Town gamble with a switch to Friday night
Last updated 11:34, Friday, 09 May 2008
FAIR play to Workington Town. Home gates are low this season, no doubt in response to the team’s poor start to the campaign.
But rather than just sit back and moan, and make empty calls for fans to back the team, they have taken action.
Switching the regular Sunday game to a Friday night for Doncaster’s visit next week is a brave move, and slashing prices is an even braver one.
Even given an improved attendance, I’m guessing that on the night, there’s a chance gate receipts will be lower than if the match had been played on a Sunday.
But the club is thinking longer-term. If a few hundred of the current stayaways turn up AND return for following games, the experiment will have proved worthwhile.
This is the ideal fixture to try it out. Doncaster are top of NL2 and boast arguably the sport’s biggest personality of the last two decades as coach, Ellery Hanley.
‘The Black Pearl’ was certainly one of the most respected and last year was voted the greatest ever British player.
League Two sides Barrow and Sheffield play at home on Friday nights, and London Skolars on Saturdays. NL1 Salford and Sheffield also ply their trade on Fridays, and Celtic Crusaders play home matches on Saturdays. The arrangements seem to suit these clubs fine.
Though I’m not yet convinced that Friday night fixtures are the answer for many clubs outside Super League.
For the majority of National League players, RL remains a part-time sport. To play regularly on a Friday night must involve shift changes or loss of earnings for some travelling players.
And it’s asking a lot for visiting fans to trek up the M6 late on a Friday afternoon for a game at Derwent Park or the Recre.
Though, admittedly, many NL games attract few travelling supporters in any case.
Haven played two recent games on a Friday night and are not planning a repeat this season.
Only 1,220 turned up for their emphatic win over Celtic Crusaders, while 1,250 saw French raiders Lezignan handed a Challenge Cup hammering.
Confidence in Haven at the time, last month, was low, following their shaky start to the season, which in part explains the low gates.
But contrast it with the crowd of 1,706 who saw Bank Holiday Monday’s win over Leigh. The game was played in brilliant sunshine and over 100 Centurions’ fans made the trip.
Good luck to Town with their Friday night experiment. It’s a bold idea from a club prepared to innovate.
But, of course, ultimately, attendances depend on performances, and for those to start a significant upward trend, Town must produce on the pitch.
