Ticket Chaos Tonight (the after)

[rauper]

Probably a combination of:

- Only having one ticket box open (instead of two)
- It being a cup game so even season ticket holders had to pick up tickets
- The win at Crewe probably brought in more last minute ticket sales than normal because a lot of people probably weren't going to bother

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

I love this club and have defended them before but being involved with the ticket collection tonight, it was a complete shambles.

Yes I arrived 20 odd minutes prior to kick off, because I have done this before without any hassle.

At 7.20-25 you could see no one was going to get in much before half time.

The q had easily 500 people in it, no one was managing the q or explaining what ticket office was doing what. People were getting angry the police and stewards did nothing. It was a dangerous situation.

Ken Brown got the gates open, mad rush in. Ken then had a pop at me and two others in the q for telling him what a shambles it was, he said they had no ideas of numbers?

Come on Ken sort it out, we won 4 0 tonight and I was well pissed off...In fact I cannot see that any of the fans in that q would be happy with the club right now.

 

[Kenhead]

I brought my ticket over 2 weeks ago

I saw all 4 goals tonight....

 

[Mendoza]

I know what happened today is a bit of a joke, especially as the same happened against Ipswich with the crowd half the size.

But what do fans seriously expect when they purchase a ticket that has been available for weeks, on the day of the game, and then turn up at the stadium 15 miuntes before kick off to collect it??

 

[ben andrews' girlfriend]

Blimey, imagine what's going to happen in 3 (pah!) years when falmer is finally built - I can't imagine the club are going to change their spots much before then

 

[Conkers]

This happened to a smaller bunch of us for the Ipswich game. Me and Djmiles were left waiting outside the ground and missed the first 15 minutes. Did we get an apology? Bollocks we did, in fact one of the people giving out the tickets actually demanded an apology FROM one of the fans picking up her tickets.
So those on Saturday BEWARE. This has happened two games in a row now and with a crowd of easily double expected on Saturday I would advise to get there nice and early.

 

[Bozza]

I know what happened today is a bit of a joke, especially as the same happened against Ipswich with the crowd half the size.

But what do fans seriously expect when they purchase a ticket that has been available for weeks, on the day of the game, and then turn up at the stadium 15 miuntes before kick off to collect it??

I'd expect a professional sporting organisation to know how many tickets have been sold, know how long on average it takes to serve a punter collecting said tickets and, having done the math, make arrangements to expedite collection.

Wallpaper pasting tables in the South Stand forecourt, or whatever it takes, but have the ability to get tickets in hand quickly.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

I turned up at 7pm to pick them up and I had to wait about 10 minutes. If everyone had done the same, then we would have had the same problem, albeit slightly earlier.

The ticket booths do no work. They have a metal gate in the middle and it is perfectly feasible to have three, four or five people manning a table and dishing the tickets out. We have had these problems so many times before, but they do not seem to learn from them. I would imagine that a lrelatively arge proportion of those that missed the first 15 minutes will not be back.

Not good enough.

 

[Zesh Rehman]

i got there at 7.15, didnt get in til 7.55, f***ing joke. the stewards were very rude and blamed the fans, pricks.

 

[goldstone]

Harty just called the problem a hiccup. Nonsense, it was a bloody shambles. There is just no excuse. We are fans who paid to see the game, arrived to pick up our tickets ( in my case 20 mins ahead of the game) and could not get into the ground until 15 mins after kick-off.

This football club is a business and this is no way to run an organisation.

First, there should have been sufficient straff to deal with the situation. No excuses.

Second, once the situation became clear and it was obvious that at least 500 fans would not get into the ground by 7.45, the kick-off should have been delayed by 15 mins.

Third, if that could not be done then the gates should have been opened at 7.40, not 8 o'clock to let people in without tickets. As I pointed out to a senior steward at 7.40, the people queuing had all purchased tickets, there was no issue with seats as the crowd was a small one, and why not just open the gates. It took until fifteen minutes AFTER kick-off to make this decision.

Someone senior should have been summoned to the ticket booths at least ten minutes before kick-off to make a management decision on how to deal with the problem.

The way this was handled shows a complete disregard for the loyal fans who pay good money to watch the team.

It was good that an apology was made over the PA at half-time, but the situation has to be resolved immediately and before saturday. Distributing tickets is not rocket science.

 

[Basil Fawlty]

We brought our tickets two weeks ago. It aint that bloody hard, to go to Queens Road and pick a ticket up from the shop! Yes tonight was a shambles, by the sounds of it. But common sense, would prevail over this.......

 

[MORTY]

I know what happened today is a bit of a joke, especially as the same happened against Ipswich with the crowd half the size.

But what do fans seriously expect when they purchase a ticket that has been available for weeks, on the day of the game, and then turn up at the stadium 15 miuntes before kick off to collect it??

In all fairness, I was at the ground at around 7.10pm and the queue was shambolic. I've arrived many a time with 10 minutes to go with crowds twice the size and had no problem in collecting my ticket.

So in answer to your question, I seriously expect to be able to collect my ticket and watch the entire game I have paid to watch, even if I am a bad fan for turning up only 35 minutes before the game.

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

I know what happened today is a bit of a joke, especially as the same happened against Ipswich with the crowd half the size.

But what do fans seriously expect when they purchase a ticket that has been available for weeks, on the day of the game, and then turn up at the stadium 15 miuntes before kick off to collect it??

I expect more than one window open for what appeared to be over 500 tickets. Even more I expect some basic organisation i.e Stewards and Police explaing what is going on.

A decision was made to let hundreds of fans into the game nearly 15 minutes after kick off, I expect someone to have the common sense to make this earlier.

I expect a ticket system that tells me to arrive 45 minutes early if that is what is required. I love this club and I do not want them to be fined for allowing fans in without tickets or have a cliam for injury when somone is crushed in a surge.

500 plus fans all made angry before and during a game is not what I expect from a club in touch with its core fanbase.

 

[Da Man Clay]

We brought our tickets two weeks ago. It aint that bloody hard, to go to Queens Road and A 40 minute wait is a total joke.pick a ticket up from the shop! Yes tonight was a shambles, by the sounds of it. But common sense, would prevail over this.......

Not if you have a life it doesn't, Kev. I work in Lewes and live in Worthing so bit of a treck into Brighton for no reason other than incompetent staff at the ground. Not when we are encouraged to by on-line and use the collection points. Shouldn't take much work to get it right.

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

I'd expect a professional sporting organisation to know how many tickets have been sold, know how long on average it takes to serve a punter collecting said tickets and, having done the math, make arrangements to expedite collection.

Wallpaper pasting tables in the South Stand forecourt, or whatever it takes, but have the ability to get tickets in hand quickly.

Is the correct answer.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

We brought our tickets two weeks ago. It aint that bloody hard, to go to Queens Road and pick a ticket up from the shop! Yes tonight was a shambles, by the sounds of it. But common sense, would prevail over this.......

The club offer a service to sell tickets up to 30 minutes before kick off, so they need to be capable of distributing tickets that need to be picked up, in good time. No excuses.

 

[goldstone]

I know what happened today is a bit of a joke, especially as the same happened against Ipswich with the crowd half the size.

But what do fans seriously expect when they purchase a ticket that has been available for weeks, on the day of the game, and then turn up at the stadium 15 miuntes before kick off to collect it??

I hope you are not serious.

As a fan I expect to be able to turn up at the ground within a reasonable time before kick-off and be able to collect my ticket and watch the game. I'm a CUSTOMER. I have paid the club money to watch the game. It's up to the club to organise a way to get my ticket to me efficiently.

Are you suggesting that the club should tell fans who make a late decision to go to a game that they do not want their business?