12000+ empty seats at Falmer

[portlock seagull]

The point I was making was about the large number of coaches for HOME fans that you get outside those two clubs. If you'd been to both, you'd recognise that. For Norwich, it's the geography of Norfolk, for Celtic it's the Catholics coached in from all over the place.

But let's have it right and give them some credit, you could have the same number of buses coming to Brighton from all over Sussex. But you don't.

But that's more to do with the past 15 years, most of which we've been fighting to stay alive. Norwich, a club closer to my heart than most, are more of a regional team than we are. Or perhaps even could be. We are far "closer" to London in many respects, inc footballing competition.

 

[portlock seagull]

There needs to be Bha stands or shops in towns outside Brighton selling tickets & Albion gear. What marketing does the club do in worthing, eastbourne or haywards Heath? Nowt!

It's not just on the field of play that we are third rate

This is true. But it's all Falmer dependent. Club needs to reclaim it's Sussex heritage. Will take a long long time if the evidence from the present marketing efforts is anything to go by.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

I can't understand some people's attitude to other clubs/cities. Who are we to patronise Norwich FFS, with our 5,000 fans to their 25,000?

Norwich is a place that has always been patted on the head by the national media, but they have just got their heads down, got on with it, and as a result have probably one of the best places to live in the country. Less to do than Brighton? If that was true once, I would say no longer, and certainly if pubs are important to you there is no finer selection anywhere.

Plus their support is quite simply outstanding. There as a queue of coaches (for home fans) outside the ground last night from the further-flung outposts of Norfolk that reminded me a little bit of Celtic Park.

Absolutely, and for the size of the town, Ipswich have possibly got the highest proportion of supporters per head of population than any club in the country. Norwich and Ipswich should be held up as role models for all clubs to follow. As Steve Foster says above, the club need to be proactive on all fronts and look beyond just having some poxy shop on Queens Road as their only outlet for walk-in tickets and merchandise, this is after all a club whose anthem is Sussex By The Sea.

Imho it goes far beyond that, the whole marketing/branding of the club is woeful, where is the consultation with the fans about shirt designs for example? Surely important when it's us who will choose to buy/not buy the replicas and while I know you'll never please everyone it can't hurt to canvass popular opinion online or through consumer questionnaires handed out at the ground about all aspects of the club. If I was Bloom that would be one of the first things I would have done on becoming chairman.

 

[portlock seagull]

Imho it goes far beyond that, the whole marketing/branding of the club is woeful, where is the consultation with the fans about shirt designs for example? Surely important when it's us who will choose to buy/not buy the replicas and while I know you'll never please everyone it can't hurt to canvass popular opinion online or through consumer questionnaires handed out at the ground about all aspects of the club. If I was Bloom that would be one of the first things I would have done on becoming chairman.

Yes, but you probably run a successful business with comments like that.

 

[clapham_gull]

As long as it has a roof I'm happy being the only one in there.

I've often said that the club should start to market itself as the football club of Sussex and I've never heard an argument to suggest they shouldn't.

I come from somwhere near the border with Kent and it always been invisible over that side of the county.

 

[simon195]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is.. far too far out the way for a start ! and what a dreary area ... and yes it will remain half empty on most match days.. unless.. 1) we get in championship. 2) someone or persons invest large amounts of money for decent quality players.. not has beens, like we been getting !!!

 

[Notters]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is.. far too far out the way for a start ! and what a dreary area ... and yes it will remain half empty on most match days.. unless.. 1) we get in championship. 2) someone or persons invest large amounts of money for decent quality players.. not has beens, like we been getting !!!

 

[Wozza]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is.. far too far out the way for a start ! and what a dreary area ... and yes it will remain half empty on most match days.. unless.. 1) we get in championship. 2) someone or persons invest large amounts of money for decent quality players.. not has beens, like we been getting !!!

 

[Gwylan]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is.. far too far out the way for a start ! and what a dreary area ... and yes it will remain half empty on most match days.. unless.. 1) we get in championship. 2) someone or persons invest large amounts of money for decent quality players.. not has beens, like we been getting !!!

Hello Rip van Winkle, welcome back. How was the 25-year sleep?

 

[The Large One]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is.. far too far out the way for a start ! and what a dreary area ... and yes it will remain half empty on most match days.. unless.. 1) we get in championship. 2) someone or persons invest large amounts of money for decent quality players.. not has beens, like we been getting !!!

Good post.


Oh hang on, no it isn't.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Hello Rip van Winkle, welcome back. How was the 25-year sleep?

Oh be fair - he's too busy fighting his split personaility with Wideguy to have noticed.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

I agree with the sentiment of Simon195's post, if not the way it was presented. It's great that we've got Falmer and that it is in about the best location we could have got at the end of the day, but it doesn't mean fans don't have big reservations about the fact that its out of town location might put people off going to games. For me personally it's great that I can cycle there because the last thing I want after games is to be waiting around for the pleasure of being on a packed train or bus with someone's armpit in my mouth.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

That said, with the incessantly crap weather over the last few weeks you wouldn't catch me cycling up the A27 so I'd have missed the last few games had they been at Falmer.

 

[Gwylan]

I agree with the sentiment of Simon195's post, if not the way it was presented. It's great that we've got Falmer and that it is in about the best location we could have got at the end of the day, but it doesn't mean fans don't have big reservations about the fact that its out of town location might put people off going to games. For me personally it's great that I can cycle there because the last thing I want after games is to be waiting around for the pleasure of being on a packed train or bus with someone's armpit in my mouth.

But Falmer's probably only a couple of hundred metres further out of town than Withdean. And none of the projected sites put forward (Waterhall, Sheepscote, Toad's Hole, Shoreham, Upper Beeding) were any closer. I don't recall any fans saying let's not build a ground anywhere as they're all a bit far out.

The new Reading, Sunderland and Derby grounds (to name but three) are a lot further out of town than their previous stadiums, yet that doesn't seem to have put off any of their fans.

To be honest, I'm gobsmacked that anyone is still talking about the ground situation after all the crap that we've been through.

 

[simon195]

i rest my case, anyway only time will tell if the ground is a sucess, oh and what if, now thats a big if, we end up in div 2

 

[simon195]

Oh be fair - he's too busy fighting his split personaility with Wideguy to have noticed.

you know nothing about me ..until you do keep yer gob shut !!!

 

[The Grockle]

Good post.


Oh hang on, no it isn't.

I really don’t get why people think Falmer is out of the way. It’s an eight minute journey from Brighton and about the same from Lewes, Falmer station is literally on the external concourse, It will be well served by buses and if you are with a few mates you could just share a £12 pound taxi fare form central Brighton.

The moaners should look at the location of Colchester and MKdons’ stadiums before bitching about Falmers location.

 

[Tooting Gull]

well i think the new ground is totally in the the wrong place...dont ask me why but it is..:

Is there still time to move it? I'm sure no one would mind if we pinched a couple of miles.

 

[gripper stebson]

Are there SERIOUSLY people on this board complaining about the location of our beautiful, paid for, state of the art new stadium. I'll say it loud...

FFS!

If it's that much of a problem don't f***ing come.

 

[upthealbion1970]

I really don’t get why people think Falmer is out of the way. It’s an eight minute journey from Brighton and about the same from Lewes, Falmer station is literally on the external concourse, It will be well served by buses and if you are with a few mates you could just share a £12 pound taxi fare form central Brighton.

The moaners should look at the location of Colchester and MKdons’ stadiums before bitching about Falmers location.

can't agree with you more buddy, for myself i will be getting the train from newhaven - a whole 2 stops, as opposed to currently driving to mill road and getting on the bus. i think plenty of people will be using our new shiny stadium.