Extremely encouraging piece in the Star from an interview with Paul Conway. He wants Oakwell to become " the centre of Town". We've heard some of it before, but it will be very interesting to see how their " end to end" plans finally develop. First job for me, would be to get some better kept beer and lager on tap for our fans to enjoy. I don't know what's on offer in Redfearns, but the beer that's sold in the East Stand bar, is not what you could describe as appetising. https://www.thestar.co.uk/sport/foo...-wants-oakwell-to-be-the-centre-of-town-53016
Be interesting to see what these plans are. We keep getting told about them. Anyone know if work has started on the fanzone yet behind the east?
It also needs to be half the price of town... Do you think people are going to rock up on a cold december saturday and stand about in the East stand concourse or a marque at £4 a pint?
Well i had the privilege of watching the Coventry match from a friend's corporate box for a change of scenery. Anyway after about 60 min of the game my phone rang so i went out to the concourse area to answer it. I asked the bar man for a pint too and he said he wasn't allowed to during the game even though i was facing east stand car park. Then after the game we went in legends suite. There must have been 200 plus people in and stopped serving at six pm the place was empty by 6.20 pm and I'm thinking why ??
As a moderate drinker I couldn't give a flying f**k about the standard of beer or the price of it. And that's not going to keep families there before or after the game either. I don't know if there's space to be utilised but put in a couple of restaurants and, yes, a couple of bars etc and make it somewhere you could spend the evening.
Thing is it's not going to be half the price of town. As you mention, you're probably going to be looking at £3.50-£4 per pint. I like some of the ideas Conway etc. are trying to implement but just not sure the fanzone would work at Oakwell given the short distance to the town centre. I meet up with a few mates before home matches and we tend to go in Arcade Ale House or Silkstone Inn where you can get a decent pint of real ale for £2.50 or sometimes less.
Unless there’s some form of entertainment etc put on in the fanzone . Eg ex players, present staff or managers etc giving talks or signings etc. There’s plenty the club can call in to tempt the fans into the fanzone imo.
Being a " thrifty" Yorkshireman, the simple answer DEETEE is no I don't. If the Board want to encourage us to arrive early and leave late, they are going to have to come up with some "artistic" ways to encourage our future patronage. Even accounting for the new picture boards and the small TV screens on the walls, the East Stand ground level entrance area is a bland and uninviting space. It will be very interesting to see what they have in mind for us in the coming season(s). Like the next man, I love a pint, but having sampled the beer on offer earlier in the season at every game ever since, I have had a Bovril.
Totally agree CR. My former Sales Manager where I worked, was the part time Yorkshire Scout for Wigan Rugby League Club. He discovered around fifteen players who went on to play for Wigan and England. His best ever discoveries were Jason Robinson for Wigan and in his earlier years, Ellery Hanley when he scouted for Bradford Northern. He once invited me to a game at Wigan when they played Halifax. It was an afternoon kick off, but we were at the ground for 12 noon. We were shown to a table in a comfortable lounge, where we enjoyed a lunch comprising of soup and a choice of three main courses, plus tea /coffee or beer /lager. All of those costs were apparently included in the price of the ticket, which I had been treated to by my mate. We took our seats in the Stand and watched a very entertaining game, which Wigan won. At full time, we went back to our suite and were given a plate of ham sandwiches, pork pie and a small bowl of crisps. Any beer we had from that point, we had to pay for. I remember I had some Boddingtons on draught and it was spot on. After the crockery was cleared away, the players of both sides came into the room and made a point of talking to the fans of both teams. Some of their Wigan's star players from yesteryear , re- the late Billy Boston, Billy Blan etc were in the room and after the Man of the Match award was made, there was a Cabaret involving a very good comedian and an excellent Show Band. We left for the journey back to Yorkshire and the room was still full with fans and some of the players. I understood, there was a bar extension to midnight as well. That meant that some patrons could have been on site for a full twelve hours. If they hadn't paid for a meal/drinks, they had the option of buying hot pies and their drinks separately. The Club must have been made it pay because at some future games, I understand that the quality of the acts were improved and periodically featured some of the UK's better known artists. Don't know what our Boards future plans are, but to get fans to stay, I would think that they have got to offer more than just food and drinks.
Ermmmm, now don't tell me, don't tell me. It's on the tip of me tongue......... .........Pete Tong...that's the fella!
I was being a bit controversial with the beer remark though I partly mean it. It's going to take more than cheap ale in Redfearns and the fan zone to attract couples, families though. They need a range if options that could make staying around the ground for a few hours an attractive option. My other half will go now and again to show willing but if you could offer a decent meal, couple of nice bars, a nice atmosphere you could start to compete. It then starts to make Oakwell a more central feature of the town rather than just a footy ground.
Of all the images of Oakwell they could use, they chose that one. Talk about trying to pull the club down. Dee dar rag!! Hope it goes out of business sooner rather than later.
It doesn't need to be half the price of town. Agree, it doesn't want to be concourse prices and would need to offer a better choice than the concourse (and better levels of service than we currently see). The club are aware of this and I think they want to provide a good experience to fans above all else. There is the opportunity to provide other entertainment which may or may not mean people would pay a little bit more than town.
Agree CR. I later understood there were two other suites. We were in the Charmans Lounge. In another room they had a DJ and in between sets, they had a Sports quiz and the main act Bingo. It was free entry in there and you just bought your food and drinks. That room closed at 10-30pm. In another room , there were facilities for Junior members like games, art, cartoons and a Clown. I was told, that both rooms were well patronised at every home game. There was talk of providing Minibuses for any fans who had had a drink and therefore couldn't drive home. The plan was that for a fee, the Club would lay on mini buses to do a "milk run" to various parts of the Town. I don't know if that service was ever introduced though.
Probably because of her being Sean Edwards wife at one time, Heather Small and her Band were one of the acts. I once saw her at a Charity Ball in Leeds . What an act she puts on. She was absolutely sensational.