[Archived] Rovers Half Season Ticket On Sale Now

[Amo]

so for what is generally considered the best seat in the house, you are prepared to pay £19 per match... there isn't a cat in hells chance that a Premier League/Championship club could be self-funding, never mind makea profit at those prices... how are the club supposed to buy quality players (who command quality wages) if we have such 'loyal' fans as Mercerman who won't even pay £20 for a ticket in the JW Upper Central?!?!?!

Be fair. Mercer's spent the last two years funding his bookie's retirement to Lanzarote. Can't blame him for being such a bean counter.

[Mercer]

Good point. The only 2 cat A+ games are in 2013 and are £8 dearer that cat A and £12 dearer than cat B. love to see percentage increae per game with that taken into account if you use the price of a full season ticket AFTER the Hull game.

Do you honestly think that supporters will look at the cost of tickets and say, hold on, we get 2 Cat A matches in 2013 !?!?

I think it is total b o l l o c k s - for fecks sake, keep things simple.

Feedback that I have had today from some friends is that they neither will be rushing out to renew @ £279.

I will say it again, in some instances, all this will be about principle and a perception of being ripped-off with what I personally consider to be a 45% unit price increase.

[BigUts]

11 games at £149?! Some people are really, really delusional if they think that's bad. It's more expensive to watch Conference football at Southport.

Bore of Mercerman. You're like one of the keaners who sits in the pub whining and whining at everything in their life but do nothing about it.

Move seats and pay less, or don't come and shut up. Simple.

[Mike E]

So I'll ask again MM, how about moving seats instead of whinging? Same product on show, far cheaper. You're just upset cos your fave seat is more expensive than the rest of the ground (as has always been the case). If you MOVE SEATS you get a better price.

And surely the price increase is justified? Those who commit their money earlier (full ST) deserve a better deal than anyone who gets a halfST.

[Mercer]

So I'll ask again MM, how about moving seats instead of whinging? Same product on show, far cheaper. You're just upset cos your fave seat is more expensive than the rest of the ground (as has always been the case). If you MOVE SEATS you get a better price.

And surely the price increase is justified? Those who commit their money earlier (full ST) deserve a better deal than anyone who gets a halfST.

If you had read my earlier posts, you could have saved yourself the trouble of writing your post above.

TBH, some will disagree, some will agree. I am not bothered, it is all personal opinion.

Off to the pub for a few jars with some other whingers !

[Stuart]

I think you miss the point - those who renewed up to kick-off for the new season, paid an average unit price of £17.35/match. I would not expect to be able to get season tickets now at the same price.

Yes, we all know Rovers' pricing is relatively cheap, however, that is largely irrelevant as supporters are only interested in their own market (Rovers' pricing). It took Williams and co several years to fully understand and manage this dynamic but, unfortunately, it looks like we are almost back to where we started. Getting the missing thousands back could be a long and painful process.

But it's NOT irrelevant!!! It's entirely relevant. The cost base is largely the same for all the clubs in our division, yet they have to charge more than we are charged. And a lot of them get far higher gates than us - especially at our new 14k level. If we were still in the PL, as we were when Williams and co "managed this dynamic", we could afford to subsidise these costs, as we aren't it's a bit of a moot point.

It may be controversial but I honestly believe that a significant number of the 10k or so stayaway fans are secretly glad of a reason to stop going. Maybe through affordability issues - even at the low prices; maybe they have other priorities; maybe a lot of them simply prefer to watch United and Liverpool, etc at Ewood and relegation has seen them pack in? There are plenty of "excuses" not to go to watch Rovers - season ticket prices are NOT one of them.

If we are promoted, I expect good ticket deals to continue next season, if we are not then I fully expect prices to go up. Ironically, it's the stay away fans that are forcing the pricing issue. If we could fill the ground once a fortnight then might have more right to feel aggrieved but with numbers as they are, is it any wonder prices are going up?

As an aside, do you think a Rovers Trust are going to come in and offer £200 season tickets and £99 half season tickets? I don't.

Anyway, we seem to be arguing about the price of the JW upper. I'm just hoping that most Rovers fans aren't that petty and we see plenty of £149 Christmas presents being bought resulting in the Blackburn End, and Riverside bouncing.

[Parsonblue]

I must admit I really can't see what the problem is. If you wanted cheaper tickets they were available in the summer. If you wanted to renew you renewed and if you didn't you stayed away. It was an individual choice. Now, the club have put tickets on sale at a different but still very cheap price and the choice is the same. If you want to go to Ewood there are three stands offering very cheap tickets. If you want to sit in the Jack Walker Upper you have to pay a little more but they are still very cheap compared to what other clubs charge. If you don't want to buy them at these prices then don't it's a personal choice. However, as one who bought their ticket in the summer I have to say that I think the pricing structure this season - both the early bird offer and the half-season ticket - has been excellent. I don't have many positive things to say about the owners but the pricing has been good when I compare it to friends who support other clubs and pay an awful lot more.

[Proudtobeblue&white]

Agree entirely, and that's why I bought today

[AndyNeil]

does anbody know the post early-bird prices for the JW wings and central? Can't find them for love nor money...

[Ben-2000]

I think JW central went up to £459 ??

[92er]

I think JW central went up to £459 ??

Yes.

[roverzee]

Can someone set this thing up so that Mercerman is charged 2 quid for every post he makes on here? Hopefully that would get rid of him for good.

For someone who brags continually about how his legendary betting winnings enable fantastic restaurant meals / holidays / Christmas expectations for his wife and family, it really takes the biscuit that the football club which offers the cheapest tickets out of 92 league clubs is too expensive for him to splash out on.

I also remember his "insider" info this summer that only 3000 season tickets had been sold, and before that his famous threat to turn up in the JW Lower with some muscle-bound sidekick last season to go and confront Kean near the dugout - and then bottled it completely cos his fat mate didn't show up on the day.

Grade A bull sh!t merchant.

[Neil Weaver]

I think JW central went up to £459 ??

Innocent question - so what's the justification for a half season ticket being more than £230?

[Hughesy]

11 games for £149 and people whinge? Are people taking the proverbial??

Looks like it....11 games, which include the biggie against Burnley & the vocal Leeds side. Aswell as play-off contenders Notts Forrest, Huddersfield, Palace and others

Pity it all starts from January 1st, when the fans wont have had chance to see if there are any changes being made for the good of the club. Preferably the half season ticket should start at the beginning of February rather than January.

Cant win can they... usually people moan that they have taken too long, this time they go on sale 6 weeks before you can use it...plenty in time to get on peoples Xmas present lists too.

Hopefully, we will be back in the PL next season and I will then be happy to purchase at the same rate as other supporters.

Ah so there it is.... he only wants to watch us if we are in the prem basically.

Innocent question - so what's the justification for a half season ticket being more than £230?

More higher graded games?

The fact that many see us as being in a much better position now we have potted Kean and got in a new manager.

Possibly because we broke our transfer record?

Many factors.... either way the prices are still rock bottom

[yoda]

Well there we have it,

coco gone, new manager starting to look good, outlook in general improving, losing to the dingles now probably not going to happen,

So all some people can whinge about is the price of tickets which are comparable with the cheapest in the entire league and also cheaper than some non league clubs,

Take a look at your selves you numpties

[ABBEY]

L1 nobbers .. V Crewe £24 a ticket .

Moan about scumkys but Ffs not prices.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

Well there we have it,

coco gone, new manager starting to look good, outlook in general improving, losing to the dingles now probably not going to happen,

So all some people can whinge about is the price of tickets which are comparable with the cheapest in the entire league and also cheaper than some non league clubs,

Take a look at your selves you numpties

Or alternatively, our owners have sabotaged our club, reducing it to a level far inferior to the one it was at when they took over. And instead of making a meaningful apology to the fans by lowering ticket prices, they've increased them.

Fans who haven't renewed need an incentive to come back (and surprisingly insulting them won't be very effective). Whats the incentive at the moment? We're languishing in 7th place, with the top 2 pulling further away from us by the game, and anyone who wants a half season ticket will have to pay two-thirds of the price in April for less than half the number of games.

Have Venkys forgotten people are still massively ****** off at them? I'll probably get one personally but I really thought they'd try harder than this to win fans back.

[yoda]

Or alternatively, our owners have sabotaged our club, reducing it to a level far inferior to the one it was at when they took over. And instead of making a meaningful apology to the fans by lowering ticket prices, they've increased them.

Fans who haven't renewed need an incentive to come back (and surprisingly insulting them won't be very effective). Whats the incentive at the moment? We're languishing in 7th place, with the top 2 pulling further away from us by the game, and anyone who wants a half season ticket will have to pay two-thirds of the price in April for less than half the number of games.

Have Venkys forgotten people are still massively ****** off at them? I'll probably get one personally but I really thought they'd try harder than this to win fans back.

We're languishing in 7th place !!!!

drama queen

[Mike E]

Innocent question - so what's the justification for a half season ticket being more than £230?

The fact that those buying a full st get a better deal as a reward for committing their money for a longer period of time.

How can you justify giving someone the same deal as other, 'better' (for want of a better word) customers? The halfST is usually a good hint as to the next fullST price, as it is used to entice customers on a more gradual basis. The junior deals are terrific.

[Hasta]

I'll probably get one personally but I really thought they'd try harder than this to win fans back.

Maybe they should give a free weekend in the lakes to non-season ticket holders to 'win them back'.

Price at start of season was 469 or 20.40 per game.

Price now is 279 or 25.36 per game.

This is an increase of about 24%.

Now the average match day price is 13% dearer in the second half of the season due to Burnley/Leeds so you would. That means that the club have added 11% onto JW tickets for those that did not commit their money upfront at the start of the season. Not bad is it?

Add in the fact that the tickets are the cheapest in the league and only professional whine bags would complain.

Edit - I took 469 instead of 459 as the orig season ticket price so numbers not accurate but out of the office using an iPad so not calculating it again. The point remains the same.

Innocent question - so what's the justification for a half season ticket being more than £230?

The same as the justification for match day prices not being 460 divided by 23 surely

[Mercer]

Can someone set this thing up so that Mercerman is charged 2 quid for every post he makes on here? Hopefully that would get rid of him for good.

For someone who brags continually about how his legendary betting winnings enable fantastic restaurant meals / holidays / Christmas expectations for his wife and family, it really takes the biscuit that the football club which offers the cheapest tickets out of 92 league clubs is too expensive for him to splash out on.

I also remember his "insider" info this summer that only 3000 season tickets had been sold, and before that his famous threat to turn up in the JW Lower with some muscle-bound sidekick last season to go and confront Kean near the dugout - and then bottled it completely cos his fat mate didn't show up on the day.

Grade A bull sh!t merchant.

Okay pal, can't let you get away with posting such rubbish.

Firstly, you don't get the issue about the pricing of tickets. The absolute cost is not a personal issue, it's my view that, in principle, a price increase / unit of between 29% and 45% versus what others paid right up to kick-off is ludicrous. May i also remind you that historically, I have bought a number of season tickets each season and not just one. I have also said that, if Rovers maintain a challenging position, I will buy match tickets as and when required, also taking advantage of the inevitable '2 for' or '3 for' offers - didn't we have a 3 for £20 in the second half of last season ?

Secondly, yes I do like a bet and all in all, make a bob or two from it. What I do not do is brag about the winnings and for that reason, you, nor anyone else on this MB, will know how much I have won.

Thirdly, if Rovers were to provide a week by week log of cumulative season ticket sales from when 'Early Bird' started right up to kick-off, I think there would be a few surprises at just where we were at certain parts of the cycle!

Fourthly, your comments about the Kean protest are out of context. It was a Carling Cup match if I recall correctly and I was stranded a long way way from Ewood come kick-off owing to a meeting that had overrun and motorway madness. You also need to make your mind up about a friend of mine - is he "muscle bound" or just "fat" (he certainly can't be both !).

Fifthly, I only post tit bits that I hear in the course of both my work and normal everyday life, just like many others on this MB do. As for bullsh1t, try these three. I posted on here that the Rhodes deal was agreed hours before any media got near it (Cryer was still in denial at tea time, 6 hours later). I persistently posted, much to the derision of some, the week before the Charlton match, that Kean would not be in charge come the match - Kamy in a podcast that followed Kean's departure then said effectively that there had been enormous pressure in the week before Charlton to get Kean out and we know how the story ended! And I think you will also find that I was first to post on here about Holloway's release clause and at that stage, it hadn't been reported in the press.

I like a bit of banter and MB's are not for those who take things too seriously. Unfortunately, there are clowns like you around.

[The Gull]

Mercerman,

The %'ge rise hides the fact that the prioces started at a ridiculous low and also what the impact would be in future years if only a small rise was applied.

Think about it. If as a season ticket holder you are rewarded for committing early you are happy. If a fellow who waits to see how we are playing, what the atmosphere is like and only has to pay a little bit extra for the half season ticket, what is my motivation to commit early?

The tickets were kept at the level they were to try and maintain the supporter base after relegation, it didn't work so they kept the prices low to try and attract more over a longer period. The club is running at loss, the half season tickets are still much cheaper than the match day tickets, why should the club as a business write off more income by only applying a small increase?

This is the current price, the previous prices given the circumstances are not a good comparitor, it's like comparing a full price sale to a discounted sale in the retial world, not like for like.

I don't suppose I'm going to change your view, that's your perogative.

[Mercer]

Mercerman,

The %'ge rise hides the fact that the prioces started at a ridiculous low and also what the impact would be in future years if only a small rise was applied.

Think about it. If as a season ticket holder you are rewarded for committing early you are happy. If a fellow who waits to see how we are playing, what the atmosphere is like and only has to pay a little bit extra for the half season ticket, what is my motivation to commit early?

The tickets were kept at the level they were to try and maintain the supporter base after relegation, it didn't work so they kept the prices low to try and attract more over a longer period. The club is running at loss, the half season tickets are still much cheaper than the match day tickets, why should the club as a business write off more income by only applying a small increase?

This is the current price, the previous prices given the circumstances are not a good comparitor, it's like comparing a full price sale to a discounted sale in the retial world, not like for like.

I don't suppose I'm going to change your view, that's your perogative.

The Gull - we know, as did JW and co, that price elasticity of demand is very high where Rovers are concerned.

Let me try to position the issue another way:

• If you went to every league match this season at Ewood in the JW and paid matchday prices, you would pay £631
  
• A season ticket, right up to the first home match of the season, would have cost you £399 - a saving of £232 or 37%. This is what some 98% of supporters would have enjoyed.
  
• If you went to every league match from 01 Jan. at Ewood in the JW and paid matchday prices, you would pay £315
  
• A season ticket from 01 Jan. would cost £279 - a saving of just £36 or 11%
  

Do you really think that such pricing will have supporters scrambling back down to Ewood ?

In comparison, look at the BE on the same basis:

• If you went to every league match this season at Ewood in the BE and paid matchday prices, you would pay £524
  
• A season ticket, right up to the first home match of the season, would have cost you £229 - a saving of £295 or 56%.
  
• If you went to every league match from 01 Jan. at Ewood in the BE and paid matchday prices, you would pay £264
  
• A season ticket from 01 Jan. would cost £149 - a saving of £115 or 44%
  

Undoubtedly, IMO, those in the JW are being unfairly discriminated against with these mid season tickets.

I will buy tickets on a match by match basis, taking advantage of the inevitable offers and I know that the cost for the remainder of the season will be well less than £279 / person.

Over the recent years, Rovers have always tried to minimise increases. JW and co knew it was the only way to maintain and grow the home support. You have to remember that matchday ticket income, certainly when in the PL, is probably only about 10% of turnover. In years 1 and 2 of Championship football, it will probably be closer to 15% of turnover given Parachute payments of £16m/season. If still in Championship, after 2 years, it is easy to see that there would be huge, huge problems ahead financing the club.

[yoda]

The Gull - we know, as did JW and co, that price elasticity of demand is very high where Rovers are concerned.

Let me try to position the issue another way:

• If you went to every league match this season at Ewood in the JW and paid matchday prices, you would pay £631
  
• A season ticket, right up to the first home match of the season, would have cost you £399 - a saving of £232 or 37%. This is what some 98% of supporters would have enjoyed.
  
• If you went to every league match from 01 Jan. at Ewood in the JW and paid matchday prices, you would pay £315
  
• A season ticket from 01 Jan. would cost £279 - a saving of just £36 or 11%
  

Do you really think that such pricing will have supporters scrambling back down to Ewood ?

In comparison, look at the BE on the same basis:

• If you went to every league match this season at Ewood in the BE and paid matchday prices, you would pay £524
  
• A season ticket, right up to the first home match of the season, would have cost you £229 - a saving of £295 or 56%.
  
• If you went to every league match from 01 Jan. at Ewood in the BE and paid matchday prices, you would pay £264
  
• A season ticket from 01 Jan. would cost £149 - a saving of £115 or 44%
  

Undoubtedly, IMO, those in the JW are being unfairly discriminated against with these mid season tickets.

I will buy tickets on a match by match basis, taking advantage of the inevitable offers and I know that the cost for the remainder of the season will be well less than £279 / person.

Over the recent years, Rovers have always tried to minimise increases. JW and co knew it was the only way to maintain and grow the home support. You have to remember that matchday ticket income, certainly when in the PL, is probably only about 10% of turnover. In years 1 and 2 of Championship football, it will probably be closer to 15% of turnover given Parachute payments of £16m/season. If still in Championship, after 2 years, it is easy to see that there would be huge, huge problems ahead financing the club.

Discrimination!

PC gone mad

They are sitting in the best seats in the ground, if they don't like the price move, or have a chat with USABlue

[Mike E]

I usually find myself agreeing with you Merce, but you're just being petty here. I've sat in all 4 stands of the ground on various occasions and not once has my view of the match tainted my enjoyment of it. Move seats and your WHOLE problem completely disappears. It does just sound like you want to moan for the sake of it, in all honesty.