[Albion] Club stopped a Boxing Day Spurs game

[Yes Chef]

The 8pm ko last season was a pain in the balls for a lot of people

 

[chaileyjem]

It’s a bit embarrassing that our Premier League and Europa League stadium can’t cope with a traditional Boxing Day fixture, isn’t it?

I think the club pushed back not because they couldn't cope. They've put alternative transport plans in place multiple times - if they have to because trains aren't running etc . They did so on Boxing Day just 2 years ago. They pushed back because it would be inconvenient for fans especially after the feedback and no -shows last time.

 

[Wozza]

Or, even better, lobby GTR to provide an adequate service on Boxing Day?

I was trying to be realistic.

 

[banjo]

And we will fight forever more because of Boxing Day……. Oh!!

 

[Bodian]

It's Spurs - so we'd better wait for VAR to verify this decision.

 

[dazzer6666]

Right decision bearing in mind the transport issues, but will miss not going.....but good chance to get to a local non league game.

 

[Terry Butcher Tribute Act]

I think the club pushed back not because they couldn't cope. They've put alternative transport plans in place multiple times - if they have to because trains aren't running etc . They did so on Boxing Day just 2 years ago. They pushed back because it would be inconvenient for fans especially after the feedback and no -shows last time.

It's great that the club have seemingly fought our corner here but let's not completely gloss over the bit where Naylor mentions it being a problem for staff to get there!

 

[Right Back]

The amount of moaning on here 2 years ago was huge and went on for weeks. With no trains not surprisingly the actual attendance was about 18,000. The evening on the 28th will mean a full house. All the time the trains don’t run it is much better that we don’t have a home Boxing Day game.

 

[Superphil]

It's my boys birthday on Boxing Day and football is/was always something we could do, otherwise options are pretty limited. Looks like we're back to 10 pin bowling, and trying to find somewhere half decent that's open for food.

Worthing v Eastbourne on Boxing Day, 3pm KO, blow the cobwebs away.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

The easiest answer is to not actually have ANY games on Boxing Day - that way players, staff and supporters can spend extra time with their families.

 

[dstanman]

An 12:30 or 8pm kick-off on boxing day is different to a 3pm in peple being able to get to and from the game. Hope this is not the end to a traditional boxing day home game

 

[Easy 10]

The easiest answer is to not actually have ANY games on Boxing Day - that way players, staff and supporters can spend extra time with their families.

Bollocks.
All supporters have a choice whether or not to go, and of any 'workforce' in the country I'd say footballers have just about the MOST time all year round to spend with their families. Aside from matchdays, they knock off before lunchtime throughout the working week.

Boxing Day is an embedded tradition in the UK football calendar. The fact that in our case the transport on that date is not fit for purpose is OUR problem (and yes, I quickly binned off any notion of attending that 8pm Brentford job - my choice). But to suggest that Boxing Day should be a blank day of fixtures for the country is misguided IMO. Its a great tradition, and long should it continue.

 

[Colonel Mustard]

Bollocks.
All supporters have a choice whether or not to go, and of any 'workforce' in the country I'd say footballers have just about the MOST time all year round to spend with their families. Aside from matchdays, they knock off before lunchtime throughout the working week.

Boxing Day is an embedded tradition in the UK football calendar. The fact that in our case the transport on that date is not fit for purpose is OUR problem (and yes, I quickly binned off any notion of attending that 8pm Brentford job - my choice). But to suggest that Boxing Day should be a blank day of fixtures for the country is misguided IMO. Its a great tradition, and long should it continue.

I’m not sure that people without a car who live outside the immediate area have much of a choice.

 

[tigertim68]

Boxing was always my favourite fixture of the season
Thursday night bloody awful , you think the transport will be any better ,
evening Matches at the Amex are a nightmare for transport

 

[bluenitsuj]

Good. Common sense

 

[Easy 10]

I’m not sure that people without a car who live outside the immediate area have much of a choice.

Sure. But my point in that reply was pushing back on the idea that Boxing Day should be a blank in the football calendar for all clubs, so that players, fans and staff could spend more time with their families, which is a nonsense.

IMO.

 

[albionalex]

So basically there is no point in us having a Boxing Day game at the Amex then. I'm still miffed about this, I have other commitments on the re-arranged date, will have to make do with catch up on Amazon. Thursday for a league game is a joke.

This. In future we should request an away game on Boxing Day.

 

[trueblue]

Pain in the neck. Boxing day spoilt and I can't go on the Thursday evening. I'd venture that for a lot of people an evening game with a 7.30 kick-off won't be much easier than the 26th would have been.

 

[chaileyjem]

I know its a tradition of sorts but its long since been parked because of tv schedules, promotion etc. - how many home Boxing Day games have Albion had in the last 15 years ?

 

[Zeberdi]

It’s a bit embarrassing that our Premier League and Europa League stadium can’t cope with a traditional Boxing Day fixture, isn’t it?

I absolutely loved traditional Christmas growing up in Brighton then off to a live Boxing Day match with my Dad - I often wished we’d retained the Christmas Day matches too but I guess the arrival of floodlights took the pressure off that. But that was me living in Brighton and when there never used to be a shutdown of rail transport either.

Now I live in Norfolk, the Boxing Day fixture was going to involve a 7 hour single journey on a National Express coach and cost me nearly £80 and that was one way - return meant 14hrs travelling altogether just to get to a home PL match with an open return costing £148. If, as I expect might be the case now, I would have be going from London, that would still have been a £140 round trip to Victoria coach station, a coach from there to Brighton and back to London £45 - just £140 on taxis alone (actually probably nearer £200 for a boxing Day surcharge). Now the date has been changed, it’s a few hours on the train from Norfolk direct to Brighton open return and quarter of the price - £56.

Not everyone has either the luxury of a car or live locally and for someone with severe health problems a 7 hour packed coach journey before going to the match would have been a real struggle.

It’s even more embarrassing that the train companies and staff refuse to serve the public on a public holiday, when they need to travel. It’s nothing to do with incompetence of the club or stadium staff.

Trains services always favour the working public/commuters - it’s their biggest revenue - that’s why those that don’t have cars (usually a lower demographic and often those with disabilities ) are treated appallingly when they need to visit family and friends by train at weekend/holiday periods - every conceivable railway works to be done is squeezed into those times so those effected have to use replacement buses - (which is fine if you are fit and healthy and don’t have a load of cases to carry or need to be somewhere on time)