Looks like we are about to spend big again. Id rather spend a limited amount on new players and start reducing the debt and take our chances. Spend wisely over the next few seasons and we can then move on with stadium expansion. Ive a feeling thats not going to happen though.
I strongly agree with your second sentence, and have said so before on here. Sorting Langston and consequently getting rid of Hamman is a priority.
I can't see Tan spending all this money with Sam still hanging on his neck. Don't know why he wants a 42,000 stadium though, it has only in the odd game in 40 years that we got to 35,000+
We've never been in the Prem before DJ - life is different up there now especially if you're successful, and I think VT has every intention of ensuring that as much as he can. If the 20,000 sellout of ST's this season are any sort of an indicator, then you could probably add another 50% of that for sucess up there. The comittment to provide 10% of capacity for visiting Prem teams could severely hamper the availablity for the walk up Cardiff fan on the day in a 35,000 seater. To be honest, I'd take any expansion in capacity from VT and be grareful for it. It shows his comittment to the future. 42,000 is more than I'd have hoped for given the earlier reports of an "easy retrofit" of around an extra 8,000 tops.
Don't get me wrong Sparkey, I'd love to see a 42K full house but this won't come for 3 years or so and if we are not challenging for the Europe spots I think the some times supporters would have gone past the "something new" faze. We should always have big crowds for the big 6 (ManU, ManC, Arsenal, Spurs, Chelsea & Liverpool) Plus our local rivals Swansea. Not too sure about others though.
Hear what you're saying DJ. I agree about the nouveau plastic element that appear out of the woodwork with success and then drift away unless we're winning something. I think unless you're ManU or the like, most clubs can suffer with that element of fair weather supporters. The point is that unless you're prepared to back you're club to the hilt to go for lasting success, you'll frustrate non season ticket supporters who either can't afford, or are unable to attend every home game. If the worst happens and we flounder up there, then so be it, at least we'll have had a bloody good go. I don't want to attend our games in a half empty stadium (and worse) - I've done enough of that at NP over the bad years - but at some point, you have to make a decision. I believe VT has got the bit between his teeth now and will push on big time.
I think we need to ride the roller coaster, within reason. Try to provide the space for as many extra fans as we can. On the subject of nouveau plastic fans. Who does that label apply to? Is it all of those over and above a 3000 'crowd' on a cold wet Tuesday night at home to Bury?
As I see it, the premier league this year is probably one of the best for support, now that Wigan have dropped through the trapdoor along with QPR, the only club left in the premier league with poor away support is Fulham, the rest I would expect to fill their allocations. I would keep the size of the ground to about 35,000 maximum.
Ronny - I don't have a problem with 42K as long as the backing is behind the team to progress. Hampshire - where you draw the line at that "nouveau plastic" expression I used is a fair point. Attendances generally increase proportionately with success on the pitch. There are obvious exceptions like the ardent fans of Newcastle and Norwich for instance, but I think ours have grown organically over this past few years especially with regards to the new stadium. When success comes, peripheral supporters who infrequently attend get the bug and turn up far more often - I don't regard these as plastics There are also lifelong supporters who follow the team from an armchair, but are nevertheless very wrapped up in the fortunes of the club - these aren't true plastics, just a sort of polypropalene. Then there are those that NEVER attended and are just internet/newspaper followers at best who decide to jump on the bandwagon purely because of the sucees and especially Premier League opposition. Maybe they are the true plastics, but they all pay the entrance fee and the club should take it whilst it's there, not turn them away because we don't have enough seats.
The more the merrier for me, but at my age, cant help remembering the days of crowds of 2 or 3,000. Hopefully those days will never return.
A fan is a fan to me. Some take it more seriously than others, whatever their reasons are for that is up to them. I've never been interested in the labeling of our fans. At £35 average spend per seat 5000 extras will provide an additional £175k revenue every match. A couple of years of PL football filling the stadium will soon pay for the expansion. The possible expansion to 42K should be greeted as excellent news in my opinion. It shows VT intends for us to compete in the PL rather than hang on at the bottom end. Our catchment area suggests that 40k attendances should be easily attainable if PL status is continued for a number of years. The big issue I see (and I've raised it before) is where the F am I going to park if there are 40K of us trying to get in there.............
As a non season ticket holder due to locational issues and the fact to attend each game costs me around £500 I doubt whether I shall ever be able to see the club in the Premiership. Last season I attended 9 games but this coming season I won't stand a chance of getting a ticket. By some peoples reckoning I will become a "plastic" from here on in. My best chance of ever seeing Cardiff City play gain is for them to be relegated which is sad.
the public transport infrastructure would have to improve greatly to fulfil a 42,000 capacity stadium, the Valley line train system is poorer now than what it was in the 70's (last time we had big big crowds) the local buses also used to run match day specials, its ok when the matches fall on a Saturday, but try to get from Cardiff on a weekday at 10pm, almost impossible. its no use saying people will get there no matter what. They wont. Probably better if the local supporters start running their own buses as they do from around my way (Blackwood). Maesteg have always run their own coaches. The club should embrace this and talk to the local politicians about it.
Whoops. Re: - definition of a plastic for me is someone who only follows success and not the club - locational issues don't come into it. Being a Cardiff supporter, but residing outside a reasonable travelling distance from the CCS is a not an excuse for not attending regularly - it's a viable reason. That's a big difference. Like Stevo, I'm not interested in labelling fans, "plastics" just an expression that's well used on these forums. I doubt in upsets true plastics - only genuine ones that fear they might be labelled as such. Attend when you can and we'll take the money off the "plastics" anyway. To be fair, if they pay for the seat the best of luck to them. The danger is that with a limited capacity, they will snaffle the seats that the occasional true Cardiff supporter would like to take occasionally as time and circumstances permit. Hence the more seats we have, the better the chance that everyone who wants one will get one.
For me, living in London and working shifts it is impossible to get down to Cardiff to watch a match, let alone travel to away matches. I don't consider myself a "plastic" fan, as I have always followed the CCFC, but the last 10 years or so it has become much easier to keep up to date with what is happening at the club because of the internet. The fan forums usually have more information the sports sites (BBC, SKY), but when it comes down to the in house bickering, I wonder whether its worth logging in.
Living in Cheshire, I've already been tapping up mates for tickets when we play away (so to speak). I've earmarked tickets for both Manchesters, liverpool and Everton though not all will come off as I'm relying on picking up spares from mates of mates. Keeping my fingers crossed that there will be spare tickets when these clubs are playing the 'minnows' of the division.
