Waiting List

[crookie]

If there was that significant demand then we would open up the can of worms that is the stadium expansion debate and what quantifiable demand would justify structure change.

The cheapest way to increase capacity would undoubtedly be to introduce safe standing in the north at a 1.5/2 ratio, but they would need plenty of empty seats spare in the ground for people to potentially move out to.

Either way, we're very far from that right now but I do take your point about there being myriads of high-spenders joining the ranks for potential top tier football for which PB will want to capitalise.

I imagine if we go up matchday tickets will see a hefty hike

 

[The Maharajah of Sydney]

Or alternatively...,
Bypass Waiting List & collect £7.50 per hour.

 

[spanish flair]

Is withdean somehow the litmus test nowadays for the under 30s?

I don't blame any fan born in the late 80's to early 90's for not getting enthralled at supporting the albion while playing at an athletics track where I had a school sportsday the year before moving in.

Terrible place to watch the game where I myself did not hold a ST through most of it.

Ambition, potential and progress, which we now have in spades, goes a long way in picking up new fans. This is a GOOD thing and my commitment through the last 6-7 years at the Goldstone into priestfield does not make me resent ANYBODY joining up now.

I have no problem with anybody wanting season tickets and following the Albion, after all that was what a lot of us battled to do in the dark days, to see the club prosper again. But I for one, am a little p*ssed off with the statements and tone given from time to time by the club, towards the clubs customers. Delivered in the main by a man who would not be in the job if many of these fans had not battled to keep the club going not so long ago.

 

[Questions]

Oh how comical, answer my question where were they when we needed them.

So you and 2 and a half thousand fans did a round trip of 160 miles in the late 90's. Where were you at Charlton and Millwall and Brentford in the early seventies when we lucky to take 500. Gory hunter.

 

[Hamilton]

I can add to that being a season ticket holder at the Preistfield, when the couple of thousand fans who traveled to home games were considered by the club as true fans. How things have changed, I am now a customer who can easily and gladly be replaced by a JCL with plenty of money. I wonder how many of those Gillingham traveling fans are left today?

I am.


Sent from my iPhone in a non-Calde world :-(

 

[Nixonator]

I have no problem with anybody wanting season tickets and following the Albion, after all that was what a lot of us battled to do in the dark days, to see the club prosper again. But I for one, am a little p*ssed off with the statements and tone given from time to time by the club, towards the clubs customers. Delivered in the main by a man who would not be in the job if many of these fans had not battled to keep the club going not so long ago.

Don't you feel proud enough yourself without others having to pay homage to you? I grew up with the albion at the worst of times and I know I do. This is what we fought for is it not, to have a club for generations after us to follow?

I've heard PB speak many times and he has many times referred to what the fans did during that dark period, I doubt he fully appreciates exactly what went on but he is certainly not ignorant to all of it. His tone is that of a CEO at a fast progressing club, just embrace the good things about it.

 

[spanish flair]

So you and 2 and a half thousand fans did a round trip of 160 miles in the late 90's. Where were you at Charlton and Millwall and Brentford in the early seventies when we lucky to take 500. Gory hunter.

I think you need to check your dates as in the early seventies we were doing very well under Pat Saward and in fact having a promotion to the then old second division in 1971/1972 season

 

[drew]

So you would still have us playing in front of 6900 in a what was then a 23000 capacity stadium ... We have moved on and grown

I think you have totally missed the point I was making. I don't care whether they had a ticket at Withdean/Goldstone or even Priestfield what is important is that they are getting into supporting the team now. As I said in another post, everyone has to have started supporting the club at some point.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

I can add to that being a season ticket holder at the Preistfield, when the couple of thousand fans who traveled to home games were considered by the club as true fans. How things have changed, I am now a customer who can easily and gladly be replaced by a JCL with plenty of money. I wonder how many of those Gillingham traveling fans are left today?

Well I was one of the few back then too, but yes I know precisely what you mean.

 

[spanish flair]

Don't you feel proud enough yourself without others having to pay homage to you? I grew up with the albion at the worst of times and I know I do. This is what we fought for is it not, to have a club for generations after us to follow?

I've heard PB speak many times and he has many times referred to what the fans did during that dark period, I doubt he fully appreciates exactly what went on but he is certainly not ignorant to all of it. His tone is that of a CEO at a fast progressing club, just embrace the good things about it.

I don't want anyone to pay homage to me and I am very pleased to see the club on a high again. I suppose back then I never ever thought we would one day become a corporate club and push to become a prawn sandwich club.

 

[trueblue]

Delivered in the main by a man who would not be in the job if many of these fans had not battled to keep the club going not so long ago.

Who should be the Chief Executive of our club in your opinion? I'm genuinely interested. I don't really get most of the antipathy towards Paul Barber. He's running a big business and is never going to please everyone all of the time. I don't agree with his stance on the transfer of season tickets - that needs re-thinking (be more reasonable to the bereaved and allow transfers to immediate family members as a compromise). However, as far as I can make out he seems to do a pretty good job of the business side, which should also be important to all those who 'battled to keep the club going' because that's what will sustain the club long term. His willingness to have some 2-way communication with supporters is a vast deal better than would be expected at many clubs. Once we moved to the Amex, it was never going to be the same as Withdean or even a very different age at the Goldstone. Bigger crowds, less personal - I accept that as the inevitable price of success.

 

[neilbard]

Regardless of which division we are in next season, If I'm offered a season ticket, I will be purchasing one. Just changed job and now have Saturdays off for the first time in years.

Do we still play on Saturdays?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Who should be the Chief Executive of our club in your opinion? I'm genuinely interested. I don't really get most of the antipathy towards Paul Barber. He's running a big business and is never going to please everyone all of the time. I don't agree with his stance on the transfer of season tickets - that needs re-thinking (be more reasonable to the bereaved and allow transfers to immediate family members as a compromise). However, as far as I can make out he seems to do a pretty good job of the business side, which should also be important to all those who 'battled to keep the club going' because that's what will sustain the club long term. His willingness to have some 2-way communication with supporters is a vast deal better than would be expected at many clubs. Once we moved to the Amex, it was never going to be the same as Withdean or even a very different age at the Goldstone. Bigger crowds, less personal - I accept that as the inevitable price of success.

Barber's on a learning curve, same as the rest of the club and the pre-existing supporters, before we became customers. There's always going to be tensions now, with the Premier League cherry-pickers sniffing around. While the club keeps listening, or at least engaging in debate, through forums such as NSC, there's a sporting chance that instant hugely valuable feedback might help shape club policy in favour of the existing fans. Let's hope so, eh?

 

[crookie]

Barber's on a learning curve, same as the rest of the club and the pre-existing supporters, before we became customers. There's always going to be tensions now, with the Premier League cherry-pickers sniffing around. While the club keeps listening, or at least engaging in debate, through forums such as NSC, there's a sporting chance that instant hugely valuable feedback might help shape club policy in favour of the existing fans. Let's hope so, eh?

Indeed, and as we are fortunate enough to have a massive fan of the club as chairman, I struggle to envisage a scenario where genuine fans of this club become some kind of afterthought by those in charge.

 

[casbom]

Is there actual arguments on here around that we have too many fans or some fans are more important etc etc? Jeez I should imagine majority of clubs from the Championship down would love to have that problem!

 

[amexer]

Interesting reading. I know 2 West Ham and 1 Tottenham local supporters who are members not season ticket holders at there club are now on our waiting list. Each attends about 5/7 games at there clubs when tickets are available. The West Ham supporters have only watched West Ham at Amex and the Tottenham supporter has only been once. I have no issue with them on a waiting list. However under present system for example if my son I take loses interest, these people would get priority over me having option of taking my other son. I appreciate I can pretend I am still take first son but that is not the point.

 

[Moshe Gariani]

Interesting reading. I know 2 West Ham and 1 Tottenham local supporters who are members not season ticket holders at there club are now on our waiting list. Each attends about 5/7 games at there clubs when tickets are available. The West Ham supporters have only watched West Ham at Amex and the Tottenham supporter has only been once. I have no issue with them on a waiting list. However under present system for example if my son I take loses interest, these people would get priority over me having option of taking my other son. I appreciate I can pretend I am still take first son but that is not the point.

Many share these sort of thoughts. Others talk about all customers being equal.

I know which argument persuades me more.

With work avoidance strategies slowly ticking off today (might have to go and play snooker...) I'm going to return to a controversial point made above that I half addressed on the other thread yesterday....

It is my contention that we so far have no evidence whatsoever of any altruism or determination to do things "differently" on the part of Tony Bloom when it comes to pricing. He has spent £250m on his Albion hobby over the past 7 years or so in pretty much the same way that I have spent £15K on my Albion hobby over the same period. He has spent the amount required to buy what he wants and has done so at the level at which he can comfortably afford to spend his money. Incentives and reasonable value for fans have been present in order to fill The Amex over that time. However, prices of everything have also been gradually squeezed upwards over the years to the maximum levels that will maximise income in short and long term. There is no evidence that the logical conclusion of this combined with Premier League relative success would not be an Arsenal like approach with prices to match at The Amex.

I am not saying that I am not extremely happy about what he has done overall. I don't instinctively go for being "grateful" as that smacks a bit of forelock tugging but I am generally very happy about it all.

What I am not happy about is the price of tickets for fans who want to come and watch the Albion at The Amex. And I am also not happy about the way in which Paul Barber has such transparent disregard for fans who have been loyal to the Albion over many years/decades and puts so much emphasis on the completely equal value to the club of new customers interested only in the Premier League.

 

[1066familyman]

I have a friend who has been sharing a season ticket with another person. He has been going for the last five years, and can now afford to buy his own season ticket. His number is one thousand and something. I hope it's alright with you when he does get his own ticket.

There are 5K general sale tickets for every game as there are 22K season tickets, so I would imagine that plenty of those who are on the waiting list, will have seen a Brighton game before.

I make no apologies for this dull and boring reply, but it's better than 'I am a good fan/super fan/better than you, because I went to Gillingham/Withdean/ watched at the Goldstone ground.

I'm assuming that now we have a ST waiting list, with a fee, and in light of the clubs recent statement, ST sharing is now going to be clamped down on? ID checks at home games perhaps?

I'd imagine there's quite a few genuine fans that share a ST currently with a friend for a variety of reasons. Will the club seek to stop this practice wherever possible now (sharing has never been officially allowed but tolerated I suspect)?
If any fans around seats where there's obviously sharing going on complain, will the club investigate and take action against the ST holder?

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I'm assuming that now we have a ST waiting list, with a fee, and in light of the clubs recent statement, ST sharing is now going to be clamped down on? ID checks at home games perhaps?

I'd imagine there's quite a few genuine fans that share a ST currently with a friend for a variety of reasons. Will the club seek to stop this practice wherever possible now (sharing has never been officially allowed but tolerated I suspect)?
If any fans around seats where there's obviously sharing going on complain, will the club investigate and take action against the ST holder?

I don't know. Maybe they had the club's permission to share?

 

[BN9 BHA]

It's from the fast show I think, a posh Arsenal fan that knows nothing about football and is a bandwagoner

Correct, thanks. Lost on anyone that didn't watch the fast show.

There will always be bandwagoners. That's life.

I still haven't worked out how to post a YouTube video, the scetch would have been better than posting that photo.