Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Drummond on June 27, 2018, 09:27:16 AM
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The following is a post from the Chair of one of the supporters clubs. I'm not sure who else is aware of the new scheme and what it entails but please read below. It sounds bloody awful. (I have had permission to share it).
This is too important in my view not to be on the main board.
AWAY TICKET SCHEME UPDATE - FACTS
Today I’ve spoke with the person responsible for ticket management at Aston Villa. The details...
1200 away ticket scheme allocation.
Letters have only been sent out to those with season tickets that were in last seasons away scheme
£25 for existing members, of which there are 550 existing members.
£40 for any new members from this Friday (Who clearly haven’t been sent any details of this yet..!)
Villa have only casually verbally discussed this scheme with a few existing away scheme members. No consultation has yet been made other than that.
As a member of the scheme you get first opportunity to buy away match tickets on release dates.
You buy the tickets online in the usual manner or call the office.
It’s one ticket per member of the scheme.
You don’t actually have to purchase any away tickets through the season. There’s no minimum amount.
Until this morning people with no season ticket have been purchasing this membership online. How many have already been taken..? Will they be able to find the incorrectly purchased away memberships..? The info I received wasn’t a confirmation they would be able to.
Our phonecall lasted an hour. The opening of the conversation I was asked about what I thought the benefits of the scheme were. Clearly the benefits is an additional £28,000 approx to Villa, which was confirmed. That the away scheme members will be very happy. Especially those that join and only attend a handful of games at most. They will get first dibs at local derby tickets without even having to put the effort in. These benefits were confirmed, plus Villa will have a bit less admin.
I pointed out the various concerns from our own and other members. The obvious is that people can pay a small fee to not put in the support and jump ahead of the queue over fervent home and away supporters. I pointed out that it’s now a reward for paying an extra £40 instead of real support. I asked why we should now stump up an additional £40 on top of our season tickets to join a scheme that isn’t one that works on loyalty (the current scheme expects you to purchase a set number of away games)
I asked ‘do you really want to do this to raise only an extra £28k, yet alienate thousands of fans)
With some games only getting around 1500-2100 tickets, with Blues being 2100, is it fair that these 1200 get first dibs, leaving only 900, minus a Lions Club allocation. I think we’d be very naïve if we didn’t think nearly all the 1200 wouldn’t be buying Blues away tickets and some selling to mates.
I was informed Villa couldn’t continue the existing system because of GDPR regulations regarding holding of personal payment details. However, I pointed out I’d been informed from a reliable source this wasn’t the case. I also pointed out that I pay for things on PayPal and eBay with differing monthly amounts. Therefore, it is possible to electronically retain card details for payments. I pointed out that their electronic systems, for which they have been paying out a pricely sum to establish, could take a monthly payment billing cycle for the number of tickets purchased during that month. Just like eBay does for the variable auction fees you accrue. The answer to this wasn’t known.
I pointed out that Aston Villa should start thinking like a supporter and what their experience is. From the feedback I already have I understand members are seriously concerned and upset about this move. Some of us put much time, money and effort into our support already. We worked hard to get our current away criteria standing. Especially the last two seasons, despite being relegated. We still stood by Villa, even more so than before.
I pointed out that several times this last couple of seasons we seem to be kept in the dark about certain things and that we’ve had no info on this scheme, only chinese whispers and half baked info from people that don’t know much. I said none of my members knew anything. I was told letters had been sent out, but only to season ticket holders that were in the previous away scheme. Bearing in mind the £40 Membership is supposed to come on line this Friday I made clear that such notice was ridiculous and smacked of lack of planning and a rushed situation. Which it clearly is in my opinion. I do have to question this short/no notice. There’s been nothing on the website or Facebook, as I’m aware of. This scheme could have gone unnoticed and then nobody would question it. How come we’ve not been emailed..?
On a personal level, I would only join this scheme for personal gain, to be first in the ticket pecking order. However, I wholeheartedly disagree with it being a scheme where you can cherry pick and have no minimum game attendance as it does not reward loyalty. Therefore i won’t join this scheme. I have no issue with those that want to be members. I totally understand the personal benefit to those lucky people that manage to buy this membership. I came away from the phonecall knowing that this was a fait accompli and whatever valid points we had, my pleas to postpone this scheme fell on deaf ears. That’s the impression I vicariously got.
I feel I have lost touch with Villa over this and personally feel that the wishes of the majority of deserving supporters have been overlooked, with no consultation taken place and I feel I cannot represent Villa, if they are to steam ahead on this without proper thought for fans and robust consultation. Therefore, if this goes ahead I will no longer be able to carry out my role as a Lions Chairperson. This is the measure of what I believe to be a rushed and ill thought through scheme that is prejudicial to fans who have put in the support.
I’ll leave this for open discussion. Do you think this scheme is a good or bad idea..? What do you see as positives or negatives...? Your opinions and views are important. Please comment with your views, either for or against or ideas so that I can feed this back to Villa. Thank you. UTV
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I am an away scheme member have have been for years. There are issues with the scheme and this year has highlighted some. i could not tell what money related to what game most of the time. At the start of last season for the first couple of games we would get an email to say how much money was debited and for what game. That stopped after 2 games and then lots of times there was no logical order to money coming out, usually due to allocations released for games at different times.
My son's ticket criteria changed mid-year i.e turned 18, my other son was 16, they ended up over-charging us for approx 13 games as they said the system did not allow for them to amend as too manually intensive so they turned all the tickets to adults for any game when it was over 18 irrespective of what the criteria was U16, U18, U21 etc. I explained that in effect you are penalising the most loyal fans and surely it is not that difficult to either have a ticket system in place that does it or a list of those with tickets that could be affected there is only 550 members and not many of those would be have to be changed.
As the plus of the scheme was pay and forget. i.e I just gave them my debit card number and they took the money. I had told them of the issue in Nov but it was not sorted and by the time they came to sort they told me that they could do nothing as the games were closed off on the system and hte money paid to the other club so I could not get a refund.
I was not really concerned on the money, but in conversation it was clear that I was at fault in there view. I said you have confirmed dates of birth as we made it clear and gave proof. It seemed that the did not have a system in place for members where they could change the price category in relation to the age bracket for that game. I offered to meet with the head of ticketing or give ideas but in the end they gave me the away play-off game tickets as a gesture and closed it, which was fine but i would have preferred for them to sort it. I get a feeling that this is one of the reasons for the changes but really a bit of for-thought mid last season or so would have made it easier and given time.
As there was only 550 of us I did not seem difficult to sort really but as with the previous year I think it is largely forgotten about and unfortunately the members taken a little for granted so it is always last minute. What is also a miss is that most of us stand with the same people away and have for years and so it becomes like your season ticket so they are friends with the new way I an not sure that will work as it will be allocated as you call not in the same order each time.
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For me joining the away scheme has always been a non-starter because I cannot cope with money coming out of my account in such a random way.
I am sure I am like most fans in budgeting carefully for my season ticket and the aways I do attend, but the nature of not knowing when £20/30/40 even £50 odd (or double if they take 2 at once) could disappear from your account is just too financially precarious!
So - the idea of you buying in a priority window, that you have notice of, seems better to me. It would also allow you to clarify any concessions at the time of buying so you don't get issues like the above.
However - I'm retty sure this could be easily combined with a minimum number of games. I don't see the point of an away scheme with no minimum. The away scheme should be for the away hardcore. (which isn't me and I can barely secure an away ticket nowadays because there is such a solid set of regulars that have 'run away with it' - but thats fair - they made it theirs)
As for being around the same people all the time. I think they could probably still find a way to do this too, but I have the feeling that this can work out as badly for some people as it is good for others. If I knew that I was stuck with the bloke behind us at Wycombe who threatened to throw Jane down the stairs for asking him not to all one of our players Karim El Poppodom, then I think my awaydays would be over!
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In the past, as a member of the Away Scheme you paid £25 a year and were sent a ticket for every away game automatically, but there was a limit to the amount of away tickets you could return. It wasn't worth joining unless you went to most away games. Under the new scheme, existing members pay £25 and from Friday this week any ST holder can join the scheme for £40. Tickets will no longer be sent out automatically: Away Scheme members have to order their tickets during a dedicated booking window and they can attend as many or as few games as they wish. If they choose to go to just one or two of the most popular games and none of the others they will still have priority over non-members who have been attending most away games for years. This is the issue that's provoking a lot of criticism on social media.
Another issue is that previously Away Scheme members paid no booking fee on top of their membership. For next season you discover in the small print that you pay 50p transaction fee and £1 "postage and fulfillment fee" per booking, so a new member who attended every away game would pay £40 + £34.50, as opposed to £25 last season.
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Everything about this new scheme is flawed.
1. Fleezing supporters for an extra £40 plus additional postage charges.
2. Moving away from rewarding the most regular away attendees.
3. Lions clubs with reduced opportunities to run trips
4. Potentially reducing the benefits of a season ticket.
Villa the Club need to look at this properly, this is the most daft scheme they could have dreamt up overnight.
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Karim El Poppadom...is he our old player that's looked alright at this World Cup?
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It just seems like Villa the club we knew is changing every single day, and not for the better either.
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Of course, this isn't a desperate attempt at getting more money out of fans with the finances as they are is it?
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there are details on the club website here - https://www.avfc.co.uk/News/2018/06/27/become-an-away-season-ticket-member
it says you must be an 18/19 season ticket holder to be eligible for the scheme.
as has been said, being able to pick and choose games will be a benefit to fans in terms of keeping on top of outgoings and be able to sit out those games where we will invariably be fleeced by the home side, without being penalised.
my personal view is that following this club away is a massive commitment in terms of both finance and time - if you go to a set % of away games, your £25/40 should be refunded by the club.
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The other thing is, in its new format the scheme is too cheap. People would pay more than £40 to be guaranteed tickets for the geographically close games at Stoke, Albion, Blues, Forest and Derby. They should sell those games with coach travel and a bacon buttie at VP for £200, to a limit of say 100 people, if they just want to make money.
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there are details on the club website here - https://www.avfc.co.uk/News/2018/06/27/become-an-away-season-ticket-member
it says you must be an 18/19 season ticket holder to be eligible for the scheme.
as has been said, being able to pick and choose games will be a benefit to fans in terms of keeping on top of outgoings and be able to sit out those games where we will invariably be fleeced by the home side, without being penalised.
my personal view is that following this club away is a massive commitment in terms of both finance and time - if you go to a set % of away games, your £25/40 should be refunded by the club.
Unless I am missing something, nowhere is it stated open to season ticket holders only
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You are missing something
Supporters must have a 2018/19 season ticket to be eligible to join
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Although there's no clarification as to whether that applies just to new applicants, or existing members too.
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Karim El Poppadom...is he our old player that's looked alright at this World Cup?
That's the one!
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The new scheme doesnt look as good as the old one.
I enjoyed the benefit of spending £25 to not have the fuss of sorting tickets, but now I'm spending £25 to essentially have a higher priority over the 15+, who I could be amongst for free.
Renewed as I'm a sucker.
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£40 to access a scheme to give you the right to buy tickets is clearly a shakedown for free money. Complete bullshit.
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It sounds like the sort of scam Karen Brady used to pull on the Nose fans.
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We've become like Legoland. Pay for your ticket and then pay even more when you get inside so you can be quicker in the queue than the others.
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£40 to access a scheme to give you the right to buy tickets is clearly a shakedown for free money. Complete bullshit.
Isn't it exactly what Fan Clubs have been doing in the music industry since year dot ? Join up pay a fee and get first dibbs on tickets
It's no different.
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£40 to access a scheme to give you the right to buy tickets is clearly a shakedown for free money. Complete bullshit.
Isn't it exactly what Fan Clubs have been doing in the music industry since year dot ? Join up pay a fee and get first dibbs on tickets
It's no different.
And no less shit. Doesn't excuse it.
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The away scheme has always been about rewarding loyalty. You go to all the away games, you out to be guaranteed a ticket.
They've just changed it to add booking fees and give you the hassle of sorting the tickets.
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It will pay for Micah for 3 days.
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The away scheme has always been about rewarding loyalty. You go to all the away games, you out to be guaranteed a ticket.
They've just changed it to add booking fees and give you the hassle of sorting the tickets.
This doesn't reward loyalty. If we are in a crucial battle in our last away game, someone who hasn't paid the surcharge to be in the away scheme but has been to every away game will be behind someone who hasn't been to any aways but has forked out forty quid in the queue.
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Whose going to spend £40 to not purchase?
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Noone. That was an extreme example. But if you could only be bothered to go to, say, Blose, Albion and Burton, you could pay forty quid and get to jump the queue ahead of those who intended to attend loads of away games.
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You can just cringe at the stupidity of the people making the decisions at the club.
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Noone. That was an extreme example. But if you could only be bothered to go to, say, Blose, Albion and Burton, you could pay forty quid and get to jump the queue ahead of those who intended to attend loads of away games.
whch is particularly odd given that they blocked new entrants to the away sxheme last year becauae Blues,Wolves & Burton fell so early & they thought people would just join the away scheme for those 3 & then leave!
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Am i right in thinking supporter clubs can get their hands on away tickets even if the punters aren't all season ticket holders ?
I've never been in a supporters club so please correct me if wrong obviously
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Am i right in thinking supporter clubs can get their hands on away tickets even if the punters aren't all season ticket holders ?
I've never been in a supporters club so please correct me if wrong obviously
Do you mean this kind of thing?
https://tickets.avfc.co.uk/en-GB/memberships/claret%20membership/info?utm_source=display&utm_medium=home&utm_campaign=Memberships
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Nah, i mean like the 'Black Country Lions' supporters club (as a made up example)
Who would take a coach away to all away matches. I was somehow under the impression they all got their hands on as many away tickets as needed. I don't know why i have that impression and it could be miles off, hence asking
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From my club chairman: “AWAY TICKET SCHEME UPDATE
Just come off the phone with a Villa rep.
They stated they had an idea how many memberships would be issued, but they aren’t disclosing. They said they weren’t sure. However, when pressed I will be honest and I was honest with them, where I said I believe they do know, because fans will be thoroughly brasses off with what the number is. A figure of around 1200 was mooted from what I said I’d heard, but would not be confirmed.
They said that only 700 may be sold if thats only how many people purchase them..? I pointed out people are worried they will miss out so will purchase a membership. I pointed out members need to know this info, because they are clearly worried and needed to make an informed decision if they needed to spend more money..? The actual figure was still not divulged and won’t be divulged...! Why is this figure such a secret I enquired..? I did point out that I’m coming away from the conversation even more disconnected and untrusting of the Villa hierarchy than I was before, due to the secretiveness.
With regards last seasons away history, it won’t be wiped clean. However, they did confirm those with a new season ticket, with or without previous history will now be first in the ticket queue....!!!
They told me, head of ticketing, will be publishing a Q&A about this system to be posted on the OS tonight. It may be on as I write..? It is however, not direct answers to any questions they’ve been asked directly, so I did point out it’s only got Villa’s slant on the situation.
I’m not speaking out of turn, because I said this to the rep, that I’m feeling that this whole situation and the calls from them are simply lip service and what was the point of our two lengthy conversations because all they were giving me was ‘straw man’ excuses and lip service and that’s what it felt like. Pointing out I now felt very detached and untrusting of my club and that our opinions were being disregarded.
I asked, why should I and especially my members feel pressured to spend £40 or more for several family members, for a membership on top of their already unwavering loyal support. Sorry Villa, you are out of order this time. The scheme is flawed, the communication of it is diabolical and the technical implementation (selling memberships to non season ticket holders) is farcical. As you may sometimes say to a loved one we once had in our life...’I don’t know who you are anymore Villa’ “
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I have renewed ours today but it is a very flawed system. I am not sure there have actually thought it through but maybe they have for the sake of the extra few quid with a belief that they can afford to upset by definition the most loyal fans as they will still go anyway
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I see that they have clarified available to season ticket holders only. Such an underhanded scheme which will have far fetched consquenses although I do not blame anyone joining - If I had ready cash I would have but do feel cheated.
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Devil's Advocate time, because I don't think they'd risk alienating a large group of supporters for such a small amount of money:
Is the scheme unuttertably useless, or just different? Is the big complaint not so much that it's disadvantaging some with no apparent benefit, or simply down to the fact that everything now must be wrong, because it's the Villa doing it.
I'm not in it and never have been, but I'd like to know the reasoning behind the change.
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I believe one of the drivers for change is administrative and a happy consequence is initial revenue generation. They now default to the fan calling and doing the work rather than them automatically debiting the money and sending the tickets. It is frankly all wrong, it is really just an up-selling exercise for season ticket holders and one of those things devised in marketing school to maximise revenue by squeezing your existing client base.
It;s a bit like a bank selling extra insurances to there customers with bundled products what is really just a way to revenue generate. The issue is we are different with the way we relate to villa than we would with a bank or other institution. I guarantee that away followings will drop with this new system and the bad feeling it has created will last longer than this current administration will.
It is not just general moaning. This is really bad system that has really upset fans who do not usually criticise the club. I am sure other members are the same but i have had long standing friends and fellow away scheme members message me with how upset they are.
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Devil's Advocate time, because I don't think they'd risk alienating a large group of supporters for such a small amount of money:
Is the scheme unuttertably useless, or just different? Is the big complaint not so much that it's disadvantaging some with no apparent benefit, or simply down to the fact that everything now must be wrong, because it's the Villa doing it.
I'm not in it and never have been, but I'd like to know the reasoning behind the change.
It's been changed to make more money. I can't think of any other reason for it it. Why add to something which no-one had a problem with in the first place?
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I guess I'll play devils advocate a bit here because I totally appreciate that loyalty should be rewarded and the fans who deserve tickets for any games most, are those that go to the most games....
......but the last couple of seasons I've pretty much got excluded from being an away fan. The odd game where we get 5000 or 6000 tickets is a goer, or if I can get the time off to go to Middlesborough or somewhere far on a Tuesday night (which I might once but not on any kind of repeated basis) - but it's reached the point where anyone with less than 9 always on their record isn't going anywhere easy or interesting. If I want to go to an away game now, I usually have to borrow a reference, which doesn't do anything for my booking history. I think many of us have got stuck here - going to half a dozen to a dozen always, but never getting credited with it because we're in a vicious circle.
.......and, I know this won't be received well but I'm going to dive in - our 'tremendous' away support have actually been though the mill over the past few years and whilst they keep going out of loyalty, many of them are so fed up they have got a little prone to not being that tremendous all of the time (sorry - but I am qualifying this by acknowledging what you've been though).
During the relegation years I did get fed up with fans that would rather sing 'We're fucking shit' than 'Making all the noise' but I understood that if you're there all the time, you get more pissed off than I do when I only do it less than half the time.
Those who have become a little weary shouldn't be excluded of course, but I don't think they are being, because no one who goes to every away game (& has been in a scheme where the money for tickets can come out of your account at any random moment) can claim not to be able to find £40 - but could it be a good idea to mix it up a bit, allow a few more people who are enjoying the novelty of a big day out, rather than a concentrated core of people thinking 'here we fucking go again' might actually bring some new energy?
(ducks)
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I agree with you, amfy. My last big 'aways' season was 09/10, before me and me bruvver both had our kids. Like you say, it grates a bit when the only way you can go now is by maintaining someone else's booking history.
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You also have to add in 23 lots of booking fees they didn't used to pay plus now having to take the time to book tickets for the 23 games, which they also didn't have to do. They spend enough time and money following Villa around the country now have to spend more time and money. They are asking their most loyal 'customers' to pay more for a lesser service so I can understand why many already in it would be pissed off.
I very much agree with you on the closed shop thing, what may have been an idea is keep it as it was for however many were in it last season, cap it at that number, but bring in the new option for X amount of new fans.
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You also have to add in 23 lots of booking fees they didn't used to pay plus now having to take the time to book tickets for the 23 games, which they also didn't have to do. They spend enough time and money following Villa around the country now have to spend more time and money. They are asking their most loyal 'customers' to pay more for a lesser service so I can understand why many already in it would be pissed off.
I very much agree with you on the closed shop thing, what may have been an idea is keep it as it was for however many were in it last season, cap it at that number, but bring in the new option for X amount of new fans.
Yep- I think there's a compromise somewhere.
I wa thinking about it in the terms of the scramble for Glastonbury tickets every year. On the e-festivals message board there will be a yearly debate that those of us that have been going since the year dot should get some kind of preference on ticket day - a reward for our loyalty, a way of getting the people there that really 'get it'...
....but in the end we always come to the conclusion that the festival will become more and more stale if the same people are enabled to come back year after year to the exclusion of 'new blood' (without wishing to open any debate her about the 'staleness or otherwise of Glastonbury!) - & I can kind of see how this dynamic could also apply to our away following.
Mixing it up a bit would be a good thing - but pissing off those who have put their heart and soul into it for so long can't be as good.
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It's the removal of convenience that I find annoying.
I don't think it's a closed shop. 550 tickets pre-sold last meant plenty for the rest. We have been rewarding loyalty as you're in the away scheme because you do the uninteresting Tuesday night's to Sunderland, which makes Small Heath away easy to get into.
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A couple of things here
1. What are the Club going to do about non season ticket holders who they allowed to join the scheme before backtracking and sensibly restricting the scheme to Season Ticket holders.
2. And it will happen - the adverse publicity when certain tickets are advertised at inflated prices by one or two members of the new scheme.
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Me and a mate normally do around 13-14 away games. He does Blues, I don't bother as I hate the hassle of going to St Andrews but he loves it. The 13-14 game booking history is normally enough for him to get a ticket. Next season, he might not be able to now this has been brought in.
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Nah, i mean like the 'Black Country Lions' supporters club (as a made up example)
Who would take a coach away to all away matches. I was somehow under the impression they all got their hands on as many away tickets as needed. I don't know why i have that impression and it could be miles off, hence asking
Being a member of the aforementioned club, I 'think' they are allowed a set number of tickets. I don't think they can have as many as they want but i'll ask the question next time i see them.
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A good way of balancing the rewarding of loyalty and also giving new fans a chance of away tickets would be something like the England travel club method, say;
75% of tickets allocated on a loyalty / booking history basis.
25% of tickets go on general sale / ballot system.
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Nah, i mean like the 'Black Country Lions' supporters club (as a made up example)
Who would take a coach away to all away matches. I was somehow under the impression they all got their hands on as many away tickets as needed. I don't know why i have that impression and it could be miles off, hence asking
Being a member of the aforementioned club, I 'think' they are allowed a set number of tickets. I don't think they can have as many as they want but i'll ask the question next time i see them.
It's six per club, except for small allocations where it gets reduced. And everyone has to have a Villa reference.
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There is now a Q&A on the website about this.
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Can I just point out that we don't sell out most games as people are pointing out. Bristol, Cardiff, Barnsley, Preston, Bolton and Sunderland didn't sell out. Most other games went down to season ticket holders and some onto gen sale. Its only the games such as Blues and Albion that will be a mad rush to get tickets for. I don't even think Stoke will be that difficult to get tickets for.
Works out well for me, I wasn't going to bother with away scheme as the chaos of not knowing when and how much was due to come out of my account. I'm seriously considering buying into this scheme as I can select my seats and see when I need the money in my account by.
All those who've built up their booking history will still have that there for them. I just want that little extra security in knowing I won't panic about whether I'll get tickets for certain games.
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All evening KOs except Cardiff which was very early in the season when many are still on holiday.
Admittedly a couple on a Saturday at 5.30, but pretty slim pickings overall.
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When you think about it, £40 (or £25) for priority access to 23 matches isn't a big amount really
I do like the idea of other supporters being able to get a chance for the more in demand games as well as some have already stated
I think i may sign up myself
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It is plainly not right that someone who simply pays £70 to the Villa (£40 plus £2.00 transaction and postage) can have preference to the likes of supporters who follow the Villa to the shitholes such as the New Den, Bristol City/Leeds on a Friday night and sneek in front of others when it comes to the Sty and olbion away.
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It is plainly not right that someone who simply pays £70 to the Villa (£40 plus £2.00 transaction and postage) can have preference to the likes of supporters who follow the Villa to the shitholes such as the New Den, Bristol City/Leeds on a Friday night and sneek in front of others when it comes to the Sty and olbion away.
Can't those people join the scheme as well ?
Where did £70 come from ?
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If you went to most games last season and put it on the correct reference, you’ll easy get tickets for the early games even if your not in the scheme. After that it’s just a case of building up history as the season goes by, the way it’s always been.
It’s not massively surprising that we now have a scheme that provides early access to tickets for a fee. I would imagine that executive box holders can get access to away tickets as well for the bigger games without having to worry too much.
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If you went to most games last season and put it on the correct reference, you’ll easy get tickets for the early games even if your not in the scheme. After that it’s just a case of building up history as the season goes by, the way it’s always been.
It’s not massively surprising that we now have a scheme that provides early access to tickets for a fee. I would imagine that executive box holders can get access to away tickets as well for the bigger games without having to worry too much.
It starts by looking at last season's history, then a combination of the 2, then this season's. Once you're out you're out.
The 6 or non- sell outs mentioned earlier, even if you coulfd get to them all, don't get you back in.
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It is plainly not right that someone who simply pays £70 to the Villa (£40 plus £2.00 transaction and postage) can have preference to the likes of supporters who follow the Villa to the shitholes such as the New Den, Bristol City/Leeds on a Friday night and sneek in front of others when it comes to the Sty and olbion away.
Can't those people join the scheme as well ?
Where did £70 come from
As mentioned £40 joining fee plus £2 a game transaction fee /postage
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Nah, i mean like the 'Black Country Lions' supporters club (as a made up example)
Who would take a coach away to all away matches. I was somehow under the impression they all got their hands on as many away tickets as needed. I don't know why i have that impression and it could be miles off, hence asking
Being a member of the aforementioned club, I 'think' they are allowed a set number of tickets. I don't think they can have as many as they want but i'll ask the question next time i see them.
They only get low single digit numbers of tickets. The Gloucestershire branch can't just phone Villa Park and ask for 200, for example.
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From the official site.
Ticket Office head Lynne O’Reardon: Q&A on Away Season Ticket membership
Ticket Office head Lynne O’Reardon: Q&A on Away Season Ticket membership
Head of Ticketing Operations, Lynne O’Reardon, talks to us about the Away Season Ticket membership scheme.
Q] Tell us about the Away Season Ticket Membership scheme?
There’s been some misunderstanding regarding the scheme since we went out to supporters with information on it earlier this week.
In essence, it’s not a new scheme. It’s a revamped version of what we had before – with improvements.
We’ve had the Away Scheme for many years but this enhanced membership is a much more efficient service.
Q] Who is it open to?
It’s open to previous Away Scheme members for £25 – the same cost they’ve paid over the past few years.
For new members who want to join, it’s £40, subject to having a home season ticket.
For me, it’s important to open it up to new fans who want to experience the buzz of matchday on the road.
Fans at LeedsQ] What are the main advantages of the scheme?
The main advantage for me is that it gives autonomy to our supporters – it takes advantage of new technology to allow supporters to self-manage their account.
During their window, they would sign into their account through the on-line box office and then select and purchase their ticket at the away game.In previous seasons – back from 2003/04 onwards, they would provide us with their details and we would complete the transaction on their behalf.
There were many disadvantages to this. Fans had their account debited at a time they weren’t always ready for, expectation that ‘best available’ seats would be provided wasn’t always met and if fans wanted to be seated together this wasn’t always possible.
The fan can now select their seat and choose who they sit with, because the power is in their hands.
Selecting the concession price applicable to the supporter is another advantage ensuring price reductions available are enjoyed.
Also, if there was a game you were unable to attend, you’d then have to return the ticket for refund – but now you can choose which matches you attend proactively rather than cancelling reactively.
There’s ease of use for fans – and also, from my perspective too, it’s a better use of resources for Ticket Office staff.
The only consideration for the fan is that it will require more time-management. They will have to keep an eye on their specific windows. But we are committed to help with that by sending email reminders of the dates the priority windows open and close so benefits far outweigh.
Q] Were they any other reasons for the updated scheme?
The new scheme followed consultation with away ticket fan group, it needed an upgrade and enhancement and we’re confident we have delivered that.
As I said earlier, it also improves efficiency within the Ticket Office.
It was very time-consuming previously to go through a spreadsheet with names, fan IDs, credit card numbers – it was a painful system, we’re just improving and enhancing the whole process.
Q] Will there be tickets left after the Away Season Ticket Membership windows?
Absolutely, yes, there will be.
There will be a cap that ensures a high proportion of tickets are still available even extending for some matches to members and general public.
At present, just over 400 have signed up to the scheme.
The smallest allocation we’re likely to receive is 1,500+ for somewhere like Brentford.
With that game, we will have structured priority windows following the Away Season Ticket Scheme window.
Rest assured, there will be tickets that filter down to further priority windows, home season ticket holders will still be prioritised based on away attendance for the bigger games.
WBAGatesQ] What if someone joins just to buy Baggies and Blues tickets?
This is a simple one to answer.
We will be monitoring the scheme incredibly closely and, if it becomes obvious that members are only interested in buying tickets for the ‘big’ games on the road, they will be removed from the scheme without refund.
We will not allow anyone to abuse the scheme in that way. It wouldn’t be right for the rest of our fans and we won’t accept it.
On the same note, if away season ticket members are buying for other games and then selling them on to ensure they stay on the scheme, they will be removed too.
Q] Why all the noise on social media?
Last season, if you wanted to join the Away Scheme you had to have been to matches in the previous campaign as there were new opposition - Burton for example where the allocation is very low however previous years we always permitted new applicants.
If you want to be a home season ticket holder, great. If you want to be an away season ticket holder, great.
We are giving fans the opportunity to support the club, home and away. It’s the club they love.
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And how are they going to monitor the scheme. Since inception people have been selling there tickets on. The fact that simply for money yoU can queue jump and be the best supporter in b6 gained my acess to St. Andrews and the hawthorns whilst deciding Leeds away n a Friday night is a step too far is all wrong
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They only get low single digit numbers of tickets. The Gloucestershire branch can't just phone Villa Park and ask for 200, for example.
Appreciate this reply. Can i ask do those in the branch have to be season ticket holders in order to obtain away tickets or do they just get them for being in any supporters club ?
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Branches get single digit tickets, which are assigned to fan ids. In reality with such a small number they generally go to people who fill the minibuses / coaches each other week on a regular basis.
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They only get low single digit numbers of tickets. The Gloucestershire branch can't just phone Villa Park and ask for 200, for example.
Appreciate this reply. Can i ask do those in the branch have to be season ticket holders in order to obtain away tickets or do they just get them for being in any supporters club ?
In the past you could be a member of a Lions Club without being a ST holder, but you did need a Fan ID. This can't have changed because hardly any of the members of the many overseas Lions Clubs have season tickets. There are usually 200 tickets reserved for the Lions Clubs for away fixtures and your chairman can apply for up to 6, or 4 if we get only a limited allocation, e.g. at a small ground like Burton. The chairman has to ring up during the dedicated booking window and hope he gets through before all the 200 tickets have gone. You sometimes find that the whole allocation goes in just a few minutes, as with Millwall last season, when many chairmen didn't get through.
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appreciate that Frank. all explained now. thanks
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Villa have now closed the scheme to any entants or to anyone who has yet to renew. I would need some convincing that they sold 500 new joners on a Monday morning.
Again possibly lack of transparancy from the club in ifficult times.
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Its closed because we've sold out.
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Villa have now closed the scheme to any entants or to anyone who has yet to renew. I would need some convincing that they sold 500 new joners on a Monday morning.
Again possibly lack of transparancy from the club in ifficult times.
It’s sold out, there’s no conspiracy.
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I did all aways last season. And every.away bar one the season before. And I did 15 aways the year we got relegated. Prior to that i've done at least 12.aways every season.
Im not buying into the scheme. And i'll probably miss out on a Blues ticket to a new member with no previous history.
What a joke!!!
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Then you should have bought into the scheme.
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But given his past booking history, he shouldn't have to.
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They've changed the rules, so you either move with it in order to comply or run the risk of missing out.
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I know. It still doesn't make it right though.
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I would imagine the scheme has been filled by regular away followers anyway.
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I think the short notice of this compounded it because it didn't allow time for the regular away fans to get angry and then get over it.
Adding a £40 charge for fans who have always qualified on loyalty alone is definitely something they should be pissed off about, but I think if it'd been announced at the end of last season, with the same application date, more might have just reached the point where they resigned themselves to it and just bought in. It's sad that there seems to be a fair few that refused to pay it on principle, and will now be missing out on some big games.
The truth is, football has been ripping us off left right and centre for years, and this is just one more thing. It's annoying when a ticket for Liverpool away is over £50 - but these are fans that have always found that money for the other ways football rips us off, but then only had a short window to come to terms with this latest nonsense.
I bought in, and if it's any help - I wan't go to Blues.
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That's more or less it Amfy. The old scheme worked well, people were happy with it and it gave people with a decent booking history chance of a ticket. That history could possibly be worthless now just because they wanted £40 extra off people.
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It's a rip off. I haven't bought into it. I consider the main advantage of getting a season ticket is that it gives me a chance of getting tickets for away games. If I find that I can no longer get to the ones I want, because of some unfair surcharge, then I'll get rid of my season ticket next year and pick and choose my games. They'll lose far more than the forty pieces of silver they've gained from this Small Heathean stunt.
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Not really, as we've sold out,so it's justified in bits own economics.
Anyway, only £40 for the plastics *winky*.
I don't like the new scheme. I used to like paying for convenience, but ultimately I want to go to every away game and this is the means of doing so. I imagine the other 1199 have the intention of doing as many aways as possible too.
There's only likely to be Small Heath, Brentford and Forest with small allocations that this will affect anyway.
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This was brought up at the fan consultation meeting this week, and the dropping from 15+ aways down to season ticket holders. There will be another category put in place, with 10+ aways mentioned.
We've got 5k for Blackburn, rising to 6800 if needed. £27.
2600 for Bristol City, £32.
Our allocation at Small Heath will remain at 2100, the same as last season. And vice versa.
Strong rumour that us and Albion will only give each other the 2100 allocation aswell, on police advice.
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That's fucking stupid. There's never any trouble with us and Albion. And again, Celtic will have about 8,000 at Ibrox. Why are our police so much more pathetic than their Strathclyde equivalent?
The club should be taking our side and loudly condemning any such restriction.
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That's fucking stupid. There's never any trouble with us and Albion. And again, Celtic will have about 8,000 at Ibrox. Why are our police so much more pathetic than their Strathclyde equivalent?
Haven't Celtic limited Rangers to 800 tickets at Celtic Park in a tit for tat move?
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Apparently they have. First I heard of it. They still managed to have thousands of away fans attend Old Firm games for many decades so no reason why we shouldn't have more than 2,100 against Albion who there is never any trouble against.
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every time I go away I see a fella wearing a white woolen cricket jumper
is he known on here or even one of us ?
just curious as he must go to every game and seems a decent chap
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Got ejected at Forest last season. He's pretty easy to spot with the cricket top and Villa emblem down into it.
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I think the short notice of this compounded it because it didn't allow time for the regular away fans to get angry and then get over it.
Adding a £40 charge for fans who have always qualified on loyalty alone is definitely something they should be pissed off about, but I think if it'd been announced at the end of last season, with the same application date, more might have just reached the point where they resigned themselves to it and just bought in. It's sad that there seems to be a fair few that refused to pay it on principle, and will now be missing out on some big games.
The truth is, football has been ripping us off left right and centre for years, and this is just one more thing. It's annoying when a ticket for Liverpool away is over £50 - but these are fans that have always found that money for the other ways football rips us off, but then only had a short window to come to terms with this latest nonsense.
I bought in, and if it's any help - I wan't go to Blues.
Please can I have your Blues ticket?
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every time I go away I see a fella wearing a white woolen cricket jumper
is he known on here or even one of us ?
just curious as he must go to every game and seems a decent chap
If it's a white cricket jumper with a Villa badge and trim, I see him regularly too. I don't know if we've ever chatted though.
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We always see the same bloke on our travels (not the cricket jumper wearer). We call him Barcadi Breezer man because he smuggled a bottle of Barcardi into Carrow Road a couple of season's back and had it taken off him when he was spotted swigging from it at half time. Nice enough chap though.
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We always see the same bloke on our travels (not the cricket jumper wearer). We call him Barcadi Breezer man because he smuggled a bottle of Barcardi into Carrow Road a couple of season's back and had it taken off him when he was spotted swigging from it at half time. Nice enough chap though.
Is he an asian chap?
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His nickname is basil. Proper name Steve
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We always see the same bloke on our travels (not the cricket jumper wearer). We call him Barcadi Breezer man because he smuggled a bottle of Barcardi into Carrow Road a couple of season's back and had it taken off him when he was spotted swigging from it at half time. Nice enough chap though.
Is he an asian chap?
Yes.
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That's fucking stupid. There's never any trouble with us and Albion. And again, Celtic will have about 8,000 at Ibrox. Why are our police so much more pathetic than their Strathclyde equivalent?
The club should be taking our side and loudly condemning any such restriction.
It's not the police. The clubs decide on allocations.
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We always see the same bloke on our travels (not the cricket jumper wearer). We call him Barcadi Breezer man because he smuggled a bottle of Barcardi into Carrow Road a couple of season's back and had it taken off him when he was spotted swigging from it at half time. Nice enough chap though.
Is he an asian chap?
Yes.
Ha brilliant! Saw him on a train from Hull back to Sheffield the morning after the game the other week. And guess what he was swigging from?
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We always see the same bloke on our travels (not the cricket jumper wearer). We call him Barcadi Breezer man because he smuggled a bottle of Barcardi into Carrow Road a couple of season's back and had it taken off him when he was spotted swigging from it at half time. Nice enough chap though.
Is he an asian chap?
Yes.
Ha brilliant! Saw him on a train from Hull back to Sheffield the morning after the game the other week. And guess what he was swigging from?
Haha. Strangley enough, we've not seen him drink it since but we see him almost every away game. He was sat three seats behind us on the train on Saturday.
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That's fucking stupid. There's never any trouble with us and Albion. And again, Celtic will have about 8,000 at Ibrox. Why are our police so much more pathetic than their Strathclyde equivalent?
The club should be taking our side and loudly condemning any such restriction.
It's not the police. The clubs decide on allocations.
In that case, please can this be raised next time our fan representatives meet the Board. Our club shouldn't be disadvantaging our own fans.
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That's fucking stupid. There's never any trouble with us and Albion. And again, Celtic will have about 8,000 at Ibrox. Why are our police so much more pathetic than their Strathclyde equivalent?
The club should be taking our side and loudly condemning any such restriction.
It's not the police. The clubs decide on allocations.
In that case, please can this be raised next time our fan representatives meet the Board. Our club shouldn't be disadvantaging our own fans.
The answer will be that both clubs get the legal allocation. If we want more from them, they'll want more from us.
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Absolutely. Seems entirely correct.
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There has been a letter from Lynne O'Reardon, Head of Ticketing Operations about the scheme.
It essentially states that the away scheme is meant for people.who go to the majority of games and was not meant for getting tickets to the Sty or the Stripey Filth and not going anywhere else.
They're going to consult with the away fans consultation group and add additional categories for these fixtures.
I assume there's a couple hundred in the away scheme who they have noticed haven't been to Hull, Ipswich, Sheffield or bought for Blackburn and Bristol yet.
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There has been a letter from Lynne O'Reardon, Head of Ticketing Operations about the scheme.
It essentially states that the away scheme is meant for people.who go to the majority of games and was not meant for getting tickets to the Sty or the Stripey Filth and not going anywhere else.
They're going to consult with the away fans consultation group and add additional categories for these fixtures.
I assume there's a couple hundred in the away scheme who they have noticed haven't been to Hull, Ipswich, Sheffield or bought for Blackburn and Bristol yet.
If it is not in the terms and conditions I don't know if they could turn around and say to those bods who are away members "your only hear for Blues and Albion" and rescind the membership :-X
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It's discretionary though isn't it, as the issue of any ticket is, so I presume there is scope to change it.
It seems that as we're tipping 4k for Blackburn that maybe the message has been delivered.
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It does say in the initial terms and conditions that use of the scheme will be monitored for misuse, although it also states there is no minimum number of games.
I don’t think they are going to throw you off the scheme, but I do think that if you haven’t used it, or have hardly used it before trying to get tickets for The Hawthorns you may come unstuck.
For me this will be interesting. By then I’ll have been to probably 3 away matches - I am genuinely curious as to where this will leave me. I would have been to more, but part of the reason I have ended up ‘not eligible’ for away tickets under the previous system is that there are so many in midweek - so very quickly after we got relegated, I wasn’t in the top 2000 or so away supporters. I’m just not in the kind of job where I can keep nipping off at lunchtime on a Tuesday. Also - Bristol & QPR were on the list and both got moved to a Friday.
For ‘key games’ are they fully reverting to those who have been away the most, or will there be a balance between the 2 criteria? This could obviously depend on the allocation and how the numbers of full-time away supporters and away scheme supporters add up - clearly there is also some overlap between the 2. It’s going to be interesting to see whether those of us who have done a ‘handful’ of aways are written off alongside those who haven’t bothered at all yet.
I can’t argue with priority for those who have done the most games. I just joined because it seemed to basically work for someone like me that just wants to go to about 6-10 away games - so I’m interested to see how it unfolds and how they balance it as it rolls out.
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It does say in the initial terms and conditions that use of the scheme will be monitored for misuse, although it also states there is no minimum number of games.
I don’t think they are going to throw you off the scheme, but I do think that if you haven’t used it, or have hardly used it before trying to get tickets for The Hawthorns you may come unstuck.
For me this will be interesting. By then I’ll have been to probably 3 away matches - I am genuinely curious as to where this will leave me. I would have been to more, but part of the reason I have ended up ‘not eligible’ for away tickets under the previous system is that there are so many in midweek - so very quickly after we got relegated, I wasn’t in the top 2000 or so away supporters. I’m just not in the kind of job where I can keep nipping off at lunchtime on a Tuesday. Also - Bristol & QPR were on the list and both got moved to a Friday.
For ‘key games’ are they fully reverting to those who have been away the most, or will there be a balance between the 2 criteria? This could obviously depend on the allocation and how the numbers of full-time away supporters and away scheme supporters add up - clearly there is also some overlap between the 2. It’s going to be interesting to see whether those of us who have done a ‘handful’ of aways are written off alongside those who haven’t bothered at all yet.
I can’t argue with priority for those who have done the most games. I just joined because it seemed to basically work for someone like me that just wants to go to about 6-10 away games - so I’m interested to see how it unfolds and how they balance it as it rolls out.
Me and my lad are in the same boat, have done Sheffield and booked Millwall, maybe QPR as he will be on half term, and we will go to Derby. Joined as I missed out on some away I would have done, looking to do about 10 away this season. Totally understand though if you go more you should get first shout. Selfish point of view hope I can get to Albion