Melbourne Heart and Melbourne City attendances

[NewConvert]

Part of the problem for me is that expectations were very high and CFG set them high. In the end same coach, and plenty of old players around to ensure that the club remained almost the same on the pitch. This, of course, was a massive let down. My expectations for the club were to finish 6th and through PG's salary cap rorting that is where the club will finish. The disappointment for me was the lack of technical and tactical progression. People have noted how much more skilful the WP players were as well as so many other clubs. This for me is where the let down is.

[belaguttman]

I tried my hardest to love the club, but I just haven't captured the same passion as I did under Heart. When its starting to become a drag to attend games (last couple of Sunday games in particular, didnt go yesterday) its time that I probably drop my membership. 

If the franchise can't even get us excited and make a compelling case for long-term season ticket holders to renew it just shows what an unexciting limp product they have in the market place.  Yesterday's game was the first home game I've enjoyed for months, I haven't even bothered to cheer a goal for months, felt emotionally disconnected

[jw1739]

Part of the problem for me is that expectations were very high and CFG set them high. In the end same coach, and plenty of old players around to ensure that the club remained almost the same on the pitch. This, of course, was a massive let down. My expectations for the club were to finish 6th and through PG's salary cap rorting that is where the club will finish. The disappointment for me was the lack of technical and tactical progression. People have noted how much more skilful the WP players were as well as so many other clubs. This for me is where the let down is.

Nicely put. MrsJW made almost the same observations as we left the ground. It's actually been the same product but in a different packaging.

 

But we won't be walking away. Just couldn't do that.

[hedaik]

 

Part of the problem for me is that expectations were very high and CFG set them high. In the end same coach, and plenty of old players around to ensure that the club remained almost the same on the pitch. This, of course, was a massive let down. My expectations for the club were to finish 6th and through PG's salary cap rorting that is where the club will finish. The disappointment for me was the lack of technical and tactical progression. People have noted how much more skilful the WP players were as well as so many other clubs. This for me is where the let down is.

Nicely put. MrsJW made almost the same observations as we left the ground. It's actually been the same product but in a different packaging.

 

But we won't be walking away. Just couldn't do that.

 

 

Just to be clear I won't be walking away, I still plan on going to games and away trips, but Ive just lost the urge to see every single game live and feel I'm better off not purchasing a membership. 

[japiedog]

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

[kingofhearts]

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

Pretty much this for me too. I'm a sport nut, need my weekly fix of sport or i go crazy.

 

Will you still be involved on the website Hediak? Will you keep on doing the man of the match voting?

[hedaik]

 

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

Pretty much this for me too. I'm a sport nut, need my weekly fix of sport or i go crazy.

 

Will you still be involved on the website Hediak? Will you keep on doing the man of the match voting?

 

 

I only plan on dropping my membership, I'll still follow the team and post dribble here etc. Dont really plan on doing photos anymore though. 

[belaguttman]

Part of the problem for me is that expectations were very high and CFG set them high. In the end same coach, and plenty of old players around to ensure that the club remained almost the same on the pitch. This, of course, was a massive let down. My expectations for the club were to finish 6th and through PG's salary cap rorting that is where the club will finish. The disappointment for me was the lack of technical and tactical progression. People have noted how much more skilful the WP players were as well as so many other clubs. This for me is where the let down is.

Same heavy first touch, same wayward passes, same lack of movement off the ball in the front third, same struggle to win the second ball, same poor finishing. We seem to be the only team in the competition what still struggles to pass the ball along the ground. Most annoying yesterday was the number of first balls in attacking transition that were wayward.

We have improved in our ability to defend set pieces and in our general defensive structure.

[belaguttman]

 

 

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

Pretty much this for me too. I'm a sport nut, need my weekly fix of sport or i go crazy.

 

Will you still be involved on the website Hediak? Will you keep on doing the man of the match voting?

 

 

I only plan on dropping my membership, I'll still follow the team and post dribble here etc. Dont really plan on doing photos anymore though. 

 

Why not wait until we see who the coach is and who is in the playing roster next season?

[Jimmy]

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

Pretty much this for me too. I'm a sport nut, need my weekly fix of sport or i go crazy.

Will you still be involved on the website Hediak? Will you keep on doing the man of the match voting?

I only plan on dropping my membership, I'll still follow the team and post dribble here etc. Dont really plan on doing photos anymore though.

Why not wait until we see who the coach is and who is in the playing roster next season? Because as he's clearly stated the emotional connection is the issue, not the on field stuff.

It's a position that I know many of our supporters share.

[Shahanga]

I think CFG might now be starting to see the challenge ahead of them.

Euro snobs are not easily won over and they have had the double whammy of alienating heart supporters with the colours and then alienating new recruits with the Villa fiasco.

It's a tough gig and starting with 2 big stuff ups doesn't help.

[jw1739]

OK, so here are the promised attendance figures.

 

Please bear in mind the following.

- they refer only to A-League home matches played at AAMI Park that were not derbies against Melbourne Victory. (Figures for the derbies are added at the end.)

- they do not include the so-called "regional matches." (Again, these are summarised at the end.)

- certainly for seasons 2013/14 and 2014/15 I have used the official attendances as posted on the A-League web-site. In earlier seasons I have in some instances had to take figures from other sources, e.g. Wikipedia because I had not seen this as an on-going project at that time.

- I am not a statistician, but I recollect from my days when I was supposed to know something about the subject (in terms of scientific measurements) that "outliers" should only be discarded from calculations according to certain criteria. I'm happy to provide the raw data to anyone who wants to burrow down into the figures further, but from my perspective for every "higher attendance" that we have had that might be called an outlier I can find a "lower attendance" that might equally be called the same. Examples of these might be the attendances for the "David Villa matches" and those in earlier seasons when it poured with rain all day. Nevertheless I have quoted the average for 2014/15 without the two"David Villa matches."

 

Season 1: 2010/11

13 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 5,828.

 

Season 2: 2011/12

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 6,472.

 

Season 2012/13

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,075.

 

Season 2013/14

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,255.

 

Season 2014/15

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 9,074.

10 home matches (excluding "David Villa matches") - average attendance 8,009.

 

All seasons

59 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,218.

Fridays: 13 matches - 7,263.

Saturdays: 18 matches - 6,771.

Sundays: 21 matches - 7,641.

Monday: 1 match - 5,393.

Tuesday: 1 match - 5,614.

Wednesday: 4 matches - 5,434.

Thursday: 1 match - 11,050.

 

8 home "derbies" against Melbourne Victory.

Average attendance: 25,845.

 

2 "regional matches."

Average attendance: 5,085.

[Torn Asunder]

I think the club is moving forward and will continue getting stronger and I will be all-in once again for next year.

 

This year has been one of transition and has been very difficult to endure as a supporter, but on reflection there are still plenty of positives to draw upon.  

 

To name a few;

• the nucleus of a good side being formed (Mooy, Chapman, Melling, Safuwan, Tando, etc) that can be built upon
• the new training facilities / HQ
• the ability to aggressively change the team and bring in new players during the year to plug gaps and respond to injuries & team balance
• winning away
• being only 9 points of first with 2 rounds to go, etc ...

 

Also, I think we just might sneak our first finals win ...

Edited April 13, 2015 by Torn Asunder

[japiedog]

Sunday 5pm, Hawthorn v Essendon, North v Brisbane both in Melbourne at give or take the same time ... Greek Easter. No chance people were watching City when 60,000 were at the G and 23,000 were at Etihad.

 Orthodox Easter , it's not just Greek 

 

sorry to be pedantic 

Edited April 13, 2015 by japiedog

[thisphantomfortress]

 

Sunday 5pm, Hawthorn v Essendon, North v Brisbane both in Melbourne at give or take the same time ... Greek Easter. No chance people were watching City when 60,000 were at the G and 23,000 were at Etihad.

 Orthodox Easter , it's not just Greek 

 

sorry to be pedantic 

 

Dw everyone always forgets us Ruski's  

[KSK_47]

Part of the problem for me is that expectations were very high and CFG set them high. In the end same coach, and plenty of old players around to ensure that the club remained almost the same on the pitch. This, of course, was a massive let down. My expectations for the club were to finish 6th and through PG's salary cap rorting that is where the club will finish. The disappointment for me was the lack of technical and tactical progression. People have noted how much more skilful the WP players were as well as so many other clubs. This for me is where the let down is.

Nicely put. MrsJW made almost the same observations as we left the ground. It's actually been the same product but in a different packaging.

But we won't be walking away. Just couldn't do that.

Just to be clear I won't be walking away, I still plan on going to games and away trips, but Ive just lost the urge to see every single game live and feel I'm better off not purchasing a membership.

I'm going the other way tbh. Will definitely be renewing but that probably has more to do with my OCD and feeling the need to collect a pin each year than anything else. Unless things dramatically change I can't see myself attending more than a few games (if any) next season though. I have so many other things to do that are more important/enjoyable than disrupting my weekends for a team I barely care enough about to stand and applaud a goal.

Will probably still post loads of crap on here though lol.

Edited April 13, 2015 by KSK_47

[belaguttman]

 

 

 

 

I'll still be going

I love my fix of A league, and there is no way that I would follow Victory

Pretty much this for me too. I'm a sport nut, need my weekly fix of sport or i go crazy.

Will you still be involved on the website Hediak? Will you keep on doing the man of the match voting?

I only plan on dropping my membership, I'll still follow the team and post dribble here etc. Dont really plan on doing photos anymore though. Why not wait until we see who the coach is and who is in the playing roster next season? Because as he's clearly stated the emotional connection is the issue, not the on field stuff.

It's a position that I know many of our supporters share.

 

I understand that Jimmy, I also feel the same. I'll wait and see what happens over the off-season although everyone else has to do what's right for them

[belaguttman]

OK, so here are the promised attendance figures.

 

Please bear in mind the following.

- they refer only to A-League home matches played at AAMI Park that were not derbies against Melbourne Victory. (Figures for the derbies are added at the end.)

- they do not include the so-called "regional matches." (Again, these are summarised at the end.)

- certainly for seasons 2013/14 and 2014/15 I have used the official attendances as posted on the A-League web-site. In earlier seasons I have in some instances had to take figures from other sources, e.g. Wikipedia because I had not seen this as an on-going project at that time.

- I am not a statistician, but I recollect from my days when I was supposed to know something about the subject (in terms of scientific measurements) that "outliers" should only be discarded from calculations according to certain criteria. I'm happy to provide the raw data to anyone who wants to burrow down into the figures further, but from my perspective for every "higher attendance" that we have had that might be called an outlier I can find a "lower attendance" that might equally be called the same. Examples of these might be the attendances for the "David Villa matches" and those in earlier seasons when it poured with rain all day. Nevertheless I have quoted the average for 2014/15 without the two"David Villa matches."

 

Season 1: 2010/11

13 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 5,828.

 

Season 2: 2011/12

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 6,472.

 

Season 2012/13

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,075.

 

Season 2013/14

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,255.

 

Season 2014/15

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 9,074.

10 home matches (excluding "David Villa matches") - average attendance 8,009.

 

All seasons

59 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,218.

Fridays: 13 matches - 7,263.

Saturdays: 18 matches - 6,771.

Sundays: 21 matches - 7,641.

Monday: 1 match - 5,393.

Tuesday: 1 match - 5,614.

Wednesday: 4 matches - 5,434.

Thursday: 1 match - 11,050.

 

8 home "derbies" against Melbourne Victory.

Average attendance: 25,845.

 

2 "regional matches."

Average attendance: 5,085.

In 5 seasons we have attracted a net increase of around 3,000 people. That says a lot. We are as attractive a sporting proposition as luke warm custard. CFG missed a great opportunity to change our jersey colour to beige. 

Of course we'll never know the answer to this but I'd love to see how many season ticket holders Heart/City has lost over the last 5 seasons and how many full season ticket holders have only attended 1 or 2 games and then given up.

[NewConvert]

 

OK, so here are the promised attendance figures.

 

Please bear in mind the following.

- they refer only to A-League home matches played at AAMI Park that were not derbies against Melbourne Victory. (Figures for the derbies are added at the end.)

- they do not include the so-called "regional matches." (Again, these are summarised at the end.)

- certainly for seasons 2013/14 and 2014/15 I have used the official attendances as posted on the A-League web-site. In earlier seasons I have in some instances had to take figures from other sources, e.g. Wikipedia because I had not seen this as an on-going project at that time.

- I am not a statistician, but I recollect from my days when I was supposed to know something about the subject (in terms of scientific measurements) that "outliers" should only be discarded from calculations according to certain criteria. I'm happy to provide the raw data to anyone who wants to burrow down into the figures further, but from my perspective for every "higher attendance" that we have had that might be called an outlier I can find a "lower attendance" that might equally be called the same. Examples of these might be the attendances for the "David Villa matches" and those in earlier seasons when it poured with rain all day. Nevertheless I have quoted the average for 2014/15 without the two"David Villa matches."

 

Season 1: 2010/11

13 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 5,828.

 

Season 2: 2011/12

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 6,472.

 

Season 2012/13

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,075.

 

Season 2013/14

11 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,255.

 

Season 2014/15

12 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 9,074.

10 home matches (excluding "David Villa matches") - average attendance 8,009.

 

All seasons

59 home matches as defined.

Average attendance: 7,218.

Fridays: 13 matches - 7,263.

Saturdays: 18 matches - 6,771.

Sundays: 21 matches - 7,641.

Monday: 1 match - 5,393.

Tuesday: 1 match - 5,614.

Wednesday: 4 matches - 5,434.

Thursday: 1 match - 11,050.

 

8 home "derbies" against Melbourne Victory.

Average attendance: 25,845.

 

2 "regional matches."

Average attendance: 5,085.

In 5 seasons we have attracted a net increase of around 3,000 people. That says a lot. We are as attractive a sporting proposition as luke warm custard. CFG missed a great opportunity to change our jersey colour to beige. 

Of course we'll never know the answer to this but I'd love to see how many season ticket holders Heart/City has lost over the last 5 seasons and how many full season ticket holders have only attended 1 or 2 games and then given up.

 

 

yes the turnover figure would be interesting. But to be fair you would need to know the turnover figure for all A-League clubs (or at the very least the average) and also the AFL average turnover figure as well.

[Deeming]

 

Sunday 5pm, Hawthorn v Essendon, North v Brisbane both in Melbourne at give or take the same time ... Greek Easter. No chance people were watching City when 60,000 were at the G and 23,000 were at Etihad.

 Orthodox Easter , it's not just Greek 

 

sorry to be pedantic 

 

Eastern (Julian) Easter to be more pedantic. Ukrainian Catholics also celebrate on that date

[jw1739]

The membership "turnover" is known as the "churn rate." I think you'll find plenty of stats if you Google for a while. For example, in 2010-11 the AFL churn rate was 16%. http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/06/23/anatomy-of-afl-club-memberships/

 

I'm not sure, though, that AFL data is relevant. Don't AFL club members actually get a vote on some issues now and then?

 

Don't want to harp on the same old subject, but we are not members, merely season-ticket holders.

Edited April 13, 2015 by jw1739

[malloy]

The membership "turnover" is known as the "churn rate." I think you'll find plenty of stats if you Google for a while. For example, in 2010-11 the AFL churn rate was 16%. http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/06/23/anatomy-of-afl-club-memberships/

I'm not sure, though, that AFL data is relevant. Don't AFL club members actually get a vote on some issues now and then?

Don't want to harp on the same old subject, but we are not members, merely season-ticket holders.

Braveheart will likely have a better memory than I, but I vaguely remember a convo with Scott Munn where (IIRC) he said the churn rate was 50%. This is for the heart days, but it is ridiculously high. It shows that we can do enough to attract people each year, but fail miserably when it comes to giving value for money/time invested.

[KSK_47]

Jesus Christ! 50% is a terrifying statistic!

[malloy]

Jesus Christ! 50% is a terrifying statistic!

Take it with a pinch of salt as it was some time ago (possibly start of third season for heart) and my memory of the convo isn't the best.

[Mika]

We definitely need to get some more wins and challenge the top teams to get anywhere members-wise.

 

I know alot of City fans who won't get a membership because of the performances overall (though I've convinced a group of mates to jump on board next season).

 

Still, gotta persist! I reckon we can get there.

[Tony999]

Signing up my missus next season despite her not giving a rats behind about football.

[jw1739]

 

The membership "turnover" is known as the "churn rate." I think you'll find plenty of stats if you Google for a while. For example, in 2010-11 the AFL churn rate was 16%. http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/06/23/anatomy-of-afl-club-memberships/

I'm not sure, though, that AFL data is relevant. Don't AFL club members actually get a vote on some issues now and then?

Don't want to harp on the same old subject, but we are not members, merely season-ticket holders.

Braveheart will likely have a better memory than I, but I vaguely remember a convo with Scott Munn where (IIRC) he said the churn rate was 50%. This is for the heart days, but it is ridiculously high. It shows that we can do enough to attract people each year, but fail miserably when it comes to giving value for money/time invested.

He was also on record as saying, at one stage, that only a certain % of members turned up to any particular match. I seem to recall that being 40%, but that seems awfully low. However, I know that when I arrive at the ground I see plenty of people queuing up at the ticket counters, yet we rarely if ever exceed the number of members.

[sheepdog]

Yeah im exactly as same as hedaik. Tripping me out a bit just how similar my thoughts are.

I let my membership lapse last month and honestly thought, no big loss.

Will still attend when I can and support the club, membership is just a little bit meh

[NewConvert]

The membership "turnover" is known as the "churn rate." I think you'll find plenty of stats if you Google for a while. For example, in 2010-11 the AFL churn rate was 16%. http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/06/23/anatomy-of-afl-club-memberships/

 

I'm not sure, though, that AFL data is relevant. Don't AFL club members actually get a vote on some issues now and then?

 

Don't want to harp on the same old subject, but we are not members, merely season-ticket holders.

 

The AFL data is relevant because it provides a benchmark against the sport that draws the largest crowds in this city. The closest statistical data that City can get would be Victory churn rate but that would only extend the sample size to 2. A-League average needs to take into consideration that different regions/cities have different dynamics as well. So if City were able to reduce the churn rate to say 20% then we would not be that far off the mark with the biggest competition in this state. However, given that the only figure available in this forum is the 50% churn rate for heart then that telss me the scale of the problem.

[Murfy1]

I think the word 'disconnect' is a spot on description of how many supporters have felt towards the club this season (myself included).

 

 

I think CFG might now be starting to see the challenge ahead of them.
Euro snobs are not easily won over and they have had the double whammy of alienating heart supporters with the colours and then alienating new recruits with the Villa fiasco.
It's a tough gig and starting with 2 big stuff ups doesn't help.

 

Agree with all this. CFG created a disconnect with many of the Heart supporters, through many things it did. And it created a disconnect with new supporters, especially with the Villa fiasco.

 

I also believe there's a general lack of communication and connection with the supporters. The club's PR and social media doesn't even tell us when players are injured or fit (Marino and Mauk, for instance, have probably missed more than half the season due to injury, but you'd have no idea if you followed the club's official media). Improving a lot of small things like that would go some of the way to lessening the disconnect with supporters (even small things equivalent to Kalmar's Corner would help, and there's nothing stopping the club from doing media like this).

 

At this stage I'm also pretty sure that CFG significantly underestimated the A-League and what it had to do to turn Melbourne City into a success. As things stand the 3 marquee players (guest player, international marquee and Australian marquee) were all failures this season. Villa showed up late and unfit and barely played 4 games, Kennedy showed up after half the season was already played (given that this team finished last last season, not having all marquees signed up and ready to play from Round 1 was madness) and we all know about Koren (he's been outshone every week by an Australian midfielder inside the cap in Aaron Mooy, and has captured the imagination less than Heart's marquee Engelaar last season). I'm pretty sure CFG figured creating a successful team that won regularly would effectively make all of Melbourne City's problems go away, but instead there's been an up and down season with a mid-table finish, and that's made all the issues/problems at the club (listed above) more apparent. 

 

 

So next season CFG simply has to make sure there's a connection between the club and it's supporters. There has to be buy-in from the supporters, and no matter the club's results supporters have to feel apart of the club. If CFG can lessen the distance between re-branded Melbourne City and its supporters, things to capture the imagination, such as regular success and signing big players, will really pay off and bring in 1000s of new members, and keep them members. 

[Heart_fan]

I can see why people can feel disconnected, but at the same time I also don't quite get it.

Many seemed to connect to the struggling, small club mentality that we had, which also brought calls for owners to open their wallets and spend cash.

The new owners may have changed the name, and added blue to the colours, but they spent cash, built a competition leading training complex and made it a far more professional club.

Have they got it right all the time? No way, but the club was likely headed for some turbulent times under its former owners. The constant negativity that the club was close to folding, was on the market or whatever story that was written each day was more than demoralising.

The underdog tag worked for some but it sure had its downsides overall.

I agree that connecting to the fans must be a key for next season though, but getting the clubs foundations right was likely their priority first. Whether that was wise is hard to tell, but it was a big task ahead of them when they took over to rebuild the club.

Edited April 13, 2015 by Heart_fan

[Shahanga]

 

 

The membership "turnover" is known as the "churn rate." I think you'll find plenty of stats if you Google for a while. For example, in 2010-11 the AFL churn rate was 16%. http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/06/23/anatomy-of-afl-club-memberships/

I'm not sure, though, that AFL data is relevant. Don't AFL club members actually get a vote on some issues now and then?

Don't want to harp on the same old subject, but we are not members, merely season-ticket holders.

Braveheart will likely have a better memory than I, but I vaguely remember a convo with Scott Munn where (IIRC) he said the churn rate was 50%. This is for the heart days, but it is ridiculously high. It shows that we can do enough to attract people each year, but fail miserably when it comes to giving value for money/time invested.

He was also on record as saying, at one stage, that only a certain % of members turned up to any particular match. I seem to recall that being 40%, but that seems awfully low. However, I know that when I arrive at the ground I see plenty of people queuing up at the ticket counters, yet we rarely if ever exceed the number of members.

 

As a point of comparison, Saints CEO was on SEN the other day.  In recent times their membership attendance averages about 33%.  For the previous two seasons we have been the A League equivalent of the Saints, so if anything, 40% is surprisingly high.

[Kinnibari]

From memory churn rate for members in most clubs is generally higher than 16%? On my mobile so can't be bothered googling but I think this discussion needs more research before comparing 16% to possible misremembered 50% and going full steam from there. I know I've read some way more detailed breakdown before, maybe on The Roar?

[KSK_47]

I can see why people can feel disconnected, but at the same time I also don't quite get it.

Many seemed to connect to the struggling, small club mentality that we had, which also brought calls for owners to open their wallets and spend cash.

The new owners may have changed the name, and added blue to the colours, but they spent cash, built a competition leading training complex and made it a far more professional club.

Have they got it right all the time? No way, but the club was likely headed for some turbulent times under its former owners. The constant negativity that the club was close to folding, was on the market or whatever story that was written each day was more than demoralising.

The underdog tag worked for some but it sure had its downsides overall.

I agree that connecting to the fans must be a key for next season though, but getting the clubs foundations right was likely their priority first. Whether that was wise is hard to tell, but it was a big task ahead of them when they took over to rebuild the club.

 

The difference is that the struggling Heart was our club and regardless of what happened we felt it needed all the support it could get, so people went to great lengths to make tings as successful as possible. The criticisms and complaints came from the frustration of feeling as though the club meant more to us than it did to the people that owned it.

 

To many (myself included) it feels like we had our club taken from us against our will and replaced by a giant "brand", so now that need to support it has gone with it. So now its up to the club to get people interested, not us.

[Tony999]

Can't see a single thing CFG have done wrong apart from changing the colours which was expected. People had extremely high expectations the minute they took over. I'll be patient until next season to make a judgement. CFG have given us a lifeline. With onfield success people will start coming. Red & White meant a lot to me but at the end of the day I'll take success over colours any day.

Edited April 13, 2015 by Tony999

[KSK_47]

Can't see a single thing CFG have done wrong apart from changing the colours which was expected. People had extremely high expectations the minute they took over. I'll be patient until next season to make a judgement. CFG have given us a lifeline. With onfield success people will start coming. Red & White meant a lot to me but at the end of the day I'll take success over colours any day.

I agree. A successful second team in Melbourne is more important than my feelings of nostalgia. But the point remains, until they get the house in order I'm not making any effort for them

Edited April 13, 2015 by KSK_47

[bt50]

There was always the constant fear of the club folding when we were heart, so it prompted everyone to 'do your bit'.

I felt we were sort of empowered as heart fans and it was our club.

To be fair tho, not having to do that stuff is a relief to me but I get that others now have a void to fill...

[mjake1234]

Murphy - I love how elegant, eloquent and precise your posts are. It is comforting to see that I am not the only one who has got the "can't be bothered" attitude. I have missed more games this season than I have over the past 4.

The failure of CFG to develop our enthusiasm is absolutely due to their lack of connection with members. We are well aware of their notable blunders but their singular determination not to talk to the members and to maintain their level of secrecy shows that just don't understand that the game is different here.

There is no doubt that we are thankful they have sorted out a lot of the teams off field problems but they have totally ignored the psychology of membership connectivity.

Most of us on here can all see what needs to be done and, if they don't tap into this wonderful resource, I fear that we will float through another year of low interest level.

Come on CFG get off your ivory tower, talk to us and let's make this club something special

[Tony999]

And what do you suggest mjake? Although l understand it may be tough, but doing your bit is convincing others to sign up. I'm signing up my missus (kind of forcefully) next season. One member here, one there.... it will tally up.

[KSK_47]

And what do you suggest mjake? Although l understand it may be tough, but doing your bit is convincing others to sign up. I'm signing up my missus (kind of forcefully) next season. One member here, one there.... it will tally up.

For starters how about they spend some of those billions of dollars they have on proper saturation advertising to convince people to sign up rather than relying on their members acting like missionaries that need to "do their bit" and convince people Watching bland football is a great way to spend their leisure time and money.