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Comment | Time Tells: Taking Stock Ten Years After the Marcus Evans Takeover
at 09:40:44
Hiltzkooler, I think you make some good points but I don't think this was meant as a nostalgia piece and you've missed the main point. The takeover occurred because the idea the club could be stuck in the Championship for any prolonged period was unacceptable. But as someone else also pointed out, while we've been stuck there a total of fourteen clubs have gone from League One or lower all the way to the Premiership. Many of those clubs are quite a bit smaller than us. I agree with you that ME is not the devil incarnate but you can't escape the fact that we have not realised our potential - dwindling crowds, much lower commercial revenue than 10 years ago, disrespected fans, uninspiring leadership..... If it can't be sheeted home to ME, then who is responsible? |
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Comment | Time Tells: Taking Stock Ten Years After the Marcus Evans Takeover
at 12:24:30
A well researched and well written blog. I agree that uninspiring leadership and contempt for the fans are the main reasons for the decline of the club. But I don't agree with the bit that says "All kinds of apocalyptic statements were made about how the club would inexorably hurtle down the divisions without a private owner". As I recall, there was some fear the club would drop into League One and possibly go into Administration again but this was seen as a worst case scenario. In fact, earlier in the piece the blogger says: "the Board led by David Sheepshanks formed the view the club could not simultaneously meet its financial obligations and build a squad strong enough to challenge for promotion to the Premier League". And that was exactly it. The club had recently been in the Premiership and the great days of the 1970's and early 80's were still fresh in the mind. The idea that Ipswich could be stuck in the Champrionship was unthinkable and so Sheepshanks and the rest of the board ran into the arms of Evans.
No one has a crystal ball but I think without Evans our league position would be no worse than it is now. Just before the takeover the club's financial situation had stabilised. A bit more belt-tightening was needed but we were drawing crowds of 22K to 23K and there was much more spirit in the team. On the other hand I don't think we would have had any real prospect of getting back into the Premier League unless something remarkable happened like finding a really good young manager and a few undiscovered gems in the lower leagues. The sad reality for more than a decade is that big investment from the outside is needed to get into the Premeriship.
If I had to vot in it today I would vote no. There's just been too much damage to our good name in the game and a total disregard for the fans. It was assumed at the time of the takeover that Premiership football was on its way and if Evans had delivered then a lot would be forgiven . Success these days is defined as being within touching distance of the play-off places. It's amazing how our standards have changed. |
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Comment | Time Tells: Taking Stock Ten Years After the Marcus Evans Takeover
at 09:58:04
What I find in interesting is that in 2005/06 when we finished 15th in the league our average home attendance was 24,252. In the last season when we also finished 15th our average gate was 18,266. This is an alarming decline of 24.7%. I know attendaces in the Football League have fallen in recent seasons but they have not been as dramatic as ours. This club has been in serious decline since the Marcus Evans takeover. We will not be able to compete until this is reversed. |
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Comment | Time Tells: Taking Stock Ten Years After the Marcus Evans Takeover
at 06:21:28
Sindre94, keep it up. The overwhelming majority of ITFC fans are thrilled there are people out there who are discerning enough to make a connection with our club. I have been a fan long enough to remember our successful era and hope that one day other loyal fans, wherever they might be, get to experience that excitement as well. |
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Comment | Time Tells: Taking Stock Ten Years After the Marcus Evans Takeover
at 13:13:16
Optimum pricing is a complex area in all areas of economic activity, including football. We know that demand for watching one's favourite team is inelastic. What we don't know is the extent to which it is inelastic because there are variables other than price that determine demand e.g. league position, entertainment value on the pitch, the general economic climate etc.
I would argue the club is being short-sighted in charging such exorbitant prices for matchday tickets. The club will obviously argue it generates more revenue when 8,000 matchday tickets are sold at £30(a total of £240,000) than, say, 10,000 tickets at £22(a total of only £220,000). But this overlooks the following:
(1) People coming to Portman Road will also spend on food, drinks and club merchandise.
(2) Lower ticket prices would make it more of a habit for fans to come to games and many of these will end up as ticket season holders.
(3) Clubs with high attendances attract the interest of corporate sponsors so in the long run lower ticket prices and the resulting boost in attendances would translate to higher corporate revenue.
Good judgement and common sense has to prevail because you can make all sorts of assumptions, build complex models and perform all kinds of analysis but at the end of the day you cannot “prove” that a particular price will maximize revenue.
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Comment | [Blog] Reducing Ticket Prices Is An Expensive Business
at 13:13:16
Optimum pricing is a complex area in all areas of economic activity, including football. We know that demand for watching one’s favourite team is inelastic. What we don’t know is the extent to which it is inelastic because there are variables other than price that determine demand e.g. league position, entertainment value on the pitch, the general economic climate etc.
I would argue the club is being short-sighted in charging such exorbitant prices for matchday tickets. The club will obviously argue it generates more revenue when 8,000 matchday tickets are sold at £30(a total of £240,000) than, say, 10,000 tickets at £22(a total of only £220,000). But this overlooks the following:
(1) People coming to Portman Road will also spend on food, drinks and club merchandise.
(2) Lower ticket prices would make it more of a habit for fans to come to games and many of these will end up as ticket season holders.
(3) Clubs with high attendances attract the interest of corporate sponsors so in the long run lower ticket prices and the resulting boost in attendances would translate to higher corporate revenue.
Good judgement and common sense has to prevail because you can make all sorts of assumptions, build complex models and perform all kinds of analysis but at the end of the day you cannot “prove†that a particular price will maximize revenue.
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Comment | [Blog] Reducing Ticket Prices Is An Expensive Business
at 13:11:29
Optimum pricing is a complex area in all areas of economic activity, including football. We know that demand for watching one's favourite team is inelastic. What we don't know is the extent to which it is inelastic because there are variables other than price that determine demand e.g. league position, entertainment value on the pitch, the general economic climate etc.
I would argue the club is being short-sighted in charging such exorbitant prices for matchday tickets. The club will obviously argue it generates more revenue when 8,000 matchday tickets are sold at £30(a total of £240,000) than, say, 10,000 tickets at £22(a total of only £220,000). But this overlooks the following:
(1) People coming to Portman Road will also spend on food, drinks and club merchandise.
(2) Lower ticket prices would make it more of a habit for fans to come to games and many of these will end up as ticket season holders.
(3) Clubs with high attendances attract the interest of corporate sponsors so in the long run lower ticket prices and the resulting boost in attendances would translate to higher corporate revenue.
Good judgement and common sense has to prevail because you can make all sorts of assumptions, build complex models and perform all kinds of analysis but at the end of the day you cannot “prove” that a particular price will maximize revenue.
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Comment | [Blog] Reducing Ticket Prices Is An Expensive Business
at 13:11:29
Optimum pricing is a complex area in all areas of economic activity, including football. We know that demand for watching one’s favourite team is inelastic. What we don’t know is the extent to which it is inelastic because there are variables other than price that determine demand e.g. league position, entertainment value on the pitch, the general economic climate etc.
I would argue the club is being short-sighted in charging such exorbitant prices for matchday tickets. The club will obviously argue it generates more revenue when 8,000 matchday tickets are sold at £30(a total of £240,000) than, say, 10,000 tickets at £22(a total of only £220,000). But this overlooks the following:
(1) People coming to Portman Road will also spend on food, drinks and club merchandise.
(2) Lower ticket prices would make it more of a habit for fans to come to games and many of these will end up as ticket season holders.
(3) Clubs with high attendances attract the interest of corporate sponsors so in the long run lower ticket prices and the resulting boost in attendances would translate to higher corporate revenue.
Good judgement and common sense has to prevail because you can make all sorts of assumptions, build complex models and perform all kinds of analysis but at the end of the day you cannot “prove†that a particular price will maximize revenue.
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Comment | [Blog] Reducing Ticket Prices Is An Expensive Business
at 09:07:41
Hermir 10, I respect Pablo's commitment and the love he had for our club. But I think many fans are overly generous when it comes to his real abilities. If in your eyes the season 2007/08 qualifies as a success because he scored 12 goals, then it proves my point.
I have to disagree with you about Malaga — they are hardly a powerhouse. They finished bottom of La Liga in Pablo's first season there and he also played for them in the Second division. He was released after scoring just 10 goals in 54 matches.
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Comment | [Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done
at 09:07:41
Hermir 10, I respect Pablo’s commitment and the love he had for our club. But I think many fans are overly generous when it comes to his real abilities. If in your eyes the season 2007/08 qualifies as a success because he scored 12 goals, then it proves my point.
I have to disagree with you about Malaga – they are hardly a powerhouse. They finished bottom of La Liga in Pablo’s first season there and he also played for them in the Second division. He was released after scoring just 10 goals in 54 matches.
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Comment | [Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done
at 13:27:14
This is a decent blog and there's definitely nothing wrong with a bit of nostalgia. But it shows how far we've fallen over the past 10 years that a very average striker like Pablo Counago can attain hero status. He had one good season in his first spell. When the club got relegated in 2001 he stayed put on his very generous contract while the club slowly went broke. They were desperate to offload him but I can remember Pablo saying: “I didn't put a gun to their head to pay me what's in my contract”. Afterwards he went to some unheard of Spanish second division side and hardly set the place on fire. Then Jim Magilton came along and offered his old mate another big payday at Ipswich Town. We would have done a lot better to invest that money in a sharper, more potent striker.
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Comment | [Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done
at 13:27:14
This is a decent blog and there’s definitely nothing wrong with a bit of nostalgia. But it shows how far we’ve fallen over the past 10 years that a very average striker like Pablo Counago can attain hero status. He had one good season in his first spell. When the club got relegated in 2001 he stayed put on his very generous contract while the club slowly went broke. They were desperate to offload him but I can remember Pablo saying: “I didn’t put a gun to their head to pay me what’s in my contractâ€. Afterwards he went to some unheard of Spanish second division side and hardly set the place on fire. Then Jim Magilton came along and offered his old mate another big payday at Ipswich Town. We would have done a lot better to invest that money in a sharper, more potent striker.
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Comment | [Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done
at 13:55:06
To say we need a change is to state the obvious. I agree with the main point of the blog that Keane's character flaws have let him down as a manager. A manager needs to be able to instil confidence in his players and Keane just doesn't have the qualities to do that. I cannot see him walking away because another walkout on his record would finish his career. |
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Comment | [Blog] The Art of Management: Why We Need a Change
at 13:55:06
To say we need a change is to state the obvious. I agree with the main point of the blog that Keane’s character flaws have let him down as a manager. A manager needs to be able to instil confidence in his players and Keane just doesn’t have the qualities to do that. I cannot see him walking away because another walkout on his record would finish his career. |
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Comment | [Blog] The Art of Management: Why We Need a Change
at 13:39:31
NorthStand — if this was just an isolated mistake then I wouldn't be calling for his head but attendances are the lifeblood of football. How can the fool turn up at an AGM and say how wonderful things are at Town because our attendances have fallen by a lesser amount than at other clubs when the statistics clearly show that we have actually suffered a bigger fall ie. 7%. A CEO has to be on top of details like that. Would the CEO of Sainsbur's or BP get away with something like that?
I think I see what you're saying about the debt situation. It has to be much higher than £36 million if ME is tipping in all the money that he's claiming to be pumping into Town. The problem is that the financial information is only coming in dribs and drabs and no one is really challenging ME and his underlings about what the real position is.
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Comment | [Blog] Spin and Statistics
at 13:39:31
NorthStand – if this was just an isolated mistake then I wouldn’t be calling for his head but attendances are the lifeblood of football. How can the fool turn up at an AGM and say how wonderful things are at Town because our attendances have fallen by a lesser amount than at other clubs when the statistics clearly show that we have actually suffered a bigger fall ie. 7%. A CEO has to be on top of details like that. Would the CEO of Sainsbur’s or BP get away with something like that?
I think I see what you’re saying about the debt situation. It has to be much higher than £36 million if ME is tipping in all the money that he’s claiming to be pumping into Town. The problem is that the financial information is only coming in dribs and drabs and no one is really challenging ME and his underlings about what the real position is.
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Comment | [Blog] Spin and Statistics
at 06:28:35
How can the CEO get something like that wrong? Either he deliberately gave wrong information to paint a rosier picture or he's incompetent and can't do simple maths. Either way he has to resign.
Did anyone else see in the EADT that they had parroted Simon Clegg about how Town's fall in attendances wasn't as big as most of the other Championship clubs? I thought the idea of the media was to challenge and not just take at face value everything they hear at press conferences and meetings. If the media swallows it of course we're going to keep getting spin. Those in power at the club will think: if we can fool the media how are we going to be found out by the stupid fans? Scary.
I'm not sure I understood the bit about the numbers not adding up. If the debt is only £36mil instead of the £40 mil odd that you calculated, that's a good thing isn't it?
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Comment | [Blog] Spin and Statistics
at 06:28:35
How can the CEO get something like that wrong? Either he deliberately gave wrong information to paint a rosier picture or he’s incompetent and can’t do simple maths. Either way he has to resign.
Did anyone else see in the EADT that they had parroted Simon Clegg about how Town’s fall in attendances wasn’t as big as most of the other Championship clubs? I thought the idea of the media was to challenge and not just take at face value everything they hear at press conferences and meetings. If the media swallows it of course we’re going to keep getting spin. Those in power at the club will think: if we can fool the media how are we going to be found out by the stupid fans? Scary.
I’m not sure I understood the bit about the numbers not adding up. If the debt is only £36mil instead of the £40 mil odd that you calculated, that’s a good thing isn’t it?
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Comment | [Blog] Spin and Statistics
at 07:09:24
I'm loathe to criticize bloggers because it takes an effort to put something up there but this is not a well-thought out, well-written piece. I tend to agree with those who said the article completely disregards the facts. It's more like a posting from someone form the Roy Keane fan club rather than a serious blog. I'm not one of those people calling for him to be sacked. But we have to call a spade a spade. It was Keane himself who said that any half-decent manager could get his team to mid-table in the Championship. What then do you call a manager who has had big money to spend by Championhip standards and has his team in relegation bother? Yes, he's harsh on himself at press conferences but that doesn't make up for his abysmal performance. |
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Comment | [Blog] Keane Out, Curbishley In? I Hope Not.
at 07:09:24
I’m loathe to criticize bloggers because it takes an effort to put something up there but this is not a well-thought out, well-written piece. I tend to agree with those who said the article completely disregards the facts. It’s more like a posting from someone form the Roy Keane fan club rather than a serious blog. I’m not one of those people calling for him to be sacked. But we have to call a spade a spade. It was Keane himself who said that any half-decent manager could get his team to mid-table in the Championship. What then do you call a manager who has had big money to spend by Championhip standards and has his team in relegation bother? Yes, he’s harsh on himself at press conferences but that doesn’t make up for his abysmal performance. |
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