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Post by jimmycarterxi on Mar 13, 2017 0:01:05 GMT
Forgot about the usual saddle bashing as look at the points raised. They are valid ones. I've commented elsewhere about the poor take up of home tickets the last two games. The cross is being masked by the away followings from Rovers and Sheff Utd. Any reason why? Are the prices to high? Should we try a cash turnstile? More entertainment before the game, etc the crowd involved. Likewise at HT. The music last night was pretty poor as well. Maybe a few offers, quid a kid, package a few games together where as you get the say the 3rd for half price. Got to be worth trying something as the players and management must feel despondent looking at the gaps in the home support. Yes the music is definitely making people not attend!!!
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Post by makv on Mar 13, 2017 1:26:41 GMT
I think it's a number of problems. People not having spare money. Getting to the ground is a joke, as said most people don't live in the city. People Need to work in the over priced county we live in. If i finish work at 5.30 it's very hard to drive park and get the the ground by 7.45. if i didn't already have a season ticket then I'd have to cue to get a ticket too. Unless then council force the science park to open there car parks it's going to put more people off. It's crazy really as there was always parking somewhere at the manor. Have to disagree with you there sir. Parking for evening matches was not easy at the Manor and I used to have to walk at least 20 - 25 mins to reach the ground. Now I park in the Leys a stroll north west of the 'Bird and I'm always in the stadium within 15 mins. And you don't have to "cue" for a ticket. Buy it online!
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Post by kidintheriot on Mar 13, 2017 3:09:32 GMT
Forgot about the usual saddle bashing as look at the points raised. They are valid ones. I've commented elsewhere about the poor take up of home tickets the last two games. The cross is being masked by the away followings from Rovers and Sheff Utd. Any reason why? Are the prices to high? Should we try a cash turnstile? More entertainment before the game, etc the crowd involved. Likewise at HT. The music last night was pretty poor as well. Maybe a few offers, quid a kid, package a few games together where as you get the say the 3rd for half price. Got to be worth trying something as the players and management must feel despondent looking at the gaps in the home support. Yes the music is definitely making people not attend!!! Haha I was thinking the same. There is plenty of things that could be improved to provide a better match day experience and help fill the ground, the music at HT is likely near the bottom.
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Post by scoob on Mar 13, 2017 11:25:59 GMT
Back to One of junior's points. Why low ish attendances. In addition to what I've already said above it could be that our home form is very poor so that is putting some off, Sheffield on Tuesday night. some have mentioned parking and the club has done zero to improve access/exit from the ground car parks (there are some solutions that would help). Also some thought could be put into other parking solutions but the club seem to consider this s low priority.
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Post by scoob on Mar 13, 2017 13:48:00 GMT
I think it's a number of problems. People not having spare money. Getting to the ground is a joke, as said most people don't live in the city. People Need to work in the over priced county we live in. If i finish work at 5.30 it's very hard to drive park and get the the ground by 7.45. if i didn't already have a season ticket then I'd have to cue to get a ticket too. Unless then council force the science park to open there car parks it's going to put more people off. It's crazy really as there was always parking somewhere at the manor. Have to disagree with you there sir. Parking for evening matches was not easy at the Manor and I used to have to walk at least 20 - 25 mins to reach the ground. Now I park in the Leys a stroll north west of the 'Bird and I'm always in the stadium within 15 mins. I also disagree as I used to park 20-25 minutes from the Manor for the higher attendance games at the Manor (9k+). The problem is that people now seem to expect to park near the ground so get caught in the traffic which is not helped by slow access to the overflow car park caused by the crossing outside the cinema. I left Peachcroft I. Abingdon at 7:20 last Tuesday and was in my seat by 7:40. There was hardly any traffic coming from A34 at that time and the roads to Sainsbury were clear. I am fortunate that I can park near the ground via the Littlemore estate so no traffic there either. The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes. The first part needs education and the second will not be such a problem if we won more often at home (difficult to sort out it seems).
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Post by saddletramp on Mar 13, 2017 18:14:40 GMT
Have to disagree with you there sir. Parking for evening matches was not easy at the Manor and I used to have to walk at least 20 - 25 mins to reach the ground. Now I park in the Leys a stroll north west of the 'Bird and I'm always in the stadium within 15 mins. I also disagree as I used to park 20-25 minutes from the Manor for the higher attendance games at the Manor (9k+). The problem is that people now seem to expect to park near the ground so get caught in the traffic which is not helped by slow access to the overflow car park caused by the crossing outside the cinema. I left Peachcroft I. Abingdon at 7:20 last Tuesday and was in my seat by 7:40. There was hardly any traffic coming from A34 at that time and the roads to Sainsbury were clear. I am fortunate that I can park near the ground via the Littlemore estate so no traffic there either. The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes. The first part needs education and the second will not be such a problem if we won more often at home (difficult to sort out it seems). Sorry,don't believe you. You said "The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes" So 15 minutes to walk to the ground, So you can leave Peachcroft, drive to the A34, get to Hinksey, get around the ring road, queue to get in, get to your seat, all in 5 Minutes ? I left Wantage at 5.30 last Tuesday,got to North Abingdon at 5.50,got to Sainsbury's roundabout at 6.30,FORTY minutes to get from the A34 to Sainsburys ! Yet you can do it in 5 minutes ? Next week against Bolton,any chance i can meet you in the College Oak for a lift,will save me about an hour.
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Post by charliesghost on Mar 13, 2017 20:43:29 GMT
Some great posts in this thread.
1) we have a really good average attendance this season. When I said we could average 9k in League 1 a year or two back I was shouted down by many, including the then owners!
2) Grenoble Road is a problem for many. On a Saturday it's do-able with a big crowd, as arrival times are staggered. But on a Tuesday, when almost everyone is looking to get there between 630 and 730 it is a bad bottle-neck.
3) comparisons with the Manor are fallacious, because a) there are loads of routes in and out of Headington, unlike Grenoble Road and b) the Manor had better public transport c) there were more local drinking holes so more staggered arrivals and departures and d) excepting our years in the top flight, we were very rarely averaging 9k plus.
So things are bad, but tolerable at the moment. But in the Championship, assuming an increased capacity, things would be intolerable unless drastic steps were taken. Even 15k would mean queues of an hour or more in the way in. That is not my view - it is that of the Council and other people whose job it is to assess these things.
Our support also grows ever more widespread. Fewer and fewer real Oxon folk live in the City. And more and more outsiders come to our games.
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Post by holdsteady on Mar 13, 2017 20:58:05 GMT
Some great posts in this thread. 1) we have a really good average attendance this season. When I said we could average 9k in League 1 a year or two back I was shouted down by many, including the then owners! 2) Grenoble Road is a problem for many. On a Saturday it's do-able with a big crowd, as arrival times are staggered. But on a Tuesday, when almost everyone is looking to get there between 630 and 730 it is a bad bottle-neck. 3) comparisons with the Manor are fallacious, because a) there are loads of routes in and out of Headington, unlike Grenoble Road and b) the Manor had better public transport c) there were more local drinking holes so more staggered arrivals and departures and d) excepting our years in the top flight, we were very rarely averaging 9k plus. So things are bad, but tolerable at the moment. But in the Championship, assuming an increased capacity, things would be intolerable unless drastic steps were taken. Even 15k would mean queues of an hour or more in the way in. That is not my view - it is that of the Council and other people whose job it is to assess these things. Our support also grows ever more widespread. Fewer and fewer real Oxon folk live in the City. And more and more outsiders come to our games. Has their been a massacre of real Oxon folk in the city? Am I the last and didn't realise it? Bit scared to leave the house now. When you get a decent sized crowd traffic is always going to be a ballache. It's alleviated on Saturdays by the staggered times people arrive and leave but midweek will always be a pain but that's life, no one is making anyone attend at gunpoint. Where ever the ground is you will have the same problems, it happens at other clubs all over the country, we are not unique.
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Post by foley on Mar 13, 2017 21:04:08 GMT
The average attendance this season at just over 8.5K is the best that we have had since the penultimate season in Division 1 (yes better than the last season in the Premiership equivalent).
Just another thing with relation to IF we get up to the Championship. Barnsley (not much bigger club than us?) averaged 9,500 last season. This season? They average 14K - nearly a 50% rise. But to get this average they have had crowds of 11,600 but also of 18,500.
If we had a similar rise then we could get crowds averaging 12,750. Of course Barnsley play Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday where I expect that there would be huge away followings, but is there any reason (except for the size of the ground) that we couldn't do somethign similar?
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Post by charliesghost on Mar 13, 2017 21:26:34 GMT
The average attendance this season at just over 8.5K is the best that we have had since the penultimate season in Division 1 (yes better than the last season in the Premiership equivalent). Just another thing with relation to IF we get up to the Championship. Barnsley (not much bigger club than us?) averaged 9,500 last season. This season? They average 14K - nearly a 50% rise. But to get this average they have had crowds of 11,600 but also of 18,500. If we had a similar rise then we could get crowds averaging 12,750. Of course Barnsley play Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday where I expect that there would be huge away followings, but is there any reason (except for the size of the ground) that we couldn't do somethign similar? Only if we were able to accommodate the big crowds of 15k plus. The Barnsley story is instructive, because they have a smaller base of fair-weather fans. So they'll do a bit better than us in the lower leagues and a bit worse than us in the top two tiers. If their potential in Championship mid-table is 14.5k then ours would be 16k. As for Leeds and Huddersfield, for us check out Villa, Brum, Bristol City, Reading etc...
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Post by scoob on Mar 13, 2017 23:42:12 GMT
I also disagree as I used to park 20-25 minutes from the Manor for the higher attendance games at the Manor (9k+). The problem is that people now seem to expect to park near the ground so get caught in the traffic which is not helped by slow access to the overflow car park caused by the crossing outside the cinema. I left Peachcroft I. Abingdon at 7:20 last Tuesday and was in my seat by 7:40. There was hardly any traffic coming from A34 at that time and the roads to Sainsbury were clear. I am fortunate that I can park near the ground via the Littlemore estate so no traffic there either. The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes. The first part needs education and the second will not be such a problem if we won more often at home (difficult to sort out it seems). Sorry,don't believe you. You said "The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes" So 15 minutes to walk to the ground, So you can leave Peachcroft, drive to the A34, get to Hinksey, get around the ring road, queue to get in, get to your seat, all in 5 Minutes ? I left Wantage at 5.30 last Tuesday,got to North Abingdon at 5.50,got to Sainsbury's roundabout at 6.30,FORTY minutes to get from the A34 to Sainsburys ! Yet you can do it in 5 minutes ? Next week against Bolton,any chance i can meet you in the College Oak for a lift,will save me about an hour. If you actually read what I said rather than making up your own version then you can work it out! I did not say that I had to walk for 15 minutes. I park about 30 seconds walk from the overflow so its about 5 minutes walk to the ground. There was a Queue at one of the pairs of turnstiles but none at the other so I walked straight in. The 10-15 minutes is how long the walk would be if I could not park where I do. Got it now? It took me about 5 minutes to get from A34 to Sainsbury's as it does for virtually every game. It may be because I usually leave it fairly late but I can do from work in Stratford Upon Avon to being seated in the ground in no more than an hour and 10 minutes. I have done this journey at least 50 times over the last 9 years and have rarely encountered more than 10 minutes from A34 to Sainsbury's. I rarely have time to waste getting to the ground early. I guess you get caught up in commuting traffic being that much earlier? I believe that traffic problems caused by matches primarily affect Grenoble Road and those roads leading directly to it so I would always avoid those routes. If I had to walk for 20 minutes it would not be a problem (I walk and average of 15 miles a day so an extra one won't kill me) (or others) but I would have to leave home/work/family 20 minutes earlier.
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Post by scoob on Mar 14, 2017 0:09:14 GMT
Some great posts in this thread. 1) we have a really good average attendance this season. When I said we could average 9k in League 1 a year or two back I was shouted down by many, including the then owners! 2) Grenoble Road is a problem for many. On a Saturday it's do-able with a big crowd, as arrival times are staggered. But on a Tuesday, when almost everyone is looking to get there between 630 and 730 it is a bad bottle-neck. 3) comparisons with the Manor are fallacious, because a) there are loads of routes in and out of Headington, unlike Grenoble Road and b) the Manor had better public transport c) there were more local drinking holes so more staggered arrivals and departures and d) excepting our years in the top flight, we were very rarely averaging 9k plus. So things are bad, but tolerable at the moment. But in the Championship, assuming an increased capacity, things would be intolerable unless drastic steps were taken. Even 15k would mean queues of an hour or more in the way in. That is not my view - it is that of the Council and other people whose job it is to assess these things. Our support also grows ever more widespread. Fewer and fewer real Oxon folk live in the City. And more and more outsiders come to our games. Charlie I find it hard to believe that no one thought we could average 9k in League One. We averaged 6,300 in the first season in the Conference (6000 in our promotion season) so our current crowds are only a third up on that with a massive difference in away support. If anything I am a little disappointed by our current average but we have not been setting the world alight at home this season so the marginal fans will be attracted less often. With regard to access it may get worse but we have absolutely no transport plan at the current stadium and those people on the council have been very lazy to date considering they know so much. There are other routes that could be utilised and would take the pressure off Grenoble Road but no one can be bothered to do a proper assessment and establish exactly what additional parking could be available. Public transport appears to be a joke too. I know that does not fit your WE agenda but there will be even less access routes there. Inevitably a 50%+ increase in attendance will cause challenges but these need to be part of any planning. Five or six years ago KT said that he felt that the transport/parking issues did not warrant time spent on them as they were rare problems in the Conference but no one seems to have done a single thing since despite the significant increase in crowds. Those people who do live in the city are in a few areas within 15 minutes walk of the stadium. Their numbers have been swelling along with our crowds and I have seen a huge increase in the numbers who walk along the access road that I use over the last two seasons. Previously it was a doddle. How many houses are within 15 minutes walk of WE?
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Post by saddletramp on Mar 14, 2017 5:10:58 GMT
Sorry,don't believe you. You said "The problem is that people think traffic will be bad and don't want to walk for 10-15 minutes" So 15 minutes to walk to the ground, So you can leave Peachcroft, drive to the A34, get to Hinksey, get around the ring road, queue to get in, get to your seat, all in 5 Minutes ? I left Wantage at 5.30 last Tuesday,got to North Abingdon at 5.50,got to Sainsbury's roundabout at 6.30,FORTY minutes to get from the A34 to Sainsburys ! Yet you can do it in 5 minutes ? Next week against Bolton,any chance i can meet you in the College Oak for a lift,will save me about an hour. If you actually read what I said rather than making up your own version then you can work it out! I did not say that I had to walk for 15 minutes. I park about 30 seconds walk from the overflow so its about 5 minutes walk to the ground. There was a Queue at one of the pairs of turnstiles but none at the other so I walked straight in. The 10-15 minutes is how long the walk would be if I could not park where I do. Got it now? It took me about 5 minutes to get from A34 to Sainsbury's as it does for virtually every game. It may be because I usually leave it fairly late but I can do from work in Stratford Upon Avon to being seated in the ground in no more than an hour and 10 minutes. I have done this journey at least 50 times over the last 9 years and have rarely encountered more than 10 minutes from A34 to Sainsbury's. I rarely have time to waste getting to the ground early. I guess you get caught up in commuting traffic being that much earlier? I believe that traffic problems caused by matches primarily affect Grenoble Road and those roads leading directly to it so I would always avoid those routes. If I had to walk for 20 minutes it would not be a problem (I walk and average of 15 miles a day so an extra one won't kill me) (or others) but I would have to leave home/work/family 20 minutes earlier. "Got it now" ? Yep Littlemore is 30 seconds from the overflow car park. The 5 miles from From Peachcroft to Sainsburys can be done at an average of 60 miles an hour. And me getting stuck on the A34 every mid week game is caused by traffic on Greenoble road,despite me parking on the Leys.
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Post by scoob on Mar 14, 2017 6:43:39 GMT
Again I did not say that I park in Littlemore, although where I do park is on the edge of Littlemore. I park 30 metres from the overflow car park. You clearly don't believe a word I say but I can assure you that the timings I have given are correct. I was surprised that I was able to get to the ground so quickly as I left five minutes later than I had planned. The average speed was probably not quite as high as 60 but there was very little traffic all of the way so it was not far off.
I did not say that all of the traffic was caused by Grenoble road, but as you arrive so early, that you presumably get caught in rush hour traffic which is exacerbated by football traffic. I am told that the eastern ring road is always a nightmare from about 4pm until 6:30 ish. i believe that traffic is worse on the approach roads to Grenoble Road and many people attempt to park close to the ground, off Grenoble Road, so get stuck in traffic. I believe that there are other potential parking areas that could be utilised that have a similar approach route to mine that could alleviate some of the parking/traffic problems.
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Post by Denissmithswig on Mar 14, 2017 7:13:33 GMT
Again I did not say that I park in Littlemore, although where I do park is on the edge of Littlemore. I park 30 metres from the overflow car park. You clearly don't believe a word I say but I can assure you that the timings I have given are correct. I was surprised that I was able to get to the ground so quickly as I left five minutes later than I had planned. The average speed was probably not quite as high as 60 but there was very little traffic all of the way so it was not far off. I did not say that all of the traffic was caused by Grenoble road, but as you arrive so early, that you presumably get caught in rush hour traffic which is exacerbated by football traffic. I am told that the eastern ring road is always a nightmare from about 4pm until 6:30 ish. i believe that traffic is worse on the approach roads to Grenoble Road and many people attempt to park close to the ground, off Grenoble Road, so get stuck in traffic. I believe that there are other potential parking areas that could be utilised that have a similar approach route to mine that could alleviate some of the parking/traffic problems. I take it you park just the other side of the railway bridge by the over flow?
I've always thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to get a deal in place with the rugby club in Littlemore for fans to park there. It is a 10 minute walk from the East stand.
Like it has been said though, I think fans take it for granted they can park right next to the ground for free.
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Post by scoob on Mar 14, 2017 8:06:30 GMT
Again I did not say that I park in Littlemore, although where I do park is on the edge of Littlemore. I park 30 metres from the overflow car park. You clearly don't believe a word I say but I can assure you that the timings I have given are correct. I was surprised that I was able to get to the ground so quickly as I left five minutes later than I had planned. The average speed was probably not quite as high as 60 but there was very little traffic all of the way so it was not far off. I did not say that all of the traffic was caused by Grenoble road, but as you arrive so early, that you presumably get caught in rush hour traffic which is exacerbated by football traffic. I am told that the eastern ring road is always a nightmare from about 4pm until 6:30 ish. i believe that traffic is worse on the approach roads to Grenoble Road and many people attempt to park close to the ground, off Grenoble Road, so get stuck in traffic. I believe that there are other potential parking areas that could be utilised that have a similar approach route to mine that could alleviate some of the parking/traffic problems. I take it you park just the other side of the railway bridge by the over flow?
I've always thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to get a deal in place with the rugby club in Littlemore for fans to park there. It is a 10 minute walk from the East stand.
Like it has been said though, I think fans take it for granted they can park right next to the ground for free.
The overflow side of the bridge. Exactly there are pockets of potential (not guaranteed) parking places near the rugby club/Peers(academy?) and also off Sandy Lane which would alleviate some of the traffic flow issues and are within 15 minutes walk of the ground. From comments on here it seems that traffic and parking are reasons for people not making the effort to get to the ground on a Tuesday evening and possibly on Saturday's too. If the club sort out some alternatives before next season it should help boost crowds. A couple of simple actions like controlling the crossing by the cinema would make a big difference to traffic flow.
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Post by ox4eva on Mar 14, 2017 12:09:50 GMT
Could something be set up at the park and ride. It would maybe not be feasible on a Sat but for midweek games as I guess the park and ride would be quiet after a certain time on a weekday?
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Post by chazzahoufc on Mar 28, 2017 15:54:38 GMT
All those fans saying that if we got promoted "a new stand wouldn't be enough" We would need a 20k stadium because when the big boys come we would fill it. Well the club has been buzzing lately,edge of the play offs,Wembley on the horizon and a feel good factor around the club, yet for a derby match against Bristol on Saturday we just about managed 8k home fans and against one of the said "Big boys" 7,300. A West stand the same as the East of 2,700 or so,we would need 4,500+ fans to fill the ground,even without filling in the corners. Where would they come from ? Just saying. well a 12k ground for us is bad really bad! We would have to build a west and join all of it up in corners. Not only would this cost a lot but it would take quite a long time. I feel that we need to build a new ground!
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Post by chazzahoufc on Mar 28, 2017 15:56:08 GMT
I think it's a number of problems. People not having spare money. Getting to the ground is a joke, as said most people don't live in the city. People Need to work in the over priced county we live in. If i finish work at 5.30 it's very hard to drive park and get the the ground by 7.45. if i didn't already have a season ticket then I'd have to cue to get a ticket too. Unless then council force the science park to open there car parks it's going to put more people off. It's crazy really as there was always parking somewhere at the manor. Have to disagree with you there sir. Parking for evening matches was not easy at the Manor and I used to have to walk at least 20 - 25 mins to reach the ground. Now I park in the Leys a stroll north west of the 'Bird and I'm always in the stadium within 15 mins. Yup it is true! If you are reffering to the one near the college and school then yeh. It is about 15 minutes
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