We don’t want to make too much of the low attendance at Newcastle on Saturday, and it doesn’t seem to be worrying the Newcastle manager too much.
Kevin Keegan – onus on Newcastle club to increase attendances
For the first time in a long time the crowd at Newcastle for a Premier League game was just 47,711, almost 5,000 short of capacity.
Readers on the site, have pointed out the economy is in a terrible state, and that will no doubt explain some of the absences.
But Kevin Keegan, as usual take it as a challenge and said this yesterday about the low attendance:
“The onus is on us to get people to want to watch Newcastle United.”
“I’d like to think we’re one of the cheapest clubs in the league and I think that’s right for the area we live in.”
You get on well in life if you are positive but realistic, and turn “problems” into opportunities or challenges, which is exactly what Kevin has done here.
No wonder the man has been so successful in almost everything he’s done in life, and those things he wasn’t too successful at, like the England job, he turned into learning experiences, and became better and stronger because of them.
If Newcastle crowds are falling, then it may be time to worry, but we just don’t believe that good performances from the club will not fill the seats – and it will even serve as an incentive for the lads to put in some good shows.
Kevin will be meeting on Wednesday with owner Mike Ashley and Head of Recruitment Dennis Wise, who seems to take a bashing from our fans, and we’re not sure why. The low attendance no doubt, will be one item on the agenda, but probably at the bottom.
Top items will be the transfer status, and the next important item will be contract negotiations with Newcastle captain, Michael Owen.
This meeting is good for all concerned, and we’d like to see if become at least a monthly event, to keep everybody communicating well at the club.
If the reports start about it being a crisis meeting and all that stuff – don’t believe it.
We’ve made a decent start to the season and that can only auger well for our chances of bringing in more good players before next Monday at midnight, when the transfer season ends.
Keep the faith.
Comments welcome.
36 comments so far
GraemeR
Aug 25, 2008 at 10:44 AM
Comment #1EMO has either got to sign or sold before the end of hte window – easy as that
beyethegreat
Aug 25, 2008 at 10:59 AM
Comment #2the thing is i can even see the attendances droppingeven lower to about 30,000 if 10,000 tickets were gave away to kids that also ment they had to bring thierparents i will say i dont know that it was 10,000 but that is what someone said yesterday
WesToon
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:06 AM
Comment #3There is NO CHANCE of our attendances dropping to 30 000,as for the free 10 000 tickets,HAHAHAH,dnt make me laugh that is complete & utter bollox Lads!!!
ERIC CRAMMY MAG
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:09 AM
Comment #4did you see man city game yesterday there were loads of empty seats and that was with a good away following .when teams like us and man city are not filling our grounds it not only newcastle that should worry its football in this country everyone knows the players are grossly overpaid for what the vast majority produce week in week out bring down the prices why put my season ticket up when we give 10.000 tickets away no wonder we are struggling in the transfer market smb
ERIC CRAMMY MAG
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:13 AM
Comment #5whats ganning on man
justme
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:14 AM
Comment #6i dont understand why we’ve not been interested in kompany!he’s class just wait and see! i could name a dozen players that’d be perfect for newcastle, young and willing to come. yet this big club board hasn’t signed anyone yet…
it’s not that hard to sign players!!
dick
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:16 AM
Comment #7AHHHHHHHHHH nothing happened again
sirjasontoon
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:22 AM
Comment #8This is a warning signal from the fans who have paid hard cash to watch overpaid underachievers for many years..only thing mike can do is assemble a side that can both play attractive football and win matches..this of course take money and I dont see them big cheques being written out at the moment..but Ashley’s real intent will become clearer as we get nearer to the transfer deadline…Wow signings please.
sirjasontoon
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:22 AM
Comment #9nothing happened here either zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
ERIC CRAMMY MAG
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:25 AM
Comment #10did anyone watch the man city game .there was loads of empty seats and that was with a good away following . i think its time for football to start worrying when the likes of us and city two trditionallyvery well supported clubs arn,t selling our tickets .the prices are way to high my ticket has gone up 12% ish and we give 10.000 tickets away whats gan on ?????
Sav
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:25 AM
Comment #11Owen is putting his side of things with his ‘I feel good to play for the whole season statement’, whereas Ashley will be happy to pay superstar wages as long as his superstar is on the pitch. Some sort of pay as you play or availability-related compromised has to be reached and its almost inevitable that it will. MO is still sufficiently a wow signing to satisfy me.
Jim
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:28 AM
Comment #12You have to remember a lot of people struggled to get season tickets, and they may have been put off going if their ticket arrived on Saturday morning or didn’t arrive at all. Not to mention it’s bank holiday weekend and people could have been on holiday
The Vicar
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:29 AM
Comment #13So who had the largest attendance in the prem the weekend just gone? Also who had the attractions of the anti-footballing bwfc?
Football in the UK may have problems due to over-saturation, but relative to other prem clubs NUFC still does very well indeed.
ginkoh
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Comment #14Every Newcastle fan around the world want to be part of St’jame park once in our live. Add me and all of Thai Newcastle Fanclub. If I’m living in England, I will be the one of season ticket member for sure and I’ll going to support in every match I can.
I don’t know why someone don’t want to go to Stadium (see empty seats more than 5000? what the XXX) But I’m pretty confident that we’ll get full attendance in next home game. Show your support and enjoy the game. Howay the lads !!!
ToonEskimo
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:38 AM
Comment #15Westoon, the 10,000 tickets wasn’t bollox, my brother runs a junior team and got twenty free tickets, he could have had forty but didn’t want to be greedy, it wasn’t common knowledge and you had to email in to get your tickets, it was only announced mid-week. Roll on 52000 for HULL….(not)
tbone
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:39 AM
Comment #16was this not down to a mix up with sending out season tickets?
Martin
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:42 AM
Comment #17I know exactly why the attendances were low – everyone was at Leeds Festival…Everywhere you looked there was nufc shirts, banners and flags and every second person you talked to had a geordie accent!
Amos
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:46 AM
Comment #18Wasn’t there also some ind of spectacular *&^% up with tickets not getting out in time? Do they not think this might account for the empty seats – people had paid for them, they just hadn’t arrived?
keltik
Aug 25, 2008 at 11:58 AM
Comment #19please, guys, read up on nufc.com before worrying about attendance numbers our previous regime over-inflated our attendance quite a number of times.
just because the officials like to say its 52,470, full capacity doesnt mean it actually is.
its like the war on terror, just because the news and the government want you to think that theirs blood lusting muslim extremists hiding under park benches waiting to drink your blood, doesnt mean their actually is.
dick
Aug 25, 2008 at 12:19 PM
Comment #20dont know if this will be posted but here goes anyway- there are lots of reasons for poor ticket sales, joey barton, paying 100’s of £’s to watch rubbish football season after season people cant afford it any more, people are sick seeing players extortionate wage demands, the lack of signings since ashley took over if we get anymore injuries we will be playing juniors shortly
dick
Aug 25, 2008 at 12:21 PM
Comment #21yet another comment gone missing, stuff this wont waste my time on this
dick
Aug 25, 2008 at 1:12 PM
Comment #22all comments have disapeared now
Bill F
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:05 PM
Comment #23A wow signing(s) and a few wins WILL help.
skin d
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:08 PM
Comment #24it,s not just nufc this is happening to ,its been slowly creeping up at alot of clubs over the last few years.
football far to expensive to watch these days,it,s becoming more a middle class spectacle while the working class are slowly being frozen out of their own sport.
Bill F
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:16 PM
Comment #25Is there an Elephant graveyard equivalent for our missing comments.
Punk Skunk
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:22 PM
Comment #26Kompany for manc was playing v 10 men & a not very good wetspam team…Lets judge him when he’s played a few more games v better opposition with a full turn out for a full 90 mins, huh?..
Punk Skunk
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:51 PM
Comment #27Well this is fun!..
Punk Skunk
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:51 PM
Comment #28Testing, testing…1, 2,…1, 2…
Punk Skunk
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:52 PM
Comment #29Testes, testes,…1, 2, 3?..
Tom
Aug 25, 2008 at 3:55 PM
Comment #30Is it not likely that the season ticket fiasco mant people couldn’t go because they hadn’t received their tickets in time??
ed_speed
Aug 25, 2008 at 4:08 PM
Comment #31newcastle will fill the stadium.
regards, ed
DH7 MAGS
Aug 25, 2008 at 4:15 PM
Comment #32what it needs to get the fans back is 3 world quality players who are goin to excite the crowd, also this will help the teams performance. a bet if it was man u, arsenal, chelsea, liverpool that we were playing saturday, there would have been a full house with no questions asked. there was 4 empty seats around me on saturday. 2 of my mates were on holiday and i could not even give their tickets away to any of my friends, so what does that tell you. we need some top quality exciting players in there which means ashley is going to have to spend some money for this to happen. not senderous either makes too many mistakes for a centre half. lets hope we get the quality we need and then get the fans back. roll on saturday, full away end on saturday down at the emirates
Ericles
Aug 25, 2008 at 4:27 PM
Comment #33No need to worry. On the same day as we got around 47,000 Liverpool only managed 43,168 (some 2000 short of capacity). Spurs only managed 36,064 at home. We get the biggest crowd of the day and we are still failing. Nonsense.
Marguerite
Aug 25, 2008 at 5:03 PM
Comment #34Well said Ericles, add to that Man City were about 11,000 down on their full capacity. and the ‘ammers took a fair few supporters up there, unlike Bolton at ours.
The b****** press don’t mention that do they?
Lew Davies
Aug 25, 2008 at 5:09 PM
Comment #35lo
Lew Davies
Aug 25, 2008 at 5:10 PM
Comment #36yeah!!! Back on again.