Trip to Pride Park Derby - observations

[sf9944]

Last night I went to Derby v Oxford. Mainly to ‘bag’ a new ground in my quest for the 92. It was a dreadful game and I’d back Rovers against either team currently.

Derby were taken over recently and I was struck by the way they emphasised the heritage of the club and the deep connection between fans and club. The electronic hoardings seemed hardly used for advertising instead to flash up messages such as;

‘One club, resilient, together’
‘It’s in your DNA youth!’
Etc

Despite Derbys truly awful display within their truly dreadful season the fans by and large stayed with the team throughout and although it might have been my imagination there really did seem to be a togetherness in evidence.

I left thinking this was a strategy rovers might benefit from. We have always struggled to grow our fan base so maybe we should focus more on loyalty among those we have so that our fans effectively act as ambassadors for the club?

[jmt23]

It will always be a ground I hold in the highest regard. Our first ground as a team in the Championship, but it was a bit more than just our first match, the fans park, the catering, the sound system was all top class. I remember thinking oh wow this is another level in so many ways, how the hell have my DRFC got here, and how the hell can we stay as long as possible. By the end of the day I was in another dream land.