10th Anniversary Meeting - Newport

[Vince]

I certainly had no intention of insulting anybody so perhaps I should explain why I don't think a huge increase in crowds is likely.

Because I use the van for work lots of people have spoken to me about Speedway, mostly to tell me how they used to go in the past but now only watch on Sky or check out the results in the papers. Rarely does anybody say that they have completely lost touch with the sport. If there was a similar meeting locally I am sure the majority of these people would hear about it and a fair few would attend. This didn't seem to happen at Newport on Sunday.

What has happened at other clubs over the past couple of years also suggests that a winning team doesn't necessarily produce a significant increase in attendance. Reading last year were in the hunt for the title in the top league, pretty heavily publicised and presented a professional image. In the winter they made no secret of having to reduce costs as there hadn't been sufficient increase in gates to make the additional expense worthwhile. Berwick and Hull have also had success without a happy ending. In fact it would be interesting to know if any club has manged to double their attendance in the past 10 years let alone treble it. There is also the problem that the way team building is done in the sport that a good year will often be followed by a bad one so how do you decide what is a sensible budget.

You only have to look at every new track that opens to see that they will initially draw great crowds but they then tend to dwindle to a hardcore of support. Many said that winning at home would produce more supporters but it doesn't seem to have happened in a big way so far. I do think that crowds will / would increase with a winning team, I just don't think they would get to anything like the figures you had in the past or have been suggested on the forums as being reason to risk large sums of money that the club can't afford.

My theories may be short on fact and long on theory but no more so than the often quoted theory that because you used to have big crowds they will return if you are winning.

[tanya]

but to nowhere near the level some have claimed in the past.

 

Thanks for your reply Vince but maybe I didn't cut the quote as I should of done. This is the bit that I take offence to. You genuinely seem to think that we never had as good a crowds as we tell you, even when I have posted photographs of them on to my site. We do not claim these things, these are fact. We were there we stood amongst them.

[Vince]

But I mean that some have claimed that if the team is winning crowds will increase by something around 300% - I don't think that is possible. I wasn't referring to past crowd levels.

[dave69]

Thanks for your reply Vince but maybe I didn't cut the quote as I should of done.  This is the bit that I take offence to.  You genuinely seem to think that we never had as good a crowds as we tell you, even when I have posted photographs of them on to my site.  We do not claim these things, these are fact.  We were there we stood amongst them.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Swindon in 99? when we took about 1000 there.Was it the trophy semi when Smart and Wato must have been deafened by the Wasps support.

Exeter when Anders won his first race there and wasput out again as a tac and beat Coles,another massive away trip not to mention the Reading matches away.

Believe me,Vince,Newport had probably the next biggest support in the country after Poole.

[JT]

Swindon in 99? when we took about 1000 there.Was it the trophy semi when Smart and Wato must have been deafened by the Wasps support.

Exeter when Anders won his first race there and wasput out again as a tac and beat Coles,another massive away trip not to mention the Reading matches away.

Believe me,Vince,Newport had probably the next biggest support in the country after Poole.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

'99 Frank Smart at Swindon, on a 15m double ride against Steve Masters was the greatest highlight of my time following the Wasps, as you said Newport supporters often dwarfed the home fans at away meetings!

 

Vince your nose appears to be browner than a tin of Ronseal when it comes to Tim Stone, the guy deserves a lot of credit for bringing Newport Speedway back, but that was 10 years ago now,times have moved on and a hell of a lot of people are staying away. In some way or another its due to a lack of promotion and a trophy cabinet full of wooden spoons, the die hard fans can do their bit to a certain extent but in the end the responsibility lies with the promoter, Stone.

 

Newport Speedway used to enjoy crowds far larger than the local rugby, which with a bit of inspirational marketing, a couple of big names and a few semi-successful sides has become the biggest sport in Newport, easily.

[Vince]

JT, did you actually bother to read my post? If you really have such a strong urge to be rude to me why don't you come and talk to me face to face.

[JT]

Chill out Vince.

 

No offence intended by the way, was a lighthearted dig.

Edited May 9, 2007 by JT

[Pinstripe]

me thinks it is jt's posts that keep the thousands away from newport