Are our dwindling home crowds a worry?

[CoastSportsFan]

2008 21,618
2009 19,178
2010 17,877
2011 15,428
2012 14,405
2013 14,028

We have dropped in crowd numbers for five consecutive seasons. This has to be a worry for anyone associated with the club. You can put it to one side and say it isn't an issue but in reality it is. David May stated we need to pull a crowd of 15,000 just to break even on game day and that's not including any free/discounted tickets that are given out. So how do we pull a crowd of 15,000 full paying customers to every home game? Should we try and improve game day experience? We can't really afford to drop ticket prices because that will require a larger crowd to break even and that is a big risk.

This is a REAL issue, not a troll and now we are on independent forum we can talk about these issues without fear of censorship. What would you change to fix our crowds?

[TITAN FAN]

consistently winning games would help

[Bayside Titan]

consistently winning games would help

If we make the the eight this coming year and we will drop I would be little worried...but not at the moment..

[CoastSportsFan]

consistently winning games would help

I'm not so sure that would actually help. We sat sixth on the ladder going into round 12 against the Cowboys and we could only pull 12,790 to a Queensland derby. Three weeks prior to that we also sat sixth on the ladder and only pulled a crowd of 12,117 to Robina.

I don't think it is anywhere near as results related as some may think. This is a deeper issue...

[Coaster]

They are as boring as bat sh*t.

losing Murphy will help ease that, but people want entertainment not 1 out hit ups.

They would rather see the team have a dig, and fail, then suffocate everyone within distance with outdated tactics

[CoastSportsFan]

They are as boring as bat sh*t.

losing Murphy will help ease that, but people want entertainment not 1 out hit ups.

They would rather see the team have a dig, and fail, then suffocate everyone within distance with outdated tactics

So your suggestion would be to start playing a more attractive form of footy? Probably going to be hard to do while Cartwright continues to coach the team...

[Bayside Titan]

So your suggestion would be to start playing a more attractive form of footy? Probably going to be hard to do while Cartwright continues to coach the team...

Agree with both yours and Coasters points, however you asked above
" I don't think it is anywhere near as results related as some may think. This is a deeper issue..."
What are your reasons for suggesting that there is a " deeper Issue "....Do you some some insights or is there Dialogue from respected people in the community that you are privy to that would lead you to believe that there is cause for ongoing concern.....????

[DavidBouveng]

Scarier part is that most figures from last few years are grossly inflated BS.

So next year a legitimate 14K would be a big deal.

[CoastSportsFan]

Agree with both yours and Coasters points, however you asked above
" I don't think it is anywhere near as results related as some may think. This is a deeper issue..."
What are your reasons for suggesting that there is a " deeper Issue "....Do you some some insights or is there Dialogue from respected people in the community that you are privy to that would lead you to believe that there is cause for ongoing concern.....????

I can be completely honest with you if you'd like but you may not like the answer. Please take this in no other way than it is intended to be.

There seems to be two problems with Rugby League on the Gold Coast. The first problem has to do with the demographics of the city. A large majority of people on the Gold Coast aren't originally from here and either hail from New South Wales or Victoria. Seeing as the Victorians don't tend to have a strong interest in RL, we are drawing from the New South Welshmen, Kiwis and Gold Coasters for our fans.

Therein lies two problems. Firstly, New South Welshmen living on the Gold Coast almost always already have a team in the NRL. It was sort of masked in the first 2-3 years of our existence because a lot of them bought into our product but a lot of them have now gone back to their original teams. The second problem is the fact that Gold Coasters tend to have a casual interest sport. Some weekends they would like to attend a Titans game while others they'd rather go to the beach or a theme park.

I couldn't tell you how many people were interested in the Titans in their first few years and now show no allegiance to the team. Then you come on this forum and find even the most hardcore fans are becoming disenfranchised with the club. It's a serious concern.

The biggest worry is the next generation. It is becoming harder and harder every year for families to attend Titans games and eventually something has to give and we can certainly see that in the crowd numbers. The only way to get fans back is if the team has a genuine premiership push but even that is just a temporary fix to a long term problem.

[teke]

Just win and the crowds will come back.

Titans are working their way to buying a premiership so the results should start coming soon.

[Titanic]

I can be completely honest with you if you'd like but you may not like the answer. Please take this in no other way than it is intended to be.

There seems to be two problems with Rugby League on the Gold Coast. The first problem has to do with the demographics of the city. A large majority of people on the Gold Coast aren't originally from here and either hail from New South Wales or Victoria. Seeing as the Victorians don't tend to have a strong interest in RL, we are drawing from the New South Welshmen, Kiwis and Gold Coasters for our fans.

Therein lies two problems. Firstly, New South Welshmen living on the Gold Coast almost always already have a team in the NRL. It was sort of masked in the first 2-3 years of our existence because a lot of them bought into our product but a lot of them have now gone back to their original teams. The second problem is the fact that Gold Coasters tend to have a casual interest sport. Some weekends they would like to attend a Titans game while others they'd rather go to the beach or a theme park.

I couldn't tell you how many people were interested in the Titans in their first few years and now show no allegiance to the team. Then you come on this forum and find even the most hardcore fans are becoming disenfranchised with the club. It's a serious concern.

The biggest worry is the next generation. It is becoming harder and harder every year for families to attend Titans games and eventually something has to give and we can certainly see that in the crowd numbers. The only way to get fans back is if the team has a genuine premiership push but even that is just a temporary fix to a long term problem.

This reflects my view and should have added to it that we keep presenting ourselves as a clusterfark of financial and club management … add to that Coasters comments and what else should we expect?

[Mexican titan]

I can be completely honest with you if you'd like but you may not like the answer. Please take this in no other way than it is intended to be.

There seems to be two problems with Rugby League on the Gold Coast. The first problem has to do with the demographics of the city. A large majority of people on the Gold Coast aren't originally from here and either hail from New South Wales or Victoria. Seeing as the Victorians don't tend to have a strong interest in RL, we are drawing from the New South Welshmen, Kiwis and Gold Coasters for our fans.

Therein lies two problems. Firstly, New South Welshmen living on the Gold Coast almost always already have a team in the NRL. It was sort of masked in the first 2-3 years of our existence because a lot of them bought into our product but a lot of them have now gone back to their original teams. The second problem is the fact that Gold Coasters tend to have a casual interest sport. Some weekends they would like to attend a Titans game while others they'd rather go to the beach or a theme park.

I couldn't tell you how many people were interested in the Titans in their first few years and now show no allegiance to the team. Then you come on this forum and find even the most hardcore fans are becoming disenfranchised with the club. It's a serious concern.

The biggest worry is the next generation. It is becoming harder and harder every year for families to attend Titans games and eventually something has to give and we can certainly see that in the crowd numbers. The only way to get fans back is if the team has a genuine premiership push but even that is just a temporary fix to a long term problem.

Mate I think you have provided most of the answers in your response. I am a Manly supporter first but a member of the Titans and have been since day 1. I agree a number of people who bought in initially have dropped off but I think there are three reasons, 2 of which have already been said.
1) Just win games consistently. Whenever we look like stringing a few together a really pathetic performance is put in and takes us a few steps back.
2) style of play - is as boring as batsh?t as someone said. Our grind them down style is not only boring, it is likely to have the forwards running on empty by the end of the season
3) I still think a big issue is the lack of parking at Robina. David May indicated that progress was being made with this issue (I think with Robina Town Centre) but nothing happened.

[CoastSportsFan]

3) I still think a big issue is the lack of parking at Robina. David May indicated that progress was being made with this issue (I think with Robina Town Centre) but nothing happened.

This is an interesting point to bring up. The public transport to Robina stadium is most definitely in place (train station next to the stadium) and yet it hasn't seemed to have made a difference. It's no secret the Gold Coast public prefers the use of a car over public transport but catering for that is a challenge. Only so many people can park at the Dog n Parrot and take the shuttle to the game.

From what I have seen the future plans for the light rail, it will eventually extend to Robina train station as well so the stadium will also be accessible via the tram in the future. I mean lets be realistic here, they aren't just going to build a multistory car park right next to the stadium. The traffic would be a nightmare like the old Carrara days when they had a car park across the road. Robina Town Centre is an option but I'm sure they are opposed to it.

The challenge is really just convincing people to make use of the public transport that already exists.

[Mexican titan]

This is an interesting point to bring up. The public transport to Robina stadium is most definitely in place (train station next to the stadium) and yet it hasn't seemed to have made a difference. It's no secret the Gold Coast public prefers the use of a car over public transport but catering for that is a challenge. Only so many people can park at the Dog n Parrot and take the shuttle to the game.

From what I have seen the future plans for the light rail, it will eventually extend to Robina train station as well so the stadium will also be accessible via the tram in the future. I mean lets be realistic here, they aren't just going to build a multistory car park right next to the stadium. The traffic would be a nightmare like the old Carrara days when they had a car park across the road. Robina Town Centre is an option but I'm sure they are opposed to it.

The challenge is really just convincing people to make use of the public transport that already exists.

I am not sure that Robina Town Centre is opposed to it or whether it was the previous Govt that tried to push everyone to public transport to avoid upsetting local residents. Surely an arrangement can be made with Robina TC as most games are on when the Centre is as good as closed or when the trading would have just about finished for the day.
I catch the train from Helensvale but in the last couple of years this seems to have been less well organised than earlier years. Now with the rail extension to Varsity Lakes trains should just be queued up and pull in quickly but that does not happen and the crowd crush is worse than early years. In Sydney they use trains too clear the majority of an 80,000 crowd at the Olympic Stadium very quickly but cannot seem to get it better organised here.
In summary what I am saying is that they need to make it easier for people to go otherwise they will not bother, particularly with the cost of food inside the place when you get there.
Your answer of a multi story carpark might actually eventuate if the land around the stadium was built on by commercial businesses. After all 5 carparks were built around the stadium in Sydney that also get used for workers in the area. I would be surprised if the light rail ever gets to Robina.

[shamus]

RTC last season did not stop any footy fans from parking in the shopping centre. I am unsure if they wanted it to be public knowledge or not but my brother in law lives opposite the shopping centre (I park at his joint) and pre game drinks showed hundreds (well almost hundreds) of cars parking in the car park of the centre with no dramas.

P.S. This may also depend on the day and time of the game....I never made notes.