Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Mon Sep 09, 2013 10:28 pm  

christopher wrote:

The RFL are looking to change the format to try and increase gates and move the sport forward but I'm sure you'll just be happy to moan anyway.

On the topic of the new changes to the SL format. I have shown countless times and I will repeat it for you, how away fans/who the opposition is makes little if any difference to the running of a SL club. The recent dummy spits from some chairman were, like the RFL themselves, nothing other than hissy fits with little or minor substance.

I will Use HKR as an example, but in reality, could use any heartland club to achieve similar results.

13 Home games in 2013. London were the last team at Craven Park, Catalans the first, so there may well have been additional fans at each game for first/last game scenario. 1,036 for London and 704 for Catalan as against their 2012 totals.

Now, if you take the visits of London and Catalans away from the annual average, then HKR averaged 7,438 (7,495 actual) this year and 7,716 (7,594 actual) in 2012.

57 fewer fans per game than the average for the visit of heartland teams in 2013 is 741 fans all season.
122 fewer fans per game than the average for the visit of heartland teams in 2012 is 1,586 fans all season.

Now, let's say that each fan is worth £40 a pop to the club in ticket sales and residuals....HKR lost £29,640 in potential revenue in 2013 because London and Catalan bring no fans. This figure was $63,440 in 2012.

Hull Kingston Rovers benefactors complained about ploughing £500,000 a year into the club. On a turn over of 4 million, this year, about 3/4 of 1% in turn over was lost because Halifax/Fev/Batley weren't visiting. On the topic of heartland teams, Castleford and Wakefield delivered the 2 lowest gates at CP in 2013. Salford and Huddersfield were next lowest, followed by Widnes, Bradford and St Helens.

Increasing the number of games between "local teams" will not increase the average attendance of SL. Even if it did, it would be an artificial inflation created by further marginalisation of an already localised pastime.

The entire "format change" is being done for the wrong reasons and will deliver little in the way of positive results. The teams that are struggling at the foot of the table were increasingly relying on their own development players to deliver and in cutting their cloth accordingly, but because the RFL got involved in an embarrassing rescue of Bradford and the iconic Oddslum, they are now over a barrel in regards to the wishes of a few clubs. When the 12-12 or 8-8-8 format fails to deliver, what will be the next farcical plan chosen to deliver more fans and interest from sponsors?

We have the best sport.......it's just those entrusted to run it don't have a loving clue how to market it! What makes it worse is that the other lot got more to their season opening double header than the RFL can muster for their Magic Weekend, they fill there own stadium with 82,000 for international friendlies and the command media attention whilst the RFL seem almost apologetic for trying to get attention for itself.

If the RFL were serious about taking the game forward, they would invest heavily in London Broncos in the same way the NRL did with their "expansion" teams outside of NSW. They would issue 5 year licences with achievable targets for each club and there would be consequences for failure, not bail outs and ground purchases for the "favourites" and abandonment for the unfashionable clubs. As it is, they buy into the pipe dreams of Salfords new owner (15,000 fans ), let Bradford continue to stagger along with paper thin assurances and pander to the needs of clubs who in reality, have nobody but themselves to blame for not being self sufficient.

This is not a dig at HKR by the way, but surely it would be easier to attract 2,500 more locals to home games than have the RFL change the entire set up of a competition because they don't know how to market themselves slightly better

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 8:05 am  

I really cannot be bothered trawling through that lot.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 8:41 am  

Can't be bothered or not it makes perfect sense. I'm sure the crowds at the playoff games will again show how poor we are at marketing our game, and the scrapping of licensing will do nothing to improve any of our competitions.
When will the book open on how many of the top 24 (28?) clubs go in to administration by overspending to jockey for position in the 12/12 8/8/8 for 2015?
Personally I think Super League should never have gone to 14 clubs, but the 12/12 model should only have been contemplated on the back of a MASSIVE hike in TV money, and perhaps a Super League sponsor paying anything at all?

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 9:09 am  

Can't argue with any of that logic Gutters. our best avg in SL was 2009 when we finished 4th and avg'd around 8500. I don;t think HKR have avg'd over 9000 in our 100+year history. Cats,London or Crusaders made little difference, most fans refuse to travel to the end of the M62 anyway.

The North stand will make a difference and the club is developing a membership model starting this year with a more affordable payment scheme so that should help.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 12:34 pm  

nkpom wrote:

I'm sure the crowds at the playoff games will again show how poor we are at marketing our game?

Attendances for the play-offs are a more accurate reflection of the current popularity of SL, particularly among it's very own core supporters. Therefore cheapo ticket offers of £10 for Huddersfield/Wigan and £15 for Saints/Hull KR and Hull/Catalan have been introduced in a last desperate attempt to ensure attendances for the play-offs this year aren't as embarrassingly low as they've been in recent seasons.

However, it's nothing more than another papering-over-the-cracks exercise. Which other full-time professional sport has to flog tickets for it's big games and finals at such knockdown bargain-basement prices in order encourage fans to bother attending?

Perhaps the game has to offer such bargains because the SL product isn't anywhere near as good as it's most ardent apostles and missionaries profess it to be? Fans have become used to attending SL games on the cheap via cheap season tickets. They clearly do not value the SL product at a price of £20+ a game.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 12:47 pm  

William Eve wrote:

Perhaps the game has to offer such bargains because the SL product isn't anywhere near as good as it's most ardent apostles and missionaries profess it to be? Fans have become used to attending SL games on the cheap via cheap season tickets. They clearly do not value the SL product at a price of £20+ a game.

...or perhaps the fans are unable to afford £20+ a game.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 1:12 pm  

It would be interesting, though I suspect impossible to do, to look at an age profile of the spectators.

On a purely subjective impression I believe that the average age of spectators at RL is increasing steadily. My worry, if that is true is that the downward trend that William Eve has identified is therefore inevitable.
To stop the rot and turn things around the game must look at it's attraction for the younger supporter (having a oversize mascot waving doesn't really count) and for families as a whole.

I agree with William's question - "Perhaps the game has to offer such bargains because the SL product isn't anywhere near as good as it's most ardent apostles and missionaries profess it to be?"

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 1:14 pm  

django wrote:

...or perhaps the fans are unable to afford £20+ a game.

If it really is the case that £20 is no longer an affordable price to pay among the SL supporting demographic, how difficult could it possibly be to attract an appropriately named sponsor for the SL competition like Poundland, Cash Converters or Wonga for instance?

The fans of SL have been abandoning the play-off fixtures long before the economy turned to excrement.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 7:04 pm  

William Eve wrote:

If it really is the case that £20 is no longer an affordable price to pay among the SL supporting demographic, how difficult could it possibly be to attract an appropriately named sponsor for the SL competition like Poundland, Cash Converters or Wonga for instance?

The fans of SL have been abandoning the play-off fixtures long before the economy turned to excrement.

Hull FC had two home play off games in 2007 and the attendances were 12,140 against Huddersfield and 16,291 against Wigan. Both up on the regular season attendances (the Wigan game by 3,536). We got 16,087 against Bradford in 2006 and 17,699 against Hull KR in 2010.

Re: Opening SL weekend sees attendances tumbling by 12.66% : Tue Sep 10, 2013 7:21 pm  

The lower the crowds for the first week of the play offs the better for me. Will hopefully make the clubs realise what a poor format it is. Although for some reason they will probably vote it in again for next season.