Designated singing section for Croker

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 1:26 PM

With some of the qualifiers being played in Croker soon it is important to get a designated singing section together for block bookers (and those on the waiting list who will be offered tickets).

I think (well, NiellMcD's idea) that all in favour of this should email the fai to tell them this. For eg when we are sent our letters informing us we are being offered tickets there should be a section where we can apply for tickets in a signing or a non singing area

info@fai.ie

Maybe The el supporters section and this new singing section could be brought together in an area with best acoustics
Good idea?

**eirebhoy** · 20/04/2006, 1:33 PM

Celtic have a singing section and it doesn't do much for the atmosphere. You'd need thousands of people willing to join the section. I'm sure if all a person had to do was tick a box to get into the section there probably would be thousands joining. With Celtic it was mainly people from internet forums that only knew about the singing section being set up.

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 1:46 PM

Originally Posted by eirebhoy

Celtic have a singing section and it doesn't do much for the atmosphere. You'd need thousands of people willing to join the section. I'm sure if all a person had to do was tick a box to get into the section there probably would be thousands joining. With Celtic it was mainly people from internet forums that only knew about the singing section being set up.

I think its important to get all singers together - how many times have people stood up for the boys in green during the "stand up for the boys in green" chant only to be told to sit down by some muppet who "paid for their seat."

Just because it doesnt work for Celtic doesnt mean we shouldnt try it - if a few hundread of us e-mail the fai they might give us the option of getting our seat in either a singing or non singing area.

"You'd need thousands of people willing to join the section"

Sure there is thousands of people on the block booking and waiting lists - Im sure plenty of these people would like to be in a singing area.

I'd estimate around 20,000 people would like to go to a singing section as opposed to a non singing question.

Foe eg - old men or women could chose to go to the non singing section.

I think this is worth a try anyway

**NeilMcD** · 20/04/2006, 2:02 PM

Yeah I agree I think anybody that wants a singing section and is willing to sit in such a section should e mail the FAI . This is our opportunity and it cannont do any harm by mailing the FAI.

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 2:29 PM

Dear Fai,

With the Croke Park qualifiers approaching I was wondering if the possibility of a designated singing section (possibly in the Canal End) has been looked into?

For yers home match day atmosphere has been lacking. While, the development of a dedicated eircom league section is a positive step more has to be done.

I think those on the block booking list and those on the waiting list who will recieve tickets for these matches should be given the choice to take their seat in a designated singing area. In this a possibility?

Thank you

Name

That is what I sent to info@fai.ie
Feel free to use this as a template for your email - If a few hundread of us send similar emails to the fai they will surely take notice

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 2:34 PM

Actually, ticket.office@fai.ie might be the correct address to send it to. Just to be on the safe side I sent it to both

**pineapple stu** · 20/04/2006, 3:38 PM

The NLSA will be meeting with the FAI shortly. We brought up the Croke Park arrangements before alright, but can do so again and try and work out something definite if people want. I think the eL section has been fixed already (can't remember where though).

**Forever Dreamin** · 20/04/2006, 5:08 PM

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

The NLSA will be meeting with the FAI shortly. We brought up the Croke Park arrangements before alright, but can do so again and try and work out something definite if people want. I think the eL section has been fixed already (can't remember where though).

Try and encourage them to offer the Canal End for EL and singing supporters and maybe the Hill 16 end of the Hogan and Cusack for all corporate tickets / promotional and those who prefer to sit.

That would allow the "singing end" to expand into the cusack and hogan stands from the canal end according to the numbers requesting such tickets.

Shouldnt be too dificut to arrange.

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 6:41 PM

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

The NLSA will be meeting with the FAI shortly. We brought up the Croke Park arrangements before alright, but can do so again and try and work out something definite if people want. I think the eL section has been fixed already (can't remember where though).

Yeah, fair play - try and get the el and designated singing area together.

**Saint Tom** · 20/04/2006, 8:13 PM

its a good idea and a must in the new stadia we will play games in from 2007 on. In Croker, the lower canal end would be ideal, all stands are linked and all adjoining areas are covered. The El section and block bookers could ideally be housed on the canal end.. tifo flags and crowd covers would look fantastic. Any support needed, count me in

**joema** · 20/04/2006, 9:30 PM

Originally Posted by Saint Tom

its a good idea and a must in the new stadia we will play games in from 2007 on. In Croker, the lower canal end would be ideal, all stands are linked and all adjoining areas are covered. The El section and block bookers could ideally be housed on the canal end.. tifo flags and crowd covers would look fantastic. Any support needed, count me in

Nice one Tom. Did you e-mail them?

**Karlos** · 20/04/2006, 10:56 PM

It's funny this should come up this evening as I've had a similar idea on a list of subjects I want to address on my blog. I'm certainly happy to get behind this idea but think we should be looking to work with the FAI to create a fans forum/group which includes everyone, Ericom league fans included to help enhance the atmosphere at Ireland games.

I've had some exposure to this type of thing with 'redaction' which is the Arsenal fan group who organise most of the highbury events with the club and it's very effective. The group bring ideas to the club and they plan them together - the Bergkamp day on Saturday being one example as well as the card display at last nights semi final. It's been very effective and I'm sure there are other such groups at other foreign clubs.

We should look at getting a dedicated fan group together with the sole intention of improving the match day experience. If it's not run properly alot of our great ideas will go un-noticed. We shouldn't just look for a singing section but card displays, themed match days etc. There's great possibility in it but it requires dedication to it and members from all sections of our support. A unifed group working in conjunction with the FAI would attract many sponsors willing to get in on this.

I'm planning on exploring this idea further tonight on my site http://southterraceview.blogspot.com.

Would be very interested to hear your views on this both here and there!

**Superhoops** · 20/04/2006, 11:35 PM

Originally Posted by joema

Yeah, fair play - try and get the el and designated singing area together.

Why not on the Hill?

**Karlos** · 21/04/2006, 12:07 AM

Originally Posted by gonzo

Nice idea, but if it doesn't work somewhere like CP(Probably too 'small' there), short of providing

free absinthe, can't see it working much better than Lansdowne which is a smaller ground.

Good luck to the singers anyway.

It's worked brilliantly at Highbury. Sold out Carling Cup Games with large singing sections with mostly reserve teams players playing and had some of the best athmosphere's of the season according to the fan. It does work if organised properly, I've witnessed it.

**joema** · 21/04/2006, 10:37 AM

Originally Posted by Superhoops

Why not on the Hill?

AFAIK the Hill is going to be used for away fans.

Also, the hill has no roof - atmosphere would drift away into the nights sky

**joema** · 21/04/2006, 10:56 AM

Originally Posted by KarlosIRL

It's funny this should come up this evening as I've had a similar idea on a list of subjects I want to address on my blog. I'm certainly happy to get behind this idea but think we should be looking to work with the FAI to create a fans forum/group which includes everyone, Ericom league fans included to help enhance the atmosphere at Ireland games.

I've had some exposure to this type of thing with 'redaction' which is the Arsenal fan group who organise most of the highbury events with the club and it's very effective. The group bring ideas to the club and they plan them together - the Bergkamp day on Saturday being one example as well as the card display at last nights semi final. It's been very effective and I'm sure there are other such groups at other foreign clubs.

We should look at getting a dedicated fan group together with the sole intention of improving the match day experience. If it's not run properly alot of our great ideas will go un-noticed. We shouldn't just look for a singing section but card displays, themed match days etc. There's great possibility in it but it requires dedication to it and members from all sections of our support. A unifed group working in conjunction with the FAI would attract many sponsors willing to get in on this.

I'm planning on exploring this idea further tonight on my site http://southterraceview.blogspot.com.

Would be very interested to hear your views on this both here and there!

Fair play Karlos - great website there, I definitly like your ideas - I think its important to raise as much awareness of this as possible - this can be done through your website, this site and other el foruns throughout the country.

"At the moment people are emailing the FAI individually to try to make this happen but I think a more unified approach from a dedicated fan group would yield better results"

Your right there Karlos - a dedicated group does need to be set up - definitly.
Right now though I think we all must bombard the fai with emails - because they are not going to take a handfull of emails seriously

**Karlos** · 21/04/2006, 11:13 AM

Originally Posted by joema

Your right there Karlos - a dedicated group does need to be set up - definitly.
Right now though I think we all must bombard the fai with emails - because they are not going to take a handfull of emails seriously

Very true, I've sent mine off anyway! Hopefully in the very near future we will see both a singing section & an athmosphere group up and running.

**pineapple stu** · 21/04/2006, 12:41 PM

Originally Posted by KarlosIRL

think we should be looking to work with the FAI to create a fans forum/group which includes everyone, Eircom league fans included to help enhance the atmosphere at Ireland games.

A good starting point...
Info@NLSupporters.com

Any definite ideas, send them on!

The eL Supporters' area was an idea to get a bit of atmosphere going. I've don't really know how effective it's been (hard to guage when you're in the middle), but there are problems with the fact that groups like that can very easily be "sabotaged", for want of a better word, by people who just want to get tickets and who aren't interested in singing or shouting. Even in the eL section, there are people who will tell you to sit down and shut up, and I think complaints have been received by the FAI about people standing up in the North Terrace (this'd be people situated behind the eL section but who didn't get tickets through it).

So there are problems alright. What it really needs is a core attitude of intolerance towards people who want to sit down (obviously within a designated atmosphere area; I've no problem with people sitting at a match, but there should be a separate area for those people so they don't spoil it for the rest). The eL section has gone some way towards that, I suppose. How to tack on extra people to that is another issue. The FAI obviously can't market tickets as standing tickets. We could try and secure an entire block and have people ask for tickets in that block if they want, though that creates extra admin problems.

Still, post any ideas here. The more people look at the problem, the more chances of getting a solution.

**joema** · 21/04/2006, 1:59 PM

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

A good starting point...
Info@NLSupporters.com

Any definite ideas, send them on!

The eL Supporters' area was an idea to get a bit of atmosphere going. I've don't really know how effective it's been (hard to guage when you're in the middle), but there are problems with the fact that groups like that can very easily be "sabotaged", for want of a better word, by people who just want to get tickets and who aren't interested in singing or shouting. Even in the eL section, there are people who will tell you to sit down and shut up, and I think complaints have been received by the FAI about people standing up in the North Terrace (this'd be people situated behind the eL section but who didn't get tickets through it).

So there are problems alright. What it really needs is a core attitude of intolerance towards people who want to sit down (obviously within a designated atmosphere area; I've no problem with people sitting at a match, but there should be a separate area for those people so they don't spoil it for the rest). The eL section has gone some way towards that, I suppose. How to tack on extra people to that is another issue. The FAI obviously can't market tickets as standing tickets. We could try and secure an entire block and have people ask for tickets in that block if they want, though that creates extra admin problems.
Still, post any ideas here. The more people look at the problem, the more chances of getting a solution.

Exactly, I think its important to raise as much awareness as possible - I have already sent PMs to the the two lads on this site who are involved in the production of match day fanzines - YBIG and The Genesis Reporter.

Also I will send emails to www.elevenaside.com, www.thepeoplesflag.com, http://oneteaminireland.bravehost.com/ and obviously Karlos is doing his bit aswell through his blog.

Also, people must email the fai to let them know.

"We could try and secure an entire block and have people ask for tickets in that block if they want, though that creates extra admin problems."

I think thats exactly what we should do - it shouldnt be too hard for the fai to manage that.