Seating issues

[Midlandgull]

The club needs to work on some of the basics - any successful organisation that is ready to grow and thrive will systemise everything possible. Knowing the seat numbers and making sure everyone is allocated a seat is pretty basic, so it is something the club need to fix and is an example of low hanging fruit we can deal with for quick wins.

Today in the club shop I wanted a mug with the yellow logo on - none in stock. No big deal but how hard is it to get stock in place? Also I bought a top but no price on it so the guy behind the till said "I can do it for £25" - again this should all be systemised rather than plucking numbers out of the sky. Then, his colleague was noting down all of the purchases with pen and paper - we need systems so people can spend their time doing better things for the club and all human error can disappear and what an opportunity we are missing to collect data. They could email me my receipt and then use my email for marketing and build up lists that way (GDPR compliant if I agree to it). I bet our email database/CRM system is in a right state (if we have one).

I understand we are in the National League South, but this is a once proud Football League club. In this day and age we should be able to get the basics right with the technology we have available to us - I think it may be a case of people don't know what they don't know. If we want to get ahead of other clubs we have to be better in every single area on and off of the pitch.

Sorry to hear about your experience today and thanks for sharing it with everyone here, that's how hopefully people from the club can see it and fix it. Don't let it stop you coming, we need every gull behind the team and ignore the few idiots here and there, we are all one big family. See you on Saturday! COYY

[Teigngull]

We're probably ironing out some issues still with you know who's initials all over them !
Give George Edwards via Sharon Cox an email & explain what's happened & that you're reluctant to return as travelling from Tavistock isn't easy at the best of times & with an 8 yr old boy emotionally upset, it's too much even for you.
Print a copy of your email for future reference too.

[View1]

Thanks for the responses, I will email the club when I've calmed down a bit as still not sure what the policy is.

We will always attend, if watching teams managed by Knill and Owers doesn't stop you a few seating issues certainly won't!

In the scheme of things it's a good problem, we all want the ground full, but the club need to know their own polices and make sure they are able to deal with large crowds.

[Dazza]

As one of famous five told to move at 2.55 by the cheery group who arrived at that time and demanded what in their view was their rights I wish them an extremely Happy Christmas. I would record their was no reservation recorded on any of the seats we sat on for fifty minutes because we fully respect season ticket allocation.

The club needs to sort out tout suite what the rights and wrongs actually are. Half the staff including the chap on the gate say you can sit where you want; half say the number on your admission ticket has relevance and you are confined to that seat no matter what time you turned up or where that seat is.

It must be one or the other and not depend on who you speak to. As it stands at present it just infuriates people.

Obviously if you as happened today get close to kick off and you receive a somewhat bullish approach your options are limited. It becomes even more frustrating when the only resulting option is the extreme end of the Family Stand from where you can clearly see that The Bench is not actually full at all but is actually one third empty reserved for fictional away people who can't be assed or ever dream of being so.

The administration at Torquay has been legend for years. There are days when you start to regard it less humourously.

[tomogull]

Is Andy Candy still working behind the scenes at the club? He is great at sorting out issues like this, and this is a long-standing issue because myself and a mate had to move for exactly the same reason when we played North Ferriby two seasons ago. For that match, there were other empty seats in Bristow's Bench so it wasn't a big deal. If not sorted, it is likely that there will be other fans similarly affected on New Year's Day.

I think the least the club should do is to offer free admission to the five of you for either the next home game or the New Year's Day game ...... and maybe a free Gulls shirt for your lad. View1?

[wivelgull]

It is incumbent upon the club to reply formally to this issue. No backing away, certainly no silences and, if necessary a full apology and enquiry.
Football supporters are fed up to the back teeth with the contemptuous way the people who 'run' the club (that's a laugh) are treated. Just look at the disarray at the club in the past few years. This is only one example (although, looking on the bright side, it may be one of the last of the disgraces perpetrated upon the supporters by those who 'run' the club).

[wivelgull]

Sorry the third sentence should read 'Football supporters are fed up to the back teeth with the contemptuous way people who 'run' clubs treat them.

[Willowgull]

Agree with the sentiments expressed, unfortunately due to our progressive downhill spiral over the last few seasons we are no longer able to cope with by our standards, a large crowd, I saw people being searched three times at the family stand entrance by differing stewards whilst others who had bags were totally ignored, look at the queues trying to get a pint before halftime in boots and laces, I saw groups of people being let in by the gate at the food outlet to the side of the family stand, the only criteria for such access seemed to be they knew the steward in the red jacket, they certainly did not have tickets and they certainly did not pay. Hopefully the management will learn from this but I will not hold my breath.

I can clear this issue up Culmstock gull as I entered via the side entrance by the food kiosk. There was a large que at the turnstile and the stewards wanted to clear it quickly. They asked those with season tickets to present their cards and then we were let in via the side gate to save time. It wasnt the case that we knew the steward.

[Richinns]

It is not rocket science.

If the club want to offer a pre-booking of seats policy then mark the seats which have already been allocated so that they remain empty for those that have reserved them. If they cannot provide this because of lack of resources then do not offer this as an option.

Detailed above illustrates just how such short sighted approaches currently in place at the club have created much upset across a family which have four generations of supporters. So much so that they may lose that support.

You cannot issue a press release saying you are disposing of the seat allocation on ticket issuing at the turnstiles and then still expect a family of five to (ranging from 92 - 8 in age) to lose the seats they have turned up early to achieve because they have already been reserved with no indication they are not free to anyone else to sit in.

The club need to publically respond to these complaints and put a procedure in place to stop these issues from reoccurring. The fans that have stuck by the club throughout the recent dark days should not be left feeling so unimportant (to the point they don't wish to turn up again) when success on the field is achieved and the numbers attending (a fantastic thing to be happening btw) goes beyond having a selection of seats available.

[portugull]

View1 I hope this post is of interest to you because this is an issue WHICH THE CLUB MUST RESOLVE SOON.

I sit in Bristows Bench and know that seat allocation is a complete farce. The Club know it is a problem but choose to ignore it. Not good enough Mr Edwards. You as GM really should sort this out.

Just look at the Club Website under the heading "Tickets". It is laughable! This is what it says word for word.

"Season Ticket Holders if we have mistakenly put your seat up for sale, please let us know by [email protected]

This is the really ludicrous bit. When you click to choose a seat you click, as an example, Bristows Bench Block D.You are faced with a Plan of Seats in Rows the seat being a circle. If the circle is BLUE and filled it is not available as the Admin at TUFC think, only think, that it is allocated to a Season Ticket holder. IT IS NOT ACCURATE. Worse still the rows and seats are NOT NUMBERED. It is beyond embarrassing.

Every match people end up finding someone else in their seat. It is a software problem and it must be sorted.

[Gulliball]

For NYD I think it would be worth moving the 'segregation' netting over another block. I was on the popside today looking at the bench, and the five home blocks were pretty much completely full, but then you had 2 whole blocks of seats with about 40 people in them, taking into account that about half of their 83 stood behind the goal. I know this wouldn't have solved your particular issue today, but in general an extra block would make a difference.

I don't know how many staff the club have behind the scenes these days, but it seems to have been cut back more and more. I suppose if you can't get a coach to transport the first team to games, there's not much money for non-football staff and admin.

[Teigngull]

View 1 :-

please keep us informed to your progress with the club (of lack of it) , this issue obviously has stirred something with the fans (I'm a popsider, so have no clue how Bristow s bench allocated seating is policed).
Some clubs have a tendency to push issues like this to one side, let's hope you can report good news in the season of goodwill.
And if your reading this TUFC, nearly 3800 of us there today ! You've got to hand it to us , we're a resilient lot & without us , there's no point is there ? we go together like Rene & Renata , cheese & onion , Morecambe & Wise , look after US please & you never know you might get some good press out of it.

[DartShitehawk1969]

Unfortunately this is not a new problem.
I was a regular for many years in the mid 80's and early 90's and was delighted 4 years ago when my son wanted to go to TUFC and we have been to most home games since.We usually sit behind the goal but sometimes we sit in the bench and I always pay cash at the turnstile. When you pay that way you don't get a ticket and are told to sit where you want. If someone turns up who has a ticket for the seat you are in that's when it causes a problem.I have seen this many times especially in the bench.

[culmstockgull]

Thank you Willowgull for your explanation.you may have been one of those who had a season ticket and I apologise for any thoughts you may have got in for nothing. There were at least three groups who were fast tracked into the ground by this gate in the time I was queuing, I cannot believe all were season ticket holders, and anyway how long does it take to show your season ticket at the turnstile to be allowed access, five seconds, I realise our gate operators our paid by the hour as opposed to how many they can get in within an agreed time but all these small and minor issues taken in isolation may be unworthy of comment, taken together they show a systemic failure to handle anything more than the usual two thousand, the last time I saw this much chaos in the ground was Crawley in the FA cup. I would have hoped we had learned from that day.,

[View1]

Thank you all for your kind messages and constructive feedback.

I left my number with the head steward and the manager of the club shop asking for the chap in charge to make contact and gave them my mobile number. He was supposed to come and see me at half time but didn't bother and as of yet I have not received a call.

If I get no call tomorrow I'll email but the lack of response suggests they don't really care.

Anyway I've chatted it through with my son and we've agreed on the next game we will go in the family stand where the seating is less of an issue and I promised him we will move without confrontation if asked too as he felt the heated conversations were going to mean we get arrested!

I will let you know if I get any response from the club as its clear this is an ongoing issue.