Attendances

[SWP's back]

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Sorry for the language, but I had been up 24 hours straight and now I have had a couple of hours sleep (sadly not partying)

As far as your last paragraph goes, I do disagree wholeheartedly. People pay their money and are entitled to go or not as circumstances dictate.
Who cares how it looks? I do feel sympathy for people who cant get matchday tickets, but surely the answer is to increase the capacity even more accomodate them, not penalise people who are legitimately purchasing tickets and then not for whatever reason. I also have concerns regarding the atmosphere but I have seen no evidence that the noshows are contributing to lack of atmosphere. Do you have any?
If the club want to endorse your proposal that is up to them, but it is something I would vigorously oppose.
For me its too similar to the rags forcing their season ticket holders to buy cup tickets. The rags doing that is wrong and if our club do as you propose that would be wrong too

I can understand where you are coming from but it's the opposite of Utd. It's actually asking people to turn up for the thing (3/4 of the time at least), for something they've paid for.

Sorry to hear you've been up for a day for non partying reasons.

 

[Silva's Magic Boot]

i would put a ceiling on the number of season tickets sold, for now, taking account of the current capacity.

The relatively low acailabity of match day tickets enables the Prices to be hiked up!

For the Sunderland match and other games where the away team doesn't sell their allocation(i.e often) we have circa 9k tickets available for matchday sales.

 

[cleavers]

For the Sunderland match and other games where the away team doesn't sell their allocation(i.e often) we have circa 9k tickets available for matchday sales.

And struggle to sell them (like Swansea for starters).

All these floods and family commitments that people have seem to disappear vs Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool though as a rule which is odd.

Whilst you have a point about the big games, you can't just dismiss the floods we've had, if they weren't/aren't happening at those other games.

Our last 2 home games have coincided with some pretty severe flooding in northern England, even by our standards of rain. Firstly in Cumbria and N Lancs for Swansea, and then much of north Manchester, and into Yorkshire for Sunderland, this wasn't just a "bit of rain" it was record breaking rain, closing railway lines, roads, and cutting towns off, so I think plenty were probably more concerned about their homes and/or lives than a football match, given that there was about a metre of water running through the streets of Rochdale town centre, I think that's a legitimate excuse.

One other factor against Swansea in particular (can't comment on Sunderland as I was at work), was that a lot of the empty seats were at the front of level one, where there is little or no cover, so I don't blame people for not sitting in them, as it was absolutely pissing down all game, luckily I'm well covered where I sit, but had I had one of those seats, I'd have probably tried to watch it from further back, or even on the concourse.

 

[bezer57]

Would also be better if all tickets were £20 -25 and fill the ground .

 

[mancityscot]

Would also be better if all tickets were £20 -25 and fill the ground .

they're doing that for the coc semi vs everton and are closing off much of the ground

 

[Tim of the Oak]

they're doing that for the coc semi vs everton and are closing off much of the ground

Yes Scot that's true. However, the Club are putting much more efforts into advertising the Prem games compared to the COC. Hence out national media campaign to sell out the rest of the PL games!

There are also significant traffic problems around the midweek games!

 

[Silva's Magic Boot]

And struggle to sell them (like Swansea for starters).

His point was that the availability of match tickets is limited, which isn't the case

 

[I'm no cynic but...]

Never a bad idea to reduce prices. There is a lot of poverty. As for no shows...maybe a rising levy on people who miss games.

Or a discount for regular attendees. Then everyone knows there is a potential bonus for their loyalty yet without any penalties for missing the odd game or two.

 

[Keepingthefaithsince1976]

Or a discount for regular attendees. Then everyone knows there is a potential bonus for their loyalty yet without any penalties for missing the odd game or two.

That's more like it yes. Bad idea by me. Can't really penalise people for spending money.

 

[CatMan]

I think the traffic for midweek games is becoming break point for many. My own journey time has increased over the last 15 years from just under 2 hours to around 2 hours 45 minutes. All this is down to around a 20% increase in the number of cars on the road and countless average speed zones.

Worse still is the return journey normally encounters overnight road closures and hideously long detours. Even if I brave the journey myself, I often leave the young lad at home as the tiredness knock on into the next day is unforgiving.

We certainly need to reduce the amount of non weekend football and that could only be done be a reduction in Premier League size, ditching the League Cup for non Football League teams, and finally have all European competitions as straight knock out played at weekends.

By my reckoning a Premier League of 18 teams would give 34 weekend games. The FA Cup would be 6 weekend games (maximum for finalists) and the European Cup based on 32 teams would be played over the 5 Weekends (straight knockout 1 leg) This would allow a 7 week as a minimum.

Hopefully meaningless games would disappear (trailing heavily from 1st leg or already qualified from group stages etc) and every game would have a consequence and be a worthy spectacle.

Fans might feel they are getting less football, but costs would drop and most games would be well attended due to being at weekends.