1996-97 Promotion Season - Attendances versus current

Just looked at our famous 1996-97 promotion season attendances and apart from the "stand-out" games versus Man City, Wolves and last home game Bradford, the attendances were quite low in realtion to the football we were playing at the time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996–97_Barnsley_F.C._season

I personally think the Hill-Flitcroft regime will bring good times back to Oakwell and if BFC get their pricing policy correct, we should see increase in support base.

Will be interested to see how a £15 ticket policy influences BFC's away support at Peterborough on Saturday.......maybe this will prove the point that a good product coupled with a sensible price is a winning package?

 

We'll never get attendances like in the 80s

In 81/82 the average home gate was about 15,000, it was about £3 to stand anywhere in the ground and the atmosphere was fantastic. Unless we get back to the Prem (and the glory hunters come back), we'll never see more that the 10,000 or so we get now - no matter how good the football is.

Once people get out of the routine of going to the footy on a saturday afternoon, they find other things to do and find it hard to go back.

Incidentally, our average attendance in the 4th division in 78/9 was about the same as now.

 

There isn't enough work to get those crowds again that we got pre strike

 

What I can't understand is...

When we've had cat C games at Oakwell this season, we've usually pulled around 10,000 fans, which would include about 2000 reds fans who are just buying a matchday ticket (this means i've taken out season ticket holders and away fans). So why is it then that were potentially taking more, to an away game, a fair trek away for a quid less.

I can only assume it's the attraction which Peterborough has to our support; admittedly I went 2 years ago and it was a cracking day out, in an old fashioned football stadium, something we don't regularly get to visit being in the 2nd tier.

So maybe it isn't the ticket prices, maybe it isn't the football we're playing, which deters reds fans, maybe it's the day out in general. Maybe if there was more of an effort to enhance the day out in general, more would come, not just home fans, but away fans too; because I reckon Peterborough will onlybring a few hundred to Oakwell, our fairly modern, concrete stadium. And as for the day out, the ground is a bit of a walk from the town if you're not familiar with the route, and the away fans are shepherded into the Metrodome anyway and made to drink in a sports hall at £3 a pint.

We need something, other than the price and football product to attract fans to Oakwell. IMO

 

Re: What I can't understand is...

If you take out the season ticket holders from the fans we're taking to Peterborough you'll be left with a much smaller number of fans going down there. You can't say that 80% of our home support are season ticket holders but not one of those go to away games, I'd wager that it is probably an even higher number for away games and probably 90% are season ticket holders.

 

Re: What I can't understand is...

Even so, why is Peterborough away seen as an attractive fixture when Palace at home isn't?

 

Re: What I can't understand is...

I'm not sure I understand what you mean. Crystal Palace at home will have far more Barnsley fans there than Peterborough will.

If I, as a season ticket holder, go to Peterborough then that doesn't mean I find Peterborough to be a more attractive fixture because I will be at both as I suspect will the vast, vast majority of those going to that game.

 

Re: What I can't understand is...

The club has to see sense and realise that times are very, very hard for the working family man. Spending £70/80 on a football match, cannot be justified when the same money could put a weeks worth of food on the kitchen table.

Football in general needs to realise that the bubble burst a long time ago, and it's only going to get worse and worse for the smaller clubs. It needs addressing at the highest level, and be allowed to seep down through the ever expaning cracks.