Friendly (Training Sessions) Attendances

Disagree. Bristol City att was good given weather and we have no history with them. The cup with Exeter was, with respect to SD, meaningless and an expected crowd. Your other predictions, would be pleased w Reading figure, Cheltenham might be accurate, and Rovers game should attract more. Don't think admission has much influence tbh.

For no negative reason I couldn't really imagine last nights game ever getting a decent attendance.

However, what a dire game!

The Bristol City attendance was excellent considering the appalling weather.

The Exeter one was about 100 more than I expected.

If we get more than 200 for both of next week's it's not bad. A lot of people just don't do pre-season. Some find it a chore as there are other sports being played, holidays, the matches aren't competitive etc. Others are welcome to seeing any form of football again after the break. I haven't heard anyone at the matches complain about cost.

Can't see cost making one iota of difference.

I thought the Bristol attendance was fantastic. Given the number of frankly unimportant games over a few weeks I wouldn't be surprised at attendances around the 250 mark but would hope for more against rovers. Anything near the bristol city gate would be great.

Agree it was a dire game and one in which our lack of goalscoring options was again exposed. Lucas and Jarvis again looked completely out of their depth while the established strikers continued in their non-striking mode.

I hope Dan Ball's injury is not as serious as it looked. Finishing the game with no recognised centre halves was an intersting experiment.

Personally the more I see him there the less I like of Rigg in midfield. I think he is a good right back but completely disappears in midfield and for a right back Miles is a better left back.

But Cafer put in another good performance.

Dan Ball was ill I think. No injury was mentioned in the interview after.

I stopped analysing individual performances in these games around 11 years ago when Nat Pepperall looked like the next Messi and Lewis Hogg was distinctly average. Season started, Pepperall was hopeless, Hogg a hero. I can't judge how good our players are when they're having a runabout against ones that play at a far higher standard.

Completely agree with your other post, though.

Agree entirely with Junior's point about not judging players in these games. I made my once in 5 years appearance last night, hoping for a repeat of the excellent Plymouth game of a few summers back but was disappointed. Of the new faces, Straker stood out for me while Miles was his usual assured self.
Roll on Bognor...

I don't think anybody goes to friendly matches expecting scintillating performances. Most people just take the opportunity to see what our new signings look like and to catch up with other supporters they have not seen for a few months.

I suspect it is an age thing but there were a few moans regarding the " loud" music/noise that came on in the bar after the match. I was leaving after one drink anyway but I know a few others who decided they would go elsewhere for the remainder of the evening.

Mmmm well I wasn't wrong about Fleetwood. Let's hope I am wrong about the others. But I am encouraged by how Morgan is playing.

Dan Ball went for a challenge and immediately pulled up and asked to be taken off. Possibly he felt sick which would have resulted in the same reaction.

Peter Newman wrote:I don't think anybody goes to friendly matches expecting scintillating performances. Most people just take the opportunity to see what our new signings look like and to catch up with other supporters they have not seen for a few months.

I suspect it is an age thing but there were a few  moans regarding the " loud"  music/noise  that came on in the bar after the match. I was leaving after one drink anyway but I know a few others  who decided they would go elsewhere for the remainder of the evening.

I just enjoy friendlies as an opportunity to watch a game where there is no pressure, warm weather and I'm able to bask in unbridled optimism before reality (the season) kicks in.

Must admit I left at half time (first time ever) as had some paint drying I preferred to watch.

Think I'll take the Comrade approach with the rest of the friendlies this season.

Looking forward to first game proper......

Re my approach, I must point out that I'm not encouraging others to boycott these games! All money to the club...

I think what is for sure is that it's definitely worth getting Rovers and City to play friendlies if Tuesday's attendance is anything to go by. Local connections will inevitably increase attendance. Also from a personal point of view I like to see clubs that I've never seen play at Twerton before such as Partick Thistle last year. Exeter was something different because of the cup though think attendance would have been better if it were on a Saturday. Not bothered about Reading or Cheltenham. Price though is always a factor. £5 for friendlies seems adequate and although I tolerate the £13 league entrance fee, I think it's overpriced for this standard. I think it's more of a league rule than club decision though.

I will go to most of the friendlies (even taking my son to Yate for his birthday with a couple of mates....his idea, not mine!)
I'll be there tomorrow for the Reading match....my view is that I May get to see the next potential super-loan signing that Owers has in mind post Liam Kelly and Axel!

cbtroman wrote: Although I tolerate the £13 league entrance fee, I think it's overpriced for this standard. I think it's more of a league rule than club decision though.  

League minimum is £12, so we're £1 above that.

Here's the breakdown of adult admission charges for our league...

St Albans City £15
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Braintree Town £14
Dartford £14
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Bath City £13
Chelmsford City £13
Gloucester City (Evesham) £13
Truro City £13
Wealdstone £13
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Bognor Regis £12
Chippenham Town £12
Concord Rangers £12
East Thurrock £12
Eastbourne Borough £12
Hampton & Richmond £12
Havant & Waterlooville £12
Hemel Hempstead Town £12
Hungerford £12
Oxford City £12
Poole Town £12
Welling £12
Weston Super Mare £12
Whitehawk £12

I'm confused........pleased to meet you.
Tonight (Cheltenham), the main website says it's £8, but the match alert email says it's £6.
So, what is the admission price for adults tonight.

The match alert prices make more sense and those ought to have been offered for all games a lot earlier and might have encouraged a few more to go...too late now.

Like others have said I'm not sure £2 is going to make too much difference to the crowds for these games, people tend to either go to friendlies or they don't.

I wasn't there tonight and doubt I'll be at the Rovers game either because I just don't enjoy these games. The Exeter one last week was an exception for me purely because of who it was against but I can't say I begrudged £8, and my friend who supports Exeter who came to the game said he thought it was very reasonable.

It was £8 tonight which caused me problems as I had only just got enough money in my pocket having expected it to be 6.

Beau Nash wrote:

Predictions (could this be a new compo?):
READING U23s 234
CHELTENHAM TOWN 321
BRISTOL ROVERS 567[/color][/font]

Not your most accurate predictions

Beau nash i think you need a touch of reality. Firstly, these are friendly matches. There's nothing riding on them, even the SD cup, which even though its our Inaugural year as a supporter owned club it's still seen as a pre-season friendly. You will not get hundreds turn out for these games and the attendances are what is normal, take a look around at other games played this pre-season of our league rivals, you will see our attendances aren't half bad! When i saw the Bristol city attendance my eyebrows were raised i thought it was a very good attendance.

Secondly we are a small club! We are watched by crowds of less than 600 for league matches, so why would you assume we would get 1000+ to watch our pre-season games? I'm not taking anything away from the great efforts made by the supporters club to try to bring in new fans but we are where we are. I came to the Exeter game and was very impressed with the efforts to change the setup, the stalls in the car park were an excellent idea. When in the conference we still struggled to bring in over 1000+ and many of our attendances were boosted by away fans and not an increase in our own support.

As pressures on households and living standards in general continue to tighten then our task will not get any easier! Sorry if i seem negative but i think you need a dose of reality and take the rose tinted spectacles off.

With regard to the prices shown for all clubs do any of them charge a fee for seating - something that is available for no extra cost at Twerton.
Furthermore many other  clubs have fairly limited covered standing areas and often very little terracing. A crowd of 1000 or so at many conference south grounds would not allow a decent view of the play for many of the spectators, especially so on a wet day.

Actually, stowford press, I think that you are bing positive here and this thread brings about a point about the club now.

Previously, the supporters haven't been able to do much more than criticise on the terraces and on this forum. However, now the club is community-owned, there are much more direct and influential ways of addressing issues that we find important. Aside form becoming a member of the Supporters' Society and standing for the committee (which is easy to do), there are also various working groups not least 1000BC which is specifically aimed at marketing and publicity in order to increase attendances, matchday and non-matchday revenue.

While players, selections and formations will always be, quite rightly, the managers' and coaches responsibilities, there are many areas where it can be said that, instead of posting on this forum to no avail, you can get involved directly and, specifically, here.