I know the Etihad is a Premiership ground... but...

when you saw the pre-match entertainment, the half time kids game, the two big screens at either end, the live interviews, the instant goal replays (from various angles), the top quality sound system, and probably other things I can't think of right now.....
then tomorrow night...
the blaring tannoy, the half time kick-it-into-a-hole game, now I'm struggling... help me out.
I'm not crying us down, really, but come on, we are worlds apart and we don't appear to do anything about it. It would take nothing more than a little imagination to lift the "entertainment experience" at Oakwell.
Also, only ever having seen the Etihad on tv before, the first thing that struck me was how big and high it is. You do not get that impression from the tv.

 

was quite impressive but bet the fans would swap it all for a bog with no roof and a horse burger van and stale bread and 12 points!

 

Got to be honest I hated it.

Will write a more detailed piece later, not that anyone will give a shi.t.

 

I was lucky enough to experience the 'corporate' side of things for the City game. Generally, I don't enjoy it and would much prefer to be in with our own fans and watching football how it's meant to be watched. To some extent, this was still the case...e.g. nothing winds me up more than seeing most folk still chatting and supping inside when the second half had kicked off ten minutes.

However, I thought the whole entertainment experience provided by City was extremely impressive. They must have more staff than we have fans. Security was efficient and friendly, literally hundreds of waitors/bar staff also very attentive. Didn't have any food outside the ground but there appeared to be plenty of options. Big screen and adverstising boards though in my opinion distracting are clearly designed to optimise sponsorship revenue. The gulf between the level Man City are at and where we are hit home with 15 or so lads with hand mowers on the pitch at full time. Literally no expense spared with regards to the matchday experience.

Now obviously they have money to burn so it's an unfair comparison with regards to us. However, there's plenty we can learn from and implement behind the scenes at Oakwell. It all made us look distinctly amaterish.

 

I've been 7 times to the Etihad now, it's an impressive stadium and it's nice to have the goal replays but I don't find the whole 'match day experience' particularly better than Oakwell. I go for the football and couldn't care less about what half time entertainment is on. I usually just spend it looking at other scores and talking.

I don't really understand the need to be entertained for 15 minutes unless you're a 5 year old child.

 

The Etihad is a nice enough place. But I don't go to watch the football for all that stuff you just mentioned. The two 45 minute halves are what matters, all the rest of it is just a pain in the arse. I like Oakwell, I've got a good view, when people sing and shout the acoustics are very good (much better than the Etihad) and I find watching Barnsley a good experience. I was envious of how well the City team performed on Saturday, how hard they worked and what a solid team they had, but I wasn't envious of the stadium at all.

 

I wasn't really referring to the half time entertainment. I agree with you, I too couldn't care less about that and I suspect most folk don't. I really meant the overall day. We got there pretty early and wandered around the stadium a bit. There were open bars, a decent looking shop, big screens showing old footage of City games (a nice touch in my opinion) Even if it is just to appease the tourist type footy fan, the huge banners and images from their title win created the feeling that it was a 'big club' even if they have little history to speak of as their neighbours regurlarly remind them of.

Their corporate offering was a million lightyears ahead of ours and I don't think that is something that is solely reliant on money. We need to buck our ideas up or we'll be left even further behind in those stakes.

 

In comparison with other relatively new stadia, I thought the Etihad wasn't bad in termas of acoustics and atmosphere. I've been to the likes of Derby, Coventry and Hull and there's practically been tumbleweeds floating through. Whilst their fans (like their team) never really got out of 3rd gear I got the impression that it'd be pretty noisy for a top Premier League or Champions league. From where I was sitting their bunch in the corner made a fair bit more racket than ours did.

 

It's a nice ground. But 4,500 of us in the Ponty when it's full make ten times the noise that 6,000 of us made at The Etihad.

 

I agree with that, the Ponty roar is up there with the all time best noises. (Went a bit Partridge there...."what are the all time best...noises") Sadly the Ponty is full all too seldom these days.

 

Ran out of pies at halftime.

Shithole.

 

I'd agree with all that. It also took a lot longer to get away from the ground at the end. Having no fans has it's positives.

 

It was top notch in terms of providing a match-day 'experience', a 'package', a family 'day-out'. But those words are not ones I want to associate with football. The whole set-up was wonderfully impressive if looked at through the eyes of someone wanting to be entertained for five hours. Pre-match music, live link-ups to reporters in the stadium shown on the TV screen outside, post-match analysis session in City Square... all very innovative and polished. But I just thought, what a money making operation. City fans probably spend hours each game there, which is great I guess, but an hour and a half before kick off the place was rammed already with fans. Fair play to City, they've got it worked out to perfection.

However, there was something I didn't quite like. Seeing loads of fans, most looking every inch the working class football fan, with kids, staring up at the main stand entrance, whilst suited and booted types look down on them... then every so often a rolls royce or bentley pulled up and the stewards ussured people away whilst rich, impeccably dressed dignitaries were shown in, with fans looking on in awe... I dunno, just seemed a bit false, a bit wrong. I do wonder if any of those fans yearn for Maine Road and the Kippax. Probably not, I'm sure watching Aguero and Tevez beats watching Tiatto and Weaver, but I couldn't say it was for me.

 

If it's their Legends Suite you are describing, it costs over 4 times more than ours, and is worse than ours in several respects: -

1) It has no seats inside for watching the match - curtains are drawn just before the teams come out.

2) The outside seats have a terrible view, much too far away so players are almost unrecognisable if you can't see their numbers.

3) The food was excellent, but they had no draught beer or lager and a small bottle of Heineken and a small wine was £8.

4) The bar service is terrible. You can't go to the bar, someone comes to your table...eventually. They then can't understand what "cash" is and why you don't have a tab set up. It takes about 15 minutes for them to re-appear with your order, then abother 10 minutes to come back with your change.

5) They give out team sheets, but "there's not enough for everybody, so you can't have one". Never mind, it's only £168 for a ticket.

6) There was no pre-match preview or interviews, and no post match summary from an ex-player or whatever.

7) There was no room at the tables to eat properly because people were squeezed in.

8) People on the next table who promised to "add you on Facebook" didn't. B@astards.

All in all our Legends is better in all the above respects apart from the last one. And it's less than £40 a pop.

 

Thought it was a top notch stadium with great facilities.
Doesn't look like we gonna get owt like at oakwell in terms of facilities as there's those that are happy with what we've got so not bothered about anybody else being attracted to the games as they should come for football only and that's all the match day experience should be.

 

Nice stadium. Thought the atmosphere was ****.

 

So that's where you were. Saw you looking out the window, then the curtains shut. You didn't enjoy it then?

 

Nice stadium, nice to see video replays of the goals but I found the feel of the area surrounding the ground a little strange.

The live band outside singing songs about how good city are - frankly I just found it plain weird, it was cringe worthy. Why not just play regular music?

Found myself in a city bar about half hour before kick-off, trying desperately to keep my shirt covered from the bouncers who were checking everyone to make sure they were city. This place also had a strange feel. There was a massive poster of a solemn looking Mancini on the wall and I just got the impression that they were more bothered about basking in their glory than actually supporting the club. It's almost as though they're nervously awaiting the bubble bursting, so they're making the most of it while they can. Cue the "where were you when you we're s#@t" chants.

Top team though, they truly are one of the best in the world.

 

Best thing i've read on here in a while.