St. Jason Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 its not a matter of people running out of patience, they just didn't turn up from the off Brum 18,925 Blackpool 15,629 Ipswich 14,916 Barnsley 14,836 Norwich 14,480 Watford 17,454 Coventry 14,226 Bristol City 14,535 Wolves 17,812 Plymouth 14,895 Sheff Wed 15,440 Forrest 26,580 Reading 20,142 Donny 15,837 Ever considered that this was down to the return of Lowe and Wilde?? In my group of friends I'm the only 1 that renewed this year, every other lad to a man said "i'll not set foot in sms until Lowe's gone" and to be fair, not 1 has!! Also, it was pretty obvious that we were going to struggle this season once Lowe let Pearson go and appointed a no one, he has no track record and has never worked for a club bigger than Eastleigh. For my money people/fans just thought, i've had enough, sfc as i knew it is dead!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
um pahars Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 Without wanting to be 'controversial' - its seems we want it both ways.... we hate the way that the club doesn't treat us 'fans' but rather as £££ or 'customers', then say that attendenace is down to giving the 'customers' value for money? Sorry but surely if we want the club to appreciate that Football is NOT like other businesses, we need to sure that as FANs of teh club, we support the side that is put out there - not just because it conatins a few stars - but whether its Keegan or Olly Lancahsire, when they put on the shirt they deserve our support... surely? I can understand the expense in the current climate, etc, but when Man U came to town at £30 we had no shortage of takers.... Frank, like Lowe, methinks you have spectacularly missed the point made before regarding the make up of our fanbase. Our hardcore fanbase is circa 15,000. They will come what may, they are the ones hooked and in love with the Club. After that there are a fair few thousand who will come dependent on results, goals, feelgood factor and a number of other things that aren't there at the moment. After that there's a fair few thousand who are really only interested in seeing stars, the glamour and the top flight. You can moan as much as you want about the second and third categories not turning up, but it is a useless moan as they won't be on here and they won't return even if you shout it out from the rooftop of St Mary's. They will only return if results improve. It's not rocket science, so struggle to understand why people continue to try and defy the bleeding obvious with their rallying calls. The first category of fans come despite results, the other two have to be won back by the Club. It will not happen any other way. Get a decent manager in, win some games, create a spirit of unity and togetherness and you might start tempting the second group back. Then use their gate receipts to improve the team, which in turn improves the attendances, which in then increases our chances of getting back the third category of fans. A virtuous circle, as opposed to today's vicious one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legod Third Coming Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 Journalist is a total arse shocker... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaintRobbie Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 We get a paragraph in there today, basically blaming the fans.... 'Southampton fans blame board blunders for their Championship plight. They should have a go at their fair-weather mates. In their last season in the Premier League, Southampton's average attendance was 30,000. Last season it was down to 21,000, this season 17,000. If they ever get back to the top division and rival fans chant 'Where were you when you were rubbish?' the answer will be. at home, moaning'. ---- Charming - BTW Mick, we've always been rubbish. ---- So, in return, I have emailed him this afternoon so he sees just WHY WE ARE SO ****ED OFF. CS What email address did you use so we can ALL send him one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eelpie Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 Longwinded. And it's not meant to be so hilarious. But then there have been so many reasons not to be cheerful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ooohTerryHurlock Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 The Express is **** they have little left to write about after all the trash they wrote about the mccanns and Diana - I would nt even use their paper to wipe my arse! The sports pages crap. what does some second rate hack no anything about this club? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemmel Posted 20 January, 2009 Share Posted 20 January, 2009 Why so angry? Article is true. Whatever reasons, valid or not, support has gone down a lot & it doesn't reflect well. On who ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pittdogg Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Made even worse by appointing a ridiculous Dutch experiment and getting rid of a manager that had 'united' most of the fan base. Of course its the fans fault..it always is when you try and deflect the blame away from the main culprits. i miss pearson. i miss the slight glimmer of hope. but i certainly dont give a f### what league were in.i will always support saints but when the players and the board dont give anything back or seem to care the slightest bit it doesn't surprise me at all when fan numbers dwindle. i meen there no less a fan then anyone else sat in there seats waving there season ticket they've had 15 year's etc some people can only take so much. i got to admit im finding it hard when my works slowing down and the misses is asking me "why im paying to watch that s###" (her words not mine) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelamprey Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Bear in mind this is THEE Mick Dennis who had a go at Le tiss for having the audacity of having a testimonial. Niall Quinn publically came out and defended him against that Norwich supporting little traffic warden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wes Tender Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 We get a paragraph in there today, basically blaming the fans.... 'Southampton fans blame board blunders for their Championship plight. They should have a go at their fair-weather mates. In their last season in the Premier League, Southampton's average attendance was 30,000. Last season it was down to 21,000, this season 17,000. If they ever get back to the top division and rival fans chant 'Where were you when you were rubbish?' the answer will be. at home, moaning'. ---- Charming - BTW Mick, we've always been rubbish. ---- So, in return, I have emailed him this afternoon so he sees just WHY WE ARE SO ****ED OFF. ---- Hi Mick, I always take time to read your column in the Express as I enjoy reading your observations, and normally tend to agree with your opinions. However, having seen your article on the state of Southampton FC, my club, I feel compelled to write regarding the use of 'stay away fans' as an excuse for the poor state of our club. You really could have a whole page article on the debarcle that is currently SFC, and the twists and turns that have led so many lifelong fans to decide that they can no longer put up with it. No one single person is to blame, there are many but the return of Rupert Lowe and Michael Wilde has been the straw that broke the camel's back for many fans. Back in 2006, Michael Wilde purchased almost 26% of Southampton Leisure Holdings shares in an attempt to oust Rupert Lowe (6% ownership) from the Southampton Boardroom following relegation from the Premier League for the first time in 27 years. He produced a manifesto which promised investment which 'would never arise unless Lowe was removed'. He persuaded other notable shareholders (Mary Corbett, Patrick Trant) to proxy their votes to him in order to bring about change. The kingmaker of Wilde was Leon Crouch, a successful multi-millionaire and lifelong Saints fan, who had also purchased 9.95% of SLH Plc shares. It was only when Wilde convinced Crouch of his plan for the club that he gave his support to Wilde. Lowe, seeing the writing on the wall, walked before the planned EGM. Wilde's promised investment never materialised. His appointed executives first of all removed him, then Leon Crouch. Then, Crouch oversaw the removal of the Executives - Jim Hone (ex Fulham and Celtic), Ken Dulieu, and Andy Oldknow (ex-FA and Everton). Only Lee Hoos remained from the old Executive board and to the end of the season, Crouch and Hoos steadied the ship, appointing the much-missed Nigel Pearson who is now leading Leicester to promotion (funnily enough using many youngsters). After surviving on the last day of the season, there was unity on the pitch at St Marys, with fans looking forward to a brighter future under Pearson. The spirit was back. Then, a decision was made which separated the fanbase - leading to the ridiculous scenes at St Marys this weekend, when Wilde sided with Lowe (remember he bought 26% of SLH shares to remove him) to oust Crouch and Pearson, also claiming that Pearson was 'too expensive', and to 'protect their investment'. This decision to join forces has been seen as a 'stab in the back' to fans and shareholders that backed Wilde to remove Lowe. Lowe claimed on his return that they would 'right the wrongs of the previous board' - instead they have managed to make things worse. Lower attendances, and 2nd Bottom of the CCC with ONE HOME WIN IN 14 MATCHES. The share price has also dropped dramatically,so they have not 'protected their investment'. Lowe installed Jan Poortvliet and Mark Wotte, claiming that they were cheaper than Pearson combined - but then increased the coaching staff further by adding Dean Gorre. Saints fans were told that it was no longer financially viable to keep Rasiak, Saganowski (now returned) and Stern John - all were sent out on loan to supposedly save money. Surprisingly we then brought in Morgan Schneiderlin (€1.2M), Lee Holmes, Ryan Smith, Tomas Pekhart, Jack Cork, Jordan Robertson, Lee Molyneux, Paul Wotton, Anthony Pulis, Romain Gasmi - quantity over quality, which is the same mistake made when we were relegated in the first place under Lowe. Saints fans are now watching the equivalent of last years Reserve and Youth Team - £24 per game, when you could see the same players last season for free. To rub salt in the wounds of all Saints fans, since his return Rupert Lowe has replaced the picture in the SFC Boardroom of Lawrie McMenemy with the FA Cup from 1976, with a picture of a Steam Train given by the board at Doncaster. This weekend, we have also seen club legend David Armstrong kicked out of the hospitality area for 'talking with friends'. The Saints fans have had enough, on the pages of the Saints Forum website the depth of feeling is immense, even fans who supported Lowe's financial plan are turning against him. Administration beckons - but it is too easy to blame the fans. Demonstrations against the Board are being arranged as we speak. SFC is a prime example of how not to run a Football Club after relegation. It really is a Soap Opera, unfortunately it is more depressing than EastEnders. Kind regards CS A superb summary to correct the wrong impression of a so-called professional Sports journalist who unless he has some sort of agenda ought to have checked his facts before having any article published that bore his name. I'm sure that he must realise that his reputation is placed on the line with every opinion he expresses and he really should have considered that before he went of at half-c ock. Better to have not said anything than write something that was factually incorrect because he is either uninformed, or couldn't be bothered to find out whether there might be other reasons for the low attendances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trousers Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Without wanting to be 'controversial' - its seems we want it both ways.... we hate the way that the club doesn't treat us 'fans' but rather as £££ or 'customers', then say that attendenace is down to giving the 'customers' value for money? Sorry but surely if we want the club to appreciate that Football is NOT like other businesses, we need to sure that as FANs of teh club, we support the side that is put out there - not just because it conatins a few stars - but whether its Keegan or Olly Lancahsire, when they put on the shirt they deserve our support... surely? I can understand the expense in the current climate, etc, but when Man U came to town at £30 we had no shortage of takers.... Aye...even Mr Lowe turned up for that one.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saint1977 Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 That is ridiculous. The player who sacrificed more than perhaps any other to stay with their first club, medals, money etc., doesn't deserve a testamonial? No-one has showed greater loyalty, and few of that talent have earned so little. Sums it up. Dennis is a second-rate hack at a third-string paper (behind the Mail & Telegraph who get Conservative Central Office's stories first. I don't vote for Lab or Cons or often the LD's either, just stating what happens). People really shouldn't be getting upset over this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Channon's Sideburns Posted 21 January, 2009 Author Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Hi guys, Just to let you know that I have received a response from Mick Dennis following the email yesterday. I won't repeat it word for word here for obvious reasons, but below is a few points for us.. 1. He appreciates that we have been grievously mismanaged over a number of years. 2. He holds no brief for Lowe...make of that what you will, but it reads to me that he's not too keen on him.. 3. He sees similarities between us and his team Norwich. 4. He has stated to me that he does not blame solely the fans for the lower attendances, however wonders if results may have been better if we had a full St Marys. He is shocked by how quickly attendances have fallen....hmmm we're not!! The comparison with Norwich is a good example. Apparently Norwich sell all of their season tickets, and continue to enjoy large crowds. Something about unity behind those in charge I wonder???!! I have responded, pointing out that it is probably contributed to by the fact that Wynn Jones and Delia are SUPPORTERS AND HAVE PUT THEIR OWN MONEY INTO THE CLUB. I have also pointed out that the PLC status of this club is what is killing us. --- Overall, he had the decency to reply and explain his comments - I have requested that he highlight our current plight if possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Micky Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Hi guys, Just to let you know that I have received a response from Mick Dennis following the email yesterday. I won't repeat it word for word here for obvious reasons, but below is a few points for us.. 1. He appreciates that we have been grievously mismanaged over a number of years. 2. He holds no brief for Lowe...make of that what you will, but it reads to me that he's not too keen on him.. 3. He sees similarities between us and his team Norwich. 4. He has stated to me that he does not blame solely the fans for the lower attendances, however wonders if results may have been better if we had a full St Marys. He is shocked by how quickly attendances have fallen....hmmm we're not!! The comparison with Norwich is a good example. Apparently Norwich sell all of their season tickets, and continue to enjoy large crowds. Something about unity behind those in charge I wonder???!! I have responded, pointing out that it is probably contributed to by the fact that Wynn Jones and Delia are SUPPORTERS AND HAVE PUT THEIR OWN MONEY INTO THE CLUB. I have also pointed out that the PLC status of this club is what is killing us. --- Overall, he had the decency to reply and explain his comments - I have requested that he highlight our current plight if possible. Fair play to the guy - would have been easy to discard your email to the rubbish bin and move on. He had the decentcy to respond explaining how his opinions were formed. Shall we still string him up from the Itchen Bridge...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chez Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Hi guys, The comparison with Norwich is a good example. Apparently Norwich sell all of their season tickets, and continue to enjoy large crowds. Something about unity behind those in charge I wonder???!! something to do with dirt cheap season ticket perhaps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
voteforpedro Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 3. He sees similarities between us and his team Norwich. The comparison with Norwich is a good example. Apparently Norwich sell all of their season tickets, and continue to enjoy large crowds. Something about unity behind those in charge I wonder???!! something to do with dirt cheap season ticket perhaps? Exactly. Our tickets are roughly: adults- £25, concessions- £20, juniors- £10+ Norwich sell tickets at: adults- £13.70, concessions- £7.80, juniors- £1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat from Poole Posted 21 January, 2009 Share Posted 21 January, 2009 Mick Dennis is, and always has been, an utter utter ****. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now