Just a corrective to this thread and dozens like it in the last few months and also some regular posters who insist that you're better off going virtually anywhere other than the Amex for your football fix - nearly 3000 Albion fans were surveyed last month and Albion are in the top 2 or 3 clubs in the Premier League for a host of questions relating to the match day experience and overall they are second for match day experience out of the 20 clubs.
how welcome fans are made to feel upon entering the ground (2nd)
the matchday programme (3rd), announcements in the stadium (3rd),
Wi-Fi connectivity and mobile phone signal (2nd),
stadium cleanliness and toilet facilities (3rd),
quality and range of food and drink on offer (2nd).
provision of digital ticketing (1st)
performance of ticket office staff. (1st)
The family-friendly environment (2nd).
Stewards (2nd)
Reporting abuse and having it dealt with. (significantly more likely than other clubs)
Of course doesn't mean that thats the case for all fans and i'm sure it won't convince some regular NSC posters. But the idea that the match day experience is declining and thats what other fans think too is not borne out by the data.
I wasn't part of this survey but had I been I would probably have rated those factors which are relevant to me quite highly (although things like food / drink / wifi signal don't form part of my matchday experience, although fully accept that for others they do).
But for me they all pale into insignificance compared to the absolute misery of getting away from the stadium post-match which after the Wolves game before Christmas included being jammed in an hour-long queue whilst being splashed with piss as someone relieved themselves through the railings from the upper level of the ramp. I know the club have limited control over the trains and even less control over other people's sense of common decency, but frankly, the performance of the ticket office staff or the provision of digital ticketing wasn't at the forefront of my mind at this point. I understand we all have different tolerance thresholds regarding what we are prepared to put up with to watch our club but unless the travel part of the 'matchday experience' significantly improves, I can't see me hurrying back, no matter how good the announcements in the stadium are.