Post subject: Murrayfield magic, success or failure
Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 10:07 pm
chrismum
Player Coach
Joined: Aug 25 2007 Posts: 413 Location: Walking distance from new ground - so hurry up and build it.
As suspected Rugby league failed to make any impact on the scots. No doubt there will be the same crap about it being a huge success but the stats on this occasion don't lie. The attendance on sky was quoted as just over 29600. A Wigan Saints derby would have filled the JJB and yet we only managed less than 5000 more for 3 games. The RFL need to acknowledge that we will not spread the game to Scotland. They are the biggest rugby yawnion snobs on the planet and don't want rugby league. Admit it is an exercise in making money out of loyal fans and bring this farce to an end. I'm sure those that went will tell me that it was a great weekend and they had a great time. I'm also sure that most of them will have had their experience improved by large amounts of alcohol.
I had a great day, only stayed on Saturday but had that much to drink on Saturday that I was a little worse for wear for the whole of yesterday .
The attendance for the whole thing wasn't the greatest but there was a real buzz about the city and I enjoyed being able to mingle with other groups of fans and there was a great atmosphere in that sense as well. There were quite a few Scottish people who we spoke to who were very positive about the event also.
I had a great time.... not one drop of alcohol past my lips either. The mixing with fans from all different clubs... the laughs and the debates... and some very good rugby to boot. I'm already looking forward to next year. At the same time I can see where chrismum is coming from. I'd have loved to have seen a few thousand more on the gate, and just can't see what the RFL can possibly do to make this bigger. Maybe free tickets for season ticket holders instead of just a discount. Not only would this perhaps encourage more people to buy their own teams season tickets, but they would have a better chance of affording to go up there. The whole weekend has cost me and the better half close to £500 if you include meals and all the other things thrown in, and it's unrealistic to expect many to pay that amount. I'd also perhaps offer free tickets to season ticket holders of the rugby union clubs in Scotland... just to spread the gospel... not sure what would work to be honest, but there has to be something more.
One improvement I would make is to put one of the big matches on first.Thereby ensuring a bigger crowd at first who would hopefully stay in thier seats for the rest of the games and it would look so much better on telly instead of a nearly empty stadium.
Joined: Mar 07 2004 Posts: 13327 Location: A Red Muffin on the outskirts of Pie Land
From a purely selfish view we ( me and Jo) absolutely loved the whole weekend. We had full weekend tickets which at only £20 were a steal, lets be honest. We had booked a 4* B&B in Leith in Feb for £65 a night yet another steal. Paid half then so only had to shell out the other half when we got there giving us lots more to spend over the weekend. Then we have Edinburgh. My 1st time there and what a beautiful city. It kicks the booty outta Cardiff. Theres something to look at on every corner. Even with all the tram works it still had a great transport system. The restraunts we saw and ate in were all reasonable considering it's a capital city. We had a nice walk down to the stadium consuming a few liquid refreshments along the way having a chat and banter with all the other supporters with not a hint of trouble. The stadium was set up well. Things were a bit pricey but hey you expect that its the same everywhere and every event you go to. We saw some really entertaining rugby. It's just a shame that the usual problem of supporters only watching their own team and the going happened. But even giving out free tickets wouldn't stop that.
Also it was dissapointing that the "bigger" clubs who get all those thousands to their home games could only manage to encourage a very small percentage of their support to turn up. That for me was the biggest dissapointment of the whole weekend.
So was it a success? Everyone who was there would say yes. All those at home gripeing and groaning should get their act together and experience it instead of moaning about it.
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