I've got a mate who lives in Preston, & who as a kid was a PNE fan. He's in his 50s now & won't go any more becuase he just doesn't enjoy today's match day experience. He reckons that the average man in the street is slowly turning away from Premiership football because of all the reasons that are often stated on here - from unbelievably high player wages, to ever increasing ticket prices, to over zealous stewarding etc. etc.

 

He reckons that in the not too distant future, some clubs will end up having to pay supporters to attend games. His theory is that football is now all about sky money. Sky don't want to televise half empty stadiums, but ticket prices/wages continue to increase because of sky money, thereby reducing crowds. A vicious circle.

 

I thought it was a bit radical, but as he pointed out, 20/30/40/50yrs ago the idea of having to provide free travel for supporters to encourage them to go, or to drop kids prices to less than they were 20yrs ago (kids for a quid etc), or to offer refer a friend for a fiver etc. incentives, is just the start.

 

Any thoughts?

Some good points of view. As sky do pump tonns of money into the prem clubs coffers they do depend on a decent gate. If Sky do pull out at some point,, shockwaves would be felt throughout the premier league. As for the matchday experience, maybe thats why so many didnt renew their tickets, maybe Gartsides appointment of Megson will prevent even more renewing. Football under Allardyce was poor, under Megson it got worse. Only good thing to come out the season was the fact we stayed up. Maybe it will get better, Megson has eleven weeks to sort out his startin eleven for the new season, lets see what he does.

 

Beer swiller

I think football as a whole in England is too popular for it to fold. There is no sport that comes close to it and never will in my opinion.

 

I think prices will reduce and maybe become equal for every stadium in its division one day. IE - ?30 to watch Bolton vs Fulham and ?30 to watch Chelsea vs Man Utd.

 

I think that is one way to stabilise a game that is growing out of control

The scary thing though is that I have it on very good authority that the tv people are heavily investigating "virtual atmospheres" ie you use CGI to fill in the crowd and add noise etc. If that pans out they wont give a shiney shite how many turn up.

I'm quite sure something very similar happened in Italy in the mid 90s. TV coverage was oversaturated and flooding money into the clubs - but crowds dwindled to a point where they had to cut prices drastically to bring back the fans and the atmosphere - which the TV punters were demanding!

since the close of the season i can honestly say i am debating whether or not i will go next season. i found home games a real drag last season and since the end of the season i have been able to fill my days quite easily with other things. i am not missing football at all

Its becuse you're now watching a mans game.

The scary thing though is that I have it on very good authority that the tv people are heavily investigating "virtual atmospheres" ie you use CGI to fill in the crowd and add noise etc. If that pans out they wont give a shiney shite how many turn up.

 

Fook me. Imagine how big Massive City would be if that happend. They would virtually take 800K to every away game.

 

Didn't City once pipe in crowd noises through their PA system once? Sort of an early forerunner to what you have just mentioned SG.

Fook me. Imagine how big Massive City would be if that happend. They would virtually take 800K to every away game.

 

Didn't City once pipe in crowd noises through their PA system once? Sort of an early forerunner to what you have just mentioned SG.

When sky first started to do football, I remember you get rid of the commentaters voice and just have the crowd noise in the background, I think the should bring that back

I can pinpoint the exact moment a lot of the magic went for me.

 

Last season when United beat us 4-0 (basically in the first 20 mins) and I didn't want to kill every organism on earth was the time it occured to me the sanitized shite I was paying for was not the romantic, smelly, emotional, drunken, passionate thing I had subscribed to back when John Thomas beat Wolves with his penalty in the mid 80's.

 

At first I thought it might just be me and my age. Nope.

 

Then I thought each Prem team should be full of homegrown talent. Nope.

 

God forbid, I thought, it might be that it's just not entertaining. Nope. Even McGinley et al had their off days.

 

Turns out, I'm just blue collar and like my football with a strong whiff of beer and p?ss with an underlying threat of violence. I've tried, I really have, to enjoy all aspects of modern stadia and pleasant atmospheres with jolly impresarios and cheerleaders with puppy fat. But it's not for me. I love the club despite its shortcomings at times, but I simply cannot enjoy what the modern version offers.

 

BWFC can try all they like, but they can't bring back the sense of chaos and disorder that got me there in the first place. It's not their fault, so I don't blame them. It's just how it is and its a shame.

I can pinpoint the exact moment a lot of the magic went for me.

 

Last season when United beat us 4-0 (basically in the first 20 mins) and I didn't want to kill every organism on earth was the time it occured to me the sanitized shite I was paying for was not the romantic, smelly, emotional, drunken, passionate thing I had subscribed to back when John Thomas beat Wolves with his penalty in the mid 80's.

 

At first I thought it might just be me and my age. Nope.

 

Then I thought each Prem team should be full of homegrown talent. Nope.

 

God forbid, I thought, it might be that it's just not entertaining. Nope. Even McGinley et al had their off days.

 

Turns out, I'm just blue collar and like my football with a strong whiff of beer and p?ss with an underlying threat of violence. I've tried, I really have, to enjoy all aspects of modern stadia and pleasant atmospheres with jolly impresarios and cheerleaders with puppy fat. But it's not for me. I love the club despite its shortcomings at times, but I simply cannot enjoy what the modern version offers.

 

BWFC can try all they like, but they can't bring back the sense of chaos and disorder that got me there in the first place. It's not their fault, so I don't blame them. It's just how it is and its a shame.

similar sentiments in a way by a Leeds fan prior to the playoff final in the Sunday Times:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/foo...icle3994856.ece

I can pinpoint the exact moment a lot of the magic went for me.

 

Last season when United beat us 4-0 (basically in the first 20 mins) and I didn't want to kill every organism on earth was the time it occured to me the sanitized shite I was paying for was not the romantic, smelly, emotional, drunken, passionate thing I had subscribed to back when John Thomas beat Wolves with his penalty in the mid 80's.

 

At first I thought it might just be me and my age. Nope.

 

Then I thought each Prem team should be full of homegrown talent. Nope.

 

God forbid, I thought, it might be that it's just not entertaining. Nope. Even McGinley et al had their off days.

 

Turns out, I'm just blue collar and like my football with a strong whiff of beer and p?ss with an underlying threat of violence. I've tried, I really have, to enjoy all aspects of modern stadia and pleasant atmospheres with jolly impresarios and cheerleaders with puppy fat. But it's not for me. I love the club despite its shortcomings at times, but I simply cannot enjoy what the modern version offers.

 

BWFC can try all they like, but they can't bring back the sense of chaos and disorder that got me there in the first place. It's not their fault, so I don't blame them. It's just how it is and its a shame.

We got to the promised land, but it did not do what it said on the tin

similar sentiments in a way by a Leeds fan prior to the playoff final in the Sunday Times:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/foo...icle3994856.ece

 

It's spot on is that Satan.

 

I'll bet everyone on here has a memory that stands out of a night (usually) when the Whites made you feel like life could never be any better? That memory will include 1 or more close friends with whom you can still share the memory.

 

Success can never be beaten regardless of the level. Looking across to seething Tranmere fans after snatching an ill-deserves win is a feeling that's hard to top - even beating the disinterested hoardes from down the M1/Old Trafford this season.

 

It's wins we need to get folks back I suppose, and the truth is we'd get plenty anywhere but the Prem.

 

A smell of stale p?ss and lager wouldn't go amiss mind....

I can pinpoint the exact moment a lot of the magic went for me.

 

Last season when United beat us 4-0 (basically in the first 20 mins) and I didn't want to kill every organism on earth was the time it occured to me the sanitized shite I was paying for was not the romantic, smelly, emotional, drunken, passionate thing I had subscribed to back when John Thomas beat Wolves with his penalty in the mid 80's.

 

At first I thought it might just be me and my age. Nope.

 

Then I thought each Prem team should be full of homegrown talent. Nope.

 

God forbid, I thought, it might be that it's just not entertaining. Nope. Even McGinley et al had their off da

 

Turns out, I'm just blue collar and like my football with a strong whiff of beer and p?ss with an underlying threat of violence. I've tried, I really have, to enjoy all aspects of modern stadia and pleasant atmospheres with jolly impresarios and cheerleaders with puppy fat. But it's not for me. I love the club despite its shortcomings at times, but I simply cannot enjoy what the modern version offers.

 

BWFC can try all they like, but they can't bring back the sense of chaos and disorder that got me there in the first place. It's not their fault, so I don't blame them. It's just how it is and its a shame.

 

excellent post

iam sure there are loads of people who also feel exactly the same way.

like my football with a strong whiff of beer and p?ss with an underlying threat of violence.

 

What a great line...

 

Thats what excited me when i started going in the early 80s as a youngster, I was always an enthusiastic bystander, doing some goading (from the safety of an iron fence), some verbals...it was great....

 

You can't beat it when its like that, theres a whiff of naughtiness in the air

 

...its something tribal....the banter from home support to away...its gone

What a great line...

 

Aye and that's just the women and kids

What a great line...

 

Thats what excited me when i started going in the early 80s as a youngster, I was always an enthusiastic bystander, doing some goading (from the safety of an iron fence), some verbals...it was great....

 

You can't beat it when its like that, theres a whiff of naughtiness in the air

 

...its something tribal....the banter from home support to away...its gone

 

Whilst I understand the needs of modern day football fans for scarves, coffe mugs and balloons, they'll just never know the thrill of going to Stoke and simply hoping you make it back to your car in one piece.

Whilst I understand the needs of modern day football fans for scarves, coffe mugs and balloons, they'll just never know the thrill of going to Stoke and simply hoping you make it back to your car in one piece.

 

We received no more than about ?7-8m through the gate last season, Sky TV paid us ?32m, if we want a successful football club end of discussion as to where the clubs' priorities lie.

 

Fans are no longer valued 'cos they are no longer valuable.

 

Football RIP

excellent post

iam sure there are loads of people who also feel exactly the same way.

The thing is, when I started going in the mid late 70s you'd get home from the game knowing that you'd just experienced summat through football that you couldn't get any other way. Not the case now.

In many ways that's fair enough, given some of the activities and some of the conditions; but complete sanitation will kill it. Or at least it will for them as go to games. The bell-ends watching on tv wont give a shit. And that's the worry; but in some ways it's not a worry for me. I've seen what football has to offer - in the words of White Love: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. I wouldn't have missed it for the world. But if that's it now, then so be it. I've got the t-shirt and the memories. It's not my loss; it's the poor sods who never experienced it I would feel sorry for.

since the close of the season i can honestly say i am debating whether or not i will go next season. i found home games a real drag last season and since the end of the season i have been able to fill my days quite easily with other things. i am not missing football at all

 

 

Big E mate dot do it!!!!

 

miss those lisbon trips my friend

Reading this thread makes me feel better. I thought it was just me. The sanitisation goes beyond football authorities. Our lawmakers and the general 'powers that be' have contributed massively with their rules, regulations and stupid laws (like grossly unfair banning orders). Basically, they would like us all in bed by 7pm and fun to be outlawed.

I used to be passionate about football, lived, breathed etc etc.....but as the passion has gone out of football and money is the driver, I find it actually bores me....I should be looking forward to Euro 2008, at the moment I couldn't give a shite.

 

When we were nearly going under, and averaging under 6,500, playing away at Darlo and Newport, getting pissed wet through on open terraces, I looked to the promised land of Div 1 (then prem)...be careful what you wish for

I used to be passionate about football, lived, breathed etc etc.....but as the passion has gone out of football and money is the driver, I find it actually bores me....I should be looking forward to Euro 2008, at the moment I couldn't give a shite.

 

When we were nearly going under, and averaging under 6,500, playing away at Darlo and Newport, getting pissed wet through on open terraces, I looked to the promised land of Div 1 (then prem)...be careful what you wish for

 

Agree with most of that. Without England, I couldn't give a fook about Euro 2008. If any of the other 'home' countries had been in, my only interest would have been in seeing them get swatted. As it is, I will hardly watch a game.

 

Some of my greatest memories of BWFC come from our lower division days. Yes, we have some great Prem and Euro memories but there was something profound about travelling to the likes of Mansfield with a few hundred or a few thousand of truly committed folk. People you were proud to be associated with - Bolton to the core; no backward steps.

But even if we were in the lower leagues, the experience is not much different.

New soleless stadiums, very good policing / stewarding.

Its never going to throw back to 10-15 years ago which ever division you are in.

 

Just got to get used to it and make the best of whats left !!

But even if we were in the lower leagues, the experience is not much different.

New soleless stadiums, very good policing / stewarding.

Its never going to throw back to 10-15 years ago which ever division you are in.

 

Just got to get used to it and make the best of whats left !!

 

 

You say that but I can tell you down here, there is a very strong feeling amongst the ex-pats that the CC Championship has been a more enjoyable watch last season.

 

Premier League is becoming sterile. Apart from a 4-4 draw at WHL between Spurs and Chelsea and a 1-0 home win over the scum, I am struggling to think of a game which lit any fires.