[Archived] The Old Gate Debate

[blue phil]

I've just been thinking about this one and the main drawback to offering kids for a quid all the time would be the effect on the next year's season ticket sales for children ; obviously they wouldn't sell many .Someone would have to do their sums and weigh it up against the long term benefits of getting kids into the ground on a regular basis . Something imaginative has to be done .

I do reckon though that if they going to offer these discounted prices they may as well do it against the big clubs . It would have worked this season for sure ...

[waggy]

i'll pay for his villa ticket then

[SD4E]

i know four lads who pick and chose their games,

who all watched it live in the woodlands for the cost of a pint or two.

[The Harwood Yankee]

The atmosphere at Ewood yesterday (Arsenal game) was excellent, and mostly from the Rovers fans. The best home support we've had this season which came from us having something to cheer. When Bellamy is fit and the rest of the team are on-form we are a genuinely entertaining team to watch. The workrate & determination to win were clear to see - exemplified by Savage celebrating at the final whistle, punching the air and running to the Blackburn End.

If you were at the game & you know Rovers 'fans' who weren't you should be taunting them for what they missed & get them down to Ewood for the next home game. No substitute for atmosphere when you're watching on the telly in some pub. And fifth in the table speaks for itself - there is quality football to be seen at Ewood - spread the word!

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

Gaining back support will take time - even a couple of seasons in the Championship didn't erode the support as much as two years of not winning at home.

The Rovers support showed a favourable increase - and for the first time in a while those floating fans were given something to cheer about.

We have key games against Liverpool and Chelsea - if we can put in good performances - hopefully coupled with good results - we should hopefully see even more of an increase.

The only real way to stop fans picking and choosing matches is to make the season ticket more affordable or workable. I have long fitted into the bracket where a season ticket wouldn't make financial sense. The lack of regular Saturday matches makes this even worse.

Rovers pricing policy probably needs to start taking into account how unattractive non-Saturday matches are to most fans. Maybe start offering season tickets for groups of matches - though with only limited discount in comparison to full season tickets. Start letting people buy tickets well in advance - with discounts (similar to the Sunderland match) - i.e. buy two matches at once - get the second 10% off.

Above all - advertise the damned fact. How many people know that kids can get into Rovers for £5 for some Premiership matches ?

[cletus]

When i was a kid (many moons ago) i used to go down to Ewood with a couple of school friends & their die-hard Rovers fan grandma

It only cost something like 50p to get in, so i used to ask my mum for for pocket money (about £1) & tootle off to Ewood with my pals. I`d even get some sweets on the way there!

Nowadays, it`s a bl00dy expensive trip for kids to see the Rovers. A quick glance on the official site says, juniors:-

£15 -catagory A+

£12 -catagory A

£5 - catagory B

I have 6 neices & nephews who all support Rovers but very rarely go- mainly because those prices aren`t pocket money prices. It`s downright scandalous to ask kids to pay £15 FFS!!!

Bellamy11 stated Rovers need to get fans in on a long term basis but also understands the short term needs. I agree, BRFC need the dosh but are losing the next generation of supporters coming through the gates. Clubs like Liverpool & Man Ure have a conveyerbelt of gloryhunting youngsters ready to take the place of any seasonticket holder who gives it up.....Rovers don`t!! As previous seasons have proved.....when we lose our fans, it`s hard to get them back & it affects gates in a big way.

One way of turning BRFC`s declining gates problem around, is to get the kids into Ewood before they discover the bigger clubs down the road. A concerted effort by BRFC to offer kids tickets for a quid (for every game) will hopefully lead to a new breed of diehard fans they can fleece in later years!

Why not just try it for one season??...if that don`t work,then we`re buggered!!

[Claytons Left Boot]

Was talking to a mate last night who watched the game in the Royal Oak (never remember whether that's Lammack or Pleckgate) and he said the pub was packed.

[cletus]

Was talking to a mate last night who watched the game in the Royal Oak (never remember whether that's Lammack or Pleckgate) and he said the pub was packed.

386745[/snapback]

Going to the Rovers used to be comparable to having a few pints in the local. Nowadays you can get well trolley`d for the price of a ticket.

People are choosing the cheaper option......basic economics.

[McClarky]

I reckon that the categorising of prices for certain games is a massive disincentive for people who might want to come along and fill all these empty seats. We don't seem to be able to get any bigger gates in terms of home fans for the bigger games but a lot of that is because it is so expensive. Why not charge the same price for every game and then when it is a big game, which more people want to see, they will come along and fill the ground. Then we get a great atmosphere and there is more chance that they might come back.

You can't knock the support of the people of Blackburn when you consider the size of the place but there must be ways of getting more people interested and pricing them out of coming so we can get a few more quid from away fans is short sighted and to the long term detrement of the club.

[Tris]

A concerted effort by BRFC to offer kids tickets for a quid (for every game) will hopefully lead to a new breed of diehard fans they can fleece in later years!

386744[/snapback]

I'm afraid this just wouldn't work.

Rovers already offer the best prices for kids in the entire Premier League.

And alreadly we read and hear moans and groans when they have to start paying young adult and then full adult prices, because of the jump in cost.

What you're suggesting is that Rovers should reduce the cost of kids watching a full season of Premier League football at Ewood Park to 19 QUID!!

When they are no longer kids and someone tells them that it's gonna cost 10 quid more than that to watch ONE GAME, they're gonna say thanks for the memories and bugger off for good.

I'm sure that Rovers will continue to offer one-off discounts for some games designed to tempt people - especially non ST holding youngsters - to sample the Ewood experience, but to discount as you suggest over a period of time would be commercial lunacy.

[stuwilky]

What you're suggesting is that Rovers should reduce the cost of kids watching a full season of Premier League football at Ewood Park to 19 QUID!!

386750[/snapback]

Which is £19 more than several other local clubs charge, a trend which rovers started several years ago and inexplicably removed.

[RevidgeBlue]

The kids season tickets and half season tickets are exceptional value sure, and should be continued and marketed to death.

But once you've missed them the club need to be sensible about pricing for individual games.

To charge 15 quid as with yesterday for kids for any game with the stadium nearly a third empty is ridiculous. You may only earn a pound if it's a quid a kid but it's one pound more than you earn from an empty seat!

You don't have to go down to a quid every game but I don't think there's any excuse for kids tickets being more than a fiver at the moment.

Rovers are going to have to be a lot more creative than we've been in the past due to the new "watch it in the Pub on dodgy Arab TV" phenomenon.

I caught the end of an interview with the Watford chairman Graham Simpson yesterday and he sounded like a breath of fresh air. They seemed a lot more proactive than us at getting fans in as opposed to smply talking about it. They're gunning for automatic promotion but he didn't see it as the fan's duty to dutifully troop through the turnstiles. Quite the opposite. He said they were the only professional club in Hertfordshire and it was their duty to share the "Watford experience" with the masses. They were bussing people in from alll over the County. They were still selling season tickets for the remaining few games at discounted rates and had sold 500 that week. He himself was going round the area giving talks at places like Stevenage sharing what they were trying to achieve. Their academy was absolutely crucial to their business plan.

Most interestingly they were doing a cheap block ticket for the remaining 5 home games at 60 quid for adults and 40 quid for kids.

Rovers are very much in a similar boat. With all due respect to our smaller neighbours You simply can't get the "Premiership experience" or excitement like yesterday anywhere else in East Lancs.

An imaginatively promoted and priced "Champions League Charge" ticket for the remaining games perhaps?

[Eddie]

The problem is with this argument is that I'm not sure how much dropping the price affects the number who show up. We've seen time and time again that the prices have been very low but then so have the attendances. I'm sure that the club has thought long and hard over it but if we drop the price to a pound and it only brings in an extra 500 then it isn't financially worth it. In economic terms it just comes down to the club working out the price elasticity of demand for tickets. It seems to me that we have a core support that shows up come rain or shine (within reason of course regards to price) and that after that until the club has done something special (which we are on our way to doing) that dropping the price serves to gain us very little.

[RevidgeBlue]

The problem is with this argument is that I'm not sure how much dropping the price affects the number who show up. We've seen time and time again that the prices have been very low but then so have the attendances. I'm sure that the club has thought long and hard over it but if we drop the price to a pound and it only brings in an extra 500 then it isn't financially worth it. In economic terms it just comes down to the club working out the price elasticity of demand for tickets. It seems to me that we have a core support that shows up come rain or shine (within reason of course regards to price) and that after that until the club has done something special (which we are on our way to doing) that dropping the price serves to gain us very little.

386780[/snapback]

Au contraire we saw that when we were chasing promotion in 2001 dropping the price to 5 quid saw a gate of 27,000 plus for a midweek game v Sheff Utd and very nearly 30,000 v Portsmouth at Easter.

[Eddie]

I think the important part of that is the chasing promotion though. Young and exciting team up at the top of the league beating most of the teams we came across, the price helps but it's just a small extra incentive there for people. I think success on the pitch gets people to consider coming and then if they think they can afford it they do, but until we get them to consider us as an option they aren't going to think "hm only 5 pounds to watch Blackburn lose and play poorly...not much money really". Obviously we aren't at that point anymore but I think until we stay in our current position for a bit longer we won't win quite a few over.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Little old Rovers 5th in the Premierleague,a town club taking on the big city boys and beating them at home with entertaining football.I cant vouch for others but I have a strong feeling of pride in my club at the moment,the town of Blackburn should be buzzing.

What more can the club do if we dont see home sections filled against Villa?

Why dont these 'fans' who frequent the likes of the Royal oak and the town centre shyte holes show their support at the ground?

Come down against Villa and bring the kids, bring the neighbours kids and lets see if the lads in blue 'n' white can re-light your fire.

P.S.

Cant afford a ticket?....@#/?! you can afford to shovel f'kin ale down your throats though eh!

Edited February 26, 2006 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[Gav]

Little old Rovers 5th in the Premierleague,a town club taking on the big city boys and beating them at home with entertaining football.I cant vouch for others but I have a strong feeling of pride in my club at the moment,the town of Blackburn should be buzzing.

What more can the club do if we dont see home sections filled against Villa?

Why dont these 'fans' who frequent the likes of the Royal oak and the town centre shyte holes show their support at the ground?

Come down against Villa and bring the kids, bring the neighbours kids and lets see if the lads in blue 'n' white can re-light your fire.

P.S.

Cant afford a ticket?....@#/?! you can afford to shovel f'kin ale down your throats eh!

386791[/snapback]

Amen

[stuwilky]

Wouldnt it be great to see Ewood filled once again.

End of the season, last game v Man City. £12 a ticket, £1 kids. Season ticket application pack issued on entry.

Plenty of time to organise it all. Come on Rovers, lets fill the place.

[RevidgeBlue]

I think the important part of that is the chasing promotion though.

386784[/snapback]

Similar scenario. Now chasing Champions League/UEFA spot.

[RevidgeBlue]

Another thing I would advocate is making a section of the ground cheap 10 quid pay on the turnstile on a first come first served basis.

Left hand side of the darwen end ideally or possibly move the family stand and use the top of the Blackburn End for that purpose?

[Tris]

Wouldnt it be great to see Ewood filled once again.

End of the season, last game v Man City.  £12 a ticket, £1 kids.  Season ticket application pack issued on entry.

Plenty of time to organise it all.  Come on Rovers, lets fill the place.

386794[/snapback]

We already know we can sell it out to Man City fans at premium prices for that fixture!! At £12 a ticket it'd be like handing them all 20 quid notes!!

Sorry, that was quite cynical. I'll try and be more positive.

[Alan75]

For those concerned about games being shown in pubs.

No-one (including Sky) is authorised to broadcast live football matches in the UK during the period of 2.45pm to 5.25pm on a Saturday.

Please note that Sky is the only company authorised to broadcast live Premier League Matches in the UK, and that:

any decoder or smartcard used to receive, decrypt and view encrypted match transmissions (whatever day of the week they are broadcast) made by any foreign broadcaster is not licensed for use in the UK, and reception, decryption and viewing by such unlicensed means are unlawful; and

no person is entitled to authorise the reception, decryption and viewing in the UK of any transmission of a match made by any foreign broadcaster and no charge made for the reception, decryption and viewing in the UK of any such transmission (or any service of which such transmission forms part) is a lawful charge for subscription to any such transmission or service.

A person guilty of a criminal offence for not heeding the above will be liable to a fine of (in the UK) up to £5,000 and/or in some cases a term of imprisonment of up to 10 years. Please note that it is a criminal offence to receive Premier League Matches via unauthorised means on other days of the week, as well as those matches played on Saturday afternoons.

If you know a business who is showing 3pm Saturday football or is showing live Premier League matches at any other time received via a foreign satellite system you can report this directly to Media Protection Services Ltd (MPS), on 01462 678831 or Sky Customer Service on 08702 40 40 30. The FAPL have employed MPS a specialist fraud detection agency, to monitor the use of satellite systems which broadcast F.A. Premier League football matches illegally on licensed premises.

LINK

[stuwilky]

We already know we can sell it out to Man City fans at premium prices for that fixture!!  At £12 a ticket it'd be like handing them all 20 quid notes!!

Sorry, that was quite cynical.  I'll try and be more positive. 

386800[/snapback]

Sod it.

Purchase history = any area

No purchase history = JW outer

Will City sell out anyway? They havnt last two seasons?

Or ST holders/members can bring a friend for a tenner?

Whatever it is, something. And next time you think its bad suggest something better or ill attack you with a large stick.

[RevidgeBlue]

The point is the "what more can the club do?" argument doesn't wash anymore.

We aren't doing very much at all different to what we've ever done. ie. offer the odd price promotion.

Circumstances change all the time (as with the current foreign TV fad and in Rovers case demographics) and you have to react accordingly.

[waggy]

what you encouraging people to do al,im sure rovers know every pub that is doing this dirty deed,its their problem and there the one's who should be going round stamping it out.i have no problem about pubs showing the away games,home games is a bit cheeky though.happen rovers should come to a agreement with local landlords,offer them 4 free tickets to not show the home games,and do it for at least a season to see if it works