Resentment towards new Falmer fans

[Dave the OAP]

The money paid by a fan who bowls up at Falmer for the 1st time is no different to the money of a fan who has been to every game for 20 years. There are only uberfans in their own minds. The more the merrier imo and I don't care if they were Chelsea/United or Palace fans before

Yes a few thousand have stuck by in good and bad times but you are still "just" fans and in the big new picture no more valuable than the new fans...but thanks for your support in the bad times and too bad you haven't got that seat with a name plaque on it that you were promised, but you're not REALLY suprised are you?

sacriledge

BURN THIS HEATHEN

 

[Bwian]

But as for not getting a ticket for the 1st match unless you are a STH, this is balderdash!

I think we would be very fortunate to sell 8000 ST's in our 1st year, maybe 10% more is we were in the championship. In the 30 years I have been a supporter, I dont we we have every sold this many.

I've supported the club even longer than you and agree that there were never that many STH at The Goldstone, mainly because there was never a need for one unless you wanted a seat. Watching The Albion these days is different and despite the shit hole that is Withdean we still sell over 4000 season tickets.

At Falmer there will be many lost fans coming back, demand for tickets will hopefully be higher than it has ever been so we should see considerably more than 8000. Everybody is going to want to sit in the best position available in the stadium and that should mean more season tickets. Bloody hell, if we can sell 4000 for Withdean after a couple of seasons of shite then Falmer should be well supported.

 

[Husty]

Ive no problem with it being filled with plastics and corporates, what the club needs to do though is introduce a loyalty scheme ASAP so that those who make the additional effort of attending cup games and away games get noticed, since it's also going to be tied into the current system I assume, it would be good to back date it so that people who have had a season ticket recently will be recognised above the corporates at the start. Simply having a
Platinum >> Gold >> Blue >> White & YS will not work when the corporates are 5000 strong and we have 6000 tickets.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Come one - come all. Exciting times ahead.

 

[Twinkle Toes]

But this is the Albion... it would have to be "where were you when we were good, then shit, then good again, then shit, etc. etc."

Which doesn't scan so well.

Good point.

Maybe we could do "I got piles at Withdean, I got piles at Withdean, la la la la.. " instead?

 

[DerbyGull]

This is interesting a some fans want the small town mentality and will resent the phoenix rising from the ashes.

Everything will change at Falmer

I don't want us to remain a small club. But people (me included) will miss the tightly knit small club feel. But onwards and upwards!

 

[Tooting Gull]

I'm not an uber fan by any stretch of the imagination but I have probably averaged 15-20 games a season at Withdean, suffering the cold, wind and rain along with the other 5K of hardcore fans.

Now I'm as enthusiastic as the next bloke about Falmer but I do find myself feeling a bit resentful towards all the 'fans' that are crawling out of the woodwork now the new stadium is only a year or so away. I realise that for Falmer and the club to be a success we need to be attracting gates of 15K+ along with all the corporate hospitality stuff. However at work yesterday the MD of one of the companies we supply was waxing lyrical about his purchase of two platinum tickets which he will have for life, and that he will be able to access exclusive bars and restaurants. When I asked him about this he told me that he has always been an Albion fan but had never attended a game a Withdean. I had to bite my tongue because it looks as though I'm not even guaranteed a ticket for the first match unless I buy a season ticket.

I hope we get big crowds, I hope all the corporate stuff helps to fund a decent team but I also hope the club doesn't forget all those that turned out week in week out at Withdean.

Man up and stop your whingeing. This is a new dawn/rebirth of the club, and the fact that it won't be anything like Withdean is a blessing.

In a pure value-for-money analysis, you cannot blame anyone for thinking that the best part of £25 plus all the add-ons for 90 minutes at Withdean, with it's generally shite football and terrible facilities, has been the worst value in the history of football. It's not surprising people that do go moan all the time, they're probably entitled. But it's even less surprising that others don't go, they know in tough times they can spend that money better.

But we don't want moaners at Falmer, we want 15,000 fired-up fans, including newbies and absentees, making it a fortress. So deal with it. The club should (and is) make some concession in the first year to existing Withdean STHs. After that, it's (largely, not totally) a bad memory, you'll be entitled to nothing special or extra for your hardship, and we move forward.

I find this sort of attitude pathetic. You wanted your 22,000-seater stadium. What did you want, just the same 5,000 people keeping it a quarter-full?

 

[andybaha]

I hope the stadium is full to busting week in and week out. I'm not one of those that think we are an exclusive club of just a few thousand, I don't want a badge and I hope I don't go on banging on about being 'at Withdean in the pissing rain on a Tuesday night in January' (although I can't promise I won't), but it just wound me up a bit this guy telling me about how posh the restaurant would be at Falmer when he couldn't be arsed to turn up for the odd game at Withdean.

 

[DerbyGull]

There can be NO denying though, Albion ARE a sleeping giant. That's exactly why TB bought them, he knows.

 

[Icy Gull]

I hope the stadium is full to busting week in and week out. I'm not one of those that think we are an exclusive club of just a few thousand, I don't want a badge and I hope I don't go on banging on about being 'at Withdean in the pissing rain on a Tuesday night in January' (although I can't promise I won't), but it just wound me up a bit this guy telling me about how posh the restaurant would be at Falmer when he couldn't be arsed to turn up for the odd game at Withdean.

Ah but I was at Gillingham with a season ticket which was MUCH worse

 

[Bwian]

But we don't want moaners at Falmer,

I think you might be disappointed.

 

[bhaexpress]

Does it matter ? Get and many seats as possible filled, who cares whether they have been to Withdean or not ? Just be happy that you yourself know that you have slogged it out at Withdean.

 

[Napper]

When we moved to Withdean , I thought the same about all the Johny come latelys that turned up at Withdean that were no where at Gillingham....but.....things move on and get forgotten. It will be the same at Falmer

 

[The Large One]

The only thing I see in the original post that could lead to any resentment is the way the boss has smugly boasted of his membership of the Platinum Club while at the same time dismissing the Albion over the previous 13 or so years as if they didn't exist.

At least that's the way I am reading it and what I am inferring from it.

Aside from that - the more, the merrier at Falmer.

 

[Brovion]

When we moved to Withdean , I thought the same about all the Johny come latelys that turned up at Withdean that were no where at Gillingham....but.....things move on and get forgotten. It will be the same at Falmer

That's a good comparison and obviously you're entitled to your opinion - but I actually felt totally the opposite! I was really pleased that, being back in Brighton, it was going to be easier for people to come. I still remember seeing all the people in their blue and white shirts streaming along the London Road on the day of the Mansfield game and thinking how brilliant it was that we were well on the way back to being a proper football team again. (Yeah ok that last bit might have been a bit premature). I certainly didn't think: "f***ing glory-hunters, where were you lot at Gillingham?"

 

[Greyrun]

I know lots of Premier club fans who intend to watch the Albion as there second team many taking along there children who hopefully will become the future support, if people intend to give them a frosty reception by singing childish songs and taking a superior attitude there visits may be fleeting.

 

[strings]

Falmer will bring out lots of fans. My Dad hasn't attended regularly since the 70's although he took me to the odd game at the Goldstone when I was a kid. He is very much looking forward to attending regular matches at Falmer.

I would say we need to embrace these new fans and hold them to our collective bosom... who knows, if enough fans come our of the woodwork we might even need to apply to expand the stadium.

 

[Napper]

That's a good comparison and obviously you're entitled to your opinion - but I actually felt totally the opposite! I was really pleased that, being back in Brighton, it was going to be easier for people to come. I still remember seeing all the people in their blue and white shirts streaming along the London Road on the day of the Mansfield game and thinking how brilliant it was that we were well on the way back to being a proper football team again. (Yeah ok that last bit might have been a bit premature). I certainly didn't think: "f***ing glory-hunters, where were you lot at Gillingham?"

No i didn't think that either to be fair but it did cross my mind. Not a massive issue. Happy to see Falmer full, better than empty seats

 

[BLOCK F]

I'm not an uber fan by any stretch of the imagination but I have probably averaged 15-20 games a season at Withdean, suffering the cold, wind and rain along with the other 5K of hardcore fans.

Now I'm as enthusiastic as the next bloke about Falmer but I do find myself feeling a bit resentful towards all the 'fans' that are crawling out of the woodwork now the new stadium is only a year or so away. I realise that for Falmer and the club to be a success we need to be attracting gates of 15K+ along with all the corporate hospitality stuff. However at work yesterday the MD of one of the companies we supply was waxing lyrical about his purchase of two platinum tickets which he will have for life, and that he will be able to access exclusive bars and restaurants. When I asked him about this he told me that he has always been an Albion fan but had never attended a game a Withdean. I had to bite my tongue because it looks as though I'm not even guaranteed a ticket for the first match unless I buy a season ticket.

I hope we get big crowds, I hope all the corporate stuff helps to fund a decent team but I also hope the club doesn't forget all those that turned out week in week out at Withdean.

For Pete's sake get a grip!!We need all the fans we can get.A fan is a fan and there are numerous reasons why people don't get to as many games as they always have done in the past...myself included.
In times gone by,I not only had a season ticket but used to travel the length and breadth of the country following the team....through thick and thin.Would you rather have had 7000 hardcore fans at the Millenium Stadium in 2004 or the 33,000 or so that actually turned up?
Once Falmer is built,I shall be delighted to attend more matches and bring my son as well....he will be pleased to have a change from me banging on about the Goldstone Ground and the 'good old days'!!

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Yes. Badges are a great idea. That's one for Ask the Club...

The Uberfans should all be given a choice of a free NOBO shirt or blue and white striped shorts.