Play off games v Average attendances


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And yet Im criticised constantly for being a happy clapper too?



Every club gets the same notice and are selling comparitively more than we have. All clubs sell more for play off games, we are likely to see a 20% or more lower crowd than our average, that is just weird.

You have ago at the fans a lot like

It’s not their fault we are in league one or their fault we ended up 5th in it

Done everything the owners asked like
 
It's a 200 mile round trip for me, as have been the other 23 home games. That's semantics.

Hardly.

I was living in Cardigan for the Portsmouth league game, that's 18 hours driving.

There are loads like me who can't justify going to every game.

Many of us promised our families that our absences would be over by now ...

... yet it goes on and on.

You can be home before midnight, loads of us will need a hotel or getting home in the early hours.
 
I confess that I don't travel to away games but have two season cards and travel from Northumberland to the games. I am absolutely devastated that we are in the third division but we can only play the cards that we are dealt and after the last few seasons I must admit I have enjoyed the games this season. I can understand people who have financial or other commitments preventing them from going to this game, but for the life of me I can't understand people just not bothering to turn up, it's like reading a book with the last page torn out.

I think it's more to do with expectations and where this seasons performance falls into people's thoughts on it. I think the end to the season has finished a good few off. It's been borderline capitulation from a month ago when we were joint second with two games in hand. There's loads who see it as total failure and simply just expect us to lose. If you could guarantee a win there'd be 40k+ there.
 
Hardly.

I was living in Cardigan for the Portsmouth league game, that's 18 hours driving.

There are loads like me who can't justify going to every game.

Many of us promised our families that our absences would be over by now ...

... yet it goes on and on.

You can be home before midnight, loads of us will need a hotel or getting home in the early hours.

Just to be clear, I'm not saying I have a problem with anyone that decides not to go. I just find some of the justifications a bit odd for such a big game.

I've regularly not got home until the early hours after a game, and it'll be midnight again tomorrow. I wouldn't dream of not going though. Good for me etc.
 
You have ago at the fans a lot like

It’s not their fault we are in league one or their fault we ended up 5th in it

Done everything the owners asked like

Totally get that and Im as gutted as anyone at the fact we were in such a great position and it went tits up........But thats football, its why we all love the game....Not going to a game like this is a bit like that Spurs fan who spat his dummy at half time at Ajax and left cause they were 3-0 down. He is devastated now as missed one of the greatest nights in his clubs history for literally nowt.
 
Leeds is an excellent example.....In 2007-2008 they dropped to the 3rd tier for the first time in their history....This a team that a few years earlier had been in the Champions league and winning the Premiership, on top of that they went into league 1 on minus 15 points as they had gone into administration in the summer. In short their fall from grace was actually worse than ours has been so should probably have seen more pissed off fans than we have.

That season their attendance average was 26,040 and in the play offs they got 36,297 so an increase of 39% for the biggest game of the season.

So we've averaged six thousand more fans than Leeds did throughout the season?

And you've somehow turned that into a bad thing?

I know we've got a few bell ends as fans - which club hasn't - but to chuck a lack of loyalty our way after we've produced some ridiculous attendances this season is just bizarre IMO.
 
So we've averaged six thousand more fans than Leeds did throughout the season?

And you've somehow turned that into a bad thing?

I know we've got a few bell ends as fans - which club hasn't - but to chuck a lack of loyalty our way after we've produced some ridiculous attendances this season is just bizarre IMO.

We have higher attendances than Leeds every season, its why I used average attendances for the season......If we had averaged 15,000 this season and got 15,000 for the play off semi final I would get it.....The bit I dont get is 3 weeks ago we got 41k and created a class atmosphere against Portsmouth and we are going to be 15k short of that tomorrow. That bit I just cant get my head round.
 
We have just smashed the record set by Man City in this division by around 4,000 per game.

Even this 'pathetic' predicted crowd tomorrow will most likely beat their average attendance the season they were down here.

Oh and we do not know yet how many will turn up on the day and pay on the door. How about those of us who are going just get behind our team? The rest is just maths.
 
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Ha ha, talk about twisting what has actually been said.....Never once have I said have never missed a game, not once. Not once have I criticised our support all season as its been immense.....What I have criticised is people who are openly stating they arent going to the biggest game of the season because the football and team is crap, for me that it f***ing shit. We have a group of largely league 1 players and young lads who have busted their arses this season. They have come up short in terms of automatic promotion but we have a 2nd chance....I will never ever understand people slagging those lads off and bailing on them at this stage.



Im sure they will recover if we get to Wembley though ;)

Could you point me in the direction of someone who’s came out and said “I’m not going because we’re shit”?
 
We have higher attendances than Leeds every season, its why I used average attendances for the season......If we had averaged 15,000 this season and got 15,000 for the play off semi final I would get it.....The bit I dont get is 3 weeks ago we got 41k and created a class atmosphere against Portsmouth and we are going to be 15k short of that tomorrow. That bit I just cant get my head round.

I've got no idea why people aren't attending in the same numbers tomorrow. There could be loads of reasons TBH.

I'm a season ticket holder and I'm not going cos I'm at graft and haven't been able to get the time off at short notice. Not wanting to get specific but just trying to give an example of why the crowd might be down in comparison to other games.

Honestly mate, in what has turned out to be a pretty underwhelming season I think the last place you want to point a finger towards is the fans.

I think we've been pretty f***ing good all things considered.
 
No, on reflection, our crowds this season have shown we are the loyalist in the country.

No way this guy for real. Handed second leg semi final ticket on a plate and offers the lamest of excuses. Might only have been going to home matches for a season but hes never been to an away one,[/QUOTE]

Been to away games this season and already paid for the ticket offered despite having a job interview at 8.45am on Friday morning......Apart from that your entire post was literally spot on :lol:
 
Did I not see that we were something like the 14th best supported side in England this season? We finished in 49th place!!

Half the lads and lasses I normally go with cannot make this match due to prior arrangements, out of the country, etc. Lots of people plan holidays outside the football season and that leaves a limited window. If we get 30,000 there tomorrow it will probably be a record attendance for a play off semi final in this division or very close to it yet we will beat ourselves up about how bad it was. Typical Sunderland, even when we are good we are determined to prove we are bad.
 
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We have just smashed the record set by Man City in this division by around 4,000 per game.

Even this 'pathetic' predicted crowd tomorrow will most likely beat their average attendance the season they were down here.

Oh and we do not know yet how many will turn up on the day and pay on the door. How about those of us who are going just get behind our team? The rest is just maths.

Surely people cant pay on the door, would make segregation and limiting Portsmouth tickets pointless.

Did I not see that we were something like the 14th best supported side in England this season? We finished in 49th place!!

Half the lads and lasses I normally go with cannot make this match due to prior arrangements, out of the country, etc. Lots of people plan holidays outside the football season and that leaves a limited window. If we get 30,000 there tomorrow it will probably be a record attendance for a play off in this division or very close to it.

Leeds got 36,000, absolutely amazed we did not smash that when we got 41k for a league game just 3 weeks ago.
 
I think it's more to do with expectations and where this seasons performance falls into people's thoughts on it. I think the end to the season has finished a good few off. It's been borderline capitulation from a month ago when we were joint second with two games in hand. There's loads who see it as total failure and simply just expect us to lose. If you could guarantee a win there'd be 40k+ there.
People are free to make their own decisions, I can only relay my own feelings. I am gutted we have not been promoted automatically and the last thing I wanted was to fork out my hard earned for another two tickets, but my support for Sunderland has always been unconditional, I am just pleased we avoided administration at the beginning of this season so I am delighted that we have an opportunity through the playoffs to secure promotion. Results can't be guaranteed, but that's what makes it interesting to me.

To each their own, but however it is spun I will never understand those who make that conscious choice not to attend the most important game of our season to date.
 
Did I not see that we were something like the 14th best supported side in England this season? We finished in 49th place!!

Half the lads and lasses I normally go with cannot make this match due to prior arrangements, out of the country, etc. Lots of people plan holidays outside the football season and that leaves a limited window. If we get 30,000 there tomorrow it will probably be a record attendance for a play off in this division or very close to it.
Other than the obvious holiday times this is a normal week
No excuses to be made
People either want to go or they don’t
 
People are free to make their own decisions, I can only relay my own feelings. I am gutted we have not been promoted automatically and the last thing I wanted was to fork out my hard earned for another two tickets, but my support for Sunderland has always been unconditional, I am just pleased we avoided administration at the beginning of this season so I am delighted that we have an opportunity through the playoffs to secure promotion. Results can't be guaranteed, but that's what makes it interesting to me.

To each their own, but however it is spun I will never understand those who make that conscious choice not to attend the most important game of our season to date.

Exactly this......A few players not just of our club but of others have said that going up by the play offs, winning at Wembley is probably the best way to go up, Catts said this this week too........The bit I struggle with is these next 3 games not only finish off this season but will define next season too. I just cant get my head round some people who can go choosing not to.
 
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