[Archived] The Old Gate Debate

[Ozz]

I never check!

[Neil Weaver]

Looks like Bolton at home is £15 adult and £5 concession, possibly in all areas. Tickets should be on sale tomorrow.

Any opinions from ST holders on this? If you're sat in the BBE end you will have paid £23 for your seat while visiting walk-ups, home and away, will pay £15.

Sign of the times I reckon Paul. Sad, but something we might have to get used to if it works and the gate is 25k (or hopefully more). I don't have a problem (cos of the other benefits of an ST) but can imagine some ST holders will take note and start to weigh up the cost of an ST vs cost of walk-ons which will include a few of these promos. To those calling for new initiatives, add this to the list the club are trying.

[cletus]

Oh my god!

It looks like the clubs is actually listening!

If this is true & tickets for the Bolton game are going to be £15, then i take my hat off to them.

I`ll even throw my hat in the ring & predict a bumper crowd of around 27000 (possibly more!)

I`ll be buying my ticket, & i`ll also be oining my mates to get down to Ewood aswell!

[roversmum]

I was waiting for you to pop up, Cletus. Yes, I'd expect to see you there with a number of extra people! Great stuff!

I'm off to encourage as many as possible to come. Hope everyone will do likewise!

We need to get as much encouragement as possible for the lads for this one. Not sure what any 'newbies' will think of the football, but the thought of Bolton and the obnoxious Kevin Davies and Campo certainly sends my blood pressure up!

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Lets hope they repay the goodwill of our club in the return fixture at the breezeblock

[stuwilky]

Any opinions from ST holders on this? If you're sat in the BBE end you will have paid £23 for your seat while visiting walk-ups, home and away, will pay £15.

Absolutely 100% supportive of this.

As a "one off" offer to guage the reaction to cheaper tickets then a reasonbly big match against Bolton is far better than the tenner offers in recent seasons against the likes of Charlton.

The value on my season ticket is excellent anyways so why would someone paying a few quid less than me for one match bother me?

Might take advantage to be honest, drag some friends, and get some stamps for "the card"

[BRFC4EVA]

I think this game is very important for the future of ticket prices at Ewood Park. This is the real acid test of wether putting the prices down to a very reasonable level makes a significant difference. Importantly, whenever they have done it before, its been a monday night job on sky, against Charlton with about 200 away fans. This time for the first time, its a lancashire derby between two upwardly mobile teams, not on tv and a 3pm trad kick-off (allbeit on sunday). If we do get a good crowd then perhaps the board will stop and take notice for next season. If it is a @#/? crowd, they'll just think sod it, nothing will bring the fans back, lets just try and make as much money as possible!

Really important for as many people to get down to the game as possible, i would expect Bolton to bring in the region of 4k+ at that price so hopefully we can get a 25K+ crowd! I await with intrest

[1864roverite]

I personally cannot see any reason to moan about this opportunity.

There are many positives to achieve if the fans take the bait and come to the ground.

As a long standing ST holder I dont have any gripes but I would like the club to consider a similar scenario for the ST holders and regular away supporters in the form of a reduced travel and/or ticket but hey I am realistic.

I cant wait for Bolton, the home match hoodoo has to end and it will THIS YEAR and what better way to end it than in fron tof a full house.

Jim, even you can take the zimmer and wheelchair option if you like

[ABBEY]

And what about all those fans that have paid a good deal of money to watch the team? If Wigan's supporters are going to complain about free pies for four thousand travelling fans, what do you think thirteen thousand Roverites are going to say about your idea?

personnally id rather pay for a season ticket than miss the first ten minutes...or let them in at half time

And what if nobody pays to go in and all wait for the free entry?

then if theres any early goals they would miss them..

[ad0102]

As a long standing season ticket holder who thinks he gets great value from his s/t, can I congratulate rovers on reducing prices for the bolton game.

Its great news, love to see a big crowd on

[Florida Rover]

You will remember that the burnley replay drew 28,691 and that was due to certain seats not being used to act as a safety feature.For the bolton match,we wouldn't expect that and as such could it be that we see a complete sell out as in 31,367.Will we ever see that number reached again for a match at Ewood?

[USABlue]

Something I would look into if I was Rovers Brass, move the Cameras to the other side. Let's show off the ground not the only stand we did not re-revelop. Perception counts a lot in trying to influence the young uns. The ground looks bloody great from the Riverside.

Edited October 4, 2006 by USABlue

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Confirmed on official site.......What more can our club do?

RESPOND PEOPLE OF BLACKBURN

Edited October 4, 2006 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[cletus]

Just read the link on the official site & i applaud what the club is attempting to do!

WELL DONE ROVERS!

[thenodrog]

It'll be interesting but commercially dangerous. I can rem people grumbling and citing the walk on £10 tickets of a few years back as their reason for not buying season tickets. Caution required.

One thing has to be applauded ... the club has woken up to the situation and is trying damned hard for the people of the town. I just hope it isn't rammed right back down their throats.

Edited October 4, 2006 by thenodrog

[Exiled in Toronto]

For sure this will be the acid test, assuming they generate awareness with the public of both towns, which I'm sure they will. But of course the key thing with initiatives such as this is for the club to define beforehand measures of success. Cash on the day may not be too different to last year, but a full house brings more benefits if it can be repeated.

It's good to see the club are rethinking their current approach, laudable though it was to try summat new. Squeezing as much money as possible from previously loyal customers is almost always a cash-positive move in the short-term. But most businesses don't do it as it usually initiates a spiral of death.

Anything under 25,000, which is what the fixture attracted in the third division, would be a major disappointment.

[Tris]

Brilliant by Rovers, and proof that there is a refreshing attitude from those running the club which really is committed to tackling our challenging crowd situation.

I hope it's a massive gate and I also hope the local pubs which would normally show the game illegally join in the spirit of the day and refuse to transmit for once.

They could even be innovative too, and encourage pre-match punters down to the ground by dishing out vouchers for a post-match freebie pint for people who can produce a match ticket.

After all - they are blatantly coining it on the back of the club, they owe the club support on this day to keep Ewood rocking.

Edited October 4, 2006 by Tris

[USABlue]

For sure this will be the acid test, assuming they generate awareness with the public of both towns, which I'm sure they will.

Perhaps, as Revidge pointed out for the UEFA match the local paper will choose to ignore it and prefer to point out other forms of viewing the match.

I also hope the local pubs which would normally show the game illegally join in the spirit of the day and refuse to transmit for once.

Good that, and I'll have a season ticket for the Longside next season.

[philipl]

It'll be interesting but commercially dangerous. I can rem people grumbling and citing the walk on £10 tickets of a few years back as their reason for not buying season tickets. Caution required.

One thing has to be applauded ... the club has woken up to the situation and is trying damned hard for the people of the town. I just hope it isn't rammed right back down their throats.

You don't have a positive gene in your body do you?

Of course the Rovers will lose out financially compared with charging Category A but the Salzburg game showed that there might just be some price elasticity of demand. Rovers have deep enough pockets to see if they can re-stimulate it.

Well done to the club's management.

Boo to the grumbling curmudgeon with his stupid fixations.

[Ewood Spark]

Well it's up to us now boys and girls ... let's get out there and spread the word!

As has been pointed out many times over the years, it's us the fans who are the best recruiting agents the club

has got. Everybody out there should aim to entice an extra attendee to this game wether it be ... a lapsed fan, ...

little Johnny who lives down the road (always kicking a ball but parents aren't interested in taking him to a game)

.... your dad! (swore he would never set foot in Ewood again after the 1960 Cup Final ticket fiasco) .... your wife /

girlfriend (or both!) ... work colleages ...anybody! People generally will not start attending football without being

helped through the process of buying tickets or arranging to sit next to someone they know. So get out there and

help them!

Want a slogan to rally around? How about .....

WANT MORE FANS? ..... THEN FAN THE FLAMES!

[daveoftherovers]

Completely Agree with the positive posters on this thread, what more can the club do???

I'm a BBE ST holder and I don't mind a bit, it's the club that counts & not a couple of old un constructive moaners.

"Bums on seats" is what we need.

I'm bringing 2 others, one from Manchester and 1 from Lancaster.

Also depends how many the clampitt's bring though, their turn out last year was shocking, esp. when you look at how many we took to their library!

[ABBEY]

stop talking about the bolton game ....grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

im not here for it bea cuse of the sunday kick off

anyone know if theres footy shown in goa?

[FourLaneBlue]

Think I'll email the local rag and ask why on earth there is no mention of this in today's issue!?!?

If the LET is really behind our team they should be shouting this from the rooftops and telling people - and now....not a day before or whenever!

[CAPT KAYOS]

Don't know if this counts , but asked a Bolton fan yesterday here at work re the ticket price before it was confirmed - he checked it out and said yes it definitely was.

Guess what - there are now x10 of them going to the game that would otherwise not have been going.

Now just need to recruit the Rovers fans

[FourLaneBlue]

Think I'll email the local rag and ask why on earth there is no mention of this in today's issue!?!?

If the LET is really behind our team they should be shouting this from the rooftops and telling people - and now....not a day before or whenever!

Heck...It's on the website now!!! Hopefully it will be in the actual paper tomorrow...I take it back! Well done the LET...

Rovers bonus for all fans

EDIT - Blueboy...they have finally got round to it so ignore my post

Edited October 5, 2006 by FourLaneBlue