We are still I'm afraid suffering the legacy of the Majeeds. We lost over 1000 from our average gate then and whilst we regained a fair chunk of them during the conference winning season and the FA Cup runs they hadn't developed into die-hard enough to stick with us now. And so when the performances dropped off so too did they.
The loss for years of the Junior Reds was also a handicap
We came into the conference with an average of around 1800...so in 15 years we've moved forward by approximately......0
very worrying that no advance on fan base. Its a Library. Where is Ross, the flags the singing. Its an embarressment currently. Oldham.had 200 a great sing song giant flag and Crawley barely clapped. Its truely awful atmosphere more atmosphere at a snooker tournament FFS! And you are right about Junior Reds it started well. Its the youngsters that are the future of this club. We must absolutely must do more to get them involved. Sadly with all the premier tv they are spoilt and Crawley are galaxys away from the quality the tv shows.
One of the reasons the singing and atmosphere dropped was because the people who made noise and atmosphere (people who had been going regularly since later 80s) were made to feel unwelcome and unwanted by the club. This happened when promotion to the football league was achieved.
These people were shunned by the club in favour of 'Jonny come latelys' who have now vanished.
The stupid ticket system don't help matters, have on nunerous times I have seen people walk away from the queue and have heard plenty of comments on how ridiculous it is. What's happened to the reds bar, every time I go in now after a game, half is cordoned off and last orders is rang after 15 minutes, you get the impression they don't want you in there
There are one of 2 ways we will achieve bigger crowds.
A- Success on the pitch, winning football, promotions, cup runs, good home results.
B- years of reaching out to young kids before their head is turned by Premier League football will eventually pay off in a generation or 2.
We had A for a few years and it was great fun, attendances went up to 3-4K regularly, but have now virtually halved.
Pricing, reds bar, catering, pre match entertainment, ground facilities, pre match kick etc. all have little impact. We used to give away hundreds of tickets every other game FFS...
There are one of 2 ways we will achieve bigger crowds.
A- Success on the pitch, winning football, promotions, cup runs, good home results.
B- years of reaching out to young kids before their head is turned by Premier League football will eventually pay off in a generation or 2.
We had A for a few years and it was great fun, attendances went up to 3-4K regularly, but have now virtually halved.
Pricing, reds bar, catering, pre match entertainment, ground facilities, pre match kick etc. all have little impact. We used to give away hundreds of tickets every other game FFS...
dont forget the devaluing of season ticket holders tickets!
We are still I'm afraid suffering the legacy of the Majeeds. We lost over 1000 from our average gate then and whilst we regained a fair chunk of them during the conference winning season and the FA Cup runs they hadn't developed into die-hard enough to stick with us now. And so when the performances dropped off so too did they.
The loss for years of the Junior Reds was also a handicap
We came into the conference with an average of around 1800...so in 15 years we've moved forward by approximately......0
So we haven't lost any then........glass half full.
We need to rectify the disconnect between players/club and fans.
Who are the people playing for the club? We don't see them anymore unless we pay a premium and go into the dining area we never see mom awards given out. Reds bar under utilised as half the time you go in and get asked to leave early. Kill two birds with one stone. Ask the players to join the fans in the bar. Alcohol ban on them though, make the mom presentation in Reds. At least then fans will pop in for a tipple which will help the club with an increase in match day revenue. Over time a connection will grow back which will lead to increases in attendances.
Get the players to help coaching at Thomas Bennett, Hazelwick, Oriol and St Wolf's...East Grinstead and Horsham schools too. You're more likely to go to a game if you know someone who's playing.
Mostly, play entertaining football. We're all smart enough to know that we ain't going to set the world alight every game but for gawds sake give it a go.
That’s a great idea about the schools. Has that ever been done before? When I was at school we were only in the Doctor Martens league but now we are in League 2 it will be much more exciting for the school kids. Preferably a player that will stay for more than one year at the club to visit though!
This is one thing that you will hardly ever get for a premier league club - access to communicate with the players !
Post by Red, Red & Red on Feb 12, 2019 18:50:53 GMT
I echo thoughts re Schools but go into other catchment areas to, Reigate, Billingshurt, Burgess Hill, Haywards Heath and so on we are supposed to be a West Sussex club after all (yes I know Reigate is in Surrey)
We are still I'm afraid suffering the legacy of the Majeeds. We lost over 1000 from our average gate then and whilst we regained a fair chunk of them during the conference winning season and the FA Cup runs they hadn't developed into die-hard enough to stick with us now. And so when the performances dropped off so too did they.
The loss for years of the Junior Reds was also a handicap
We came into the conference with an average of around 1800...so in 15 years we've moved forward by approximately......0
I agree about the Junior Reds but not sure I buy the Majeeds old chestnut. Unfortunately we never really built on our cup successes at a time when the Carrier Bags were at a low, we just drifted along. We just squeezed into League 1 on the last day, did well first season in League 1 (although sky high expectations meant fans were already very critical even at that!) but has just been a steady decline since then which to some extent means retaining the 1800 or so home regulars isn't that terrible (relatively speaking) bearing in mind the overall fare has been pretty poor with just the odd month or two of hope. What does worry me is Selim being so star struck, firstly by Kewell (how much of a privilege and how much I am learning from him"!!!) and from the forum seemingly getting into bed with the Carrier Bags. I know it isn't a view shared by all but I see it as a dangerous path to start down, wanting a formal tie up to get first choice of their kids. We are already swamped by their U23s and Womens teams and now it seems he wants to be their academy. Just erodes our identity in the eyes of youngsters and if it happens I for one would feel very much like giving up after over 60 years of watching.
Post by Red, Red & Red on Feb 13, 2019 13:26:13 GMT
I too dislike the bed shared with carrier bags but I must admit the pitch looks quite god suppose those women dont carve grass up like horses or grazing shee which helps. Not so long ago we had match after match called off due to the weather thepitch now is in excellent condition
Joe Comper made some telling comments at the forum about interactions with local schools, we are often viewed as unreliable & damaged goods.
I think the target demographic is young adolescents, they are after independence, identity & opportunities for peer bonding... if their young siblings see them having a good time, they will aspire to similar when they are older, it will be a badge of honour. Should increase the noise level too...!
Be nice if they did roll up, not to have us lot moaning about screaming kids, we were all young once.
Joe along with the marketing & community teams, do a much more difficult job than they are ever given credit for. We are lucky to have Joe, as he could make a fortune as a David Brent looky-likee.
Ps. I really like the slogan (think Matt Turner deserves credit) on the back of the Reds bus: "There is no substitute for live football", which differentiates us from the televised competition.
I too dislike the bed shared with carrier bags but I must admit the pitch looks quite god suppose those women dont carve grass up like horses or grazing shee which helps. Not so long ago we had match after match called off due to the weather thepitch now is in excellent condition
The pitch was decent last season and I am sure would have lasted well if we didn't have lots of extra games from Brighton teams playing on it.
I too dislike the bed shared with carrier bags but I must admit the pitch looks quite god suppose those women dont carve grass up like horses or grazing shee which helps. Not so long ago we had match after match called off due to the weather thepitch now is in excellent condition
The pitch was decent last season and I am sure would have lasted well if we didn't have lots of extra games from Brighton teams playing on it.
outside of the playing staff the clubs biggest expense is the stadium. Unfortunately it only creates revenue on 25 days - we need to maximise that revenue. As we can't seemingly increase the gates it needs to expand the number of days it is earning. That is why Brighton use the ground. It's simple really.
And I do think the loss of 1000 fans in our second season in the conference is still being felt - we can't be certain gates would have dwindled had we not taken such a massive hit. But in my view, we would have at least retained more of the 2400 average we got in the first conference season had we not had our history blighted by the Majeeds - it really is difficult to make some people comprehend just how damaging their tenure was
Joe Comper made some telling comments at the forum about interactions with local schools, we are often viewed as unreliable & damaged goods.
I think the target demographic is young adolescents, they are after independence, identity & opportunities for peer bonding... if their young siblings see them having a good time, they will aspire to similar when they are older, it will be a badge of honour. Should increase the noise level too...!
Be nice if they did roll up, not to have us lot moaning about screaming kids, we were all young once.
Joe along with the marketing & community teams, do a much more difficult job than they are ever given credit for. We are lucky to have Joe, as he could make a fortune as a David Brent looky-likee.
Ps. I really like the slogan (think Matt Turner deserves credit) on the back of the Reds bus: "There is no substitute for live football", which differentiates us from the televised competition.
is that a Joeke isnt he supposed be part of club swanning around match daze dont make comments start doing if you part of the club.