed have shown they can live with most of this league. With a couple of quality additions, there's no reason why we can't maintain their top-six challenge.

Understandably, Kilby will be wary about pushing the boat out, remembering what happened last time - and no-one will want to be remembered as the chairman who cost the town its club. Then again, managers, squads, momentum and opportunities such as exist at present don't happen every season. Can we afford to pass it up?

A Merry Christmas to you all.

Maybe the Rovers should start a 'club' for the supporters who pay by DD. The Monthly ST direct debit could actually be increased at the behest of the purchaser. Any extra sum could be used for times like this or in case of cup failure be knocked off the ST cost next season.

The real fault of course is the fixture shenannigins which sees us play home and away games in unwieldy 'lumps'.

I guess its a good job that Paul does not support MU or Arsenal because this type of cost is incurred far more frequently with them than with us.

[Paul]

Paul, do your older 2 kids not contribute for their tickets? Im sorry, im not trying to critize your parenting or anything, but im 19 and have been paying for my own tickets (throught money from job/saving bday and c'mas money etc) for the past 2 1/2 yrs since i was 16. If your paying all that money which you listed out, it is a damn lota money!

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The younger of the two, Tom 17, is disabled and will never be able to support himself financially. The older works and has done since he first had a paper round about 5 years ago. Generally we have encouraged him to use that money for other things, skiing trips and the like, all of which would have been unaffordable had he not paid at least 50% plus spendies. Now he's 19 and earning his money is being saved towards university next year.

It's a reasonable question and I certainly don't take offence at it. Yes I am stumping up for all the tickets.

[Paul]

Its a semi final for gods sake, Rovers cannot keep putting out cheap tickets for every game.  We also have to agree pricing with the other team, who quit obviously have a debt to service nowadays.  No doubt people who choose to miss the semi will be the first complaining when they cant get tickets at over twice the price for the final.  OR complaining that we havent bid enough for Benny McCarthy.

Yes, theres a lot of games, but most of the home games can be paid for by spreading the cost by getting a season ticket.    This cup represents our best chances of winning something,  and puts a spark into a season where we would otherwise just be fighting for midtable medriocrity.    Lets hope our fans get down to Ewood and get behind the team.

368818[/snapback]

I got to thinking about the costs when I realisedhow much the next few weeks would cost on top of the STs. I'm not criticising the club but observing it will not be surprising if the gates do not reach expectations. Should we reach the final it will bring my spending on match and season tickets alone to one-twelth of my net annual pay. One month's work simply to fund watching the Rovers.

The point is a general one, not aimed at Rovers, but at the game. These costs, distinct from prices, are ridiculous. The PL as an industry is one in which the employer costs are too high, the product is moving out of reach of more and more people and I predict we will see a serious decline in attendances in the coming years. When income begins to decline the clubs will have to cut costs which means cutting wages and NOT signing the likes of Benni McCarthy. It will have to happen.

The only point I would criticise the Rovers on is the way the price has been publicised. I'd guess Rovers would have settled for £15 tickets but United know they can sell 67000 at £25. This is probably why it's a £25 ticket. The club arte saying prices are reduced, I don't feel many will see £25 as cheap!

[den]

No, £25 isn't cheap.

I just wonder if clubs like rovers, should look at setting prices - i.e; for the Carling Cup semi final, at a price most likely to fill Ewood - rather than a price that brings in maximum funds.

Now that may sound [or might realistically be] daft. If continually setting prices to the maximum, means driving fans away from the game, then that seems to be a short term measure. Surely, clubs must be doing everything possible in a semi final against Man Utd, to set prices that fill the ground?

That's just a general point about the strategy of ticket pricing. Of course, in this instance, rovers might have no option.

[Ste B]

No, £25 isn't cheap.

I just wonder if clubs like rovers, should look at setting prices - i.e; for the Carling Cup semi final, at a price most likely to fill Ewood - rather than a price that brings in maximum funds.

Why exactly ??? Given that every penny Rovers make is put back into the playing side, surely the whole point is to raise as much revenue as possible.

We cant keep chucking cheap tickets in, it just doesnt seem to work. I'd just like to refer to the comments of SCUMmings here -

The point here is that if the club has a responsibility to help out its supporters every now and again, then the supporters have a responsibility to help out their club when the opportunity presents itself

[den]

Why exactly ??? Given that every penny Rovers make is put back into the playing side, surely the whole point is to raise as much revenue as possible.

I reckon Ewood will be half empty for the Man Utd game. OK, the club will raise more funds, but at the same time, it could very well lose more fans - never to return.

There's far more value for the club long term in filling the ground, than short term price rises in a competition where a tenner is enough.

[stuwilky]

I reckon Ewood will be half empty for the Man Utd game. OK, the club will raise more funds, but at the same time, it could very well  lose more fans - never to return.

There's far more value for the club long term in filling the ground, than short term price rises in a competition where a tenner is enough.

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Den you are quite right.

But as competition rules prohibit us from simply naming our price, it has to be agreed with the away club.

Considering we are charging them £32 for the league game, £25 is a reasonable effort!

[den]

I mentioned above that rovers might have no choice in the matter.

If the Carling cup is worth ten quid in the early rounds, then it's worth ten quid in the other rounds.

Just trying to point out that a change in the mindset of all clubs, would be for the better. Away from maximum income, to maximum gates. Otherwise we're all DOOMED!