A Crawley Fan

[oldcodger]

After reading some threads posted regarding the up and coming fixture, I would like to give my perspective regarding ticket allocation.
Points made on average attendances this year are valid, we are not a well supported club in volume considering to the catchment area we have, however there are a significant number of die hard supporters that visit the Broadfield week in week out (and before that Town Mead) and have been doing for a number of years. Our away following is not good and never really has been, but again the quality of support is there. I remember travelling to Halifax in a 12 seater mini bus and that was the extent of our total support. (and we were beaten 3-0)
This cup run has attracted a lot of media interest and a large number of so called supporters have crawled out of the wood work and have eaten up our allocation of tickets . There are a significant number of supporters me included that have not been able to obtain a ticket as yet. This is due to the way the Club distributed and not the number of tickets allocated as a poster on a different thread rightly stated, it is the Club that is at fault.
I expect to a certain extent your attendance for this game will be a lot higher than usual.
We have a good team this year and are playing some decent football, I am looking forward to a good game.
As you, we would have liked a bigger club in the 4th round especially as we have dispatched Swindon & Derby, however I have enjoyed my visit to Plainmoor in the past and am looking forward hopefully to the game on Saturday. All I ask if there are a number of Crawley supporters who make a "mistake" and enter the home fans turnstiles, they will be treated as true football fans and given a traditional "true" football supporters welcome.
Sorry its a long post, suffering from verbal diarrhoea.

[Dave_Pougher]

Don't think you'll have a problem mate, try and go towards the away end in the Popular side and you'll be fine. Yes we have idiots but we have a majority of decents. Pop into the Boots and laces before hand and take up local advice as to where to stand if you like. Enjoy your day.

[Dave]

Firstly welcome to the site,i did try and point out on another thread that there many genuine Crawley fans out there,that have turn up season after season to support there team and stood/sat in crowds of 500-600 long before evans and fat wallet turned up.

It is a shame that you have been unable to get a ticket,and your club has not tried to make sure its long standing loyal fans have got there first before all these glory hangers on,when the magic of the cup has gone and the dust settled it will be you guys who are left.

What i would say is if you are thinking of coming down and going in the home end,do not wear your colours and do not celebrate if your team score's,if the stewards identify you as a Crawley fan it is likey you will ejected from the ground ,as said above the overwelming majoirty of tufc fans are very friendly,i would stand down in the corner by the away end,in the middle is where you will most of the diehard tufc fans.

[yellow]

Interesting suggestion Forza.

The baggage handlers will give themselves away with their long arms and bad posture. As for scoring – are you having a laugh?

[Dave]

Interesting suggestion Forza.

The baggage handlers will give themselves away with their long arms and bad posture. As for scoring – are you having a laugh?

Ah yellow me old mate how are you ?,had a visit from your drone fly the other day,nice to hear the therapy worked and you are once again wearing mens cloth's

Yep intresting suggestion indeed,i have time for genuine fans no matter what club they support,we do not have 5500 genuine fans,so whoever turns next week and pays there money is fine by me.

[gullsflyinghigh]

Not sure about you guys but I'd hate to think that, should the game be a sell out, some Torquay fans end up being locked out because there are Crawley fans in the home end.

If it's not a full house then I don't have a problem with it. As long as you don't start singing Crawley songs like the Coventry fans did in the popside a couple of years ago.

[bixieupnorth]

it wont be a full house, 4,000 much more likely

[GulldenBoy]

I think we'll be pushing 5,000 personally. Crawley have sold out their 1,200 odd allocation and I can see us getting about 3,500 home fans.

One thing to consider is that Crawley have requested more tickets and if the club thinks we won't sell out our end they might cave in.

Isn't there some rule in the FA Cup that you have to provide more tickets for away fans then league games?

[MidDevon]

At this stage of the FA CUP, the away team have to claim how many tickets they require. Torquay United were obliged to give Crawley up to 15% of the ground capacity, that is 825 tickets. The away team can obviously negotiate more than that.

Had Crawley only requested say 500 tickets, they would have had no right to ask for more tickets, as the request has to be made within 2 days of the draw.

Crawley have been very well treated by the club with a few hunded additional tickets given, for the prize on offer and the potential money, I, on reflection, would have just given them the bare 825 tickets required.

Having said that there is absolutely no may 1000 Crawley fans can even get close to being heard on Saturday

[jackospinking]

At this stage of the FA CUP, the away team have to claim how many tickets they require. Torquay United were obliged to give Crawley up to 15% of the ground capacity, that is 825 tickets. The away team can obviously negotiate more than that.

Had Crawley only requested say 500 tickets, they would have had no right to ask for more tickets, as the request has to be made within 2 days of the draw.

Crawley have been very well treated by the club with a few hunded additional tickets given, for the prize on offer and the potential money, I, on reflection, would have just given them the bare 825 tickets required.

Having said that there is absolutely no may 1000 Crawley fans can even get close to being heard on Saturday

Mid Devon, I have to disagree, our tickets sold out within 2 hours, we could easily have sold another 500 tickets on the day, if Torquay feel they couldnt give us anymore tickets then fine, but what i cant understand is there unwillingness to then make the match all-ticket for all fans, i just feel they are asking for problems, our Police Liason Officer has been in contact, amid fears of 500 crawley fans travelling without tickets, and the club dont seem to care, im guessing they are quite happy to "cash in" on the day ensuring a full house, with hundreds of crawley fans in the home sections

[Fonda]

At this stage of the FA CUP, the away team have to claim how many tickets they require. Torquay United were obliged to give Crawley up to 15% of the ground capacity, that is 825 tickets. The away team can obviously negotiate more than that.

Had Crawley only requested say 500 tickets, they would have had no right to ask for more tickets, as the request has to be made within 2 days of the draw.

Crawley have been very well treated by the club with a few hunded additional tickets given, for the prize on offer and the potential money, I, on reflection, would have just given them the bare 825 tickets required.
Having said that there is absolutely no may 1000 Crawley fans can even get close to being heard on Saturday

I can't see that would have made any sense at all. They will have the 'Away' end - so we might as well try and get as many of them in there as possible surely? What would be the point in giving them 825, and having wasted space around them? Because it's not feasible to fill the rest of that end with 'Home' fans.

With regards extra Crawley fans in the home ends - it'd be a liberty if we were going to sell out, but as we're not it's not that big a deal. Money is money at the end of the day. As long as they have good intentions, and don't take the p***, there's no great problem. Hopefully the performance and result is such that they're nice and quiet.

[GulldenBoy]

Don't forget that Crawley get 45% of the net gate receipts for the game so the more fans they have, the less money our fans are putting in their pockets!

[brucie]

Yes you are quite right - the unwilligness to make this game all ticket for all fans is quite frankly nothing short of ridiculous. Its about as ridiculous as away fans trying to enter the home end, which actually seems to be what you are proposing.
However peaceful your intentions might be, its actually asking for trouble. Do yourself a favour and act with some common sense - if you have not got a ticket don't travel.

[GulldenBoy]

To be fair brucie, I've done it on many occasion.

My family is originally from Sunderland so I follow them as passionately as TUFC but as i'm based in London I find it very difficult to get tickets for the away ends as Sunderland sell out their allocation to season ticket holders for most games. I've sat in the home end at West Ham, Fulham, and Luton for Sunderland games and you do have to keep your head down...although I was glad, when I forgot where I was at Luton and jumped up screaming when we scored, that more then half of the fans around me jumped up as well!

I have no problem with them coming in as long as they behave. Have we all forgotten how many games in the conference we mixed with the opposition fans with no trouble whatsoever. Lewes away was especially funny as the fans swapped ends at half time as well as the teams!

[brucie]

So as one of those who is faced with the prospect of a long drive, having to turn up on spec and hope I get in, I should be happy that oppostion fans should be going in the home end. You cannot compare this game with Barrow away at all.
Space is going to be at a premium, its going to be a highly charged atmosphere, not to mention the two tossers in charge of Crawley who are quite capable of starting World War 3 without any other help.
Its only going to take one idiot from either set of supporters) to start a problem.
Its just asking for trouble.