Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: dave.woodhall on September 07, 2017, 02:04:36 PM
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If anyone has any questions they want raising, let's have them.
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Any chance we could get a question asked about whether they plan to redesign the badge to compliment the new branding and image of the club that they are aspiring to become?
Also, why have the shades of the claret and blue changed on the kits in the last couple of years? Was this intentional?
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Couple of minor things that have been mentioned before:
Could some kind of covering be put over the empty seats in the top tier of the Trinity Road stand when it is not open as a whole section of empty seats doesn't look great.
Is there any way the Acorns logo could be put on children's kits seeing as they don't currently have a sponsor on them?
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I have some ironing that needs doing. Seeing as Richards only other role is the world's most well paid jester, can he pop round and sort it?
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What sort of oil are they using in the Villa engine and how often will it need changing?
Will they be selling bullshit bingo cards at the club shop by the time that Wyness makes another statement?
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What sort of oil are they using in the Villa engine and how often will it need changing?
Will they be selling bullshit bingo cards at the club shop by the time that Wyness makes another statement?
Thanks for that. Would any of the grown-ups like to make a comment?
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Is there any chance of the VMF re-opening again as it was a wonderful oppertuinity to show people Villa Park to people who were not really interested in football. As well as being a classy place to eat.
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Is there any chance of the VMF re-opening again as it was a wonderful oppertuinity to show people Villa Park to people who were not really interested in football. As well as being a classy place to eat.
I think that was brought up at the first meeting last year.
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Can you ask what is happening to the NW Lions Club.I have been trying to join since January but have been told that it is now down for maintenance
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Can you ask is there any intention to returning to our original colours of claret and blue 're what Burnley and WHU play in ? and if we are to have a distinctive playing style throughout the club when will this emerge.
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What sort of oil are they using in the Villa engine and how often will it need changing?
Will they be selling bullshit bingo cards at the club shop by the time that Wyness makes another statement?
Thanks for that. Would any of the grown-ups like to make a comment?
When will we stop being useless?
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Couple of minor things that have been mentioned before:
Could some kind of covering be put over the empty seats in the top tier of the Trinity Road stand when it is not open as a whole section of empty seats doesn't look great.
Is there any way the Acorns logo could be put on children's kits seeing as they don't currently have a sponsor on them?
Maybe we could cover some of the empty seats at the top of the Trinity on occasions it is not officially open with some freebies to under privileged or poorly kids? I'm pretty sure any of us who are more fortunate who pay for ourselves and our kids wouldn't object to that. It would be far more heart warming looking and listening to them rather than empty silent seats.
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Great idea local primary schools in the area. Given something to the community so they are supportive when the redevelopment Takes place
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Can you ask is there any intention to returning to our original colours of claret and blue 're what Burnley and WHU play in ? and if we are to have a distinctive playing style throughout the club when will this emerge.
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The seats for local schools idea has been tried before, many times. Most of the time they're either not used or the kids are a pain. Sad to say, there's also an element of "What are THEY doing here?" (and we all know what THEY means) from some of our supporters.
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Sorry posted same post twice
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If/when the parachute money from the top division runs out, to what extent are the AVFC board expecting to be in breach of FFP rules?
Why was the majority of this summer's budget spent largely on players with no resale value?
To what extent are Steve Bruce's signings vetted by the board?
Does Wynness take responsibility for the pathetic failure to even challenge for promotion last season given the budget given to both RDM and Bruce?
If promotion is not achieved this season will Wynness resign?
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It used to be the case that they wouldn't comment on playing matters, does that still stand?
That's not a question for the meeting BTW.
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The school thing is good and bad. The tickets for schools they used was very good for kids that were Villa fans. However having been near large groups of school kids on a trip to VP a number of times, they can be a right pain. Most don't give a shit about Villa and if they're there for a 'glamour' game most of them are supporting the opposition.
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It used to be the case that they wouldn't comment on playing matters, does that still stand?
That's not a question for the meeting BTW.
Pretty much so, and I can understand why.
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Not wanting to get into the catering spiral of the General Krulak period but it was noticeable that some kiosks were closed at some games this season and both programme kiosks in the Upper Holte were closed for the Norwich game which, from speaking to a senior steward, seemed to be the result of a breakdown in communication about regular staff holidays. There were people trying to spend money and couldn't which can't be good for thst revenue stream in the long term.
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Dave, for me would be the same query as previous times, are there any plans to improve the PA/tannoy quality? I sit in the Upper Doug and when anything is announced it is barely audible, when they try and speak over music it is way worse! Having sat in Lower Trinity for the Watford game that seemed as bad....
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Dave, If you get the chance, could you please ask if concession price will be given from next season, for over 65's for season tickets, in any part of the ground.
I have asked the question but, reply I received a couple of months ago was, it was being discussed. However, I've heard nothing since.
Thanks
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Couple of minor things that have been mentioned before:
Could some kind of covering be put over the empty seats in the top tier of the Trinity Road stand when it is not open as a whole section of empty seats doesn't look great.
Is there any way the Acorns logo could be put on children's kits seeing as they don't currently have a sponsor on them?
Maybe we could cover some of the empty seats at the top of the Trinity on occasions it is not officially open with some freebies to under privileged or poorly kids? I'm pretty sure any of us who are more fortunate who pay for ourselves and our kids wouldn't object to that. It would be far more heart warming looking and listening to them rather than empty silent seats.
Well yes that would be a good idea. Dave and PWS have mentioned there have been some issues in the past with school groups, but if they were seated in what would otherwise be an empty top tier of the Trinity Road then that might negate some of those issues mentioned.
I forgot to add, that I was told at the start of last season that I couldn't buy a season ticket in the back rows of the lower North Stand because they weren't on sale as it was to be redeveloped to include a disabled section this summer. I therefore didn't buy a season ticket and just bought individual tickets instead. This season has come around and there has been literally no change at all (apart from the executive box windows finally having the ball marks cleaned off them that were there all last season). What happened there?
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I think it would highlight the emptiness of the ground. As well as looking a bit shit, it might also put them off coming again as they wouldn't feel properly part of the atmosphere, if that makes sense.
I'd rather stick them in the North Stand (there's no atmosphere there either, but at least they'd be part of the crowd and wouldn't be exposed to the sort of uncouth behaviour practised by us louts in the Holte).
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Oh, and Tom has a point (not often I say that 😉). How close is the club to meeting the targets set by Premier League clubs for accommodating disabled supporter (in the hope that we get promoted sooner or later)?
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Can we ask about car stickers for season ticket holders please? I'm part of the pride and want to be one of 20,000 driving around promoting our club far and wide.
Secondly as part of the pride when will we be sorting out the painting of the railway bridge at Witton station that bears our colours ? I don't feel very proud about that and keep hearing about us and the regeneration of our area .
Thank you
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Can we ask about car stickers for season ticket holders please? I'm part of the pride and want to be one of 20,000 driving around promoting our club far and wide.
Secondly as part of the pride when will we be sorting out the painting of the railway bridge at Witton station that bears our colours ? I don't feel very proud about that and keep hearing about us and the regeneration of our area .
Thank you
I was that just today. First time I've been to the club in a while and that bridge looks bloody awful. It wouldn't take much to fix that.
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IIRC that was mentioned at a SCG I was at (while Lerner was still here) and I think it's because it's classed as owned by a rail company that we can't just paint it. Can't remember exact answer but got a feeling it's far from as easy to do as we'd imagine.
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The recent interview with Keith Wyness mentions developing the local area (if and when Villa Park is extended) - is there anything more the club can tell us at this stage, about their plans?
And who will this plan be enhanced should Birmingham be successful in it's bid to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games? Apart from just hosting a bunch of rough chaps with odd shaped balls.
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The Upper Trinity idea doesn't have to be kids. What about a local businesses, colleges, unis, council workers, churches, mosques, minimum wagers, women's groups, frazzled parents, etc. Mix and match, not every game, not even the whole of the section.
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Access to the holte pub. Last season season ticket holders had access to the pub this season restricted to the holte suite. The pub has a better atmosphere but is now only for the enjoyment of lions club members. Why has the club changed the criteria
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The online shop on the website - It's terrible. Not all Villa fans live close enough to the Villa Village to be able to go in and buy their Villa tat. Using the online shop is a depressing experience
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The PA system - others have said it's appalling but in the Holte it's the opposite. Ear splitting decibels of noise particularly at half time has me running to the bogs double quick. I'm seriously thinking of investing in ear plugs to block it out it's that loud.
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Access to the holte pub. Last season season ticket holders had access to the pub this season restricted to the holte suite. The pub has a better atmosphere but is now only for the enjoyment of lions club members. Why has the club changed the criteria
The club closed the original Lions Club in the Doug Ellis Stand so they've been trying to find them a new home. It's not really fair on those like you who enjoy the Holte Pub though. Putting them upstairs in the Holte Suite would be a better idea I think.
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Another vote to raise the issue of the change to the colours - someone please ask them to look at the recent Nike kits and most of the retro kits in the store and go back to those shades. The current and Macron ones are really fecking orrible and not Villa.
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The PA system - others have said it's appalling but in the Holte it's the opposite. Ear splitting decibels of noise particularly at half time has me running to the bogs double quick. I'm seriously thinking of investing in ear plugs to block it out it's that loud.
This all over. As soon as the half time whistle blows they blast out ear drum bursting music at ridiculously high volumes.
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Little thing I know. Can you ask if they can keep the lid on a plastic bottle of pop or water rather than them taking it off and throwing it away before you get the drink, I understand once someone threw a cap at redknapp but that was a while ago and it's a royal pain as it gets knocked over all the time.
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Little thing I know. Can you ask if they can keep the lid on a plastic bottle of pop or water rather than them taking it off and throwing it away before you get the drink, I understand once someone threw a cap at redknapp but that was a while ago and it's a royal pain as it gets knocked over all the time.
I can answer this one straight away. It's a safety issue because a full bottle thrown can cause injury more easily than one with the top off.
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A safety issue that no other club cares about, even when Villa are doing the stewarding for them.
It's a stupid rule, we should ignore it like everybody else does.
Stop treating fans like children.
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Little thing I know. Can you ask if they can keep the lid on a plastic bottle of pop or water rather than them taking it off and throwing it away before you get the drink, I understand once someone threw a cap at redknapp but that was a while ago and it's a royal pain as it gets knocked over all the time.
I can answer this one straight away. It's a safety issue because a full bottle thrown can cause injury more easily than one with the top off.
I've been lead to believe that it is a safety issue, but for the reason that in the event of an evacuation, a capped bottle on the floor represents a rolling hazard which a capless crushable one does not.
But why that's seemingly more important than being able to get out of the Upper North in under an hour, who knows?
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How about tickets to lapsed fans.
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How about tickets to lapsed fans.
They did that under Lerner and it made little difference with encouraging them to buy them from there on out.
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I wonder how many they gave away?
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Is there going to be a loyalty scheme for non season ticket holders, like we had with villa cash last year. For some of us it isn't viable to have a season ticket, but still go to enough games to warrant being able to have chance to get tickets before it goes to general sale
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The online shop on the website - It's terrible. Not all Villa fans live close enough to the Villa Village to be able to go in and buy their Villa tat. Using the online shop is a depressing experience
Prices for overseas Villa fans. I wish to buy the odd mug, T-shirt or calendar but the delivery charges are prohibitive, and I do not particularly wish to spend £100 or whatever just to get free delivery.
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Dave, for me would be the same query as previous times, are there any plans to improve the PA/tannoy quality? I sit in the Upper Doug and when anything is announced it is barely audible, when they try and speak over music it is way worse! Having sat in Lower Trinity for the Watford game that seemed as bad....
This
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Another vote to raise the issue of the change to the colours - someone please ask them to look at the recent Nike kits and most of the retro kits in the store and go back to those shades. The current and Macron ones are really fecking orrible and not Villa.
Thirded. The current kit is definitely not our traditional claret. Most annoying. It's not feckin rocket science to produce a claret and blue kit.
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Little thing I know. Can you ask if they can keep the lid on a plastic bottle of pop or water rather than them taking it off and throwing it away before you get the drink, I understand once someone threw a cap at redknapp but that was a while ago and it's a royal pain as it gets knocked over all the time.
Take a cap to the match in your pocket.
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Little thing I know. Can you ask if they can keep the lid on a plastic bottle of pop or water rather than them taking it off and throwing it away before you get the drink, I understand once someone threw a cap at redknapp but that was a while ago and it's a royal pain as it gets knocked over all the time.
Take a cap to the match in your pocket.
I forget..... but how ridiculous that I would have to
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Another vote to raise the issue of the change to the colours - someone please ask them to look at the recent Nike kits and most of the retro kits in the store and go back to those shades. The current and Macron ones are really fecking orrible and not Villa.
Thirded. The current kit is definitely not our traditional claret. Most annoying. It's not feckin rocket science to produce a claret and blue kit.
It's called magenta or something on the shop website. I thought that was one of the cartridge colours you spend a fortune on to get your printer working, along with his brother Cyan.
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None of the other stuff matters to me until we improve on the pitch.
Don't care if we are the first club with contactless season tickets or sage and onion pies.
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Could you please ask. Why for the 2nd season running the away toddler kit isnt available to purchase. It was online previous and stated it was available from the 20th August and it has never been. I went to the club shop before the game today and still not in stock.
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Access to the holte pub. Last season season ticket holders had access to the pub this season restricted to the holte suite. The pub has a better atmosphere but is now only for the enjoyment of lions club members. Why has the club changed the criteria
The club closed the original Lions Club in the Doug Ellis Stand so they've been trying to find them a new home. It's not really fair on those like you who enjoy the Holte Pub though. Putting them upstairs in the Holte Suite would be a better idea I think.
I've not been in there for a while but in Lions circles it seems it's not all that great, If you actually get the beer you want it may possibly come without bubbles, today I heard it was very understaffed.
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I went to the club shop. The kids kit at £40 is mind boggling. The overall lack of choice of products in the shop is really disappointing. Possibly the most boring merchandise shop for a major sports team I've ever been in.
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I'd guess the ticket office has been raised before but my experience today really pissed me off. I turned up to collect my tickets, having got stuck in traffic, about 15 minutes before kick off they had not been printed off and I was told I had to queue up at the enquiries windows. There about 15 people waiting there and only two people serving. One of those was tied up with someone who had not received their season ticket (this 4-5 weeks into the season) and despite having his reference number was repeatedly told his ticket could not be printed off. This went on for at least 10 minutes and that meant effectively only one window for everyone else. The upshot was that I and my two kids, plus the rest of the queue behind me, ended up missing kick off and the first 5 minutes of the game. This is basic stuff that they are cocking up.
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The Villa Village store set up is chaotic. Trying to get to the counter is very confused really needs a rethink
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I found it really annoying that the big screens kept reminding us to go to the concourse if we were hungry or thirsty at the match yesterday. Quite honestly, people wandering off for drinks and food during the match is already sufficiently annoying without encouraging it, and this combined with the standard of football on offer yesterday actually made me wonder whether we our business is still sport or is moving over to catering.
Also - can they get the Villa Rewards to be a bit easier to find. We really enjoyed our pre-match thingy yesterday. Not mind blowingly amazing, but a fun event that genuinely added something to our match day and really put a smile on the faces of those that attended. However, if they want this to be a success, they could do with not hiding it - the needs to be a front page click to have a browse of the offers. Too many fans have no idea how to get to it at the moment.
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A friend, living abroad, told me that the replays during the live matches are really annoying.
He also told me that Bruce should be sacked.
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I found it really annoying that the big screens kept reminding us to go to the concourse if we were hungry or thirsty at the match yesterday. Quite honestly, people wandering off for drinks and food during the match is already sufficiently annoying without encouraging it, and this combined with the standard of football on offer yesterday actually made me wonder whether we our business is still sport or is moving over to catering.
Also - can they get the Villa Rewards to be a bit easier to find. We really enjoyed our pre-match thingy yesterday. Not mind blowingly amazing, but a fun event that genuinely added something to our match day and really put a smile on the faces of those that attended. However, if they want this to be a success, they could do with not hiding it - the needs to be a front page click to have a browse of the offers. Too many fans have no idea how to get to it at the moment.
Was surprised about that as well. 5 min, maybe 10 before HT is fine, but like you there's nothing more annoying than people getting up during a game. Of course yesterday was a good game to get up and keep walking right out of the stadium.
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I'm surprised Villa don't have a pre match show with former players or analysts broadcast before the game on the big screen. Just highlights. Though watching last years game vs Brentford was hardly something to whet the whistle, though in retrospect it was better than what we served up.
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I found all of the messages on the screen annoying. The catering ones mainly because they're so stupid "Feeling hungry? Why not have a pie" Oh yeah i never thought you could get food here what an amazing revelation. Also the chants printed on the screen to try and gee the crowd up. I'm sure they were printed in a slightly jaunty font as well which also irritates me.
More serious observations can the club do something about the smoking in the toilets? Go in sometimes and its vile.
Also is the full range or merchandise available on the online shop? If it is does the search function work properly or is it organised correctly? Couldn't find some stuff for my oldest so gave up. For example I search on "hat" and it comes up with a thermal mug.
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Songs on the screens?
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Where they shown during the game (e.g. when we got a corner).
It does seem a bit small time but I remember years ago when Arsenal played at Highbury and got a corner "Come on you Reds" would be shown on the big screen and a few other clubs do it.
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Stop those bloody messages on the screen! The chants are embarrassing and small time.
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Could you ask why all our midweek games always seem to be on Tuesdays please.
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They absolutely have to stop those song prompts on the big screen. It's not only hugely embarrassing, it screams of a club who aren't in touch with their fans. We aren't Fulham, Reading or any of those goal celebration music/clapper clubs, nor should we ever be.
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A small gripe but I hate paying £4.20 for a pint in a plastic cup in the Holte Suite or Holte pub. I'm sure there's a reason why they do it but it ruins what could be a perfectly good pint.
Also, last season they had old players pop in for a quick chat and photo's if you wanted to, which I thought was a really good idea and seemed to go down well. It's not happened as yet so far this season, which is a shame.
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Can you ask what is happening to the NW Lions Club.I have been trying to join since January but have been told that it is now down for maintenance
Are you on facebook? They have a page on there. Alternatively, PM me and I can give you a number for the guy that runs it.
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I'd guess the ticket office has been raised before but my experience today really pissed me off. I turned up to collect my tickets, having got stuck in traffic, about 15 minutes before kick off they had not been printed off and I was told I had to queue up at the enquiries windows. There about 15 people waiting there and only two people serving. One of those was tied up with someone who had not received their season ticket (this 4-5 weeks into the season) and despite having his reference number was repeatedly told his ticket could not be printed off. This went on for at least 10 minutes and that meant effectively only one window for everyone else. The upshot was that I and my two kids, plus the rest of the queue behind me, ended up missing kick off and the first 5 minutes of the game. This is basic stuff that they are cocking up.
Print your tickets at home mate. Much easier.
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The agenda's sorted so this one can be ended now. Thanks to everyone who chipped in with ideas - we should have the minutes available in a few days.
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Could you ask why all our midweek games always seem to be on Tuesdays please.
It gives us more time to recover for the weekend. If, say, Barnsley play tomorrow and we play on Wednesday, they'll be fresher than us on Saturday. You wouldn't see the likes of Whelan and Terry at their scintillating best.
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I think it was McLeish who changed our midweek games from Wednesday to Tuesday and no one has bothered to change it back.
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It makes more sense playing on Tuesday.
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Could you ask why all our midweek games always seem to be on Tuesdays please.
Yeah agree Wednesday was our traditional mid week fixture
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It makes more sense playing on Tuesday.
Why does it?
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It makes more sense playing on Tuesday.
Why does it?
Because Coronation Street is on Wednesday
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It makes more sense playing on Tuesday.
Why does it?
Because it gives us more time to recover for a Saturday game. If we play on Tuesday and our weekend opponents don't play until Wednesday, we would be at a disadvantage.
In this instance it is clearly to our advantage. Both ourselves and Middlesbrough play after a two and a bit day break. For us it's the second successive home match while they arrive having spent much of the intervening period travelling six hundred miles between Teesside, Bolton, Tesside again, and Birmingham.
It would be very foolish to play on Wednesday and negate our advantage, while boosting Barnsley's chances on Saturday simultaneously.
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Because it gives us more time to recover for a Saturday game. If we play on Tuesday and our weekend opponents don't play until Wednesday, we would be at a disadvantage.
Wouldn't we have one more rest day, the Weds thy play, which presumably would be advantageous?
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Unless you play on Friday, Sunday or have the weekend off, there is no real advantage. One is closer to the weekend before and one the weekend after. It is not as if we have Europe to worry about, although International call ups can have a bearing.
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Because it gives us more time to recover for a Saturday game. If we play on Tuesday and our weekend opponents don't play until Wednesday, we would be at a disadvantage.
Wouldn't we have one more rest day, the Weds thy play, which presumably would be advantageous?
Both teams play the previous Saturday, so playing a day later gives us no advantage or disadvantage. It does leave us at a disadvantage if our next opponents have played on the Tuesday and we've played on Wednesday, though.
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Although having checked, it seems Barnsley are in the League Cup today, so will probably rest a load of players anyway.
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And here's the minutes of the meeting. Thanks to joe_c for attending on our behalf.
Fan representatives
Joe Costello Heroes & Villains
John Gillett Lions Clubs
Gary Kilburn Lions Clubs
Jonathan Fear Vital Villa
Michael Steede Avillafan.com
Karl Bowater Aston Villa Supporters Trust
Steve Gough Aston Villa Independent Supporters Clubs
Dan Bardell Villa View
David Michael My Old Man Said
Scott Jones Villa Talk
Club representatives
Keith Wyness Chief Executive Officer
Luke Organ Chief Commercial Officer
Brendan McGlinchey Operations Director
Tommy Jordan Head of Media & Comms
Lee Preece SLO
FCG AGENDA – SEPTEMBER 12TH TUESDAY 5.30pm
1. Why has the discount at the shop and the AVTV access been taken away from the season ticket package? It seems to devalue the season ticket, as there is nothing to the package now apart from the ticket.
Fanatics have removed any and all discounts (including for club partners) in order to ensure returns to profitability and in exchange for a generous minimum guarantee to the club which reverses significant losses. We are working to try and ensure delivery of benefit to fans from Fanatics once we have an established position and equally we are looking at integrating any payments made via STH cards accrue loyalty points.
AVTV Live – a paid for premium content for live broadcast and game replays would in an ideal world be free for all Season Ticket holders, however this is against the EFL regulations as they protect their primary broadcast revenue streams. No club can bundle or provide for free the streams. It should be noted the EFL are breaking ground here and if we were to return to the PL we would not under current regulations be able to stream any non-broadcast game.
AVTV and Youtube hosts our generic content for free which has improved significantly in the last 12 months and we now host all non-live televised content here for people to access.
2. In terms of the ‘Villa Engine’ is it possible to have some specific examples of what has been implemented so far, beyond marketing/motivational taglines such as ‘Pride, Passion & Purpose’?
In terms of a style of play for the first team, it’s been said that the focus is currently promotion and the ethos of “only results matter” is being practiced to achieve this. If Villa fail again to get promoted this season, when does the style of play of Villa come to the surface and become a focus of the engine, as a way to be successful?
It is the longer term vision that we are developing and will start to flow through the club from all age groups. We recognise there is a short term imperative to get promoted and that means the total concept may not manifest itself in the first team as yet.
3. What is the situation being reported at the moment about the Chinese Government clamping down on investment in football clubs and how will this impact us? In the context of being in the Championship and also if/when Villa are promoted. In terms of the PL, obviously there is an outstanding debt to Randy Lerner to be paid upon promotion, so what will our immediate ambition and capacity be in the PL?
This is a complex issue and one we are closely involved in as you can imagine to see how this develops. The government has gone as far as naming companies that it sees as problems and we are not on that list. It seems the main aim is companies that have bought assets with debt which is not our case. There is little doubt that this is all about the China debt bubble and that football is being used as an example in key cases where debt has been used ie the purchase of AC Milan.
4. Are there any plans to align the Pride Rewards scheme with Villa tickets or Villa’s retail merchandise?
It’s the expectation of a lot of people that they’ll be able to use the points on items in the shop and against tickets - the current scheme has some good ideas on collection of points, but the rewards don’t seem linked to the everyday things fans want.
When will we see the full functionality of the Pride rewards scheme? We have no date yet on when the cash loading will be available and there are still lots of people that can’t log into the system.
We are the first sports Club in the world to integrate contactless payment via pre-paid card, therefore we have no reference point and we’re working through some complex issues ahead of launch (FCA, MID’s, Payment gateways etc). That said, we’re nearly there and we’ll communicate more over next couple of weeks.
Top up of cash is restricted at the moment until testing is complete. We will likely conduct testing with small user groups and then expand to a stand at a time.
We commissioned an independent piece of research (online survey with 9k answers & several focus groups) to try and understand what fans wanted from a rewards scheme. The overwhelming feedback was to feel valued as a fan and rewarded with Matchday experiences over tangible, everyday products. We’ve tried to incorporate this – Saturday for example:
65 fans in Cornerflag pre-match event
4 fans in new hospitality suites
2 fans Dinner, B&B at the Belfry
8 fans giving a guard of honour to the players
25 fans in the programme, shout at half time and names on the big screen
2 fans on the pitch at half -time taking a selfie in front of the Holte End
£5000 worth of Under Armour products collect at Rewards point
Tonight the mascot has come from Pride Rewards.
Cleary the project is in its infancy so any ideas and feedback are welcome, we have to cater for Season Ticket holders from ages of 6 months to 97!
5. A common complaint is the 50p booking fee, especially by fans on the away scheme. They pay their money to join the away scheme, and then, if they go to every game, they have to pay half again on booking fees. What’s the club’s thinking on this?
The £25 entry fee to the away scheme guarantees those joining an away ticket for every League match with the ability to return the ticket should it no longer be required.
The 50p per ticket booking fee helps to cover the bank charges for payment of the ticket using credit/debit card and the fulfilment and posting. We’ve tried to be transparent by keep fulfilment charges etc on the ‘outside’ of the ticket price.
6. Transport – whilst being aware of this new coach partnership that Villa have recently announced, what is the possibility of getting the old football specials – trains & buses - from the City Centre & other locations to VP back into operation? Leeds for example, run a shuttle bus before & after the game.
In terms of trains, would there be any scope in doing some kind of advance football train ticket related/linked to specific away match tickets? That has the flexibility to be used on a different date, in case Sky TV moves the date of the game? But still be a cheap ‘advance’ price.
The new coach partnership with Zeelo is in an initial trial phase. We had decent take up for the first fixture and good feedback from those that used it (9.2/10 average for ‘would you recommend).
The benefit of using Zeelo is their flexibility – they build custom routes based on demand and the location of our season ticket holders and match ticket purchasers.
If the trial continues to go well and we get more fans using the service the number of routes that they over will continue to grow and we hope to integrate them into app and with Season Cards.
The club have met with the West Midlands combined authority to discuss train travel and, whilst the CA are keen not to favour any club in particular, there will be opportunities to have a conversation with the new franchise expected to come in in December to replace London Midland. The club's marketing department have requested they be a part of the initial kick off meeting with the new franchise and expect to hear back shortly on whether this might be possible.
Further, we have active dialogue with two train operators and a taxi company so hope to be able to announce further initiatives for fans soon.
7. Repainting the Witton Railway Bridge. The promotion precursor doesn’t apply here in terms of affording it, as it’s something the club has offered to do on numerous occasions. This is something that would improve the experience and first impressions of going to Villa Park via train dramatically and also benefit the local community at large.
If you were on the Commonwealth Games committee choosing the city for the games and you visited Villa Park by train, it’s not going to be too impressive! Can we use this Commonwealth Games angle to finally leverage action from Network Rail?
Using the Commonwealth Games as leverage is a great idea. We hoped the Rugby World Cup would also convince Network Rail to paint the bridge for similar reasons. We entirely agree it needs painting and are aware of the impression the bridge has on visitors to Villa Park and the local community.
Our last contact with Network Rail (following a previous FCG in March 2017) indicated that they will look to combine the painting of the Bridge with other essential maintenance work, minimising the disruption to road and rail users. They have to prioritise work with the greatest risks to safety first, and have plans to work on the bridge in 2019 / 2020.
Letter from Network Rail:
Our Structures Engineer has advised that the bridge is regularly reviewed to ensure it is in a safe and serviceable condition.
All repairs and maintenance required for this bridge is put into our work bank, and prioritised with all our other structures. As I am sure you can appreciate we have to prioritise work with the greatest risks to safety first. We will, in order to minimise disruption to both road and rail users, always try to combine painting with other essential maintenance work required on the bridge, and based on our current work bank are looking to do some maintenance work in 2019/2020.
With regards to the support team sending in a petition. They can do this by contacting our National Helpline on 03457 11 41 41 or by visiting our website www.networkrail.co.uk
Regards - Community Relations Executive
Along with asking them about the repainting itself we also added the question of supporters petitioning for the bridge to be painted. Their response is in the above and this would be supported by the Club
8. Is there scope for supporter consultation through the FCG group when it comes to kits? For example, there seems to be a different shade of claret & blue with every new shirt.
We run a very strict brand guideline colour match process. Whilst we are acutely aware of colour variances this is wholly dependent on material uptake of colour and the brand manufacturer. We test each garment very closely against our pantone references and we now have two people in our brand team helping amongst other brand challenges control colour.
9. In terms of the various plans for an expanded Villa Park… Can you make any assurances that the architecture style will be congruous with the nearby Aston Hall and Jacobean style it mimics in places.
Villa Park should remain as the grandest old lady of football theatres in the UK and indeed the world. Much of the character has been lost with other stadiums, which is impossible to replicate in Steel and Glass.
Would it remain true to the style of traditional Leitch style grounds?
Of course any developments will be totally sympathetic to the present look and feel of Villa Park - that is our strength.
10. In terms of secondary ticketing agencies, while this isn’t a real issue while we’re not currently selling out games, can the club look into the Twickets model, where face value is the maximum cost for a ticket that can be advertised to a fellow fan.
Twickets have been successful in creating a morally sound alternative to secondary ticket agencies and has entered the football industry with Crystal Palace partnering officially with them.
This is an interesting one for the club. First and foremost we absolutely want ticket prices to be fair and representative of their face values. We are currently in an exclusive relationship with Seatwave (a subsidiary of Ticketmaster) who invest a significant amount on an annual basis to be our reselling platform. Our balance is thus commercial, do we receive the large investment accepting that a couple of games will see high prices (with the majority of games trading around £10 a ticket) or do we negate the large investment and work with a service provider who does not invest in the club?
We can and have reached out to Twickets and will report back. We can also look to restructure the deal with Seatwave in the New Year.
11. Can you please update the group on developments and plans for half-time entertainment at Villa Park?
Our plans for half time aim to cover 3 key areas;
- Engage and involve supporters
- Showcase the Aston Villa Foundation
- Retain a positive atmosphere across the ground for the start of the 2nd half
Engage & involve supporters
As part of the new Pride Rewards scheme we’re looking to involve more and more fans in half time. The two main activations we have are;
- Half time selfie
- Name in the programme and a half time shout out:
- We have plans to extend even further (e.g. use your points to come onto the pitch to take a penalty, or crossbar challenge form the halfway line) very soon.
Showcase the Aston Villa Foundation
- Offer half time as an opportunity to showcase all of the good work that the Aston Villa Foundation do.
- Raise their profile with our supporters.
- Mini tournaments between local schools that the Foundation work with,
- Games between our Walking Football team and the oppositions Walking Football team.
- Displays be groups that the Foundation work with, etc.
- Started slightly at Brentford with the presentation to the ‘Aspire and Succeed’ group which volunteered to refurbish a community centre in Lozells, but will form much more of an ‘entertainment/display’ segment at half time in future (hoping to start at Nottingham Forest).
- The final of a local schools tournament is generally held at Villa Park at half time during a game in late April/May – but this will be much more of a regular feature.
Another activation for the Foundation and Club will be the launch of Fifty:50 – our new version of Villa Lotto. More details will be announced next week, with this looking to launch at the game against Nottingham Forest. The premise is a lotto where supporters buy a ticket and the funds go into an Aston Villa pot. The winner is then drawn at random from supporters, with the funds being split 50% to the winner and 50% to the Foundation/Club CSR programmes. Our plan is that the draw for this will be made and winners announced/presented with their prize cheque at half time of each game.
12. Can you please update the group on the Holte Car Park food/drink/entertainment initiative?
We have had to go through a licensing request with the council to license the space. The license was granted two weeks ago. We are now in the process of working through configurations, max attendances, ops, catering solutions etc.
More news to follow.
13. In terms of match day catering, is there a possibility for Coeliac (gluten free diet) options. The statistics are 1 in 100 people have this intolerance.
The request for Gluten Free options has been forwarded to LEVY for their consideration.
14. What is the possibility of having a dedicated area for Lions Clubs and other supporters groups to display their individual flags (in a location that could be picked up on TV – for overseas groups etc to see), which will add to the match day experience for everyone.
The Club is always keen to support. Any new displays would need to be agreed with our Operations & Commercial team. We’ve supported Project B6 with the design and placement of their ‘Claret & Blue army’ banner at the front of North Stand Lower. There are many more areas like this where we could support fan flags/banners. As mentioned – any displays/flags/banners and their placement would need to be agreed with our Operations & Commercial team in line with security and H&S procedures, but this is something the Club would like to support.
Please email lee.preece@avfc.co.uk should you wish to bring a flag in to the stadium.
15. How involved will Aston Villa be now with the Commonwealth Game Bid? With Birmingham now representing the UK, would there be any grants/funding from that which may see improvements at Villa Park as a result? Are there any upgrades that are required?
We have already played a very active part in the bid with the city and region. We hosted the main inspection team already and have worked on a number of PR initiatives and interviews etc. Our senior team has great event and Games experience which is recognised. We will do all we can going forward.
There was also an assurance that supporter input would be sought into any badge redesign.
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Thank you for posting those minutes, made interesting reading.
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Some positives, there. Thanks for posting/attending.
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Thanks for that.
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Thank you for sharing this
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Is there any chance of the volume of the PA system being reduced? I find it makes normal conversation with those around me impossible.
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Thanks for the update, much appreciated
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No mention of those ridiculous chant lyrics on the big screens. They need to stop now.
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Bit of a cop out again on the shirt colours. All they ever do is say they stick to the pantone. In which case at some stage they got hold of the wrong pantone because the colour are clearly different to the bulk of the retro kits - they should be the only references they need. And they are paying two people to maintain the incorrect colours. Genius.
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No mention of those ridiculous chant lyrics on the big screens. They need to stop now.
Indeed. Who on earth thought that was a good idea?
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Bit of a cop out again on the shirt colours. All they ever do is say they stick to the pantone. In which case at some stage they got hold of the wrong pantone because the colour are clearly different to the bulk of the retro kits - they should be the only references they need. And they are paying two people to maintain the incorrect colours. Genius.
Presumably everyone involved in the pantones must be colour blind or just can't be arsed to raise it as an issue.
edit:
We run a very strict brand guideline colour match process. Whilst we are acutely aware of colour variances this is wholly dependent on material uptake of colour and the brand manufacturer. We test each garment very closely against our pantone references and we now have two people in our brand team helping amongst other brand challenges control colour.
So basically they use a "closest match" based on the materials used by the manufacturer rather than requesting a specific pantone colour? If the uptake of colour to the materials isn't an exact match then they use what is considered to be acceptable tolerances in the pantones requested.
edit2:
There was also an assurance that supporter input would be sought into any badge redesign.
Good stuff...let's hope there is a redesign in the not too distant future 8)