How can the eL survive...

**chippie0001** · 07/06/2006, 12:05 PM

Originally Posted by wws

you give me certified attendance figures so.

or is this from the official el yip-do-skippedy-do-99-one-hundred-school of counting?

I post the attendance figures here and they are 100% official. All our tickets are reconciled to cash etc. I can give you the breakdown by the kids, students/adults and members if you want. No idea about your system but our figures here are 100% accurate.

**BohsFans** · 07/06/2006, 12:11 PM

Originally Posted by chippie0001

I post the attendance figures here and they are 100% official. All our tickets are reconciled to cash etc. I can give you the breakdown by the kids, students/adults and members if you want. No idea about your system but our figures here are 100% accurate.

Why isn't SB sticking them in the programme anymore?

**Raheny Red** · 07/06/2006, 12:24 PM

According to Shels web the official attendance was 1800

**Poor Student** · 07/06/2006, 12:25 PM

Originally Posted by Raheny Red

According to Shels web the official attendance was 1800

What should we read into that?

**Raheny Red** · 07/06/2006, 12:29 PM

Well the OP stated that there was less than 1000 so just thought I would correct. However, i felt there was no more than 1300......

**BohsFans** · 07/06/2006, 1:39 PM

Originally Posted by Raheny Red

According to Shels web the official attendance was 1800

more propaganda from Ollie and the boys down in Tolka

**Mr A** · 07/06/2006, 1:53 PM

That's a poor crowd, but is anyone really that surprised?

Attendances around the league overall are fairly awful- and summer football hasn't helped at all. It definately makes away trips and everything more pleasant, but crowds are still woeful and pitches are if anything worse for a large part of the season.

**manic da hoop** · 07/06/2006, 3:27 PM

Originally Posted by Galway Harps

Attendances around the league overall are fairly awful- and summer football hasn't helped at all. It definately makes away trips and everything more pleasant, but crowds are still woeful and pitches are if anything worse for a large part of the season.

Yeah, and they were always absolutely prestine in the olden days in and around January or February, while last night's match would have been a definite sell-out if it were in November

**Mr A** · 07/06/2006, 3:40 PM

Where did I say that pitches were 'prestine'? I just said they weren't any better now.

I also didn't say that last night would have been a sell-out.

I'm not saying we should go back to winter football, just that a lot of the benefits we were told summer football would bring haven't materialised.

**manic da hoop** · 07/06/2006, 3:52 PM

The differnce in the playing surfaces is that they actually improve over the course of the season nowadays, as opposed to before when most were in rag order about midway through and would have no opportunity to recover. Attendance are, I believe, better, albeit marginally. The first thing we must all accept is that there is no quick-fix solution to any of this league's problems, the same can be said of the FAI's proposals - nothing happens overnight, so anyone out there expecting a revolution in the development of the game in the immediate aftermath of the switch to summer football needs to cop themselves on.

Patience is a virtue.

**Gareth** · 07/06/2006, 5:11 PM

Firstly, last night's game was the first I didn't wear my jacket to. Don't get carried away lads with a title of Summer in "Summer Soccer". I prefer going to games in the "Summer" months cos its that bit brighter, and somewhat drier, but we still get sh1t weather.

As for attendances, Friday night in Dublin is a night when most of the people either head off home to their outside dublin locations, or they go for a pint after work etc. I have seen plenty of supporters have a pint too many and not leave to go to a game. Shels don't have a good support. There is no big surprise there. But plenty of other clubs don't either, or didn't up to recently.

I'm sorry to say but to the majority of people think our league is a novelty at best. Regardless of a good game or not, more people than not still think its not worth 15/16 euro in to see each week. Simple as that. I envy teams that are the only club in town, ie Drogs, Sligo, Cork, Derry, as you can tap an entire city or town, and people automatically will associate the team with the area. Its harder to do when your in a city with 5 or 6 other teams and before people say Dublin has a huge population, a large proportion is made up of people from other counties. Its very hard to change peoples opinions on EL soccer and its even harder to actually get them into the grounds.

**Schumi** · 07/06/2006, 5:13 PM

Originally Posted by Gareth

last night's game was the first I didn't wear my jacket to.

You must have been roasting on Friday!

**Gareth** · 07/06/2006, 5:34 PM

I was in France on Friday. My point was one week doesn't make a summer, unless your irish!!!

**passerrby** · 07/06/2006, 6:05 PM

do the EL have a marketing department and if so what do they do for a living.

**harry crumb** · 07/06/2006, 6:11 PM

It was a disappointing crowd for such a lovely evening but the game itself was excellent.

The pitch was in good nick and the players were able to pass.

**Poor Student** · 07/06/2006, 6:12 PM

I agree with a lot of what you say Gareth. Personally I don't think the potential is there for the rapid immediate improvement in attendances and public image of the league which Genesis/the new league structure think it can bring. I wouldn't exactly point to the number of clubs in Dublin as a problem though. If people of specific areas could identify as strongly with their local clubs as people do in one club towns like Cork and Derry then there would be more than enough people for the 6 clubs.

**Gareth** · 07/06/2006, 6:13 PM

Originally Posted by passerrby

do the EL have a marketing department and if so what do they do for a living.

the EL marketing dept as a whole is grossly underfunded I think and well, to get it in the face of everyone and to really drive the league, you would need a multi million euro campaign and even then you'll have to cross the fingers and say three hail marys!!!

**Gareth** · 07/06/2006, 6:18 PM

Originally Posted by Poor Student

I agree with a lot of what you say Gareth. Personally I don't think the potential is there for the rapid immediate improvement in attendances and public image of the league which Genesis/the new league structure think it can bring. I wouldn't exactly point to the number of clubs in Dublin as a problem though. If people of specific areas could identify as strongly with their local clubs as people do in one club towns like Cork and Derry then there would be more than enough people for the 6 clubs.

I believe that the 22 clubs need to co-operate together with peak efficiency at the management level rather than the bickering and one upmanship that sometimes occurs. I believe in the league as a whole. Ok, personally I am a huge Shelbourne supporter, but I don't let that stand in the way of looking at other clubs and hoping they progress etc or looking at my own club and looking at the failings. I think that the only real way forward would be for a clubwide co-operation to promote every single aspect of the league.

**Poor Student** · 07/06/2006, 6:35 PM

Originally Posted by Gareth

I believe that the 22 clubs need to co-operate together with peak efficiency at the management level rather than the bickering and one upmanship that sometimes occurs. I believe in the league as a whole. Ok, personally I am a huge Shelbourne supporter, but I don't let that stand in the way of looking at other clubs and hoping they progress etc or looking at my own club and looking at the failings. I think that the only real way forward would be for a clubwide co-operation to promote every single aspect of the league.

Gareth, a concerted effort backed by proper marketing funding would be great but you don't need any other strings attached to that.