Is Falmer the answer to all our problems?

[Albion Rob]

Christ, everything will be fine. The club needs to go into PR overdrive to attract floating fans but more importantly keep the ones who go to the first five or 10 games at Falmer.

We have missed out in a big way when football has been on the up, as long as tickets are priced sensibly and are east for groups of five or 10 to get hold of evertything will be ok.

 

[perseus]

I think that is a good idea in principle, but cannot see it happening as its just too difficult to manage, plus if you start asking outside agencies to flog your tickets they will want a cut and how would the person selling at the station record who they are selling too ? That takes time and a dedicated expensive system.

It a spin that hasnt been thought through.

Falmer will be a great stadium, but only in a higher league, we never sold much more than 10,000 season tickets at the Goldstone and comparing us to Hull every 5 minutes is not a valid arguement, they have very little competition, loads of people I know from Goldstone days will not return unless we are in the premiership, its sad but I think in this division, at Falmer, after a few years we will do well to get more that 10,000 for games other than with the London clubs, and NOTHING anyone says on here will convince me otherwise.

I agree with you. It is a good is dea, but I can't see it happening anyway. But aren't the rail companies getting a cut anyrate, and they have a vested interest in getting people on trains (or is the latter is just a joke?)

The fact is there are lots of fans who will not go if there is hassle getting in.

The success and size of the crowds will depend on the details. The Withdean example does not bode well.

 

[The Large One]

The whole point is that we just don't know how many will come along to games at Falmer. All the pointers we are using to guess the attendances are based on criteria not really relevant to the nature of the project.

In 1991, Brighton & Hove Albion, even at the top end of the old Second Division were drawing poor gates for several reasons. At the time, only eight season after falling out of the top division, we were still considering ourselves a 'club in decline', run by unimaginative and dull people. The worry was that no-one seemed to want to come along a change direction. In all honesty, Archer was an accident waiting to happen. So the comparison between the Albion now and the Albion then is, while not unlinked, still fairly tenuous.

Since 1995, this has been a club in a pretty high state of turmoil, with interest coming not so much from the playing side, but certainly all the off-pitch activities.

People will come to Falmer (assuming we get it) for the first 12-18 months, if nothing else for the curiosity factor. It would be nice to have snug place we can call home, which we can dip in and out of when we feel like it, rather than having a mad scramble for hard-to-get tickets.

What we DO know is that, even though it was a one-off match in Cardiff, there fan-base is there. I believe the honeymoon period after the new stadium opening will see crowds in excess of 16-18,000 (depending on which division we are in), after that it's down to the club to tap it.

Believe it or not, the towns of Brighton and Hove, have gone through a fairly rapid transformation - through better PR and marketing - and are now one city. The Albion has caught on to the coat-tails of this, which makes the delay in the announcement of the stadium all the more galling. We KNOW the city deserves it.

 

[e77]

It is probably relevant that crowds have been up generally during the last 15 years and most clubs who build a new stadium tend to have an upsurge in attendance.

 

[Notters]

Yes, yes it is.

Great bounce

 

[terryberry1]

If only they knew then what we know now

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I know everyone is getting excited and I know that without a new ground we will surely slip down the leagues

BUT

Will it really solve everything?

At the moment poor performances and rubbish signings are put down to Falmer. "We dont have any money." "How can we get good players with no ground?" etc etc

When we get the new ground this will not be an issue so where will the excuses come from then if we do not do well?

Also, I cannot see us selling more then 15k for a long time because it will take time and substantial investment to build a team that people will want to come and watch and with this there will also be a rise in ticket prices? This could deter new fans once the excitement of the new stadium dies down.

Look at Sheffield Wednesday. A BIGGER club then Brighton with a nice stadium but get just over 20k each week. Leeds are a HUGE club and are getting by on gates in the low 20ks each game despite challenging at the top of the table with a good team.

I cannot see us getting more then 10k very often.

Also, our players are spurred on by playing in bigger grounds, getting good away support and having developed the 'us against the world' mentality.

A decent ground will mean teams are less bothered about coming to Withdean, we will get less away fans because many will simply opt to return to home games regularly and playing in the big grounds will not be such a novelty.

Many albion fans seem to think that Falmer is like a magic wand and as soon as it is built we will get crowds of 20,000 on a Tuesday for a game with Crewe and that suddenly we will be challenging for the play offs with a brilliant team.

Obviously I want the new ground for the long term future of the club but I do not think that it is the quick fix many seem to think...
I think a lot of Brighton fans expect

The new stadium has given us the level playing field we've missed for the past decade and a half. It's all we ever asked for. It's what we fought long and hard for.

Even a shit club like Reading can live the dream given that level playing field. We'll have massively failed if we don't easily surpass anything they ever did.

Transport links are going to suck forever, and the catering will never be able to cope, but heigh-ho, what can you do? Minor gripes in the grand scheme of things

 

[Slippery Seagull]

words fail me.......

......has anyone got any spare razor blades....

what the f**k is wrong with our lot. Why can't people just be happy we are doing ok for once?

 

[Diego Napier]

words fail me.......

......has anyone got any spare razor blades....

what the f**k is wrong with our lot. Why can't people just be happy we are doing ok for once?

check the dates of the posts before you apply the blades to your wrists & throat!

 

[Icy Gull]

Walt rather f***ed up with this prediction

 

[Slippery Seagull]

ahhhhhhh.....

words still fail me!

 

[Seagull Steve]

Ooops, epic fail Walt. But I bet you are glad you got this one wrong fella.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

If we just say £30 to get in

A very accurate prediction on matchday pricing from nearly 6 years ago.

 

[BRIGHT ON Q]

Ha,6 years ago and i'm happy with my reply.

 

[Albion Dan]

If ever there was proof that Richie Morris is full of sensationalist attention seeking shiiite...............

 

[Kazenga <3]

I know everyone is getting excited and I know that without a new ground we will surely slip down the leagues

BUT

Will it really solve everything?

At the moment poor performances and rubbish signings are put down to Falmer. "We dont have any money." "How can we get good players with no ground?" etc etc

When we get the new ground this will not be an issue so where will the excuses come from then if we do not do well?

Also, I cannot see us selling more then 15k for a long time because it will take time and substantial investment to build a team that people will want to come and watch and with this there will also be a rise in ticket prices? This could deter new fans once the excitement of the new stadium dies down.

Look at Sheffield Wednesday. A BIGGER club then Brighton with a nice stadium but get just over 20k each week. Leeds are a HUGE club and are getting by on gates in the low 20ks each game despite challenging at the top of the table with a good team.

I cannot see us getting more then 10k very often.

Also, our players are spurred on by playing in bigger grounds, getting good away support and having developed the 'us against the world' mentality.

A decent ground will mean teams are less bothered about coming to Withdean, we will get less away fans because many will simply opt to return to home games regularly and playing in the big grounds will not be such a novelty.

Many albion fans seem to think that Falmer is like a magic wand and as soon as it is built we will get crowds of 20,000 on a Tuesday for a game with Crewe and that suddenly we will be challenging for the play offs with a brilliant team.

Obviously I want the new ground for the long term future of the club but I do not think that it is the quick fix many seem to think...
I think a lot of Brighton fans expect

Bloody moaners.



MORONS the lot of you