Barber on TV Deal.

[Geestar]

A few games a season are rearranged for TV....bit of a pain and bad luck but nothing too major

 

[Mancgull]

What a dreadful piece. I'm surprised the club put that out.

Really?! What is it about the benefits of the Sky deal to Div 1/ 2 teams that you think is poorly articulated? We were one of those teams until recently, and at that point needed every bit of Sky money to stay afloat. It's a difficult argument, but much better that Barber puts his point across than to stay quiet.

 

[8ace]

Where are the club lickers on this thread - chaileyjem and studio150

 

[El Presidente]

It's further evidence of football becoming less of a sport and more of a business.

I understand PB's position and think he does a very professional role at the club, but it would be good if the Albion could make a bit more effort for those fans whose support is impacted by all these changes.

Last Saturday I attended a school reunion in Brighton. We all started school in 1974 together. Many still live in Brighton but many had travelled hundreds of miles. It was arranged for 6pm to allow people to see the Albion at the Amex and then meet up at school. A few of us had also agreed to run the Brighton half marathon Sunday morning as a wry reminder of being driven by a teacher in a minibus miles from school and being made to run back as part of games lessons.

The decision by Sky to change the match day and time messed up what should have been the perfect weekend.

TV isn't going away and will dictate more and more in terms of fixtures. Compliant owners in the Premier League will prostitute their clubs for the ever increasing riches that this brings. 39th Games overseas? Restrictions and changes to promotion and relegation? Overseas franchises? Guaranteed places in the Chumpions League? It's now a matter of 'when' and not 'if' as the new breed of owner sees potential exponential returns on their investments in the top flight.

Some clubs, such as Stoke, do realise their place in the community. No ticket price rises for eight years since they were promoted to the Premier League, free away travel to league matches. When a bunch of Stoke fans were prevented from attending a match by the police who locked them in a pub one Saturday afternoon using trumped up excuses the football club paid for legal support for the fans.

If we go up will the Albion act in a similar manner? Surely the least they could have done for the Forest match is put on some free coaches? I appreciate it would only affect a minority of those attending but at least it would be showing some appreciation of what we go through.

Last season I attended 14 home fixtures and paid £950 to sponsor Paddy McCourt's kit. This year I've attended the Amex twice, partly due to the changes to kick off times, and declined the opportunity to pay £1,250 for kit sponsorship as to me it didn't seem good value.

As fans we can be hypocrites , as we want the club to sign better players, who inevitably cost money, without that extra money coming too much from our pockets. But at the same time a little more TLC from the club could generate a lot more goodwill.

I SHOULD be excited about what is a superb season on the pitch to date, but there's a nagging feeling that's gnawing away at me in terms of my love of all things Albion. It's not necessarily a fault of the club, just a general disillusionment with the game as a whole.

 

[Dirk Lehmann's Python]

Barber must have been looking for the opportunity during this flying run to come across a total arrogant ****wit who hasn't got a clue what it means to be a normal supporter.

 

[Hampster Gull]

Who advised him to do that?! What a pile of s*#t. Little or no new insight to the debate, delivered in a dry and clunky way. Very unimpressive

 

[Prince Monolulu]

Maybe some of the views expressed in this thread

https://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?334547-I-want-the-glory-of-promotion-but-am-indifferent-to-playing-in-the-Prem

have been highlighted.

 

[studio150]

Where are the club lickers on this thread - chaileyjem and studio150

Im here alive and well, and have already posted on this thread.


However to make your evening I found Paul Barber's comments to be an interesting read and reflective of the real world. I know that lots have picked up on the consideration is made of the travelling arrangements of fans, but I think you are only looking at this from a narrow viewpoint of where you as a travelling away fan have lost your rail ticket money. I would see these comments as mainly towards the overall supporter base whic would be attending the game, so that if an Albion home game was chosen and there was a desire to move to the Sunday, but Southern had engineering works on the Brighton to Lewes line it may mean that for the additional pressure this would bring onto the local buses, that this would be rejected and the game wouldnt be moved to the Suday but an alternative solution would be found.

the comments in the interview reflect those that have been posed on NSC by people who understand the modern football landscape rather than those that only look to travel by train who carry the greater risk of losing out if a game is moved, but that is their choice and no doubt they have calculated the risks of losing money against the savings made on other trips to still go down this route.

I think that while you have every right to question the club and Paul in particular as he is seen as the fan facing contact, I believe that he is doing a difficult job well and the club are lucky to have him.

If only the thumbs down had been reinstated on a permanent basis this could have been a record receiving post, but hey Im now off to watch the second half of the Middlesbrough game

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

There are some excellent posts on this thread. I feel quite depressed by what Paul Barber has written. I believe him to be an honorable fellow but at the same time whilst I understand his stance on sky and TV money, I do not feel that supporters up and down the country should be beholden to them. I wish that people would stop justifying TV money by stating that we can buy better players. If the market for players wages wasn't so hideously and grotesquely inflated by sky, their pay would be more reasonable. Secondly, in the past, England had some great home grown players. Liverpool, notts forest, Villa and even dirty Leeds to name a few, were successful in Europe with British and Irish players. Brighton enjoyed their most successful years in the 70's and early 80's with largely homegrown players. Did our football suffer? No, we cleaned up in the real European Cup and all the other competitions until some Italians goaded the Liverpool fans and that disaster in Belgium happened. Football was very much the peoples game. Forgetting hooliganism, which was not entirely football's fault, we were happy. Brighton's football was exciting and we were going places, no-one needed hundreds of millions like man city seemingly do to flunk the so called champions league. People say football will reach a tipping point, I think that time may well be upon us. Whatever Cellini's motivations, I feel for the Leeds fans, most of them just like you and I, wanting to watch their club play football at a reasonable time and on a reasonable date. The way things are going, the top teams will alienate most of their traditional fans and our premier league's grounds will be almost full of day trippers. Football is in such an unhealthy state.

 

[Mellor 3 Ward 4]

What a pile of s##t that is. Barber,IMO, gets lots of things right, but his answer to question 3 is an insult.

By all means be honest and tell us it's all about the money, but don't talk complete bo####ks

What games have we turned down for TV?

Is it worth £10k to have 800 fans at Forest rather than 2,500?

And how he can actually say the following beggars belief....(burnley and Forest spring to mind)

"However, competing clubs will always be consulted on a particular selection and, as part of the discussions that take place, we do consider the likely impact on travel arrangements for supporters should there be a change of date or time."

On this occasion he should have either been honest, and tell us it's all about the money, or said nothing.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

He really doesn't give a shit about supporters does he? That's a shocking article which if I didn't know better would think it came from Sky's PR.

 

[Lethargic]

Disappointed with that, the crux of the article - TV audience IS more important than real supporters get used to it.

 

[TWOCHOICEStom]

Didn't read anything on here before reading it. But I cannot believe that was put out. PB has done a stellar job of relating and justifying his actions to the fans thus far, but I literally couldn't read this piece to the end. The questions for a start... Who is asking them Not a journalist that's for sure. The club is asking him loaded questions with answers to suit. He's reverted to bloody 'PLR' responses and distanced himself from the fans. In a week with this crap being spouted by Stillitano it's even worse!

Really really disappointed with that. All of the had work he's done to stay on a level with us fans is in danger of being undone in one horrible, cliche, marketing-speak filled article.

 

[W.C.]

Some clubs, such as Stoke, do realise their place in the community. No ticket price rises for eight years since they were promoted to the Premier League, free away travel to league matches. When a bunch of Stoke fans were prevented from attending a match by the police who locked them in a pub one Saturday afternoon using trumped up excuses the football club paid for legal support for the fans.

Didn't know that. Good work Stoke, and in the long run, surely benefits the club?

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

Usual barber really, just the same as he has always been. Its his job to make money for the club, always has been, always will be, and laying on some free coaches or fighting for this game to stay on the weekend even if the kick-off time is changed, is clearly nowhere near his list of priorities.

NOWHERE in that article does he say he will fight for us, his fellow fans. He throws the words 'Our club' around all over the place, but he is not standing up for us, not fighting for us, at all.

 

[Hampster Gull]

NOWHERE in that article does he say he will fight for us, his fellow fans.

Indeed. He is no fan, he is a businessman, transitioning through. I hope he does a great job whilst he is here but he will be off sooner or later

 

[jamie the seagull]

"Each Championship club is guaranteed a minimum of two home league games to be broadcast live on TV"..

There should have been a maximum number of games for each club inserted in the contract (home&away)..

 

[drew]

"Each Championship club is guaranteed a minimum of two home league games to be broadcast live on TV"..

There should have been a maximum number of games for each club inserted in the contract (home&away)..

Wouldn't work as when the league starts to reach the climax, it's the better clubs (such as us) that they'll want to put the telly, not some contractual mid table meaningless end of season game. That is the reality.

 

[Dave the OAP]

Im here alive and well, and have already posted on this thread.


However to make your evening I found Paul Barber's comments to be an interesting read and reflective of the real world. I know that lots have picked up on the consideration is made of the travelling arrangements of fans, but I think you are only looking at this from a narrow viewpoint of where you as a travelling away fan have lost your rail ticket money. I would see these comments as mainly towards the overall supporter base whic would be attending the game, so that if an Albion home game was chosen and there was a desire to move to the Sunday, but Southern had engineering works on the Brighton to Lewes line it may mean that for the additional pressure this would bring onto the local buses, that this would be rejected and the game wouldnt be moved to the Suday but an alternative solution would be found.

the comments in the interview reflect those that have been posed on NSC by people who understand the modern football landscape rather than those that only look to travel by train who carry the greater risk of losing out if a game is moved, but that is their choice and no doubt they have calculated the risks of losing money against the savings made on other trips to still go down this route.

I think that while you have every right to question the club and Paul in particular as he is seen as the fan facing contact, I believe that he is doing a difficult job well and the club are lucky to have him.

If only the thumbs down had been reinstated on a permanent basis this could have been a record receiving post, but hey Im now off to watch the second half of the Middlesbrough game

Well that isn't patronising at all.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

What I don't understand is why Barber is repeatedly making this point about tv money. A brief single explanation I can understand even if I disagree. But, there was that lengthy piece he wrote on the club website. This was then recycled when he had the FL endorse it and reproduce it. Now this quite bizarre and clearly stage interview. What's is the point of all of this? Something doesn't seem right; no other club CEO blathers on so positively about tv.