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Darkest hour ? How do you explain this then ?
http://wigan.rlfans.com/fusion_pages/in … age_id=152
7,216 against Huddersfield/Sheffield ?
8,268 v Halifax ?Hardly a dark hour when that season, they won 24 games out of 28 and finished top of the league. In 2000, gates of 10,000+ were still quite rare. The sale of Central Park and the switch to summer rugby alienated quite a few Wiganers.
You completely missed the point, as usual. Or chose to ignore it. Warrior’s crowds increased significantly over the latter half of 2006, when they were facing relegation. At the very same time, Whelan hiked the cost of watching Premiership football to £35 a ticket. People voted with their feet, turning their back on an over-hyped, over-priced product played by foreign merceneries (remember Camara & Chimbonda?). They have not been seen at a football match in Wigan since.
I doubt next season will be any different – sub 15K crowds, with only one stand full being the norm. Enjoy your premiership season where success is defined as finishing 4th bottom.[/quote]
I didnt miss the point or ignore it, I simply responded by blowing your very insular little theory out of the water
Which is the more reliable data ? The data you provided, over a 3 month period, or the data I provided over a SIX YEAR PERIOD. Here it is again:
1977 – 4699
1978 – 5544
1979 – 4505
1980 – 4665
1981 – 4744
1982 – 5497I think you’ll find that over a short term 90% of the fans purchase their season tickets at the beginning of the year, hence why Derby still continued to get 30k every week despite getting barely 13pts. Dare I say as well that in the short-term, fans would rally round a relegation battle. In case you havent noticed Wigan Athletic’s average was considerably better from Feb – March 2011 than it was for the 6 months prior
Unfortunately for you, the above is irrefutable evidence that when Wigan Rugby suffered a sustained period of mediocrity and ultimately relegation, the fans deserted in their droves. This is fact, you can see it above, everyone can see it and unless you accept this as fact then there is really no point in us continuing
Wigan Athletic, despite fighting relegation for most of the past six years have maintained an average of 16.7k-20k whereas when Wigan Rugby where faced with a sustained period of fighting relegation from the top flight their crowds deserted them plummeting to under 5k
These are all facts, please stop arguing & claiming I’ve missed the point. I have absolutely got the point and rammed it home to you in language that you can understand perfectly. You are wrong and everyone can see it. Now go away, youre just making an even bigger fool out of yourself.
Darkest hour ? How do you explain this then ?
http://wigan.rlfans.com/fusion_pages/in … age_id=152
7,216 against Huddersfield/Sheffield ?
8,268 v Halifax ?Ive never seen sub 8k crowds at the DW for a football game in the top tier of the sport.
Looks like McGoose has got some explaining to do as to where 5000 – 6000 extra ” home ” fans have come from since they started winning stuff again :?
Its a shame that Wigan RL cannot be relegated then we’d see what their true support is like.
Oh sorry they did & they struggled to pull in 3000 many weeks :?
Not so Ancient & Loyal then really. I doubt if Wigan Athletic got relegated theyd get crowds of 3000 but then our motto is ” Progress With Unity ” not ” Ancient and Loyal* ”
*Except when relegated
Finally 13000 home fans isnt true as it assumes 1. they all turn up & due to the knock down price of season tickets many dont & 2. they are from Wigan, when around 40% are not, they are tourists enticed in by blanket North West TV advertising. This is a fact stated by your own club & freely available on your club’s website. Divide this 13k by 60% and you left with just under 8000 Wiganers.
At least that solves the problem of where all the gloryhunting fans have come from & its not Wigan
So EVEN though youve won the league & are reigning champions & EVEN though you are top of the league & EVEN though you have gone on an unprecedented advertising campaign,spending anything up to £100k on TV advertising to keep up with your struggling neighbours, who have still maintained a decent average despite several years languishing in the bottom half of the table and every home game being shown in nearly every pub in the town for free, you still cant attract more than 8000 Wiganers to watch your pointless,parochial sport.
8-)
Funny how they claim that our actual fanbase is only 1500 according to them as that was our average over 16 years ago ( when 30%-40% of our current support probably wasnt even born ),yet they dont seem to consider their own true support as the 3000 who used to watch them regularly take on the might of Runcorn Highfield & Batley in the second tier in the 80s :?
More chips on their shoulder than McCains
Sorry if it seems like I’m butting in or anything, but this is a public forum and I couldn’t help overhearing something I feel strongly against when it’s written in front of me.Watched the game on Abu Dhabi sports in my house
Another armchair fan.
For a kick off, I am of the belief that no fan has the right to tell another they should attend matches, like you’ve inferred there.
Being a fan doesn’t mean you have to turn up to every game, nor does it mean they have to be able to name every player that’s played for the club. You merely have to show their support for the club in whichever means necessary.
I’d like to think that as intelligent human beings (well, the few of us on here ;) ) our weekends should be dictated by what we want to do, and not by a fixture list.
Just because a fan is an ‘armchair fan’ it doesn’t make their opinion on anything regarding the club and less than any other fan.
For example, even though Mighty_Aff didn’t attend the game, he did see it on tele so therefore he saw the exact same same Griff/Jayt?Arky saw live at the DW. He can have his say as much as he pleases and his opinion is worth just as much as a ‘non armchair fan’.
No fan’s opinion is worth more than another’s in my view.
Rant over.
As a side note, I rate Distin (not Distan) quite highly actually and I think him and Jagielka are solid as a pair.[/quote]
I disagree,if youre saying that a supporter who doesnt attend a game is equal to one who does,then maybe we should all stay at home & watch home games in the pub,let the team play behind closed doors & let’s see where that gets us.
Fans who pay through the turnstile are the lifeblood of the club,might not be as much the case for WAFC at the minute & being bailed out by massive Sky & TV cheques but that just pays the players wages.If we drop out of this league,that ratio will change considerably.Its not coincidence that the clubs who are usually at the top of the leagues,winning trophies etc are the ones from big cities who get the biggest crowds
Support is about turning up to games & physically showing your face & your support. How does this club you support even know youre supporting them if youre not at the game or watching it on the internet.
Im not having a dig at mighty_aff as clearly he’s halfway across the world & we all occasionally have work & social events we cant get out of but if youre suggesting it doesnt make a difference whether people turn up or not for one of our most crucial games of the season then thats very naive in my opinion
Pro rata that works out cheaper than my season ticket !! Not by much but all the same cheaper and that which has been said before is not right !! :shifty:& if youd bought a Spurs ticket it would have been £27 meaning £57 quid for the 3 games,or £361 for the season ” pro rata ”
Im no fan of Whelan but the season ticket prices are as cheap as they can be & that is a decent offer to try & get a few people on the ground for 2 crucial end of season games. Im sure some people will find summat to moan about tho :?
Oh I can top that.You see my 3rd son isnt due to be born for another ten years & he’s already been stabbed multiple times in the chest in the playground by the Warriors mob for wearing a Wigan Athletic bobble hat.Not only that but my nanna whos 97 was having a cup of cocoa the other night in her flat in Scholes when 10 rugby fans wearing ” Super League Champions 2010 ” balaclavas burst in through her ground floor window & smashed her cup to smithereens & then rubbed her half eaten choccy digestive in her face purely because it happened to be a Wigan Athletic mug….
Im sure portraying themselves as some kind of victim as they have done makes them all feel better about themselves,but they are liars & bullies & always have been.
Ah lets all pity the poor downtrodden rugby fans cos a few Latics ” cretins ” called them names,Wigan Athletic have,to my knowledge never actually tried to wipe Wigan Rugby out of existence. Had this been the case i could fully understand there ire towards the football club in the town.All they can recollect is recent incidents & prior to that we didn’t exist.We did exist & still do-despite their many efforts over several decades to wipe us into oblivion.Maybe if they had got behind the football club in the town instead of trying to kill it off,brainwashed by Maurice these supposed cross words that all Latics fans are supposed to have said may not have happened.
[ waves at RL fans com ]
So let me get this straight :
They sing songs nicked from football.
Put up flags–idea nicked from football.
They play a game nicked from football,when a fat lad sat on the ball.
They wear replica shirts,talk about local derbies,and use football terminology ( goals,offsides,touchlines etc )
Now they call themselves Ultras,another term nicked from football.
They even call their game football and have it in their name.Sounds to me like they just want to be football fans & support a football club.
It’s just a shame that there was never a football club in their home town for them to support over the years in order to complete the authentic football experience they are clearly so pining for.
Whats that-there was ?
& there always has been ?
& most of them don’t support that football club even when it desperately needed their support ?
& many of them actually hate it & laughed when it nearly went bust & chose instead to support another football team from a random city that they can’t get tickets for from their armchair ?Anyone would think they were a bunch of clueless hypocrites brainwashed by a camp man called Maurice ?
:?
Hull had 21000 on yesterday & after a slow start remain just a few places off the play offs.So going down doesnt seem to have been the end of the world to them & their fans are back behind them. Same goes for Burnley & Pompey.Swansea also had a great result playing in a very familiar style yesterday.I wonder what happened to the manager who laid down those roots & changed their playing philosophy is up to now, he might be worth a punt
I’ll start of by saying the population of Wigan compared with the home attendance is the best in the Premier League.There’s a rugby club in the town, Orrel Rugby Union. Oh, and Wigan Warriors. :?
We are by far the newest club in the Football League and only 2/3 generations have past since we began life in the old 3rd divison – and were ammited to the football league.
With so many well established clubs already in the North West, people in the town already have a club to support unless (like griff) you change team … which not many will do.
We aren’t the most attreactive team to support with us being smashed 9-1, 4-0, 6-0, 4-0, 5-0, 3-0, 8-0, 4-0, 5-0, 4-1 etc….. all under Roberto Martinez. Lets not forget being knocked out the cup by Notts County last season.
Unemployment is hitting the town hard and with so many pubs providing Latics games live it’s hard for the club to get them filling the seats. Also, WishFM have all home and away games on their station.
People that support the Rugby Club 1st off are likely to support a club like Man Utd, Liverpool or Everton because loyalty to both Wigan clubs is hard to come by.
Away support at certain grounds have sparked a bit of talk this season … including Everton (where we took more than Bolton) and Spurs (which we weren’t far off Bolton).
The ‘joy’ of Prem football is fading away and many hardcore fans are starting to drop off waiting for the club to be relegated … then starting following us again.
Ok, there’s my points … i’m ready to be ridiculed. :teasing-knob:
P.S – We took about 400 fans to Arsenal with some not being allowed tickets because the away end was ‘sold out’ :roll: Only a few Arsenal fans were in the away area too ….
This seems to be mostly a list of excuses as to why we AREN’T the best supporters,Im not sure “ people watching it in the pub ” constitutes us being the best supporters in the Premier League but a very spirited defence nonetheless
Shoed by a kid :oops:
[does runner]
We have possibly the BEST supporters in the United Kingdom, certainly better than all in the Premier League.Hi Sephton,
This is a very bold statement,would you be so kind as to perhaps list a few categories under which you would consider the BEST supporters would fall under & provide some examples as to why we have the BEST supporters in order to verify what youve just said
Regards
Scholes
:?MOTD did a so called funny piece at the end of their game highlights verus everton showing 14 clear misses/saves and used graphics to count them and you think that a stam miss in the 89th minute is a positive,at spurs we did defend well but they also missed a host of sitters during what was an off day for them.as i said before god help our goal difference if this “new found consistancy” hadn’t happened.
smell the coffee people a few gushing sentiments of loyalty to the throngs isnt going to wash it with alot of folk – he needs to show something he hasnt for the previous 18 months – MANAGERIAL ABILITY
:angry-banghead:& with a bit more luck against Bolton H Newcastle A and Stoke H we would have had 3 more wins if we had taken clear cut chances / our forward players had taken easy chances just the same as our opponents in the games you mention
Or does this luck you refer to only count when its saved us a point not cost us points ? Oh yes of course it does as every single point weve gained this season has been in spite of the manager & not because of him because you cant bare to give him an ounce of credit.
My reason for picking on the quotes made about the signing of Gomez & Scotland weren’t so much that he bigged them up & they were/are (depsite what griff says ;) ) flops. When he made those comments in the fanzine interviews I made the point that not only did he seem to be saying he had faith in using alot of the players discarded by Bruce, Jewell & Hutchings as being good enough (why when they hadn’t been for up to 3 other managers?) but also the same point about easing players in. Just to show the the same applied then as it does now (IMO). Not for slating him for signing players who aren’t good enough.
Possibly & maybe he does feel Sammon will be able to adapt straight away but i can only go off what he saysCan Bobby do right in my book? Yes – when he’s done well or made a good signing I’ve said so. When he makes mistakes (game after game after game) I’ve said so
As for Boselli – our manager doesn’t think he’s made a mistake or else he won’t admit it in public. he still claims publicly that someone who quite clearly hasn’t go the attributes to play up front on his own is going to develop those attributes playing in Italy as part of a front 2 pairing
I should also point out that I never said managers don’t buy flops or criticised Martinez for signing players who’ve flopped. Every signing every manager makes is a gamble no matter how much or little you’ve paid for them. Oh & Elmander was a flop – it took a different manager playing a different style of play to show how good he could be. If Megson had still been in charge playing his system then he’d have been binned off by now. Likewise I think Boselli could be a great player for Latics if he was played in a formation that suited his talents but he isn’tSammon will also get my backing, as will the club for as long as either he is here or (in terms of supporting the club) I am here. That doesn’t stop me being entitled to voice my opinion when I think players aren’t good enough or when managers make mistakes (time after time after time). Sorry if that doesn’t fit into your sheep like mentality of defending the indefendable or accepting someone who quite clearly isn’t up to the job purely coz he’s the manager & must be supported. Some of us care more about the football club than that
Of course I respect your opinion even though it seems to be little other than a constant outpouring of moaning with very little in the way of alternative suggestions,with a sprinkling of insults at the end of course.
Nevertheless being a sheep,I know that the grass isnt always greener on the other side.You dont even appear to know where the other side is,you just seem to be constantly complaining about this side all the time
Contrary to what you might believe,I wouldn’t object to the sacking of Bob,on the condition that we get someone better in who would also be happy to work under Whelan under similar financial restrictions.Trouble is we cant exactly be certain.Hull gave Phil Brown the bullet last year round about this time and got Dowie in,he didn’t last long either.We got lucky with Bruce but the trouble is Bruce wanted to spend more than what Whelan is prepared to fund & as soon as he was asked to sell players,well he got a better offer & buggered off.If we must go down,better to go down with a manager who is rebuilding the club & setting it up for the long term even if that’s a division or two lower than you would like.
In any case I will just get on with my grazing.I don’t mind being a sheep as they are loyal, forgiving,stick together & follow one another. As opposed to a pig who seem to revel in rolling around in excrement & honking incessantly about it ;)
”he’s a quality player who will be able to handle the step up in class. we’ve got ourselves a bargain” as opposed to “our new signing will be a good un, just don’t expect to see that much of him during our relegation battle coz he isn’t ready”If that really is the case then he should have kept his hands in his pockets rather than signing someone who seems to believe will have little impact on our relegation fight
And I’m sure had he said that you or someone else would have been laying into him for making ” positive ” statements about a player who cost £500k from the SPL. Maybe he read your response to his comments when we signed Jordi Gomez & thought ” better not promise too much with this lad because if he doesnt deliver tyldesley latic will be on my case again ”
Youve taken great pleasure in seeking out comments made about previous signings when hes bigged them up in the past,now youre slagging him off for playing down new signings so he clearly cant do any right in your book
Of course he’s made a mistake with Boselli,he’s also done something about it by farming him out on loan to Genoa. Who knows we may even get some of that 6 mill back if he stays there,unlike the 5 mill centre forward Steve Bruce bought a year or so earlier who had his contract terminated. There are examples of flops all over & Im sure if you were a Bolton fan you would have binned off there top scorer Elmander by now as he hadnt done anything for two seasons & they paid £10m for him.
I’ve not seen this lad play either but he will get my backing this season and next whatever division we are in because unlike some of our fans I want to support the club & its players & management over the longer term, not just the next 12 games.Sorry if that doesnt fit your model of going round throwing hissy fits because we are in the relegation zone & sorry to break it to you but we were never going to last in this league forever,& even Whelan has his financial limitations. But as someone else on here said the other day, some of us care more about the football club than the premiership
Well thats rubbish isnt it,we should have signed Darren Bent or Robbie Keane & forked out 60-80k a week in wages or whatever only for them to bugger off in a year when they get a better offer,I’m sure noone will mind when Whelan puts season tickets up to 750 a year to compensate
What did you expect him to say ” I’m starting him on Saturday & if hasn’t got two by half time & bagged 10 by the end of the season then he’s a flop & a complete waste of five hundred grand ”Welcome to the new world Tyldesley,where football only spend what they can afford but at least there might be a football club in a years time
