qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Reports say we have lost the most fans this year in the championship Can't put my finger on why this has happened !!!!!!!! http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/4108792.Saints__attendances_on_the_slide/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatlesaint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Reports say we have lost the most fans this year in the championship Can't put my finger on why this has happened !!!!!!!! http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/4108792.Saints__attendances_on_the_slide/ Saints fans Vote of No Confidence in Dutch Experiment shock !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Saints fans Vote of No Confidence in Dutch Experiment shock !! LOL Well , you can blame the credit crunch , Rupert comming back , the appointment of JP and his crew , The ethos of playing youngsters , whatever the reason SFC has /is losing the fan base and just what can be done to reverse this trend , Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 LOL Well , you can blame the credit crunch , Rupert comming back , the appointment of JP and his crew , The ethos of playing youngsters , whatever the reason SFC has /is losing the fan base and just what can be done to reverse this trend , Never heard of a credit crunch only affecting one city.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Never heard of a credit crunch only affecting one city.... Alps .. that must mean then, that other more deeper reasons why we are losing the fans ... maybe it is just the weather:smt054 Surely it can't be any thing within the club Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Baz Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 It's quite simple to get the majority of the fans back. The board need to oust Lowe, scrap the failing dutch experiment & appointment Ian Dowie as manager. It least we would have some chance of staying in the championship. Do it now, before it's too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teamsaint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 rupes and the marketing team might learn a few lessons here http://www.trentonthunder.com/ about how to sell tickets and build relatioships with the "Customers". or we can carry on charging £24 to people who can just as easily look at the weather and/or our home record and decide to spend elsewhere. As the boss of the Thunder said today, its about stretching that buck to do a bit more. Wake up, rupes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilchards Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 It's quite simple to get the majority of the fans back. The board need to oust Lowe, scrap the failing dutch experiment & appointment Ian Dowie as manager. It least we would have some chance of staying in the championship. Do it now, before it's too late. Please, please do! It is not too late at all. What hurts me is whoever wants to take us over is taking too long because time is running out, Stop being selfish over a few pounds and do it know!!! ;-) Btw The reason why fans are staying away IMHO is because the pies are ****e now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krissyboy31 Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 We have NOT lost them, they are choosing not to go! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Getting rid of Pearson. I nearly didn't come back this season when I found out he had not been kept on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weston Super Saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Always the fans' fault. We really do have the worst fans in the world : roll : Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topcat Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Lowelife has driven away at least 5,000 off the gate. Why anyone denies this or is surprised by it is beyond understanding. They must be thick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Alps .. that must mean then, that other more deeper reasons why we are losing the fans ... maybe it is just the weather:smt054 Surely it can't be any thing within the club hehehe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 This report is very interesting though. For me, it is an unequivocal indication that the return of Lowe, or the results of his actions following his return, have seriously harmed the club's financial situation. Any luvvie wish to provide a counterargument ???????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Lowelife has driven away at least 5,000 off the gate. Why anyone denies this or is surprised by it is beyond understanding. They must be thick. Well you say that TC , but in our first season under Rupes in the fizzy pop league we had averages of over 23k , so there must be more than just ole Red face . 06/07 was 23k on average 07/08 21k average . It just goes to show that the pompus idea of the new Dutch experiment has turned more people away than just the thought of Rupes stearing the ship .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bridge too far Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 See what Sunderland is doing though: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/feb/07/sunderland-season-ticket-prices-niall-quinn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Well you say that TC , but in our first season under Rupes in the fizzy pop league we had averages of over 23k , so there must be more than just ole Red face . 06/07 was 23k on average 07/08 21k average . It just goes to show that the pompus idea of the new Dutch experiment has turned more people away than just the thought of Rupes stearing the ship .. No, because in our first season down we had the people who thought we would dominate every game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 It just goes to show that the pompus idea of the new Dutch experiment has turned more people away than just the thought of Rupes stearing the ship .. I would agree that it is a combination of a leadership team that alienates some in the fanbase, combined with disastrous perfromances which have come as a direct result of that same leadership team's decisions and strategy. People come on here and pontificate about the stayaways. Then others moan that protesting or boycotts might push us into administration (something I'm sure Lowe won't be shy in spinning). But this regime has overseen a huge drop in attendances and a massive drop in revenue and it is their actions that are the root cause of the problem. Thefalling attendances are merely symptons of a much bigger and wider problem. If you want to solve this problem you have to address the root cause of it, and stop attacking the symptons and obviously consequences that are a direct result of it. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 I would agree that it is a combination of a leadership team that alienates some in the fanbase, combined with disastrous perfromances which have come as a direct result of that same leadership team's decisions and strategy. People come on here and pontificate about the stayaways. Then others moan that protesting or boycotts might push us into administration (something I'm sure Lowe won't be shy in spinning). But this regime has overseen a huge drop in attendances and a massive drop in revenue and it is their actions that are the root cause of the problem. Thefalling attendances are merely symptons of a much bigger and wider problem. If you want to solve this problem you have to address the root cause of it, and stop attacking the symptons and obviously consequences that are a direct result of it. . Not rocket science, is it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 If you want to solve this problem you have to address the root cause of it, and stop attacking the symptons and obviously consequences that are a direct result of it. . UM what would you say is the root cause of this reduction in our gates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 UM what would you say is the root cause of this reduction in our gates Firslty, it has to be down to the Manager/Head Coach. And then probably just as important in our case (due to the dominating influence and strategy employed at our Club), it is to do with those making the day to day decisions and setting the environment in which that Manager/Head Coach has to work. IMHO that is the CEO. With us, those two are entwined in establishing and overseeing the current strategy that is failing us big time, and resulting directly in lost points on the pitch and lost pounds off it. I personally fail to see how just changing one of these will work. Ultimately success on the pitch will be the biggest driver of this CLub, and the current set up and have not achieved that (and with regards the CEO that problem goes back even further). However, I also think it is bigger than merely success on the pitch, and I think the current CEO will never be able to reunite and/or galvanise the Club, even in good times. He is too implicated in and tarnished by our recent history and is a divisive figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aintforever Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 I think Rupert has to understand that the lower you go down the league, the more the club will rely on the goodwill factor. In the Prem Lowe could treat the fans with as much disrespect as he wanted - it would make no diference, it's not the case in this league. Sacking a popular manager and force-feeding us his experiments has had an effect on attendances as much as the rubbish home form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eelpie Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Rupert blames fans for staying away shock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 If you want to solve this problem you have to address the root cause of it, and stop attacking the symptons and obviously consequences that are a direct result of it. . UM what would you say is the root cause of this reduction in our gatesThere are a number of reasons.The return of RL, terrible results at home, redundancies in the economy,some thinking that they are paying to watch the reserves!, an erosion of interest due to lack of success.If we have to win our last home game to stay up I expect the ground will be full again.The last home game of last season would have bolstered the averages of last season of course and would have lifted the average by about 500-1000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weston Saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 There is no doubt a "Lowe" factor accounting for the decline. That is a given. Last seasons performances will have also contributed. OK we had a massive gate for Sheff Utd at the last game of the season because fans were eager to have their final buzz for what was an important game. Perhaps the same fans that came back for the FA Cup Manchester United buzz. The biggest reason has to be out very poor home results. Arrest the decline and fans will start to come back. However some will have found something else to occupy their Saturday afternoons and some will never step back until Lowe is gone. Basically, start getting results at home and we can start to turn the corner. But if you blame to supporters you will lose them forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wayman Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 I feel that it is far more simplistic unless you really are a diehard fan. Would you still keep going to the same restaurant/bar that gave you poor food, bad service and were not interested in you as a customer? I held a season ticket for some 35 years and this season is the first time I have not renewed. I would rather play golf - in the rain!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wes Tender Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Well you say that TC , but in our first season under Rupes in the fizzy pop league we had averages of over 23k , so there must be more than just ole Red face . 06/07 was 23k on average 07/08 21k average . It just goes to show that the pompus idea of the new Dutch experiment has turned more people away than just the thought of Rupes stearing the ship .. It's really quite simple. In the first season there were high expectations that we would go straight back up. After a short spell with Redcrap, we had Burley in charge and many thought he knew what he was doing. In that season after, Lowe had gone and we were spending some money and at least keeping in touch with the play-offs. Having missed the play-offs, the following season started with fairly bright expectations that we could have another bash at it. But Burley proved to be more and more inept with his team selections and had not properly addressed the defence in all the time he was here. After the disasterous mini spell of Dodd and Gorman, the appointment of Pearson steadied the decline in numbers attending and a full house against Sheffield United indicated that with him as manager the attendances might well have gone up this season. Lowe's return in conjunction with the Quisling put paid to that. Immediately there were some who did not renew their STs, my two included. Initially the OS propaganda machine went into overdrive spinning the exciting football revolution that the double Dutch would herald, involving the exciting young stars who had risen through the Academy. For a while, it looked as if there might be something in it and attendances remained steady, but the sceptics who predicted that it would fail were proven right. With the lengthening number of games that ended in losses or draws at home, as it became clearer that Poortvliet was totally out of his depth and that paying Premiership prices to watch the youth team was a waste of money, numbers naturally declined. More recently, there have been serious numbers who have made a decision not to attend further until Lowe is gone. I'm pretty well in that position myself now. It isn't going to get better whilst he is here. No matter how many bleat that we should put these personal vendettas aside for the good of the club, it will be counter-argued that the sooner Lowe leaves the better for the club it will be. The way to ensure that he goes in the shortest space of time is a well planned and well observed mass boycott. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 However, I also think it is bigger than merely success on the pitch, and I think the current CEO will never be able to reunite and/or galvanise the Club, even in good times. He is too implicated in and tarnished by our recent history and is a divisive figure.That is very true and if we got a modicuj of success there would always be an underlying resentment.You oly have to look at the KD thread to see people are waiting in the background to then resurface to have a go. I myself never wanted Wilde and his bunch or LC for that matter and found their actions distasteful at times but I lived with it and went to watch Saints.Sadly the people against Lowe in the main cant bring themselves to do the same.I hope that he can leave with his head held high that he has helped keep us from administration and the team have stayed up. That is if the Wolves thing doesnt happen.......tongue in cheek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Pearson steadied the decline in numbers attending and a full house against Sheffield United indicated that with him as manager the attendances might well have gone up this season. .Wes that is nonsense.The fans were not there pre SU, they turned up to watch a train crash.I do not believe that NP would have got any bigger crowds to watch us if we had poor sets of results, and anyway if so you are saying the ones staying away now are hypocritical as we are told often that they are staying away due to Lowe in charge. NP no doubt would have got a better set of results at SMS but would he away? Wemay still have bene strugling , it is all opinions regarding him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 It's really quite simple. In the first season there were high expectations that we would go straight back up. After a short spell with Redcrap, we had Burley in charge and many thought he knew what he was doing. In that season after, Lowe had gone and we were spending some money and at least keeping in touch with the play-offs. Having missed the play-offs, the following season started with fairly bright expectations that we could have another bash at it. But Burley proved to be more and more inept with his team selections and had not properly addressed the defence in all the time he was here. After the disasterous mini spell of Dodd and Gorman, the appointment of Pearson steadied the decline in numbers attending and a full house against Sheffield United indicated that with him as manager the attendances might well have gone up this season. Lowe's return in conjunction with the Quisling put paid to that. Immediately there were some who did not renew their STs, my two included. Initially the OS propaganda machine went into overdrive spinning the exciting football revolution that the double Dutch would herald, involving the exciting young stars who had risen through the Academy. For a while, it looked as if there might be something in it and attendances remained steady, but the sceptics who predicted that it would fail were proven right. With the lengthening number of games that ended in losses or draws at home, as it became clearer that Poortvliet was totally out of his depth and that paying Premiership prices to watch the youth team was a waste of money, numbers naturally declined. More recently, there have been serious numbers who have made a decision not to attend further until Lowe is gone. I'm pretty well in that position myself now. It isn't going to get better whilst he is here. No matter how many bleat that we should put these personal vendettas aside for the good of the club, it will be counter-argued that the sooner Lowe leaves the better for the club it will be. The way to ensure that he goes in the shortest space of time is a well planned and well observed mass boycott. Good summary. And I agree with the final conclusion. Barclays and the rest of the board would have a well-deserved word with him........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulSaint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 If you continually sell the family silver and replace it with Tupperware you will end up with a chimps teaparty? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 I myself never wanted Wilde and his bunch or LC for that matter and found their actions distasteful at times but I lived with it and went to watch Saints.Sadly the people against Lowe in the main cant bring themselves to do the same. I think a small part of the problem with Lowe is deeper, longer and more heartfelt. His mistakes far outweigh those made by Crouch and Wilde, both in number and in magnitude. Throw in a real lack of empathy with fans, some very divisive comments and an air of arrogance and I think it is alot harder for some to accept him back. But of course the main reason people are against Lowe's continuing presence is the simple fact that his decision making has once again been shown to be appalling. I cannot sit back and just "watch" Saints, when what I see is a poor imitation, in so many ways, of the Club I started out supporting (which was in Div 2, so I'm no football snob). Lowe is at the root of all the current problems, so I find it impossible just to turn up and ignore all the other stuff that is going on, because ultimately all that other stuff impacts on what happens on the pitch on a Saturday afternoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 The fans were not there pre SU. On average, 5,000 more than we're getting this season were. And I have no doubt that with a degree of success and a spirit of unity, then even in this division I think this Club could easily pull in circa 25,000 crowds. I do not believe that NP would have got any bigger crowds to watch us if we had poor sets of results, Indeed, I'm sure that attendances would have been poor under any manager who had replicated Poortvliet's appalling record. BUT, although it is purely hypothetical, I really struggle to think of any other manager (maybe even Wigley:rolleyes:) who would have presided over such a disastrous start to a season. Pearson was no uber manager, but he was also not the pile of cacck that Poortvliet was. Additionally, I do wonder if a sense of unity would have been worthy of a couple of thousand on the gate, something Lowe and Poortvliet were never able to pull off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wes Tender Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Wes that is nonsense.The fans were not there pre SU, they turned up to watch a train crash.I do not believe that NP would have got any bigger crowds to watch us if we had poor sets of results, and anyway if so you are saying the ones staying away now are hypocritical as we are told often that they are staying away due to Lowe in charge. NP no doubt would have got a better set of results at SMS but would he away? Wemay still have bene strugling , it is all opinions regarding him. What is less arguable, is that we ended the season on a high with that win against Sheffield Unitied and it is a reasonable assumption that support for him would have continued to hold good with the optimism that he had brought. Undoubtedly the crowd numbers would have remained higher with Pearson there without Lowe back in charge. Even if Crouch as chairman had forced the savings on Pearson that Lowe did on Poortvliet, support would have remained stronger in my opinion, as Crouch would have had a higher moral standing to have called on the fans' support for Pearson and the team than Lowe had. Lowe had lost much moral high ground when he got us relegated and lost the rest when he dismissed Pearson. There are not many who reckon that Pearson would have gone about things in the same way as Poortvliet, even with the same finances. So as you say, it is pure conjecture to assess whether he would have been more unsucessful (or less unsuccessful )than JP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaintRobbie Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Reports say we have lost the most fans this year in the championship Can't put my finger on why this has happened !!!!!!!! http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/4108792.Saints__attendances_on_the_slide/ Lowe, Wilde, Dutch nonsense, kids, results... Lowe. LEAVE LOWE. LEAVE WOTTE. WILDE - DO SOMETHING CONSTRUCTIVE. CROUCH AND AN ENGLISH MANAGER WILL INCREASE ATTENDANCES. WILL GIVE HOPE. CAN STILL SAVE US FROM RELEGATION. LOWE/WOTTE = DOWN. FACT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
St Paul Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Facts are facts and in football these facts tell a story. Results let you know the strength of a team comapred to others, and attandences show how happy the paying public are with a particular team. In any other industry had the man in charge lost so many customers over such a short space of time, and be so out of line with the rest of the sector, he'd be called a failure and be facing the sack. How people can try and defend Lowe in the face of these figures is beyond me. Results are not good enough and we're losing supporters in their droves. The man at the top must take reponsability for that. Had we been averaging 30,000 and in the top 2, I'm sure Lowe and his supporters would be hailing his Chairmanship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Wes that is nonsense.The fans were not there pre SU, they turned up to watch a train crash.I do not believe that NP would have got any bigger crowds to watch us if we had poor sets of results, and anyway if so you are saying the ones staying away now are hypocritical as we are told often that they are staying away due to Lowe in charge. NP no doubt would have got a better set of results at SMS but would he away? Wemay still have bene strugling , it is all opinions regarding him. Christ, do you really believe some of the garbage you write ? I especially like the comparison of the Blades game and the comparison to a car crash. Has the thought ever occurred to you that whilst a large element of our fan base couldnt face turning up weekly to see shiite, they recognised the importance of winning and the danger of relegation, so found it in themselves to turn up and roar the team on ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 In any other industry had the man in charge lost so many customers over such a short space of time, and be so out of line with the rest of the sector, he'd be called a failure and be facing the sack. How people can try and defend Lowe in the face of these figures is beyond me. And that is the bottom line. Lowe runs the club like a business, so should be judged on results as would an other business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 On average, 5,000 more than we're getting this season were. And I have no doubt that with a degree of success and a spirit of unity, then even in this division I think this Club could easily pull in circa 25,000 crowds. Indeed, I'm sure that attendances would have been poor under any manager who had replicated Poortvliet's appalling record. BUT, although it is purely hypothetical, I really struggle to think of any other manager (maybe even Wigley:rolleyes:) who would have presided over such a disastrous start to a season. Pearson was no uber manager, but he was also not the pile of cacck that Poortvliet was. Additionally, I do wonder if a sense of unity would have been worthy of a couple of thousand on the gate, something Lowe and Poortvliet were never able to pull off. I am not argueing that is not necessarily the case but it is not all black and white that NP would have been any more successful, we might all believe that to be the case, but our away results are very credible there is no guarentee NP would have replicated those. Saying that the home form is appalling and he would have done better almost certainly and of course that would have transmited into better crowds,at first anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaintRobbie Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 And that is the bottom line. Lowe runs the club like a business, so should be judged on results as would an other business. and add the share price. He is a chairman of a plc who's #1 priority is thus to deliver a return to shareholders... 18p AND FALLING. Loser. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Christ, do you really believe some of the garbage you write ? I especially like the comparison of the Blades game and the comparison to a car crash. Has the thought ever occurred to you that whilst a large element of our fan base couldnt face turning up weekly to see shiite, they recognised the importance of winning and the danger of relegation, so found it in themselves to turn up and roar the team on ??? Well if it takes a must win game to get them off their ar### we are in the sh##. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Well if it takes a must win game to get them off their ar### we are in the sh##. Finally - the penny drops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Well if it takes a must win game to get them off their ar### we are in the sh##. There were still 5,000 more watching last season compared to this season. As soon as we dropped from the Premiership we lost 5,000+ of the fans who only come in the really good times (and very often to see who we were playing as much as watching Saints). This season, IMHO, we have lost the middle ground of supporters. Supporters who come if what is being dished up is honest, worthy of the price and is moderately successful (particularly at home). We're now down to our hard core and I worry that if things continue the way they are, then we may start losing a portion of these loyal, die hard supporters. Each of the above group of supporters are as worthy as each other and it's no good having a pop at them for not turning up, questioning their behaviour, motivation and habits are distinctly missing the point. They are who they are. Instead the question is simply why are they not turning up and what can be done to redress this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70's Mike Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 (edited) As i drove away from SMS on Tuesday night i thought why do i bother, saw my first game in 1960 during the 70's and early 80's saw virtually every game home and away AND the club belonged to the people of Southampton. Over the last 15 years, for lots of reasons, that has changed Sky money and life in general.Political correctness means you are not allowed to be proud of your city. In 97 the club was sold but not sold , we had virtually the same owners with 2 new ones, who by a trick of accountancy still owned the business , boosted THEIR own wealth but really added nothing in real terms to the clubs finances. Sky gave them money to run the business and they started a slow , i am sure it was not a policy, program of assuming they did not really need the fans or our money because we were always going to be loyal. By and large that was the case whilst we stayed in the top flight but relegation changed all of that, the errosion of fan loyalty was irreversible and still today they insult us with offers like "pay £70 extra for a game , even though you have already paid, and get a meal" BIG DEAL. We had 2 years where a sort of feel good factor returned problem was that Wilde and Crouch gave the impression of not being able to run a pi** up in a brewery. Rupert returned with a policy of playing Academy players to early and filling our ranks with loads of players on the off chance we got it right , a bit like the policy from 2003. We have won one home league game ALL SEASON, and that combined with the crap off the field for the last 11 years has led the club to the verge of destruction and the thing that really hurts most is THAT I HAVE NEARLY STOPPED CARING Edited 7 February, 2009 by 70's Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mole Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Lowe is costing this club thousands of pounds in lost gate receipts not to mention the extra security needed for matches. His very presence is crippling us financially. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemmel Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 Instead the question is simply why are they not turning up and what can be done to redress this? I had a season ticket for 30 years with the exception of one year, when my lad was born and for the last 4 years had 4 season tickets. I only renewed my sons this year due to the politics and ****ing contest that the shareholders were having amoungst themselves. My boycott didn't last long and have returned several times, because i needed my fix, but the one thing that has surprised me is that i have never had one bit of correspondence from the club to try and encourage me back. Surely their database can provide reports on fans that have had season tickets for x amount of years and suddenly stopped? I'm not saying it is the answer, but if they caught me on the right day with a letter saying how much the club needs the fans etc etc , then they might have some success. I left BT (phone contract) 8 years ago for NTL and still get letters thanking me for my previous custom and the deals they are doing if i were to go back to them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 It does seem that no matter what spin is put on the reasons why so many are not turning up , we generally come back to one issue and that is Rupert. There is no question I think , that RL is without doubt , the reason why so many have lost interest over the last 6 months , fallen out of loyalty , not bothered , or just lost interest in our club. Irrespective of team performance at home , there appears just person who controls the club from top to bottom and ALL of the daily running of the club is at his discretion. It is his prescence / influence into the daily running of the club , decisions he has made , comic performance at the AGM , the people who he takes into his circle for advice upon fotballing issues ( The other dutch Bloke ) If this general trend continues I cringe to think what our attendances next season will be or how many ST will be purchased. The O/S twilight zone machine makes the club even more amaturer , we have Wotte defending the low attendance because of the weather , the lack of support for the team , when is someone at the club realise that a lot of fans are sick and tired of the constant goings on from the CEO down to the 11 year old who has just signed on the books , as if that is going to cheer us all up in our last few remaing months in this league. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr saint Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 We had a nice bit of coverage on Football Focus a minute ago talking about falling attendances, protests, latest results/ the relegation battle and Lowe etc. Surprisingly apparently Lowe declined to talk to the BBC. ...And Lee Dixon thinks we need to bring more youth up through the ranks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwertySFC Posted 7 February, 2009 Author Share Posted 7 February, 2009 We had a nice bit of coverage on Football Focus a minute ago talking about falling attendances, protests, latest results/ the relegation battle and Lowe etc. Surprisingly apparently Lowe declined to talk to the BBC. ...And Lee Dixon thinks we need to bring more youth up through the ranks [/quote] Maybe thats why he's just a pundit , obviously has no clue about our situation what so ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldNick Posted 7 February, 2009 Share Posted 7 February, 2009 There were still 5,000 more watching last season compared to this season. As soon as we dropped from the Premiership we lost 5,000+ of the fans who only come in the really good times (and very often to see who we were playing as much as watching Saints). This season, IMHO, we have lost the middle ground of supporters. Supporters who come if what is being dished up is honest, worthy of the price and is moderately successful (particularly at home). We're now down to our hard core and I worry that if things continue the way they are, then we may start losing a portion of these loyal, die hard supporters. Each of the above group of supporters are as worthy as each other and it's no good having a pop at them for not turning up, questioning their behaviour, motivation and habits are distinctly missing the point. They are who they are. Instead the question is simply why are they not turning up and what can be done to redress this?In summary to get a large slice back we have to be in the PL or at least be successful. Whilst I am fully supportive of ridding the club of RL if there is a decent alternative it is clear that a lot of fans are not coming due to the success not RL. If LC returned tomorrow would the gates increase significantly? I fail to see they would, if he returned with a wealthy backer and the fans could see hope and an end to the nightmare a large amount would be reinvigoured and may return. If the people in the background who have talked a good game and said they were going to buy us out dont act in the next 2 weeks we will have to stay as we are as a new regime would not have time to make the changes to stave off the relegation. Dont forget Fulthorpe etc were kicking the tyres 3/4 's of the way through last season. Hardly decisive are they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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