Attendances

[whitehavenRLforever]

Another very poor turnout today. Announced as 808. 888 on Wednesday. Thats about 1700 for 2 games. Terraces looked very sparce indeed.

I think Nigel Beatty needs to start working hard at getting fans through the gates. Obviously it helps with a winning side but he needs to start thinking of family tickets or even cut price admission.

Next home game Toulouse which is also an evening game. 1st "proper" game of the season too. Would be nice to attract nearer the 2000 mark but if its under a 1000 then if I were a club official I would be getting very worried.

[brett kinghams mullet]

[kiss the snake]

I agree it is certainly time to cut admission for a match and get everyone back on board support is dwindling lets nip it in the bud bnow 

[random2]

Maybe people just dont want it any more.......

What's the point of this reserve league with no real prize for winning, standing in a derelict stadium watching a few small town heroes get some cash for Gallachers later. People have got better things to do than they had years ago and watching that isn't at the top of the list anymore.

  Thought I might present the alternative view in order to create a more balanced discussion.

[kiss the snake]

Ye good call quite possibly but i think a drop in admissions for this northern rail might have upped the attendance therefore giving the team that bit extra ( possibly )

[Boxer]

there is some truth in the alternative entertainment argument..but the true reason is down to (1) Performence of the team and (2) the absence of any exitment factor.

People are reasonably knowledgable and they know the team is strugling and that we have lost a lot of qualkity over the last three years.  Unless people believe they are going to watch a team playing at the sharp end of the league they aint going to bother...like you say sky shows plenty of RL and footy so unless you are going to get some bang ofr your buck then people dont bother. 

Losing to Keighly and Batley has been a PR disaster really. 

[cbandg01]

[brett kinghams mullet]

[Boxer]

Agree reducing admission prices is a big mistake whether its 10 or 14 doesnt make any difference to the attendence in my book.  Its what happens on the field that gets the crowds in.

I have said a number of times and been lambasted on here but the circle of reduced income , poorer team , lower crowds , reduced income....  has griped us and its a difficult one to escape.  IMO the best we can hope for is we survive in the championship until the next SL licence they ship Widnes out and the Halifax / Barrow / Sheffield etc have a financial implosion becasue they dont have the income to support their playing rosters as it stand.

Probelm will be if we get relegated this year or next which may well happen.   

[random2]

I was talking to someone in Barrow the other day and 'Des' is telling friends he has been told Barrow are 100%, and then stressing the 100%,getting the SL place due to 'expansion' ( yeah cos RL hasnt been played here for 100 years has it?)

so lets be crap, get relegated and at least we can then dream of winning a league and getting promotion!

[Haven Lad]

In my eyes, the stadium plans should be last thing on the list, i agree that our ground is not exactly wembely but one of, if not the main reason we are planning a stadium is to apply for superduper league, but in order to apply we need a team capeable of winning things to tick the main box for SL, at the moment we arnt doing the business on the field and we are loosing attendances because of this. how silly would a new stadium look with 800 people inside and a team that was getting beat by the likes of keighley (no diss respect to them). I know funds are short but we need to find a couple of new players that are able to make an impact or as the weeks pass and we get turned over by the lesser teams in the league and the crowds stay around the 800 mark we will be worse off than ever before.

[Keith]

[haven94]

[njg4haven]

there is some truth in the alternative entertainment argument..but the true reason is down to (1) Performence of the team and (2) the absence of any exitment factor.

People are reasonably knowledgable and they know the team is struggling and that we have lost a lot of qualkity over the last three years. 

Sort of agree Boxer, most RL fans will appreciate that Ged has to try ( again) and match Barrow Fax etc with a squad of lesser quality than previous years, a job he does pretty well in my eyes, and I have never been critical of our coaching staff. I have faith that he and the squad will deliver the results in the league which hopefully will see us in a top 5 position again.

My main concern is off field stuff.
True - we are ( will always be) eternally gratful for the BOD getting us away from the recievership situation. This rightly had to be the focus, but it appears now that it is at the expense of the 'small basic things which matter in RL"   WE ARE NOT A FOOTBALL OR RUGBY UNION CLUB NOR DO WE WANT TO BECOME ONE.
There has always been a special off field atmosphere over the last few years at the Rec, and I hope we never lose it.

On Wednesday night, it hit me that off field, everything seems to smack of 'business only!! no speeches, no directors wishing to engage the fans. Ged at least redressed the balance last night with a well thought out and balanced address about the previous results and current squad.
When I tried to communicate some of my concerns to a new member of the commerical team last night, the reply was "you obviously know nothing about running this club. Maybe not but I did hear the concerns from people who were in the sponsoirs lounge. Maybe the BOD should have a 'fans' committe who can help in many ways with the match day experience

The place is not the welcoming, family atmosphere which won us the Community Club of the year in 2005. Others I know do agree with this as there was plenty of debate last night.
There are ex directors and players who could be given the 'match day experience' accountabilities to take care of. They used to in the past and very successfullly.

I also agree that the current pricing structure is affecting paying customers.
It is a difficult balance to strike, but again some 'commercial' thinking by our 'commercial director' must be a priority.

Us who have been going down to the 'rec' know, that once fans stop coming it is difficult to get them back.

anyway roll on the Townies.

[haven haven]

There has always been a special off field atmosphere over the last few years at the Rec, and I hope we never lose it.
think its already gone theres been no atmosphere (singing,chanting or much cheering) for a long time now and the recre roar is now but a murmer.