Darwen End Closure / New Singing Section

[Stuart]

4 hours ago, barry_ said:

This is what waggot (and the other non-football people in charge at Ewood) doesn't get.

You put away fans as far away from the pitch as you can to try to negate their support

Being 'pitchside' only increases the chance that away fans will be able to influence the game (at the cost of the home team).

Idiots

 

Rovers see away fans as just important to the coffers as home fans. If they can make it a great day out more will come. We’ve even moved our home fans to accommodate away fans - and only for a few matches.

Ironically though, now we have moved home fans out of the DE there isn’t even the safety excuse not to stick them in the upper tier - and charge them what we like as the BBE is closed.

Will we? I doubt it.

[Mattyblue]

If an away side sell out the top tier at Millwall, that’s it, you don’t get the bottom tier too.

Now that’s partly down to ensuring the Bushwackers don’t have a ruckus, but it also means the away side don’t attack a packed end of their support.

But that just doesn’t come into the thinking with us, as Stuart says a full Darwen End 4/5 tines a season will be part of the club’s budgeting for the season.

 

[JHRover]

Well with the entire Darwen End now available for away fans when the likes of Millwall turn up next week with 1,000 maximum fans it would be daft to put them in the traditional blocks closest to the JW stand.

If it were up to me I'd put them upstairs out of the way but if they go downstairs it should be done to ensure there is no need for any seats in the home ends to be netted off.

[Stuart]

42 minutes ago, JHRover said:

Well with the entire Darwen End now available for away fans when the likes of Millwall turn up next week with 1,000 maximum fans it would be daft to put them in the traditional blocks closest to the JW stand.

If it were up to me I'd put them upstairs out of the way but if they go downstairs it should be done to ensure there is no need for any seats in the home ends to be netted off.

Bingo! Great point.

[barry_]

2 hours ago, Stuart said:

Rovers see away fans as just important to the coffers as home fans. If they can make it a great day out more will come. We’ve even moved our home fans to accommodate away fans - and only for a few matches.

Ironically though, now we have moved home fans out of the DE there isn’t even the safety excuse not to stick them in the upper tier - and charge them what we like as the BBE is closed.

Will we? I doubt it.

fill the DE Upper first and, if the need arises, open the lower.

Edited August 5, 2018 by barry_

[tomphil]

2 hours ago, Mattyblue said:

If an away side sell out the top tier at Millwall, that’s it, you don’t get the bottom tier too.

Now that’s partly down to ensuring the Bushwackers don’t have a ruckus, but it also means the away side don’t attack a packed end of their support.

But that just doesn’t come into the thinking with us, as Stuart says a full Darwen End 4/5 tines a season will be part of the club’s budgeting for the season.

 

Funny how they can manage to resist selling more to away fans when they are also run on modest means although maybe the local plod have a big say in it.

[Mattyblue]

Loads of Championship clubs have the capacity to give bigger away followings than the standard 3k maximum, but it only seems to be the Lanky clubs that actually do - Rovers, PNE, Bolton, Wigan.

[JHRover]

Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich others who put away fans upstairs away from the pitch and only allow them the bottom tier in exceptional circumstances.

[Mattyblue]

QPR too, only open the bottom if demand.

[tomphil]

Influenced by big Sam though......

[JAL]

Waggott and co. have killed it for Rovers this season!

Venkys out ?

[pk1875]

From speaking to a few from Darwen End, many have gone into different stands some in BBE some in Riverside and some in JW stand, which I feared may happen. This will see even smaller pockets of fans trying to create an atmosphere. Very poor planning by the club in my opinion.

[Mattyblue]

20 minutes ago, pk1875 said:

From speaking to a few from Darwen End, many have gone into different stands some in BBE some in Riverside and some in JW stand, which I feared may happen. This will see even smaller pockets of fans trying to create an atmosphere. Very poor planning by the club in my opinion.

Some consultation with the Darwen Enders pre STs going on sale could have helped.

[pk1875]

5 hours ago, Mattyblue said:

Some consultation with the Darwen Enders pre STs going on sale could have helped.

I'm very disappointed with the club on this, Steve Waggot assured us the club would work alongside the fans on this. The twitter guy was meant to get in touch and promote the idea on social media.  I hope Mr Waggot doesn't turn out to be another empty vessel when it comes to delivering on positive words.

[barry_]

1 hour ago, pk1875 said:

I'm very disappointed with the club on this, Steve Waggot assured us the club would work alongside the fans on this. The twitter guy was meant to get in touch and promote the idea on social media.  I hope Mr Waggot doesn't turn out to be another empty vessel when it comes to delivering on positive words.

you judge a person on their actions (not words)

waggot closed the DE to home fans for no good reason

waggot's bumped up prices across the board to milk a loyal fan base

and now he's proven to just talk shit

waggot by name, w@nker by action

[tomphil]

Club closed the BBE upper in similar fashion and probably would have done this anyway regardless of Waggot sadly. Yes maybe he could have tried to stop it but we all know the ultimate non football power at Rovers are the bean counters.

[barry_]

fair points

he came out and stated he was behind the DE closure and wants to build away support 

why close a home section straight after gaining promotion (and hopfully more home fans as a result)

Edited August 6, 2018 by barry_

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Waggot wants to 'build away support' while closing sections of home support stands?The cheeky b'stards even closed a section of the most popular home stand at Ewood and hardly a voice of concern was raised.

What an oddball view on Ewood attendance,does any other club promote this? 

Blackburn Rovers..the club that panders to the away fan.

[Mattyblue]

I’m not against the closure of the Darwen End, I believe concentrating the home support into fewer areas is for the best.

However, using these supposed massive away supports as the main reason for doing it is disingenuous.

The standard away allocation was one half of the bottom tier and the top tier, if required, so not far off 5,500 seats. I’m still to be convinced that even half of all these clubs being mentioned will be bringing more than that...

[barry_]

When was the last time that the DE was closed off on a season long basis to home fans?

[old darwen blue]

Back in the days of the old stand I would imagine. 

[Mattyblue]

Around 2006-2007, one or two seasons, just before the Taking Back Ewood campaign.

[pk1875]

11 hours ago, Mattyblue said:

I’m not against the closure of the Darwen End, I believe concentrating the home support into fewer areas is for the best.

However, using these supposed massive away supports as the main reason for doing it is disingenuous.

The standard away allocation was one half of the bottom tier and the top tier, if required, so not far off 5,500 seats. I’m still to be convinced that even half of all these clubs being mentioned will be bringing more than that...

When we raised this point with Waggot his estimation was that half of the visiting teams would sell enough to warrant the full Darwen End, so that is expecting more than 23 teams to bring over 5,500 fans. I still think this is a massive overestimation. Lets see how it goes Millwall up first

[philipl]

Half is 12 bringing 5,000+

Leeds a certainty.

Bolton is the last home game of the season so it might bring a big do or die crowd to Ewood 

PNE if having a good season

Possibles:

Villa (first club to visit Ewood with a large away following, depends on keeping a good start going)

Forest (unlikely- don't remember them having that good a travelling support at Ewood.. and 7-0)

Sheffield United (Wednesday evening game so highly unlikely)

Sheffield Wednesday (depends on how good a season they are having)

Birmingham City (very unlikely not so big club will bring above 2,000)

West Brom (possible as the New Year's Day fixture)

Bristol City (could bring 2,500+ if having a good run but unlikely)

Middlesbrough (if challenging for promotion and the poor dears don't have the sniffles)

Wigan (a Tuesday evening game- forget it!)

Stoke City (first Saturday in April so could fill Darwen End if doing well), immediately followed by

Derby County (first Tuesday in April so unlikely unless really challenging for automatic promotion)

 

So I make that nine >5,000 visitors to Ewood games at the very best. More likely to be four or five.

[Mattyblue]

5.30 Sky game for Villa, so not sure they will.