Safe standing moves one step closer

Not sure about that tbh . I remember Watching us v Reading both standing and sitting and atmosphere being low key .
Atmosphere depends on certain criteria’s imo .
Winning teams bring the main one imo .
Others include Local Derbies,needle matches etc .
One set of fans opinions of a great atmosphere can differ from the same game .
Personally I’ve experienced good atmospheres both sitting and standing .
One thing I do advocate if standing is brought back is that standing in the seating areas is vigorously policed both home and away with zero tolerance .

 

I suspect it will be no more or less expensive than any other part of the ground. Which is how it should be. The club will see an extra revenue stream in what is a dilapidated part of the ground that they can access with minimal investment.

 

I reckon there'll be a load more stewarding and surveillance for that particular area.

 

in the last 15 years I can remember 1 decent atmosphere at Oakwell for a league game. Stoke 3-3 on Boxing Day. Mostly it’s like a morgue and derbt games are no better. . It didn’t used to be like that. I suspect it may be too late to venerate atmosphere in oakwell but can’t be worse. Would also benefit from enclosing the sides as was originally planned.

I wouldn’t hold my breath with the stewards as they are incapable of dealing with overt racism let alone people standing up.

 

I’d imagine that would be factored into the cost but when you think that people pay good money to sit in a dilapidated and potentially dangerous west stand paying the same for vastly inferior facilities then all logical pricing goes out the window.

 

I don't have a problem with safe standing if it is indeed safe. I don't think they should hold off on redevelopment of the West Stand though until it's legal. Obviously none of us know if anything is likely to happen with the west stand anyway given the current situation, but I do hope they don't pause it waiting for potential safe standing laws to come in.

I also think that any costs associated with it should be covered by tickets for that area.

 

Yeah, that's pretty inexplicable to be fair!

 

It will be legal this season. I suspect we won’t be developing the West Stand this decade due to ground ownership issues.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-58357046

 

Not been great at oakwell for league games since the heady days of the eighties with a few exceptions and cup games .
In fact early nineties we were getting crowds on some days less than 7k
When Oakwells rocking it’s rocking regardless whether it’s was before or after seating .
I thought the second half of the great escape season was brilliant culminating in three sides of the ground singing three little birds as we put a promotion chasing Hull City to the sword with a full contingent of away fans .
I get that it’s my opinion but atmospheres caold be dull at the well standing or sitting just as much as they could be rocking and it’s winning/trying teams that make the difference .

 

We've had an all seater stadium now for 27 years. To claim that there's only been one match in all that time to have had an atmosphere is like reading something from Donald Trump and his post-truth cohorts!
If safe standing can be provided for those who wish to stand and is cost effective, then by all means go for it. If what is said about generating an atmosphere by standing is true, then that part of the ground will automatically take over from the Ponty End for making the vast majority of noise. I'll be gobsmacked if that were to happen!

 

If the government have announced it for this season I wouldn't expect it before 2040.

Likewise I wouldn't expect the West Stand redevelopment before 2050.

I know the laws are extremely likely to come first, it was just a general comment that if that situation ever arose I would hope the club don't hold off redevelopment for this reason.

 

Well there were some decent atmospheres about 25 years ago. In recent times. Non cup/ play off games. Are there any that stick out to you. Genuine question? when I’ve been to other worse supported clubs there is more noise. I think it’s probably more to do with the sides that are open that were designed to be linked up. The Stendel promotion season was particularly disappointing given the attacking football we played.

 

All the ones in the Premier League campaign. Most of the ones in the 1999/2000 Play Off season. When we played Leeds in 2006, 2010 , 2011 & 2013. Newcastle in 2009. Practically all the home games during the Great Escape in 2013. Just off the top of my head.
What's your opinion of the atmosphere for the majority of our home games during the 1971/72, 1972/73, 1974/75, 1975/76, 1984/85, 1985/86, 1986/87, 1987/88, 1989/90, 1991/92 seasons? My opinion is that the majority were something akin to a library.

 

premier league was good. Can’t comment on the Bassett season as I was away that year though did watch us beat Portsmouth 6-0 and you could have hear a pin drop. Your most other recent example is 9 years old. I usually go to our matches against Leeds with a few Leeds fans and they always comment on a lack of atmosphere but then again we don’t go in tbe Ponty so that may be the reason. Again I think the open sides acoustically let the noise escape

Too young for early 70s. Post miners strike 80s the crowds were smaller but noisier but difficult to compare as we generally had little or nothing to play for whereas for he last decade we haven’t had many ‘dead seasons’.

Trying to compare Like for like. The atmosphere when Norman got us promoted compared to when Daniel did? Both played great on ball scoring loads of goals but atmosphere pretty non existent under Daniel .

it’s definitely my feeling if we filled the corners in then a lot of noise would stay in rather than escaping out.

Best atmospheres at Barnsley matches I’ve experienced in the last few years have been at small compact away games. Accrington and Fleetwood.

 

It's just my opinion that claiming terracing automatically made Oakwell noisier simply isn't true. As I said earlier, the examples I gave were off the top of my head. I don't believe our stands have adversely affected the atmosphere at Oakwell, as I well remember the seasons both prior and post the Clarke/Hunter eras and it was morgue-like the majority of times.
You think and believe differently to me, which is fair enough.

 

If standing is to be permitted in England then it will be the ‘Rail System’ which ensures no over crowding, by one standing supporter per seat. This also accords with the real time attendance count (a recommendation of the Taylor report). Also UEFA & FIFA games must be all seaters. So all teams wishing to play in European tournaments will have to have this system. About 10 years ago the FA were considering the re-introduction of standing and BFC made enquiries into the cost of installing ‘rail seats’. The cost was frightening.

 

Your arguments don't make a lot of sense to me. You started by saying that forcing people to sit down is why there's no atmosphere anymore but now your argument appears to be that Barnsley fans just aren't loud enough anyway (as mentioned in your part about Leeds fans mention it) that the open sides let the noise escape and that small compact grounds are better. None of which have anything to do with fans standing up rather than sitting down.

Didn't we have open sided stands when we had terraces? In fact didn't we have no sides and less roofs too?

 

the acoustics of a seated stadium should be different from a standing one. Think of the difference between a seated concert and a standing one. You pitch sound differently. I think there are a multitude of reasons for the moon like nature at oakwell. Partly no terrace. Partly an unfinished stadium. Partly a change on the relationship between fan and club ( not discreet to Barnsley) we are treated like consumers rather than fans so expect to b entertained rather than part of the entertainment. There is also a change in where we draw fans from. The close knit industrial base is gone and we that were lost a sense of community. The compact grounds I mentioned were standing whether the atmosphere was a result of that or the compact nature again probably a combination of both.

As in all things you are a black and white person whereas the reality is usually more grey. There isn’t one cause but multiple ones but curing one of them is fairly straightforward. In isolation will it have a great impact I suspect we won’t know anytime soon as I’d expect but the West stand to be completely condemned before we renovate it given the impasse on the ground.

 

Playoff semi-final against Walsall in 2016 was pretty tidy, as I recall.

 

Why don't we have standing in cinemas or theatres, while we're at it! Or in church! Oh wait, Shakespear's Globe! Yayy! Let's go back to Tudor times!