Mattyblue

This club doesn’t do that. It’s always ‘journeys’, ‘ambition to do x’, ‘growth’, ‘ethos’. Vague mentions of the PL but never with a budget to enable it. We never seem to get anywhere on these journeys. And as enthusiastic and professional as he sounds, Broughton doesn’t seem the type to deviate from that. The crux of all this is where does someone like JDT fit into it all? He doesn’t seem the sort of manager happy to sit in mid table with an average budget, with a squad of young players and loanees year in year out.

‘Stop moaning about having to find £500 in a cost of living crisis’ Amazing how anybody has the gall to question anybody else’s disposable income. Let them eat Californian cake.

We haven’t paid a fee for a centre half in the second tier for eight years, that’s a fact and why I don’t expect anybody better than Lenihan to arrive, but you obviously do, fair enough, and I hope you’re right. But on TM, who employed and kept him on for five years? Same with Waggott. Employ and stick with mediocrities, get mediocre outcomes.

‘Oh shit! He’s going to ask me what I’ve got on… and I’ve already put the cones out’.

Plus they are newly relegated, those clubs always get a grace period of heightened coverage from national media, that soon dissipates once you get marooned down here…

It’s hard to say on hypothetical numbers, but this appointment would’ve turbo charged sales if a waverer/floater logged in to e-ticketing this week and could see tickets at say £329+ instead of £429 -£529 *Sigh*

Just imagine the sales if a certain Teessider had stayed on 😧

This club ay, only place you would ever hear ‘performance over wins’ from executives (and some managers). Luckily we have a proper winner as manager now and you won’t be hearing it from him, I’d wager…

No 12 years of Venky’s have dumbed down my expectations, Sharpe’s tweet is an example of how they’ve done it…

Not a fuck up from their perspective though, they obviously want to drive membership of Rovers TV, even if free to start with, they can then push an upgraded membership once they have your details, and there’s no better way than when the fanbase is excited about a new manager and want to hear him.

You just aren’t getting Rovers fans buying STs in large numbers for second division football at £400 - £529, not going to happen. Just like it wouldn’t happen at other local clubs, ergo reduced prices. The part of that post I most agree with though Paul, is the terrible timing of the price hike. They were expensive to start with and we had no manager at all throughout the first phase, so obviously no momentum for sales is going to build there. And literally the week JDT arrives they hike the prices even higher, snuffing out another chance for a big spike in sales. Just basic common sense is missing down there. And I think they know they’ve dropped a bollock as even with the appointment they have been much quieter promoting STs since his appointment than before.

It’s the age old Venky issue. He’s ok, decent at this level, but nothing more… but still won’t be replaced with anybody better, or even replaced with a permanent signing at all.

It definitely seemed a little fuller on the seat map today compared to Monday. If we can scramble our way back to around the c7,500 we had at the start of last season (though including half STs, it would still be down on the total number of ST holders we finished the season with) then you’d have to take it. Though such a missed opportunity, with all the positive vibes around JDT, with sensible pricing you’d have had a real momentum building and a resulting sizeable spike in sales, perhaps up to c10k, which would be something to build on. Here’s hoping they’ve been spooked by the negative publicity, like the MCC was over Lord’s a few weeks back and we don’t see such pricing again.

Agreed there Jim, The Times and Sunday Times cricket writing is superb with James, Atherton and Simon Wilde

Tottenham to win the league is the Chadster’s new hobby horse I’ve noticed…. he’ll have quietly dropped it for something in else in about October 😁

I don’t, 12 years of bitter experience says so, doesn’t mean I can’t wistfully dream that the executives here can at least operate with a modicum of common sense though…

Hmmm not sure. Did anybody do a definite dot ticking? Surely someone has! 😁 Though it’s not an exact science due to the JW Upper W09 and W10 central blocks not being available to buy online but there will be ‘season tickets’ of a sort in those.

So having issues with the commercial side of the club is because I ‘prefer self flagellation’? I’m pretty sure I would rather the club could just have competent people throughout to give us the best possible opportunity to be a success…

They are £30 more expensive for new and returning fans. Odd way to try and grow a ST holder base…

No great loss there then, as he’s told us nowt to start with!

Annoys me how he has written that, he needed to outline the other prices, folk will just see £399 and think ‘we’ll it’s not that bad’. £429 is now the minimum, up to £529.

So people should take £430- £530 from the magic money tree in their back yard? If it’s unaffordable, it’s unaffordable and a love of the club and Venky’s not giving a shite if we went under doesn’t alter that fact.

‘I know all this stuff… but I can’t tell you 🤭 he he’ is an odd way to behave on a message board, unless it’s just to stoke your own ego. You want to protect confidences? No problem, keep shtum then!

You understand completely wrong and I’m actually a little riled on the behalf of long standing fans with decades of support who are being told by someone thousands of miles away that the real reason they haven’t renewed this summer (despite always doing previously), is due to them being spoilt and therefore have ‘hurt feelings’, despite sticking it out through the last decade of utter shite, and it is actually nothing to do with their ‘bread and egg’ fund. What give you the right?

That’s a very glib response from someone a long way away that seemingly doesn’t understand the demographics of the local area. This summer’s collapse in sales is largely to do with pricing (though having no manager in place throughout the ‘loyalty sales period’ didn’t help), we are now losing fans that have kept the faith throughout the Venky regime, these aren’t fans that have chucked their toys out of the pram over ‘hurt feelings’ towards some folk in Pune. We are in a cost of living crisis and we are seeing prices of up to £530, far more than most other local clubs.