This stuff has never gone away, it’s been one of the main discussion points for the past decade.
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Can we add a poll to this? I’m certain the club read this forum for feedback (if not then they should).
Surprisingly I think they would be shocked by the outcome.
As DanG said, I think the club relies on our blind loyalty which shouldn’t be taken for granted, especially now. The pandemic has made what seemed a difficult decision, a much easier one.
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I’ll be renewing my season ticket.
If I wasn’t watching the Saddlers I’d have no interest in attending matches on a regular basis. It has never been for the kudos, glory or the success, as I’m sure all on here would agree. There is so little in professional football that attracts me nowadays or maybe it’s more the case that there is so much peripheral stuff that just annoys me.
The match day experience - home and away - with friends I’ve made over the years is something I’d really miss though and I don’t think I could replicate that anywhere else.
I despair over the situation our club has ended up in now. Whilst I readily acknowledge that the club is stagnant in so many ways and in need of renewal of purpose and of hope I’m in no doubt who is to blame for this situation and I cannot find it in my soul to abandon one of the loves of my life to spite those who have treated her so badly
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I will be renewing, no question about it.
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Don’t think so.
But I wouldn’t be renewing this year regardless.
Would rather do away games, home games sap your soul at the moment, and have done for a while
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I get all the blind loyalty, and i am not knocking it, each to their own and all that.
But it’s starting to wear thin now, there is a fine line between being totally loyal and being mugged off, and FOR ME i am starting to feel the latter.
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I agree mate, we all take time out of our days to come on this board and debate our club because the bottom line is, we all care. We all care an awful lot. We all want the best for this football club.
If someone thinks blind loyalty is the way, I too would not knock it, but that works both ways. There was a lot of this kind of talk while Bonso was clearly asset stripping. The flip side is, a fan could say that the blind loyalty of that core 3k, allowed him to do get away with that.
There’s no right or wrong. Personally, I am now at the very point of drifting away for good, but I really don’t want to.
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Absolutely no chance with the current incumbents.
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I will as it’s what I do, but extremely disappointed about what’s going on. However the pre and post game drinks in the pubs with mates old and new make me look forward to the next season, if of course we are allowed to partake in beverages.
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FTFY!
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I suppose my post could be construed as expressing ‘Blind Loyalty’, be that good or bad - I think ‘Happy Clappers’ was an epithet used in the past.
Bonser alone, assisted by others (and I don’t include Gamble and Mole in this) is responsible for the way the club is now. I do not agree that I am responsible, any more than you are, for enabling him to act in the way he has.
I see Pomlett’s buy-out as providing some light at the end of a 30 year-long tunnel. Unfortunately the little light that been allowed in has only served to illuminate the difficulties that lie ahead and make us realise the poor state that the tunnel is in.
I know many, of a generation older than me, who jacked it in when Bonser’s approach to running the club became clear; perhaps they were right to do so.
Give it a couple of years post-Covid and if the club does not evolve in a positive way, I might well feel the same as you.
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I can’t disagree with any of that mate.
My personal journey, and one of the reasons I feel particularly aggrieved with Bonser, Mole & Gamle, is that I had started regularly taking my stepson and a mate of his, both 17, to the games. I had introduced 2 lads to the club and they had got the bug big time - often badgering me to go when I had no plans to attend. My stepson identified as a Walsall fan. I was so happy I had contributed to building the next generation of fans.
Then, another mate of theirs happened to notice they could all get in (6 of them) at their club (Birmingham City) on a young adult group ticket - comparatively for the price of one adult ticket at Walsall. Higher division football, better atmosphere, bigger grounds and crowds - both of those young chaps poached because Birmingham City know what they are doing when it comes to attracting and keeping new blood. Walsall had got those two fans and lost them. Jake still mentions the queues and the disgusting bogs - its all he remembers of this time supporting us.
I look at our fanbase and its all people that have been going for years, its behavioural or social. The lack of new faces or young blood on the terraces is a major concern - well, everywhere apart from in the boardroom.
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The pandemic and the fact people have been locked up for months on end may actually push the number of purchased season tickets up.At least we are alive and at least we have a club to go and watch let’s all be thankful for that.
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A club in Birmingham sold 4k tickets for its opening weekend in 14 hours.
If we had marketing people that a) cared and b) knew what they were doing, we could do the same. But, just like always, we won’t.
Being alive and having a club is not an attractive enough prospect to continue to pay my money into another blokes pension pot (a percentage of which has already come out of my past wages), I have my own pension to worry about, mate.
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So are you suggesting the club should go down the road of having group tickets which in the long run would likely cost the club money?
I’d have thought it would be better keeping the prices as they are but improving the experience.
Anything tbh Steve, anything that represents care to us as paying customers. It is entirely upto them to market research (this board would be a great starting point - and its free) and then improve things in a way that would attract new blood and retain new blood.
They offered free season tickets to under 16’s at one point, but it was packaged all wrong and it didn’t work. So, I am not sure that your point stands there. A similar scheme, but one that works with that age demographic, would be amazing. If we want to attract more fans and new fans, the whole ticketing system from top to bottom needs to be rethought and repackaged - especially he ridiculous walk-up fiasco, that has been brought up time and again. It’s what any commercial business does regularly, I am just at a loss to understand why we don’t.
Surely the consideration of group tickets is worthwhile? Even if just 1 of every group of 6 becomes a semi regular fan, it is still better than being surrounded by 6,500 empty seats at every home game?
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I would probably say no now, but then tomorrow would come and I would change my mind and go a buy one!! As much as I moan it’s difficult to suddenly make the decision and stop what you have been doing for the previous 45 years of your life. Let’s face it, none of us support Walsall because we are glory hunters!!! Far from it. It is something much deeper than that. It’s almost spiritual in away because my Dad first took me when I was 7, and his Dad took him when he was 5 years old.
To be honest I have far more respect for any other person I come across who says that they support say a Swindon, Carlise, South End, etc, than those who say that are a Man Utd, Chelsea, Villa, etc, fan. I still believe that those of us who support a lower league club, which lets face it we are, I believe that we have a greater connection with that club. For a start off there are fewer of us who support clubs like ours, so in away we are all connected, and seem to share more pain than the bigger clubs do, and on a more regular basis!!
A bit deep for a Tuesday afternoon I know, but working at home by yourself does this to you at times!!! Just don’t tell the boss!!
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I know from talking to some of the catering managers during half time early last season that plans were afoot to make changes to the suites and bars. Of course the Covid stuff has delayed all that.
But when we’re eventually back I’d expect it to be coming in the pipeline.
It’s not rocket science for me to have a large outdoor beer and food area for pre mid and post game with entertainment - like at the cricket.
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We need to create and do something different.
Imagine for a second a band on before the game or after, with loads of bars around with just lager or bitter. A fantastic atmosphere.
I suggest the dinosaurs in charge couldn’t think of anything worse.