Dot Counting 10,000 for Bolton?

[Colin B]

So, it looks like I'll have to start this one, as I think it's a game that has crept up on us un-announced.

Sales at midnight were just below 7,100. This is about 250 less than the corresponding time before the Sheff Wed game. I had a look at last season when we had two Saturday home games in successive weeks, and ironically, it was against Bolton a week after a big game against Portsmouth. So a very similar set of circumstances (less the Bank Holiday). What is interesting is that the Bolton game last year got off to a slow start (we're currently 600 ahead of that game, at this stage) but eventually ended up at just over 10,000 after good sales on the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That, though, was with 300 more away fans than we currently allow.

My summary is that it is too early to tell, but it will be tight, and requires a Bolton sell out at their end. Will count again at midnight and report back tomorrow morning.

 

[Foley]

Good one Colin.
I was thinking that it will be around 9k, but I am hoping that we could get close to the 10k ( surely Bolton will sell out their allocation?)

 

[East Stand Fan]

JackFM also have a half price promotion on pairs of tickets in the South Lower so this should push sales in that section. 46 pairs left as it stands

Football Tickets

JACKfm - Playing What We Want

www.jackfm.co.uk

Should just about break the 10k barrier but it has come round awfully quickly in what is a very busy period on and off the pitch.

 

[Colin B]

JackFM also have a half price promotion on pairs of tickets in the South Lower so this should push sales in that section. 46 pairs left as it stands

Football Tickets

JACKfm - Playing What We Want

www.jackfm.co.uk

Should just about break the 10k barrier but it has come round awfully quickly in what is a very busy period on and off the pitch.

Yes, I'd noticed that and posted this earlier in the Bolton Match Thread;

There are about 200 more tickets showing as sold in the two end blocks of the SSL, blocks 1 and 8, and I suspect that's where the tickets are for. Looks like about half of them may have been taken up already, as there were 45 pairs left when I looked earlier.

Bloody odd that the club aren't pushing this deal, but maybe they'd rather sell tickets at full price as these are already "sold" to JackFM?

 

[Sarge]

So, it looks like I'll have to start this one, as I think it's a game that has crept up on us un-announced.

Sales at midnight were just below 7,100. This is about 250 less than the corresponding time before the Sheff Wed game. I had a look at last season when we had two Saturday home games in successive weeks, and ironically, it was against Bolton a week after a big game against Portsmouth. So a very similar set of circumstances (less the Bank Holiday). What is interesting is that the Bolton game last year got off to a slow start (we're currently 600 ahead of that game, at this stage) but eventually ended up at just over 10,000 after good sales on the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That, though, was with 300 more away fans than we currently allow.

My summary is that it is too early to tell, but it will be tight, and requires a Bolton sell out at their end. Will count again at midnight and report back tomorrow morning.

would it be worth doing both a Bolton and Pompey 10k thread, I think both despite being just few days apart, have the potential to be there or therabouts having 10k attendances

 

[Colin B]

would it be worth doing both a Bolton and Pompey 10k thread, I think both despite being just few days apart, have the potential to be there or therabouts having 10k attendances

I did consider that @Sarge but it's tricky when a midweek game comes straight after a Saturday one, and it's a lot of dots to count every day!!!

I'll look at the Pompey game on Sunday, but doubt that I'll do a full report, in the way I do for Saturday games. Unless @Thecurraghofkildare wants to start a Pompey 10,000 thread, and I'll concentrate on the Bolton game?

 

[NottsYellow]

would it be worth doing both a Bolton and Pompey 10k thread, I think both despite being just few days apart, have the potential to be there or therabouts having 10k attendances

Steady on Sarge, in this modern world if you ask anyone to do overtime they will go on strike, we need our dot counters.

 

[Colin B]

So, it looks like I'll have to start this one, as I think it's a game that has crept up on us un-announced.

Sales at midnight were just below 7,100. This is about 250 less than the corresponding time before the Sheff Wed game. I had a look at last season when we had two Saturday home games in successive weeks, and ironically, it was against Bolton a week after a big game against Portsmouth. So a very similar set of circumstances (less the Bank Holiday). What is interesting is that the Bolton game last year got off to a slow start (we're currently 600 ahead of that game, at this stage) but eventually ended up at just over 10,000 after good sales on the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That, though, was with 300 more away fans than we currently allow.

My summary is that it is too early to tell, but it will be tight, and requires a Bolton sell out at their end. Will count again at midnight and report back tomorrow morning.

Only about 100 sold in the 24 hours up to midnight last night. We need a big uptake today and tomorrow to stand any chance of getting toward 10,000. My guess, at this stage, is that we'll end up at approximately 9,500 similar to the Derby game.

Will report back later.

 

[WhyteMustard]

Only about 100 sold in the 24 hours up to midnight last night. We need a big uptake today and tomorrow to stand any chance of getting toward 10,000. My guess, at this stage, is that we'll end up at approximately 9,500 similar to the Derby game.

Will report back later.

Many thanks Colin.

I promised not to post anything negative or within my OUFC WhatsApp groups a while back until the end of the season and to focus on us staying up.

I tend to disagree with the likes of EC Yellow and feel the level of support our side is getting in terms of numbers is very good considering.

 

[ECYellow]

Many thanks Colin.

I promised not to post anything negative or within my OUFC WhatsApp groups a while back until the end of the season and to focus on us staying up.

I tend to disagree with the likes of EC Yellow and feel the level of support our side is getting in terms of numbers is very good considering.

Fair enough. Out of interest though, ‘considering’ what?

 

[Thecurraghofkildare]

Just did a count at 1.30pm on Thursday and I have a slightly lower home seats sold figure than Colin.

I have 2,488 seats remaining, which would mean 7,066 home sales (with executive boxes and away fans another 1,700 potentially, that gives current overall estimated sales of 8,766). Agree with Colin's prediction that a total around 9,500 looks likely.

My remaining seats are split:

South Stand Lower 281 (15/50/51/7/1/10/82/65)
South Stand Upper 526 (239/31/0/11/15/220)
East Stand 765 (125/160/62/92/112/214)
North Stand 916 (229/97/252/338)

Again I feel the marketing/promotion for this and the Pompey matches has been quiet. There was definitely seemed a late surge in sales for the Sheffield Wednesday match with some last minute social media pushing so hopefully similar activity is planned for these two games also.

One final observation is that the advertising banner at the top of the OUFC website page - https://www.eticketing.co.uk/oxfordunited/ currently features first a link to buy tickets for the already passed Sheffield Wednesday match and secondly a link to the Cheltenham match. So, it has not been updated and is bizarrely ignoring our next two very imminent matches. Probably not a huge issue as by the time you have navigated (with difficulty) to that page you probably know what you want to purchase, but it's fairly basic stuff all the same.

 

[holdsteady]

Fair enough. Out of interest though, ‘considering’ what?

I am guessing how bad we have been this season?

 

[ECYellow]

I am guessing how bad we have been this season?

Now had the ‘considering’ been down to the downright dreadful marketing of our games, I could understand it to a degree.

If on the other hand, it is due to us having our first really really poor season for quite some time then imo, that is a cop out. I’m not sure support of the football club can be measured by success on the pitch given we are a LG1 football club.

For instance, should the crowd be 9,500 on Saturday, does 8,000 home fans represent a particularly good turn out? Personally and considering the magnitude of the game, I don’t think it does. If you compare and contrast, the scum has 9,200 at the skip for a dead rubber last Saturday (600 Mansfield).

NB: Great work Colin! Never mind the Boardroom, the club could do with you in the marketing department,

 

[holdsteady]

Now had the ‘considering’ been down to the downright dreadful marketing of our games, I could understand it to a degree.

If on the other hand, it is due to us having our first really really poor season for quite some time then imo, that is a cop out. I’m not sure support of the football club can be measured by success on the pitch given we are a LG1 football club.

For instance, should the crowd be 9,500 on Saturday, does 8,000 home fans represent a particularly good turn out? Personally and considering the magnitude of the game, I don’t think it does. If you compare and contrast, the scum has 9,200 at the skip for a dead rubber last Saturday (600 Mansfield).

NB: Great work Colin! Never mind the Boardroom, the club could do with you in the marketing department,

We haven't won for 14 games now, no club in the country goes on that sort of run and doesn't see a dip in crowds. We have not just had a poor season have we, its been dogshit really, hardly any entertainment at all.

You are obviously a hardcore fan which is fair enough, but you can hardly blame those who attend on a match by match basis with a couple of kids in tow for thinking B*****s to spending £50/60 on that.

I travel an hour to home games, bank holiday Friday traffic turned that into 1 hour 45 minutes, have a season ticket but also have Sky so I was questioning my sanity while sat in a traffic jam to get onto the M40 knowing I could of just watched it at home, its a miracle we had as many there that particular game as we did.

 

[Thecurraghofkildare]

Fair enough. Out of interest though, ‘considering’ what?

I think there are a number of factors ECYellow (and I don't disagree with your basic concern given our precarious position).

Apathy set in hugely under Robinson and we haven't done enough to regain those who became apathetic. The results have been poor for a long time. The performances have been even worse, certainly under the far too long last throes of the previous manager. One thing which was noticeable as a dot counter vs Sheffield Wednesday was that plenty of 'sold' seats were not occupied (holiday season would account for some of this but season tickets holders are still not returning in full numbers and I would guess we were missing high hundreds if not thousands of them for some of the dross in the late Robinson era.).

Fully supportive of Liam Manning, understand his appointment and really like him, but his selection (and badly managed announcement) didn't create a buzz in the same way that say the return of Appleton would have. We have ground out four draws but with the exception of a decent half hour versus Sheffield Wednesday, we remain a hard watch with very little to get excited about.

Cost of living and cost of travel issues will be affecting decisions over whether to attend, especially away from home or those outside the Oxford area.

There is also simmering disillusionment with the running of the club - the board/management were too slow to replace Robinson and oversaw a shocking January transfer window etc (doubt this hugely impacts crowd numbers but the feeling is definitely there amongst many long-standing fans I know notwithstanding recognition of the owners' investment and plans for the club).

Finally but importantly , and the point which you have highlighted, the club's marketing and promotional efforts are still well below par - see my notes above in the latest dot count update. I do think that some very late social media efforts for the Sheffield Wednesday match boosted sales and added to the gate, but it all seems very last minute.

 

[WokinghamYellow]

There should be a Bolton Pompey double deal to back the team in its relegation fight

 

[Foley]

I am really surprised as to the criticism of crowd numbers this season.
On the back of a 14 game non winning run, we are discussing possibly a second 10k crowd in a row.
Our away average is 905 compared to 1055 in 21/22 and 906 in 19/20

I see little apathy ( in crowd numbers) and reckon crowds have held up remarkably well,considering the awful run.

 

[Oufccraig45]

There should be a Bolton Pompey double deal to back the team in its relegation fight

If jack Fm can do the deal 2 for £26 why couldn't they do the same deal for these 2 games it seems the club is going backwards even further with the commutation there is just no commutation with supporters/ customers it's about time serious questions need to be asked and as season ticket holders what was the special offers this season a couple of 24/48hr on line sales very poor around from the club this season

 

[Colin B]

Better sales yesterday, leaving us at about 7,350 at midnight. This is 400 below the Sheff Wed game at the same stage, so I'd say 10,000 is very unlikely now. On current sales I'll say somewhere between 9,500 and 9,700 assuming Bolton sell out and all boxes are full.

It's not bad, but I find it frustrating that a bit more of a push from the club (including making sure the ticket site doesn't tell you the next game is against Sheff Wed!) and we may have broken the 10,000 barrier. It still feels as though the club is in some kind of state of limbo.

 

[Essexyellows]

Its that exciting new commercial & marketing bloke making the difference.

Aside from that people are going to find other things to do with their "leisure pound" than shelling out the thick part of £100 for a game of Div 3 football.