Brummies V Stoke Nt Good Friday

[uk_martin]

But why do more supporters go now than ever,...

 

What time frame are you looking at? "Ever" is a long-tailed period of time. Attendances in the PL were the highest that the Brummies have had since 2007, which in the year under Patchett / Bratley started to decline. That decline was halted briefly with the elevation to the EL and then it started petering out again with all the rider and fixtiure re-aranging shenanigans that the EL brings with it. There was a board room civil war going on between the McLaughlin and Drury camps which pissed a lot of people off, as did other things. The good NL attendances are basically from my observation about the same as they were at the end of the EL era. I don't see crowds any more where everyone is shoulder to shoulder any more. To say that there are more supporters now than ever is extremely "optimistic". If there are numbers there to back that assertion up then all I can say is that these people find more and better places to hide these days because they certainly aren't on the home straight.

 

The price thing has nothiing to do with it in my opinion. It was £15 (adults) in 2007 and I don't think it ever rose above £16, even in the EL. Now it's down to £13 and as I say, the crowd levels now are about the same as they were in 2013-4

[Argos]

uk Martin were you on the payroll at sometime in the past at Birmingham Speedway and was part of the civil war between McLaughlin and Drury are still there but you aren't

[uk_martin]

"On the payroll" doesn't describe how things worked. Like a lot of speedway (and other sports) teams, there is a great reliance on volunteers who get a few favours returned. I tried to stay out of the politics but could see what was going on. It was very unsavoury and I'm glad to be out of there. There's a book that could be written about the whole thing but the Brummies v Stoke thread isn't the place to publish it.