[Albion] LoyaltyPointGate - discussion with the club

[Dick Head]

Ticket office in Sheffield That will sort the wheat from the chaff

I think you are being willfully obtuse.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Loyalty points are killing football, no more away games when you rock up thinking there will be a few hundred Albion and 3k turn up making it a day to remember for the right or wrong reasons. All becoming very sterile same faces at the games must start to get boring at some point.

Even before the PL top flight clubs operated voucher / ticket stub systems for away games - your nostalgia for rocking up can still be found in the lower leagues, but away games in top flight have been all ticket mostly for decades.

 

[Pretty Plnk Fairy]

if the team couldnt be botherd to turn up cant blame the rodneys with tickets to do the same
regards
DR

 

[Goldstone1976]

Possibly, and only possibly, it might be due to the fact that it was highlighted many times on NSC and elsewhere this time, whereas for Barnet it was merely a few throwaway comments.
Additionally nobody complained post match about being unable to purchase a ticket.

I don't think Barnet sold out did it ?

So everyone who wanted a ticket was able to get one officially without buying off twitter touts.

Both good points too. I retract the cash point.

However, I think I'm reacting partially to the tone of the message being delivered. Some of it comes across as a moral and ethical problem with people harvesting LP. Well, if it's partially (largely?) a moral and ethical issue, why was nothing done after Barnet? There's a dose of hypocrisy here, I feel. Not least because the failure to do anything after Barnet could be taken by some as implicit permission to do LP harvesting.

 

[Da Man Clay]

Yes. It is a fair system. Rewards seasons worth of loyalty.

I'm not one of those lucky enough either. It's fair enough - I haven't attended enough games the last few years.

 

[GJN1]

I don't dispute that. Fair play to them. But maybe they should have an allocation of tickets for each bracket of STH. At least everyone would have a chance of getting one then, albeit slim...

So, most loyalty points have highest number of tickets on sale, decreasing to the smallest allocation for those STHs with the fewest...

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Surely the problem is only that the club got the loyalty point allocation wrong for this tie. Consensus seems to be that both Leicester and Watford were sold out and well attended (despite one individual seemingly sitting on his own in an entire row at both games!!). In hindsight, the club should possibly have only offered a couple of points for this game. I don't know but I suspect the 650 that did go would still have gone. I also suspect the seemingly zillions of die hard fans that couldn't get a ticket would still not have gone (apart from the odd few). It was after all a reserve team fixture in the unwanted cup in which the club are obliged to enter and, at the second attempt, succeeded in getting knocked out.

The club know how many points fans have and over how long they have accrued them. I suspect there are very few that have only had a season for a couple of years as to be in the top bracket they would probably have had to have gone to most of the away games during those two years!

Very much this. If the ticket is very cheap it encourages people to do this. I think the club should dispense with loyalty points for cheap tickets on the premise the discounted entry is your bonus.

 

[Bold Seagull]

So what do you suggest? Most fans agree that the system is as fair as it can be. Those people with highest number of loyalty points - guess what? They were the ones who went to the far outposts of Preston, Blackburn etc when the Premier League was still a dream, they, above all others, deserve to be first in the pecking order.

Myself, [MENTION=36]Titanic[/MENTION] and a fair few others have all been saying the same thing - high demand games that don't get passed the first 2 tiers of points threshold should not have a reward of loyalty points. All our big away games should be 0 points because the reward is your ticket. Points then awarded for those other games where demand is not so high. This would be fairer I think.

 

[Napper]

Loyalty needs to be rewarded but big fans base and certain situations should be considered.

Same scheme but just hold back 1,2,3,4 or 5% for general/member sale .

Otherwise closed shop until we go down again.

Shame a football man can't choose the scheme

 

[el punal]

I don't dispute that. Fair play to them. But maybe they should have an allocation of tickets for each bracket of STH. At least everyone would have a chance of getting one then, albeit slim...

And then you're back to square one again, as ST holders with the highest number of loyalty points will then be denied in favour of those with fewer points. It's never going to be perfect when, to use that well worn phrase, demand far exceeds supply. If, as you say, you're a season ticket holder surely you have a "bank" of 200 points and whatever you've accrued in going to away games in previous seasons? If that is the case then it won't necessarily be a closed shop as you call it, you should still be able to obtain away tickets for some of the away matches, even though they might not be top draw attractions.

 

[GJN1]

And then you're back to square one again, as ST holders with the highest number of loyalty points will then be denied in favour of those with fewer points. It's never going to be perfect when, to use that well worn phrase, demand far exceeds supply. If, as you say, you're a season ticket holder surely you have a "bank" of 200 points and whatever you've accrued in going to away games in previous seasons? If that is the case then it won't necessarily be a closed shop as you call it, you should still be able to obtain away tickets for some of the away matches, even though they might not be top draw attractions.

All valid points. Just miffed, that's all.

 

[Lush]

What is quite amusing is that I suspect the loyalty points system (points and prices) was designed with the help of Tony Bloom's high powered mathematical systems, which have proved unable to cope when you add the human nature factor. We are not numbers, we are free supporters!

 

[Gazwag]

ST holder for ages, been to a few away games but lacking enough loyalty points to get into the higher brackets when away tickets come on sale. So, the question is, how can I get away tickets (and therefore loyalty points) when they come on sale. Bit of a closed shop really, isn't it?

Go to away games that don't sell out to those in the higher brackets.

If you have been to STH for ages and been to a few away games, under the current system you should still be quite high up - or is few actually 1 or 2

 

[GJN1]

Go to away games that don't sell out to those in the higher brackets.

If you have been to STH for ages and been to a few away games, under the current system you should still be quite high up - or is few actually 1 or 2

Huddersfield it is then.

 

[soistes]

It does feel harsh in a way, but as others have said on here, it's hard to think of a fairer system. Personally, although I've been a season ticket holder for years and therefore have now acquired a good base level of points through that, that was a bit of a surprise, because it's a new system introduced this year. In the past I've tended to go to only a handful of away matches each season. However, following our coming very close to promotion two seasons ago, like many others I really felt that last season was going to be the season we succeeded in getting promotion - so I went to many more away matches last season than I'd ever done before - partly because of the feeling it was going to be an exciting season, especially towards the end, but partly also because I wanted to accumulate points for the Premier League season, if we were successful (I would stress that I actually went to every match I bought a ticket for). In the event this worked out doubly well for me, because I accumulated a good stash of points from the away matches last season, plus the unexpected bonus of getting credit for having had a season ticket since year 1 of the Amex. I know quite a few others in the same position - not 'super loyal' in the sense often discussed on here of going to most matches season after season, but fairly averagely loyal STHs, who had the foresight last season to top up with a few away points. So in that sense, I'm not sure I agree that it's a totally 'closed shop'.

 

[Official Old Man]

pps) anyone else took a picture to prove they were there last night?

Yep, Me. Felt an idiot but took a selfie in front of the team warming up to prove it was the Tuesday game.

 

[jamie the seagull]

Here we go another opportunity for the "we went to Rotherham on a Tuesday night" brigade to tell us that only they are the true fans.

 

[Is it PotG?]

Here we go another opportunity for the "we went to Rotherham on a Tuesday night" brigade to tell us that only they are the true fans.

I think the question was 'Should such attendees get any preference'?

 

[SeafordBHA]

Proportions of ticket allocations spit between brackets is even less fair. Someone with 250 points will then miss out to someone with 120? After they've clearly been a fan/followed away a lot longer than the person with 120 points. Ridiculous suggestion.

For any of those on here who have an Arsenal ticket, are you willing to give that up to someone who bought a Season Ticket this summer, just so they can see a 'prize game' and gain some points?!


This system is the fairest way, and you top up your points by going to the far away away games that are less in demand. You should be going to Barnet and Bournemouth cup games, the Huddersfield's, Burnley and Swansea to catch up with those that have been 'more loyal' than you in the past.

 

[Hotchilidog]

There is no perfect system and I think the one we have now is about as fair as it could be. The longer you have been a STH and the more away games you have been too the further up the list you go.

Over the last couple of seasons the Albion away follwoing would be around 500 midweek, 1000 or so for the longer trips on a saturday and then 3000+ for the more local/glamour games. If you are a STH and part of the first 500/1000 then you are pretty much guaranteed one of the 3000 tickets available for most of this seasons games. The club have done a good job looking after those people who have put the championship miles in, which is a good thing imo.

Given the demand for tickets this season people were always going to miss out but there is still room for those who have not been part of the regular away support in times past.