But it’s where we want to get too, right? The town of Walsall is as big as Wolverhampton or West Bromwich, so why can’t we have a football side as big as Wolves or Albion?
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If things continue as they are we will end up averaging well over 6,000 by the end of the season.
Looking at the games left and depending on the stakes on each individual match ( i.e. promotion, title) I think there is no reason why we can’t get as follows for the remaining home fixtures IF the season reaches our hoped for conclusion:
Swindon 6.5k (700 away)
Grimsby 6.5k (800)
Wimbledon 7.5k (1.2k)
Port Vale 9.5k (2k+)
Harrogate 6.5k (150)
Accrington 8k (200)
Either of the latter two could be higher if the title rests on the outcome. Also away numbers might increase if either Harrogate or Accy need points to avoid the drop (as is likely).
A lot to play for and lots of permutations to consider with the caveat that nothing is won yet.
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I have become mildly obsessed with stadium architecture and steel engineering this year.
I’m sure Morcambe’s away terrace was as tall in volume as our family stand and it didn’t have a insane amount of steel cantilever supports. Perhaps we could do half of the family stand and then do a big ticket incentive to fill it.
Might be time to regurgitate the ticket offers back up the top of the thread and see what Ben Sadler thinks.
Barriers to attendance remain (IMO in Order of priority).
- Travel cost, availability, Parking, access in and out of stadium and Crescent.
- Decreasing amount of 3pm Kickoffs (A fair few people work away or on Saturday mornings)
- Price, increase this year, despite then being reduced dug people’s heels in. The cost has then been massive to go to every game in comparison.
- Facilities and match day experience.
- Standard of Football - Lack of atmosphere, it’s a cycle, as more people attend it becomes a slightly more sought after occasion.
I wonder if we need to have a short time window for early bird… Keep it open til End of July, perhaps even use one of the remaining home games as a try before you buy incentive… Or at a pre-season friendly offer a £50 deposit to reserve the season ticket and then enable the fans to buy it in installments before the end of the summer… You get try out your seat and throw in a scarf for good measure.
I also wonder if we could sell tickets in this part of the ground for significant discount. It’s like sitting in another stadium all the way down there.
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Be nice to get a healthy one against Swindon but probs same old
Should be getting min 6,000 home fans now, sub 5,000 vs chesterfield was embarrassing, in the ground and especially on TV
If (when?) we go up we really need to get the season ticket and general match day pricing right, it’s a real opportunity to grow cos it seems like it’s nigh on impossible in league two
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You mean those lot that call us “Smallsall, and Market FC” you we’re right to think what you thought 
When I started going, the biggest cheer when the halftime results were read out was when Villa were losing, There doesn’t seem to be so many bothered about them bastards in claret and blue now.
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Harrogate is a bank holiday game so would be very disappointed if it’s “only” 6k. That might actually be the promotion confirmation game aswell when you look at the current gap.
Assume with the small travelling number the away end will go to home fans for this so come up with a creative ticket offer to fill that end please, I’d happily go in there if there is one.
Same for Accy as the league trophy will get presented in that game if 1st is secured so that will be different to 06/07 when it happened away.
This is where it can hit differently. Seeing a Walsall team actually lifting silverware infront of your eyes so a floating fan would surely think it looks good and will pop down more next season to see how the club gets on in a higher division.
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Very true. We could grow up to 6-7k average and 8k for big games if those priorities I listed are tackled.
Once 1000 more people start coming it will grow exponentially and then it’s about being nimble with ticket offers and getting people to buy into the club flexi-tickets, / half season ticket… smart use of the locker post match and probably putting on some park and ride style buses or a specific train.
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The 800 away fans may be a stretch as it’s a 12.30 kick off
Freezing season ticket prices for next season would be absolute madness and sheer folly.
Grimsby are amongst the best away travellers in the division. It might be more if they remain in touching distance of the play-offs, even if it is a 12.30ko.
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Yeah very well supported away from home grimsby, seem to be a club who have a lot of exiles as well.
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Can’t see that happening, not with the NI and minimum wage changes coming in April.
Costs etc going up, inflation will be higher possibly around 5%.
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Not if we sell more.
Floodlights on our roof
You raise some very good points.
I can remember going in the away end years ago - i think they were finishing the home end at the time and to be honest i thought it was shocking.
I dont understand why people would want to go in there when you can get a far better view in the home lower.
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It would have to be financial incentive but only once you lock in the normal every week fans with decent season ticket offers.
Otherwise you just move people from one area of the ground to the other.
£5 is better in the coffers than nothing and an empty seat.
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Yeah that’s one thing but if we were to adapt the roof the steel used could be recycled into the new design. Those stanchions and light structures are prime steel and could be refashioned.
Having said that, the money for redevelopment should be sought through additional investments, perhaps from our portfolio in the US or whatever. It shouldn’t be done at all if it ls from our current budget.
A very salient point. Better quality football and playing most likely at a higher level will also inform a fairly sharp price rise I’d have thought. Even if prices were frozen we would still likely be in the bottom four or five in the division for ST sales. The club will rightly try and benchmark the prices at a level they think will achieve the most revenue for the club (which is substantially different from achieving the most sales), in order to give us as competitive a budget as possible to try and retain our L1 status should we get there.
I think a rise of around 10% is highly likely.
Unless the increase in sales through an attractive offer would equal or be greater than a 10% increase in prices. And this can be speculated by getting the offer in now. The more we sell the less the standard price increase there will be right…
We didn’t have sub 5000 v Chesterfield. They didn’t bring 2000 either.