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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 15:23:01 GMT
The business plan is sound apart from doubling the attendance with a better match day experience. Pie in the sky in my opinion. This is the problem in a nutshell. You could suggest that 'investment' is the key, because 'if you build it they will come'. And this is what I used to preach. But the sad fact is that, although we attract more fans if we are doing well, and, over time, the average gate has actually increased, that increase is always a lot smaller than we hope. Why this is I don't know, given the town's rapid population increase of recent years, the stadium's close proximity to town, etc. But that, sadly, is the fact - we just don't get the average, every-day support you would think we should do. Maybe Maidstone/Kent just isn't that much of football supporting place - or maybe it's too easy to get to London to support the bigger clubs? Who knows, but experience has shown that we grow our average gates quite slowly, even with promotion seasons, or playing in a higher league. We'll get the odd 3,000+ or even sell out every now and again, but the average attendance - the thing that matters because it is our regular income generator - grows stubbornly slowly. If you look at other non-league clubs who are now in the EFL, they have grown their regular fan base and gates, but they have done it very slowly, and their gates are usually still low compared to the original EFL clubs playing at the same level. There are exceptions to this rule, but they are very few and there tends to be special reasons (Wimbledon probably being the best example). You get an initial boost in the average gate when moving up a division/league, but it tends not to keep growing, and it doesn't really provide a game-changing increase in revenue - especially when the higher costs of going up a level are taken into account. If only we could get some of the thousands who will turn out for a big FAC day to come down to JWW just because we're playing a 'big' club or are playing in a higher division. If someone could crack that conundrum, we really could go places... I don't think you can compare clubs like Sutton Barrow Harrogate Forest green or Salford to Maidstone. Kent is a massively populated county with only one shitty club and Maidstone has a current population of 130.000. Build it and they will come because there is no way we have reach our potential yet nowhere near however you can say that about the others mentioned .
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 14:25:58 GMT
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 14:21:16 GMT
The sheer potential of the club! The club currently has 2000 very loyal fans attending every week. But I honestly believe by constructing a 700 seated stand along the river side with a dedicated family section plus a Genco type stand replacing the dreadful town end shed it would likely almost double home crowds because the match day experience would so much better and safer for everyone especially those with families. The extra revenue created could be directed into the playing budget easily substaning a national league side and again increasing interest in the town of 130.000 people. Just look at the thousands of so called plastics like myself who could easily be persuaded not to travel to London with their kids every Saturday. Speculate to Accumulate because we could be so much bigger. The business plan is sound apart from doubling the attendance with a better match day experience. Pie in the sky in my opinion. As a cab driver I talk to the people of Maidstone all the time and believe me poor views and safety is the biggest reason families people choose London clubs instead the biggest reason for everyone else is the lack of ambition.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 9:57:33 GMT
I think most will always be grateful to the current owners for bringing the Stones home as we are to PBB for reforming the club. But Imho the solution is now the problem with the lack of funds always holding back the club because I honestly believe we should be close to the EFL by now. As far as this amazing FA cup run the real credit must go our amazing coaching staff who have worked wonders with the group of players who have been unbelievable! "I honestly believe we should be close to the EFL by now" What is this based upon? Just out of interest? The sheer potential of the club! The club currently has 2000 very loyal fans attending every week. But I honestly believe by constructing a 700 seated stand along the river side with a dedicated family section plus a Genco type stand replacing the dreadful town end shed it would likely almost double home crowds because the match day experience would so much better and safer for everyone especially those with families. The extra revenue created could be directed into the playing budget easily substaning a national league side and again increasing interest in the town of 130.000 people. Just look at the thousands of so called plastics like myself who could easily be persuaded not to travel to London with their kids every Saturday. Speculate to Accumulate because we could be so much bigger.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 8:10:11 GMT
I honestly believe new owners with new investment can't come soon enough! On what basis do you say that? They haven't been perfect (the Hak relegation season, Jay's sacking, etc) but it will take a lot more than that for the average fan to forget how grateful we are to them. I'd much rather have a team in the NS play-offs and the FAC 5th round, and a superb stadium - even with a few problems - rather than the alternative. I think most will always be grateful to the current owners for bringing the Stones home as we are to PBB for reforming the club. But Imho the solution is now the problem with the lack of funds always holding back the club because I honestly believe we should be close to the EFL by now. As far as this amazing FA cup run the real credit must go our amazing coaching staff who have worked wonders with the group of players who have been unbelievable!
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 6, 2024 8:08:57 GMT
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 20:32:25 GMT
I honestly believe new owners with new investment can't come soon enough!
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 17:40:12 GMT
I would imagine Yeovil fans are useless that as an excuse for their disgusting behaviour!
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 15:10:50 GMT
A safe family area with good sight lines sounds like a great idea but i am sure many tell me why it can't logistically or Financially be done.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 14:18:35 GMT
Why would a dad want to bring his children along with no seats available in the stand poor views in the town end and along the sides and crowd trouble and crushes in the Genco?
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 10:20:01 GMT
Agree with most of that especially the improved searching because once someone is in the ground ejecting them becomes really problematic. Some off them lads were proper units so removing them is likely to cause a big problem. You simply can't have two volatile sets of fans 12 feet apart unless it's an all seated area it's a obvious problem that should have been seen because Yeovil have history!
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 10:01:36 GMT
We largely live in a reactive society. Speed cameras and lower speed limits only get put on roads after someone is killed. Health and safety regulations are developed as a result of someone getting hurt because they did something stupid, and/or someone else got careless. The simple fact is that building the Genco to take both home and away supporters alongside each other was flawed from the outset because the tribal nature of football means there will always be an element who wants to take it to extremes. The human animal is fundamentally still territorial and happy to start a fight with it's neighbour, which is why we still have wars, violent crimes etc. There are some things that should not be left to chance and the Genco is one of them. The club either spends increasing amounts of money on police, stewarding and fines, or it invests in a long term solution. Arguably, they now have the money to do that. Move the portable buildings behind the Genco to under the Town End and securely fence or wall off a route for away support to use the turnstiles by the riverside to access the Town End. Add seating for away fans along the Town End half of the riverside, along with a couple more turnstiles in that area. Similarly, add a couple of new turnstiles at the Genco End, so it is just for home fans so we have access along the opposite of the ground to away fans. Create an empty, neutral area under the new gantry and scoreboard, with just the team 'dug outs' in that space to ensure opposing supporters can't get near each other during a game. The club cannot control what goes on outside the ground, but has a responsibility to all fans to ensure we are safe inside it. Doing nothing should not be an option. Shared Stands are always problematic unless they are all seated.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 5, 2024 9:56:21 GMT
Most wouldn't have a clue who these people were. But something needs to be done because both sets of fans are to close IMO and unless the situation is addressed the local authoritie will stop the Genco being shared by both sets of fans like the Kent cup match.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 4, 2024 13:40:35 GMT
We can’t have 2000 home fans using the north turnstiles. Giving away fans the town end isn’t the answer. Just don’t sell tickets to away fans of clubs that consistently cause trouble and give life bans to the f**king brain dead morons at our club who cause trouble. I don't understand why the carpark is a bigger flash point then outside the library. The fact as far as I can see is the opposing fans are far too close inside the ground so you either give the whole stand to away fans or you move them. Doing nothing can't be a option because someone will inevitably be badly hurt soon.
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Post by Loftus Road Stone. on Feb 4, 2024 7:06:07 GMT
Interesting - and a bit worrying. What would you have been allowed to do if you'd been with those stewards today trying to hold that idiot back? Would it make any difference if he had hit you - or tried to? Or if he had hit anyone else? And, if they had broken through the line of stewards and started fighting the Stones fans, would you be able to do more - or remove/arrest anyone? Are some aspects of violence considered different under the law if they're on private property? All I remember is that police used to be there to be handed trouble makers when they had been taken out when offences had been committed. It is rare for them to wade in. Most grounds including ours have good CCTV and filming and offenders can be identified and dealt with later. As someone pointed out earlier it can often inflame a situation trying to drag one or 2 people out Outside the ground is a different matter but the police have to consider several things. In London there are thousands of officers and at any Cat A game hundreds dedicated for the sole purpose of policing one match. A Maidstone game will have a very small number of officers who will also be part of the response team for the most of the county so they have so much more to deal with. Before retiring I worked in Lambeth and Southwark and we had a similar number of officers in those 2 boroughs to what the whole of Kent does There were some serious lumps in that away end who had been drinking all day. Who can honestly say they would go into that are are drag someone out?
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