what is the incentive to renew my season ticket?

now before you start on about being negative and get behind the team etc check my previous posts i rarely speak out or be negative but after tonights performance iv had enough.

I currently have 300 pounds in an account ready to pay for next season - I also have a two year old son who needs clothes, food,toys etc for which the 300 pounds would go a long way- I have had a season ticket for the last 14 years and have seen many ups and downs but not for a long time have i felt as little hope for the team as i do now.-just what are the reasons to renew????

1. progression- we have been in this league now 6 seasons and have made NO progress- if the argument is this is where we belong and have spent most of our history here then yes i agree however in that time we always had at least one or two seasons where we had a genuine push for promotion-under machin we finished just outside play offs-under wilson we just missed out on play offs and then went up-ask yourself this if we are still in this league in 10 years -20 years does it look like we will challenge for promotion-NO so how does that entice the fans back the die hards are here now but the next generation will fall away- I have a 12 year old brother who would rather be at home on xbox than at oakwell as in his words " why do we come every week-whats the point".

2. "we cant compete as we have no money-the game has changed" now correct me if im wrong but when i last checked it was still 11 men against 11 men just because you are paid more doesnt neccessitate your a better player-at various points in our history sheron and donovan were highest earners at club-were they better than shipperley and gorre-no they werent-if you have got pride and belief you can go a long way- I dont recalll a fruit and veg seller who has gone bankrupt twice ploughing millions into our club - but we still competed and showed signs of moving forward.

3. " we have a manager who can really make a difference"- Hillcroft has shown promise this is true- he has also showed naivety in tactics and a stiubborness in team selection that is a detriment to the side-and in all honesty what has he done different to robins or ritchie-we are no further up the league and he has bought players of far inferior quality than his predeccessors- when we went up with wilson we bought players from lower leagues but mixed it with experience i.e thompson,hendrie,bullock,sheridan- if you buy solely players from lower leagues then thats what your ambition is- you can find a gem fro lower leagues one in ten not 10 in ten- perkins, dagnall, davies, mcnulty all very poor players.

4. " n paper we are overperforming" well if thats bthe case we might as well pack in now-if on paper birmingham are better than us-then so were chelsea, liverpool,man utd in cup, leeds in league, leicester so why didnt we just curl up and die- because we had pride-we had passion. on paper 20 teams are better than us-in those terms we should only win 3 games a season so why do we turn up? because we expect to see the team fight for eachother,to play with passion and a belief that if the opposition is better than us then **** em we will still turn em over because we are barnsley at HOME and we have the pride,passion and belief we can- what i saw tonight was none of those it was a team of lower league players SCARED of the opposition and that-i cannot accept as a barnsley fan.

The club is fast losing its fan base 9000 tonight and falling-the price of tickets will force many away as will the sense of apathy- my dad and many other fathers i know have stopped going-and growing up i always thought " how caan you stop supporting the team you love" - unfortunately I can now see why and its very unlikely the club will see my money next year- and my sons in the future- I will always be a supporter of the club but unfortunately I am fast running out of patience in being a "fan".

 

Quite difficult to argue against what you have posted. I posted a thread earlier to ask what could be done on and off the pitch at Oakwell to get the stay away fans to return and a key word in your thread title is "incentive". If people are happy with more of the same that is their choice but i too like yourself in these difficult economic times have things that need paying for and as priorities go getting a season ticket for Oakwell is not at the top of my expenditure list.

 

2 year old son? No brainer, buy him toys, clothes and feed him.

 

Everyone is entitled to their views but just to put things into context most of the 60's and 70's were poor in the old 3rd and 4th Division. Rotherham are charging more to watch league 2 Football. We have competed really well up to Leicester game away and most people including Hillcroft will be disappointed with the break up of the midfield in particular. We could argue all night about the quality of players in the current squad but no one has waved the white flag except possibly last Tuesday. When the previous manager and captain walked away pre season I feared the worst but by almost turning our midfield into the best passing unit in the Division we reached 8th in December. It must have been a kick in the teeth when through injury and sales the midfield was dessimated but after outplaying moneybags Leicester twice and overwhelming Leeds twice allied to other good performances Mr Hill and Mr Flitcroft have earned some time to rebuild this team. Nice if some of the Academy players were knocking on the first team door though. eg RNL.

 

I disagree that we didn't show any passion or fight

Thought the players worked as hard as ever. Birmingham were just better than us.

If you don't want to go any more, don't go. It won't make you a worse person if you stop going to Oakwell. It is depressing watching quality leave the club only to be replaced by inferior players. I can't see that changing any time soon. But for me if I stopped going I'd miss it far too much. I'd be looking forward to the time I could take my young son with me. But if you no longer feel like that, you're under no obligation.

 

Re: I disagree that we didn't show any passion or fight

People HAVE to pay bills people DON'T HAVE to go to Oakwell.

It is a choice yes but also a luxury expenditure. If i could afford to go home and away every game i would but i can't.

 

I think youre wrong with your analysis about where the club is going. We are definitely progressing in my opinion. Last night we played as well as Bham for long periods and deserved a draw against one of the 'big' clubs. We have some rough edges, yes, and the management team are having to build up 'cheap' players into Championship ones as well as keeping the club up and reducing expenditure. Hil is doing a great job! The football on show is also more entertaining so that in itself is an incentive to watch the games for me... Overall the quality of the entertainment at Oakwell is much better than under Robins even if the team loses as it did against Bham. The midfield is getting stronger and is getting more depth to it in my opinion and I'm sure Hill will be looking to the defence in pre-season. The only real thing I agree with you about is the ticket pricing. BFC need to woo the fans back initially with cheaper ticketing if possible, just so they'll buy in to the football and want to come. The town is economically weak though and so, again, on 9000/10000 gates Hill is doing a remarkable job in restructuring and keeping the club up. Keep the faith. Renew your ticket if you can manage it!

 

I never said they did

Quite the opposite

 

After 2nites performance you have had enough, so what happened 2nite to make you feel like that?

 

Ok I'll put the case for the defence :smile:

1. In the seasons from 1981 through to 1996 we flirted with promotion in 1982 and the playoffs in 1991 and 95. We were in danger of being relegated in 1990. As for your brother there are other things to entertain kids now, but his question 'what's the point ?' well it is to watch a football match between two teams, nothing else is guarenteed.

2. The game has changed. The Championship is now filled with clubs with untold riches of parachute payments £40m ? When we were relegated 10 years since Crewe, Gillingham, Walsall, Rotherham, Wimbledon, Port Vale, Grimsby were all in the league. We were a reasonably big club in comparison. Now save for Donnie and Peterboro we are minnows. Our wages bill in the premier league season was £2.9m it has been £8m in recent seasons. I;
i'm afraid that the game has changed but not for the better.

3. In my opinion the quality if the football has been better this season.

The comparison with Danny's time is a bit unfair. In his day, older experienced top flight players still had to earn a living and still wanted a last 'hurrah' whereas now they're so minted that they just retire or will only sign for a lot of money or go for a club on a glory chase.

4. The games you mention against Chelsea, Liverpool were one offs and as for Man U we were a prem side at the time. On our day we can beat any one, as can any team, I think that you are being a little unkind to the players in saying they were 'scared' tonight. I thought that they competed against a very good and expensively arranged Birmingham side and I also think that whether or not our players are good enough KH has engendered a team philosophy that is second to none.

Finally folk will stop watching football, first of all it is far too expensive and there are a significant number of other things to do now. I have to say though that back in the early 90s the crowds were in the 5K level and that was at a time when admission to the east stand was £5.

What you do with your £300 is up to you and when it comes down to it your Son is far more important than any football team in my opinion.

 

Good post. We also have to see how other clubs' fortunes pan out in the near future. Portsmouth are already in trouble.. Coventry might be next... who then? BFC are being sensible in the longer term and are preparing for the future better than most I would say. When clubs offload players in the summer because of budget constraints I suspect Hill will pick up one or two bargains and further strengthen the team. I might be wrong but I suspect that in the longer term the quality of player will improve further at this club and all on a restrictive budget

 

Entertaining?

Is it really?

We've managed to score more than 2 goals on four occasions this season - but we actually lost two of those games!

We haven't found a new Redfearn, or at least a new Brian Howard - so no real driving force in midfield, unlesss you count want-away Butterfield. I haven't seen the buzz that we used to get when Campbell-Ryce, Devaney or Hammill flew down the wing in their prime. The first time in years we get a player who looks like he has goals in him, he's off to West Ham. The atmosphere is totally lacking due to the extortionate match-by-match pricing structure.

While we were always a club open to a good offer for a player, it is now a stated aim to "capitalise on our realiseable assets". So while some argue that Hill is building for the future, in truth he is only building for the sale of the future. I'm not arguing for a "splash the cash" policy, but for a desire to keep hold of any gems we do unearth rather than attempting to cash in. While Hill is doing well with polishing up one or two at present, its only a matter of time before the forces of gravity pull us down a league, and possibly place the future of the club in doubt.

Until the League fully introduces financial fairplay, we haven't a prayer. Even then, it will take some commercial nous to drop prices in order to get people back into the habit of going to Oakwell. Because if we don't, then we will still be behind those clubs who draw far bigger gates. In business, that's called investment - you put something in at the front end in order to build up your customer base and reap the rewards later.

At the moment the club give the impression that parsimony in itself is enough - and that if we keep our hands in our pockets for long enough, someone will come and sprinkle us in fairy dust and make us a competitive Championship team!

 

I Agree

I feel optimistic about the future of our club, particularly if the new fair play rules stop clubs like Portsmouth spending beyond their means. Hill & Flitcroft have done a fantastic job and I hope they hang around a while to finish the job.

Ticket pricing driving fans away is my biggest worry.

Also its a bit sad to spend hours on your X-Box when you could be down the park playing footy with your mates.....

 

The FFP rules are a joke.

 

I don't agree with any of that, but point 3 is the worst of all. You ask what Hill is doing differently to Robins and Davey, and then state it yourself; he's achieving the same as them league position wise with so-called "inferior quality" players - is that not an achievement in itself? Then you dismiss Perkins, Davies, McNulty and Dagnall as "very poor players"; I'd say that McNulty and Perkins have been great signings for the club, and Craig Davies is our top scorer and looks good too. As for Dagnall, we've barely seen anything of him yet and you're already writing him off? I suppose you think that Dawson is not good enough too then?

Also, more contradiction in point 4: You mention that there is 20 teams better than us and we should only win 3 games all season, and yet here we sit in 14th place, 42 points already to our name. Would that not suggest we've shown plenty of that "passion" and "belief" you then mention further in the point.

As for having a 2 year old son, I do too, so I've knocked plenty of away games I would've normally done on the head. You do what you gotta do.

 

You only need to buy a toy for his birthday and Christmas. Too many parents today buy anything for a child that screams it wants something.

 

look after ure son and bullox to to Bfc....they don't come and see you when you are badly do they?

hth

 

Very true. We were spoilt under John Dennis when he gave us a championship play off final, three nice stands, premiership football, a smart looking academy etc. Nowadays ambition is so much lower it's depressing.

 

it didn't do his fruit and veg business any harm either did it!

 

You've still failed to say how you woudl like the club to demonstrate its ambition. Those things you mention happened due to being forced in the first instance and then having the brass to do it. Once they are done though we won't redo them for years!

If you want us to sign players on big money it is just not going to happen and waiting for a sugar daddy with more sugar than PC is pointless. I'd agree that we need a larger board to move the club forward but a sudden influx of cash can pave the way for destruction. Just look at Portsmouth and in a way Birmingham. A play off final defeat away from admin?