The General C. Krulak Thread XVI

[BoredNow]

Hi General

I was really disappointed on Wednesday to discover the Villa Vitality food outlet in the lower Doug Ellis has been closed and replaced by the usual burgers and chips.

It took up just one half of a kiosk (the real coffee place is in the other half, I hope that's not for the chop too).

Elsewhere there are three full kiosks selling all the usual football stadium fare. Surely the club makes enough profit from those outlets to give over one eighth of its catering floor space to offer other options.

It's been great having the choice, especially for night games or matches like today when it's convenient to grab something to eat at the stadium. Now the club is missing out on my cash.

Can you explain the decision please?

This isn't an answer, I know, but in the Trinity they were serving the Villa Vitality stuff - cottage pie & absolutely delicious it was too.  Must have been a problem with you Witton Lane yobs!!   

Oh rub it in, why don't you!

Obviously all you Trinity Lane people must be very svelte and healthy, and turn one's noses up at pies and chips ;-)

General, any thoughts? (on the original question, not whether Trinity Laners are toffs)

[London Villan]

I bought a burger from the stand in the Trinity... it was luke warm, no dressing and the bread was rock hard. Well worth the £3+ it cost. No wonder there wasn't a queue.

If they are going to do something like this, it must be done right. It clearly isn't happening at the moment.

[pauliewalnuts]

The food smell in the Upper Trinity is one of those smells you never, ever get anywhere else.

Obviously, it is based on the pungent aroma of chips, but it has an extra Villaness about it which makes it unique. It's like the modern equivalent of the AV floodlights.

[ckrulak]

General Krulak here:

1.  Sorry that I have been off the site for so long...I had a long trip (business) that I had to make.  I am not happy about being away for so long...makes for many questions to answer.

2.  Sid1964:  ST prices for next year.  We absolutely recognize the economic situation and will take that reality into consideration when setting prices next year.  Randy is very much aware of what is happening in the UK at this time.

3.  PaulMcGrath#5:  You are correct, I sometimes do not get to every question.  For the most part, that happens for two reasons: 1)  I am just an old fart and cannot always remember what has been posted.  I normally make notes to myself on the questions but when I don't, I can miss some.  A good example is the one from "Phil from the Upper Holte"...he just asked me to answer his question but I cannot remember what it was...nor can I find it.  Again, it is NOT because I am trying to duck a question. 2)  When an issue comes up that dominates the site...such as the search for a new Manager.  That type of event or incident "hides" other questions.

4.  North Stand: We are closing in on a decision point as to when we will begin that work...but we have not made it yet.  As soon as we have decided, the Fans will be notified as we will want to coordinate the effort with the Fans to ensure that we have minimal impact on them.

5.  Tannoy:  As I have indicated, we DO know we have a problem.  The actual final fix will not occur until we start work on the renovation mentioned above.  We HAVE spent money on the current system...lots of money...but the infrastructure needed to make the kind of improvements we want will not be forthcoming until we work the renovation...we just don't want to spend money on something that will have to be ripped out later. We will continue to try an interim fix for it.

6.  DeKuip:  As I have mentioned MANY times, we do not control the police nor do we control the traffic.  We meet with the police...we tell them the numbers we expect...they know the timing...we URGE them to help make entry and exit easier...etc. etc.  We do not have any real control over the numbers of police used or the traffic patterns employed.  We continually seek help.

7.  The Royal Couple have, to date, not asked to use the Holte Suite or the Holte Pub but we expect the request to come to us very soon.  I do understand that H&V have been asked to produce the wedding book and album.

8.  BCV:  "45 pound ticket prices"..."done nothing on the Pitch".  First off, we don't have "just" 45 pound ticket prices...we have a large variety of prices.  Secondly, I would say that we have done "something" on the Pitch.  I would imagine that many Clubs would have liked to have gone to Wembley twice...or placed where we have placed in the tables.  I recognize that WE ALL would like to do much better BUT, to say we have done "nothing" might be taking it a bit too far.

9.  Just a few points of interest:  Our young lads have been doing a fine job...Bannan, Clark, Albrighton and Delfouneso have got the most attention but Hogg, Lichel, and Herd have also made their PL debuts and have been playing well.  We are very proud of our Academy...and the people who work there.  Obviously, the ideal is to get a nice blend of youth and experience...and I believe we can do that.  I am sure that Fans are probably debating what will happen when players start returning from injuries...will the young lads be sidelined.  I suspect the answer is a shade of gray vice black/white.  The young lads will continue to feature at different times and different frequencies.  The KEY is to let the Manager manage and pick the best team for every game.  It is the Manager's call as to who he plays...not the Boards.  We trust GH to do what is best for the Club.

10.  We have two big home games coming up....Arsenal and West Brom.  I encourage everyone to get a ticket if you don't already have one.  These are key games and we need as many fans as possible cheering the lads on.  Fans DO make a HUGE difference!!!

[DeKuip]

General Krulak here:

6.  DeKuip:  As I have mentioned MANY times, we do not control the police nor do we control the traffic.  We meet with the police...we tell them the numbers we expect...they know the timing...we URGE them to help make entry and exit easier...etc. etc.  We do not have any real control over the numbers of police used or the traffic patterns employed.  We continually seek help.

General
When I recently paid a plumber to come and do some work for me I had input into what I was getting for my money. Had he stood out in the back garden doing nothing all day I wouldn't have paid his bill.

[pablopicasso_10]

excellent stuff getting the young lads tied down to new contracts...

has nathan delfouneso been given one too?

i cant remember seeing an announcement...

[peter w]

General,

              Would you say Sarah Palin is as thick as she sounds? Or that George Bush really doesn't get how the rest of the world sees the US following his 8 years at the helm? do you think we should be touring China or the far-east when they don't spend a lot of money on replica shirts because they can get good cheap knock-offs? Finally, why don't we do a tour of Southern India where football is huge? Calcutta, Mumbai, Goa etc

[CambsVilla]

Hi General,
You said a while back that there was an ongoing debate about the shelf life of the new shirt.
As I said before,I am extremely reluctant to buy a shirt which will be out of date by May.
I look forward to buying the new shirt each season but (and I appreciate that the timing was not altogether in the hands of the club) I feel a little aggrieved at having to pay the full price with this limited life.
If it is to be replaced next season then on this occasion I shall go without and snap it up in the end of season sales instead.
Sorry to sound so down about this but value for money goes a long way in this present world of tight finances.


Lower Holte
TT 74


Welcome back General,
Here's one of the questions you missed...

[PaulMcGrathsNo5Shirt]

General...... this was my question/point that I asked that you missed. Thanks in advance!

General.

Some time ago I bought to your attention the ludicrous situation where I tried to buy tickets for a future game on a match day and the ticket office refused as they were selling match day tickets only. A decision I questioned as the ticket office was practically empty at the time.

Tonight was round 2

On the official club website it states that today I was able to purchase tickets for the Blose game in the cup. Due to work commitments and travel problems I arrived at the Villa Park ticket office approximately 45 mins before kick off. Again I was told 'tonights game only' - I explained the situation to the ticket office head honcho, that as I am a teacher and won't be able to spend hours on the phone or internet tomorrow to get tickets this was my only option of purchasing tickets. His reply was that he was being directed from 'inside the office' as to what to tell people.  The steward was polite, sympathetic and almost apologetic about the situation but it was clear that he was unable to do anything to help. The result - again I walk away ticketless.
Now had the ticket office been busy i could fully understand the situation but again there was nobody queuing outside and it would have been no more than a five minute wait. (I did actually take a photo) Surely there is a facility somewhere at Villa Park that can sell tickets for future matches in the hour running up to the current game for people who are not able to sit for ages on a phone or on the internet.

I'm incredibly annoyed by this as I will more than likely be missing out on tickets for the Blues game because of this stupid system that is in place.

 

 

[BoredNow]

General, any thoughts on my question further up his page about Villa Vitality?

[Tokyo Sexwhale]

General, any thoughts on my question further up his page about Villa Vitality?

When are we playing Italy?

[ckrulak]

General Krulak here:

1.  DeKuip:  The police are not like plumbers...we do not "hire" them.

2.  Peterw:  Although I have never met Sarah Palin, I have listened to her speak, be interviewed, etc. etc.  To date, I have not been overly impressed with her understanding of geo-politics, economic issues and defense issues.  She does have a depth of knowledge on energy.  Former President Bush probably has a good sense that he would not win a popularity contest in Europe.  At the same time, he had to make some pretty tough decisions that, at this time, are pretty easy to second guess.

3.  PaulMcGrathsNo5Shirt:  Please call Nicky Keye at AVFC ext. 304 and explain what you have encountered on two separate occasions and see if she can help sort out this issue.  It might be helpful coming from a fan.

[rutski]

as you are around general! did you read my post on match attax corner in the holte suite? I have had a few messages from people saying their kids would be up for it!

[spangley1812]

as you are around general! did you read my post on match attax corner in the holte suite? I have had a few messages from people saying their kids would be up for it!

I may be being a bit thick,stupid but if you have some friends interested already why dont you just set it up for yourselves in a corner of the Holte suite 

[PaulMcGrathsNo5Shirt]

Thank you General