We met with the club on Thursday morning to discuss the launch of the 2019-20 season tickets and to raise a number of points and questions on behalf of our members.
We began by expressing our disappointment at the lack of consultation that had taken place with the Trust ahead of the launch. We had been informed regarding the Category A/B matches but were unaware of the on the day price increases. We had been informed that there was a possibility of blocks U and V in the Pearl Street stand would be restricted for season ticket sales for safety reasons for selected matches but had not received confirmation that the club would look to utilise this for very small away followings about which we had given our concerns about. The first we knew was when we started receiving messages whilst en route to Gillingham when Trust members alerted us having received them in the post that morning.
Such consultation would have been beneficial to the club both in the short and long term. The club admitted that such consultation should have taken place and have agreed to ensure that it will do so in the future in line with the contents of the MOU that was signed in January.
We pointed out that the price of the season tickets has been very well received by supporters but due to this news being previously available, the impact of the prices was lost when that should have been the big headline story. On a match by match basis, the early bird prices must as cheap as anyone in the Football League.
We discussed the possible closure of the UV section that has been identified “due to safety advice and future match day arrangements”. Given the negative response to the rehousing of season ticket holders for the Sunderland game, we stated our previously made concerns with respect to this and questioned how often supporters would be impacted by this.
In terms of safety, it would only be looked upon when there is a full capacity in the Willbutts Lane stand. Based on this season, this would only apply with the visit of Sunderland, though the issues surrounding the Bradford game would probably earmark this fixture where it will be insisted upon.
The club said that the future travel arrangements would cover fixtures such as Wimbledon at home on a Tuesday evening where there was less than 150 away supporters in attendance. Making a switch would make a saving of £3,000 to the club for this.
We asked that if this had been in place for this season, both in terms of safety and small away followings, how many games would have been impacted, and the response was three with the U and V sections available open to home fans for all other games. For future games, the review would take into account large away followings and a history of trouble for a fixture. With this in mind, we discussed the possibility of season ticket holders reserving seats in this section conscious of the fact that there might be 20+ games available to them in this section. The club were concerned over the logistics over this but would look into it and get back to us.
We talked about the introduction of Category A/B games and the on the day price increases, the decision behind it, and the impact this would have on Dale supporters. We were informed that this would see the club fall in line with the EFL where such policies are commonplace. When asked how many games over the season would we have looked to introduce the higher category admission, and we were told that in hindsight we would only have looked upon the Sunderland game at the higher tier. However, all admission pricing needs to be with the EFL before June 1st. In doing this, and by introducing this, it would alleviate this situation.
In terms of impacting on Dale supporters, there was an acknowledgement that as a club, we don’t have a history or supporters buying tickets in advance, for both home and away fixtures. As such, the club were looking to scrap all telephone / internet charges for all tickets for collection from next season. There is a genuine desire to make the purchase of tickets more accessible, and the club are looking at the possibility of selling tickets in the club shop and away from the ground.
With the collapse of Zebra finance last week, we asked whether the club were looking at alternatives to replace this as many supporters were unable to pay for their season tickets in one go. The club have already been in contact with three other companies to replace this.
We raised the concerns regarding junior season tickets only being available with the purchase of an adult season ticket. Historically the club used to do this but scrapped it possibly 4/5 years ago. There were many examples of young supporters not being able to attend every single game or young supporters who may attend with different adults on a regular basis for family / work reasons. It wouldn’t be possible for a purchase of an adult season ticket in these circumstances and as a result, the young supporter would miss out on a season ticket. That bond between young supporter and the club would be broken, and you should never discount the ability of a child to nag their parent into attending a match given that they have that season ticket. An on the day purchase would rule out attendance for financial reasons. The club acknowledged this and agreed to look at this and get back to us.
We queried the date that season tickets go on sale being after the end of the season, meaning that supporters would have to visit Spotland or pay an additional charge. The change to telephone and internet charges would help alleviate this, and there is no cost to have season tickets delivered this season.
We flagged up restrictions on Dale Lotto agents who get their season tickets in July. As it stands, they would be unable to purchase the junior season ticket at the Early Bird price costing them an additional £40. This was something they agreed to look at and final a solution.
Our Country Season ticket holders had raised the question of why they had to purchase their season tickets by July 1st and not available afterwards. It was replied that the country season tickets constitute excellent value for money and it still allowed a two month deadline for their purchase. Historically there has only been a small number of country season tickets sold after this deadline so should have little impact.
We requested a full “Meeting with the Directors” whereby we would request questions from Trust members. It was agreed to hold one in May, but we would confirm a date nearer the time when all Directors would be available to be in attendance.
With the season drawing to a close, we discussed what could be done to promote the home games with Wycombe and Southend and boost the attendance at those games. Both fixtures will be vital in our survival hopes, and a larger than usual crowd would only benefit the team in this respect. The club agreed to look into this and get back to us.
Follow up required on:
- Possibility of season ticket holders being allowed to reserve seats in the U and V sections of the Pearl Street Stand knowing there may be a small number of games requiring movement
- Look at the policy to restrict junior season tickets to adults who have already purchased season tickets.
- Look at how Dale Lotto agents can purchase junior season tickets ahead of the July 1st
- Possible promotion of the Wycombe / Southend games to boost attendances for vital games
- Confirmation of a date in May for a full “Meeting with the Directors”