[Archived] Season Ticket Sales?

[American]

Souness also SAID he wasn't going to take the UEFA Cup too seriously last season, but then went out and got Garbaggio mainly for UEFA Cup matches. I don't think he'd get a player on pretty big wages if he expected and wanted to be out after 2 matches. Just a shame he ended up being crap.

[Manchester Blue]

I don't think it's entirely accurate to say that gates were down before Duff and Dunn left. Dunn left at the start of the close season so it's difficult to argue that had no effect. The previous 2 summers were also rife with speculation about Duff leaving so quite a few people must have been waiting to see what happened there as well and some of those obviously didn't renew either.

The season ticket renewal deadline was earlier then that it was this year. Before June even. Season tickets were being sent out before Dunn was sold let alone Duff. Dunn being sold was accepted by many as no bad thing due to his attitude and form. Many Birmingham fans would argue that it has not improved.

Duff was widely expected to leave the year before. He didn't but attendances were still up despite us finshing 10th. Oh that's right we won a cup, them things that Souness comes out and says he doesn't want to win, only in the Revidge daily post though as ive never seen them.

Bolton may be twice the size of Blackburn but it is also in Greater Manchester and has a lot more problems than we do in attracting fans that for a long time only wanted to watch Man U and Man City.

[Ossydave]

Who's to say attendances haven't improved in relative terms over the last 10 seasons anyway?

Three of the first four gates in 1994 to watch Hendry Shearer Le Saux Sutton et al (who finished 2nd in 1993/4)

Leicester 21050

Coventry 21657

Aston Villa 22694 (at this point seven games in we must have been top)

Inbetween was a 26,500 gate for the visit of Everton

Part of the reason we have a decent(ish) average attendance is due to the fact we give away fans such big allocations. The likes of Leicester, Coventry & Villa didn't fill theirs, Eveton more than likely did.....

Edited July 8, 2004 by Ossydave

[waggy]

with season tickets always going to be hard to move this season,i think the club should have commited our selves more in the transfer market.this close season signings have hardly set the fans running to ewood to renew or buy season tickets.

if being in the premiership is worth 20-30million,surely our club has a duty to its supporters to sign quality players,not relagated has or never beens.

things are looking far from rosy at ewood at the moment,we need a big signing,or are the club saving the cash to pay off,yorkes-flitcroft's and cole's contract's.

i respect everyone's views on here,so before you all start oh-he hates souness and if he signed klivert ,waggy would not be happy,hand on heart

WHO IS HAPPY WITH OUR CLOSE SEASON SIGNING'S,I AM NOT AND IT LOOKS LIKE A COUPLE OFF THOUSAND SEASON TICKET HOLDER'S ARE NOT HAPPY AS WELL.

[Tris]

Would you make your mind up ?

Since coming back from your self-imposed exile you've been saying bring in the kids, and continually slating our "star" players such as Cole and Yorke.

Can't argue with that.

But now you're saying we need a "big signing" - like who, with what, and where from ? ANd whay the change ?

[waggy]

SEASON TICKET SALES IS THE SUBJECT,I'M TRYING TO FIND WAYS OFF TRYING TO GET THE SALES UP.

LETS HAVE YOUR IDEAS I'VE SPELT MINE OUT

[tashor]

That really is very, very easy mate.

Cut the capacity of Ewood to 25,000.

Season ticket sales would approach 20,000 as folk would know that they would be unable to purchase tickets for most games.

Extra added bonus is that we could sell out against manure without capitulating the whole Darwen end.

This is, of course, how the big city clubs sell out by having proportionately pathetically small grounds.

[Uddersfelt Blue]

Or increase the capacity to 40k and halve the prices.

We're doing OK on attendances.

Staying in the prem is the most important factor as far as TV money is concerned and more than makes up for money lost at the gate.

Anyway I have a feeling we're gonna have a fantastic season so those who haven't renewed are gonna regret it come Xmas. Just my humble opinion

[CAPT KAYOS]

Although most on here have valid reasons and there own ideas and opinions, there are three views on here that I feel all contribute together and go someway in at least giving an idea to 'falling attendances'.

Firstly - IMO the post by Scotty is the major one - our support all in all is not bad considering what has already been said re the catchment area etc. however- replacing the no-goers is where the problem lies

Secondly - The knock-on effect of the negative vibes and lack of 'major signings' to replace the creative players that have left (or the matchwinners as the fans see it). Does nobody else see the similarities between this and after we won the league and what appeared to be our lack of 'strengthening' by letting our 'best' players go and we all know what happened then.- all concerns expressed by myself and Rev and vigourously by Waggy and others and also Paul above and the 'connection' the fans feel towards the players.

Thirdly - The comment from Ossydave - to which some degree he is right but not in the sense that Blackburn is not a footballing town. IMO Blackburn is a footballing town but is suffering from its own 'put down' and lack of confidence for the future all becuase of the above - which leads me back to where I began.

At somepoint somewhere (I don't know when) the buzz around Blackburn disappeared - possibly when we sold Shearer or even when we won the league( yes that far). Again without checking back on the threads here - I think it was OssyDave who mentioned the lack of 'passion/excitement' does not seem to be there in town or in the stands leading upto and when a match is being played. Now take this back to the mid-eighties and when we won the league and everybody was talking about Rovers in the street and the pubs etc. Nowadays you'll be lucky if anybody will even mention it and all you here after the matches now is disgruntled supporters moaning about what they have just seen - and this in turn does not spread encouragement to others as word of mouth gets a hold.

The anticipation of a match being played down at Ewood seems to have lost its appeal in my book to alot of people and this is because of what I have tried to explain above.

It is very rare now to here somebody on a Friday night coming upto you on a Friday saying ' Going t'Ewood tomorrow - see ya there, I can't wait'.

Decisive factors maybe/maybe not, its only my opinion - its just it appears to be affecting us more due to point 1 above.

[Uddersfelt Blue]

At somepoint somewhere (I don't know when) the buzz around Blackburn disappeared - possibly when we sold Shearer or even when we won the league( yes that far). Again without checking back on the threads here - I think it was OssyDave who mentioned the lack of 'passion/excitement' does not seem to be there in town or in the stands leading upto and when a match is being played. Now take this back to the mid-eighties and when we won the league and everybody was talking about Rovers in the street and the pubs etc. Nowadays you'll be lucky if anybody will even mention it and all you here after the matches now is disgruntled supporters moaning about what they have just seen - and  this in turn does not spread encouragement to others as word of mouth gets a hold.

The anticipation of a match being played down at Ewood seems to have lost its appeal in my book to alot of people and this is because of what I have tried to explain above.

It is very rare now to here somebody on a Friday night coming upto you on a Friday saying ' Going t'Ewood tomorrow - see ya there, I can't wait'.

Decisive factors maybe/maybe not, its only my opinion - its just it appears to be affecting us more due to point 1 above.   

Difficult for me to comment, not living in Blackburn, but if this is true then it's very worrying.

Hopefully its just a phase the club is going through.

[Paul]

If this thread were to be closed now, which it isn't, I think CK's post would sum up the whole situation very well. I think it also shows clearly the action the club needs to take to stimulate sales - create some razza ma tazz around Blackburn. Create the buzz, then, if there is a demand, the tickets will sell.

[FourLaneBlue]

At somepoint somewhere (I don't know when) the buzz around Blackburn disappeared - possibly when we sold Shearer or even when we won the league( yes that far). Again without checking back on the threads here - I think it was OssyDave who mentioned the lack of 'passion/excitement' does not seem to be there in town or in the stands leading upto and when a match is being played. Now take this back to the mid-eighties and when we won the league and everybody was talking about Rovers in the street and the pubs etc. Nowadays you'll be lucky if anybody will even mention it and all you here after the matches now is disgruntled supporters moaning about what they have just seen - and this in turn does not spread encouragement to others as word of mouth gets a hold.

I do agree with that but a 'buzz' around a place can only last so long. Is there a 'buzz' around Old Trafford these days since they won the FA Cup? Not really...their fans are peeved with them not winning the title. Oh and when they did win the title in 2001, Roy Keane was too busy being angry at them failing to win the Champions League to be too busy celebrating.

To keep a 'buzz' around a place you have to keep improving. What's the bext we could really hope for? Challenging for a Uefa Cup place? Maybe many Rovers fans are complacent and don't get excited just by us being in the Premiership. Fifteen years ago another season in the Premiership would have had a 'buzz' now...Rovers fans are used to it. Another top flight season...big deal. That isn't the fault of Blackburn. That's just human nature...

[FourLaneBlue]

I think it also shows clearly the action the club needs to take to stimulate sales - create some razza ma tazz around Blackburn. Create the buzz, then, if there is a demand, the tickets will sell.

Short of spending money that the club does not have on big-name and big-money signings I can't see how the club could create a 'buzz' themselves.

Personally, I'd rather not have a 'buzz' than to jeapordise our future. If that means a few less thousand season ticket holders...so be it.

[CAPT KAYOS]

I think it also shows clearly the action the club needs to take to stimulate sales - create some razza ma tazz around Blackburn. Create the buzz, then, if there is a demand, the tickets will sell.

Short of spending money that the club does not have on big-name and big-money signings I can't see how the club could create a 'buzz' themselves.

Personally, I'd rather not have a 'buzz' than to jeapordise our future. If that means a few less thousand season ticket holders...so be it.

FLB

Improving I totally agree and I might not have made it so clear above but the 'buzz' I refer to is not one of jeopardising our future - more the bringing pride back that we have a Football Club worth speaking about.

That is why I also mentioned going back to the mid eighties - we never used to have money to spend willy nilly but there always seem to be a good feeling around the place when we where at home and everybody knew when there was a game on at Ewood.

As so many have reflected on here overtime, maybe the expectation levels of the fans have been raised due what has happened over the years and we have had too much of a good thing (Tris, Gav). As a result the feelings towards the negative due to the 'bad season' we have just had may be the influence, but all in all there does seem to be alot of apathy about regardless of last season's mare - even now pre season which is normally an exciting and intriguing time for fans full of hope (from Carlisle to Man Utd) there doesn't appear to be an 'atmosphere' of anticipation about - more of doom and gloom around Ewood Park.

How about 'We might not be able to compete with the likes of Chelsea/Man U's etc in finance but we will certainly give it a go on the pitch and at the end of the day we are still Premier League team just the same as them'

[FourLaneBlue]

Improving I totally agree and I might not have made it so clear above but the 'buzz' I refer to is not one of jeopardising our future - more the bringing pride back that we have a Football Club worth speaking about.

I'm not disagreeing with you Captain K, there is no buzz around Blackburn about the club - I just don't know how the club could get that kind of feeling around the place back. The only way I can think Rovers could be 'exciting' again is if they brought in big name players. The majority of people on here are die hard Rovers fans, it's the less committed that are needed to be drawn to Ewood. I've no idea how the club can do that...but that's what's needed to stop this decline.

[trueblue]

The way Rovers will be 'exciting' again is by not losing stupid home matches like we did last season (3-1 up against Notlob anyone ??)

A winning team ALWAYS generates a 'buzz'

So lets hope thats the case this season

[CAPT KAYOS]

Improving I totally agree and I might not have made it so clear above but the 'buzz' I refer to is not one of jeopardising our future - more the bringing pride back that we have a Football Club worth speaking about.

I'm not disagreeing with you Captain K, there is no buzz around Blackburn about the club - I just don't know how the club could get that kind of feeling around the place back. The only way I can think Rovers could be 'exciting' again is if they brought in big name players. The majority of people on here are die hard Rovers fans, it's the less committed that are needed to be drawn to Ewood. I've no idea how the club can do that...but that's what's needed to stop this decline.

FLB

Therein lies one of the major problems - even the diehards are feeling worried, although most understand that we can't make major signings the passion is starting to wane even amongst us, and its us diehards that need to convince the stayaways to get there are arses down to EP - but to do that we need to have something to convince them with.

Getting it right on the pitch will help but buying big is not the answer in my book - and as somebody already mentioned - even getting somebody like Kluivert would have much difference. Having a better outlook and creating a better atmosphere on matchdays (get rid of the drummer) and making it more enjoyable would be a start.

Don't know about you but I get the feeling there is a lack of togetherness down at EP nowadays - not just within the Club but the fans as well.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

I think it also shows clearly the action the club needs to take to stimulate sales - create some razza ma tazz around Blackburn. Create the buzz, then, if there is a demand, the tickets will sell.

Short of spending money that the club does not have on big-name and big-money signings I can't see how the club could create a 'buzz' themselves.

Personally, I'd rather not have a 'buzz' than to jeapordise our future. If that means a few less thousand season ticket holders...so be it.

FLB

Improving I totally agree and I might not have made it so clear above but the 'buzz' I refer to is not one of jeopardising our future - more the bringing pride back that we have a Football Club worth speaking about.

That is why I also mentioned going back to the mid eighties - we never used to have money to spend willy nilly but there always seem to be a good feeling around the place when we where at home and everybody knew when there was a game on at Ewood.

As so many have reflected on here overtime, maybe the expectation levels of the fans have been raised due what has happened over the years and we have had too much of a good thing (Tris, Gav). As a result the feelings towards the negative due to the 'bad season' we have just had may be the influence, but all in all there does seem to be alot of apathy about regardless of last season's mare - even now pre season which is normally an exciting and intriguing time for fans full of hope (from Carlisle to Man Utd) there doesn't appear to be an 'atmosphere' of anticipation about - more of doom and gloom around Ewood Park.

How about 'We might not be able to compete with the likes of Chelsea/Man U's etc in finance but we will certainly give it a go on the pitch and at the end of the day we are still Premier League team just the same as them'

Excellent post Capt..spot on.

[rover6]

Let the Boros and the Birminghams spend big.

We did it last season on the back of the Duff sale, and it got us almost relegated.

Buying big doesn't mean anything if the team can't perform as a team.

[PABBY]

Personally, this has been the hardest summer ever for me having to part with my S.T. dosh. Not the actual cost, but a large part of me just didn't want to do it. Last season just took something out of me that being relegated never did.

I've attended games at Ewood since the mid-70s and in all that time, through some very difficult on-the-pitch periods, I've never, ever felt contempt towards the club like I did around last Christmas time last season.

Against 'Boro on Boxing Day, I didn't explode with excitement at our last minute equaliser. I didn't cheer. I didn't even clap. I just sat there looking around at all these people going crazy and thought to myself "Why? What's the point?” It was the first and only time I've never celebrated a Rovers goal and I really felt like my time with the club was at an end.

A couple of my mates experienced exactly the same emotions around 2 years after we won the Premiership. One of them just stopped going for a few months and the other actually got a S.T. at Bury for 2 seasons. These were lads that had been to all but a handful of games (home & away) since the mid '80s. Their need to attend games just evaporated. They will tell you now that winning the league eventually left their hunger for the club satisfied. There was nowhere left to go but downhill, which is exactly what happened. A strange logic told them that they actually enjoyed it more when we used to bunk off work to go to Bristol Rovers on a Wednesday evening. Or Southend on Bonfire night. Or Plymouth on a Friday for a long weekend on the lash.

In other words, it was no longer enjoyable for them to just attend Rovers matches. The thrill had gone. Fortunately, they're both regulars at Ewood again now, but maybe the club isn't such an important part of their life anymore.

I've missed just one home game of any kind since early 1978. I've had a S.T. every season since 1980/81. I've missed family weddings to attend games (including 14th August this coming season, though her brother doesn't know it yet! ).

My point being, I want to renew my S.T. next summer with a feeling of excitement again about what is to come, rather than purely out of habit like this latest one seems to have been. Next season may well be make or break time for me & the club that I love. Even the best marriages sometimes end up floundering on the rocks.

[daviemac]

Pabby, that is an excellent post. I still have the urge to go to the Rovers like I still have the urge to be married to the wife.

Dreading either urge waining

[Dr Rich]

Who in their right mind would make 200 mile pilgrimages to Ewood when their friends and work colleges are watching clubs on the doorstep.

Anyone who actually supported Rovers?

[bob fleming]

I suppose once you've enjoyed caviar for a few years it's hard to go back to stomaching pie and chips again (or on occasions last season, off milk). BRFC - a victim of it's mid '90's success?

I hope the posts on the last few pages (in particular Capt Kayos' and Pabby's and earlier on roversmum's and Alan75's - in fact the whole thread really) are read by someone at the club - I think it sums everything up brilliantly.

(Incidentally Pabby I met some lads from Haslingden on a night out in Preston a few months back - one of them had Rovers tattoos on his arms - clearly they were big fans. They stopped going when it went all seater - like many they felt that it had all become a bit sanitised and the atmosphere simply wasn't there anymore.)

[PABBY]

Bob - I think Haslingden may well be typical of many of the towns that surround Blackburn.

It has a decent number of people who actually go and follow the team, but it also seems to have at least as many who follow the team without actually attending games. Show the Rovers in the pub on a Sunday afternoon and half the people shouting at the screen, and dancing with joy when they score, will be fans who don't actually attend games.

I've asked some of them about it and they either say they can't afford it or that they just don't enjoy going to the games anymore.

Once fans get out of the habit of going to Ewood on a regular basis it seems to become very easy for them to eventually justify not going at all. A very dangerous spiral that the club seems powerless to reverse.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

''Blackburn is not a footballing town''

''A couple of my mates experienced exactly the same emotions around 2 years after we won the Premiership. One of them just stopped going for a few months and the other actually got a S.T. at Bury for 2 seasons.''

These are comments from BLACKBURN ROVERS FANS.........

This thread is throwing up some serious weird sh1t here roll on the new season before the psychiatric hospital beds overflow with Roverites!!!

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Edited July 9, 2004 by SIMON GARNERS 194