Average attendances .

[graingrover]

If these figures are correct then I think the club can be relatively pleased with our current average attendance figures.

https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/league-two/attendances

[Padge_DRFC]

It's next season that's worrying based on people saying they aren't renewing. Can only hope for a decent last few months and an early positive transfer window.

[colincramb]

Take that with a pinch of salt. I have no reason to doubt it’s accuracy, but what you need to remember is we have (possibly only with the exception of MK Dons) the biggest away end in league 2. This somewhat uplifts our average. I would imagine that it’s somewhere closer to 5.6k when this is factored in.

[Chris Black come back]

Barrow with gates just about half our gates, are currently 5th and have been up and about the top for most of season. Most of other small attendance clubs are scratching around at bottom like us.

[danumdon]

It also tells us that with Bradford set aside, the clubs with the better attendances are the ones who have a firm vision and strategy to develop which also includes commitment to maintain meaningful investment.

[graingrover]

I don’t see it like that .I only see money mattering in football and that community is a wonderful dimension to continue to enjoy social life together in a club like ours. But money determines what you can buy , pay and invest, today and tomorrow.

[roversdude]

Do Bradford still have things like BOGOF ?

[ForsolongaRover]

It also tells us that with Bradford set aside, the clubs with the better attendances are the ones who have a firm vision and strategy to develop which also includes commitment to maintain meaningful investment.

I assume you are suggesting that the clubs above us have this and that we don’t. It’s a big subject to study over 24 clubs and obviously the 3 promoted non-league clubs got investment with or without the firm vision etc. Firm vision just equals promotion doesn’t it? But where do you put clubs like Harrogate and Barrow? They must have something above the average, yet their gates are poor?

Expectations which equate with season ticket sales, the core of the attendance figures, must be in there somewhere and I imagine that is where most of our average gate is derived from. Since we are well up in the attendances and well down in the strategy and vision departments (at least while Blunt was Chair) we have overachieved on your criteria. It seemed as though we had it when McCann was appointed though, so perhaps there is some truth in it, but fundamentally if a team is doing well the gates go up! So many of the clubs in League 2 are from small towns though and others have big clubs close by.

[danumdon]

I don’t see it like that .I only see money mattering in football and that community is a wonderful dimension to continue to enjoy social life together in a club like ours. But money determines what you can buy , pay and invest, today and tomorrow.

I totally agree with your sentiment, don't get me wrong im not asking for more investment, im quite ok with whatever the owner decides, after all its his money.

What it does mean for us is that occurrences like we had for a period of 15 years after getting back into the professional league will be few and far between, fine by me.

[danumdon]

It also tells us that with Bradford set aside, the clubs with the better attendances are the ones who have a firm vision and strategy to develop which also includes commitment to maintain meaningful investment.

I assume you are suggesting that the clubs above us have this and that we don’t. It’s a big subject to study over 24 clubs and obviously the 3 promoted non-league clubs got investment with or without the firm vision etc. Firm vision just equals promotion doesn’t it? But where do you put clubs like Harrogate and Barrow? They must have something above the average, yet their gates are poor?

Expectations which equate with season ticket sales, the core of the attendance figures, must be in there somewhere and I imagine that is where most of our average gate is derived from. Since we are well up in the attendances and well down in the strategy and vision departments (at least while Blunt was Chair) we have overachieved on your criteria. It seemed as though we had it when McCann was appointed though, so perhaps there is some truth in it, but fundamentally if a team is doing well the gates go up! So many of the clubs in League 2 are from small towns though and others have big clubs close by.

What im suggesting is that most of the clubs at the top of that chart are actively doing what they can to progress, even if in some cases it will lead to them overstretching themselves and then having to suffer the consequences later.

My thinking is that a club like ours should be at the top of that table (bar the elephant in the league) just on pure potential, we have the size and infrastructure to be pushing to the very top in that collection. But potential like anything else is nothing when its not realised.

Can we put a hand on heart and say this club is aiming to realise that potential, at this moment in time i don't think we can. However with the right manager, some fresh faces in the summer, a determined chairman pushing the boat along and last but not least a massive helping of luck that seems to have eluded us for the last three years.

If those stars align then its not beyond the realms of possibility that we start to punch our weight at this level.

A club like Barnsley have already shown what our potential can and should be, we should learn the lessons, fast.

[jmt23]

I think part of the issue is the players who were already tied to the club may have been on relatively big wages for the league.

Didn’t one of them at the meet the owners say something like 90% of the budget was taken up by the current squad.

The smaller clubs are either overstretching their budget massively, or have an overall better for value squad.

We seem to have a big squad, partly made up of players who we don’t think are good enough, or certainly have not worked as a team very well, and some will be very well paid for the league.

I think Mcann does have an eye for talent, so I am hopeful if he is here next season, we will do better.

[In the box]

If these figures are correct then I think the club can be relatively pleased with our current average attendance figures.

https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/league-two/attendances

So does this mean we had the 8th largest budget

[pib]

Take that with a pinch of salt. I have no reason to doubt it’s accuracy, but what you need to remember is we have (possibly only with the exception of MK Dons) the biggest away end in league 2. This somewhat uplifts our average. I would imagine that it’s somewhere closer to 5.6k when this is factored in.

We are averaging about 5.8k home fans this season.

[In the box]

Take that with a pinch of salt. I have no reason to doubt it’s accuracy, but what you need to remember is we have (possibly only with the exception of MK Dons) the biggest away end in league 2. This somewhat uplifts our average. I would imagine that it’s somewhere closer to 5.6k when this is factored in.

We are averaging about 5.8k home fans this season.

we need TB to pull another rabbit out of the hat ad it will be a very expensive close season as better quality is need all over the pitch  !!

[drfcsteve]

We won’t sell as many season tickets next season. Hopefully we start the season well though, if we’re top of the league the fans will come back.

[Campsall rover]

If we finish this season strongly which I am hoping we do and think we are capable of doing and then make a few really decent signings early in the summer window then i don’t  see why we can’t or will not sell as many season tickets for next season.
If the fans see that there is a genuine ambition to get promoted next season then enthusiasm will be re ignited.

No one can moan about our season ticket prices. They haven’t increased again and think we have had only one increase in the last 6/7 seasons. We must have one of the cheapest season ticket prices in the EFL

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Take that with a pinch of salt. I have no reason to doubt it’s accuracy, but what you need to remember is we have (possibly only with the exception of MK Dons) the biggest away end in league 2. This somewhat uplifts our average. I would imagine that it’s somewhere closer to 5.6k when this is factored in.

We are averaging about 5.8k home fans this season.

we need TB to pull another rabbit out of the hat ad it will be a very expensive close season as better quality is need all over the pitch  !!

Not necessarily. As long as TB, maintains the funding then, with gradual improvement in the squad by replacing some quantity for quality, the funds are likely to be better used.

If McCann can continue the transition he started, and the results follow then surely the attendances will follow. The cynicism will be gradually replaced with more optimism and that's how we see momentum gather.

We're seeing those other clubs riding that wave at the moment and hopefully our time will come again soon. The beauty of having relatively cheap tickets, the walk ups should increase and some of those maybe converted to season members further down the line.

How we finish the season will be important to the summer recruitment both on and off the pitch.