Calling ALL Margate FC supporters

[marksandwell]

The difficulty is not about Margate s performances or position, although we can all remember 1000+ when in the conference. However people will say in the "olden days" 5000+ would regularly attend games, it is purely Margate/Thanet people lack of get up and support, and parting with money. According to the 2001 census Margate had a population of 58,400 (Not sure where the boundaries were) so 1% of that is 584 people. So on most weeks we get far less than 1%. If you take Thanet as a whole Census states population 126,702. Take off the 2 that visit the team in red, that leaves 126,700 and 1% of that would be 1267 and crowd that Cliff, the players, and I suspect all of us loyal fans would welcome. So how do you get this population to turn up on a regular basis.

Discuss.

Edited December 10, 2012 by marksandwell

[Coffin Ender]

Winning football matches on a sustained basis, Mark, it's that simple. Everything else is gimmickry with no long-term benefit. Non-League Day saw us get over 500 but how many have come back? Obviously it doesn't help that Hartsdown in its current form does not lend itself to atmosphere...a problem made even worse by clubs like Wingate having just about no visiting fans at all.

 

Our next opportunity for a decent crowd is over Christmas (Cray and Kingstonian). Provided we emerge from the Whitehawk and Lowestoft games relatively unscathed, there should be well over 400 for Cray and 5-600 for Kingstonian (who will actually have some fans with them).

[dflman]

A whole raft of ideas should flow in from fans for examination and rejection or implementation. The key is cash flow of course. What, when and h ow can we improve that ? Who would make the decisions exactly ? Would fresh ideas cause an upset to that loyal band of hard working people from MISA. ?

[SteveB]

I think that the current climate would knock back many ideas and incentives unfortunately. There have been many I have thought about in the past (some of which have been tried) including giving pub landlords free admission if they bring five of their customers along who pay to get in, target the changing rooms at Jackey Bakers, Garlinge etc with posters and offers for Sunday League players, get MFC a more prominent role in the community making people respect the club more. The trouble is that if people cannot justify spending money on watching football, it is going to make little difference.

 

We are in a notoriously skint area and even when we had the successful times before, people did not start jumping on the bandwagon until late on. When we got promoted from the Southern League Southern Divsion our average was less than 500, despite some big attendances in local derbies and promotion rivals. Our penultimate home game only attracted 360 fans. When we won the Southern Premier two years later, the average up to Christmas was 365.

 

Once we get them in the ground and continue to play well, we generally keep hold of them but one poor run sends them away again.

[Coffin Ender]

Crowds in Blue Square South on Saturday: 320 at Basingstoke, 388 at Billericay, 200 at Boreham Wood, 378 at Bromley, 456 at Dorchester, 725 at Dover (but they are joint second), 251 at Maidenhead, 467 at Welling (joint second), leaders Salisbury had 704.

[Frankie100]

Lots of people make comments to me when I meet them in the street or the pubs about how they see that margate won again and that they are top of the table. All I do is tell them what their are missing for not watching the games and point out that there is a bar at the ground (that they can stand in to see the game if they say about the weather) and the cost of the matches

Got four so far as regular supporters but lots more still not ventured back.

Word of mouth and current supporters being vocal adverts for the club can help in a small way

[Broadstairs Dave]

Lots of people make comments to me when I meet them in the street or the pubs about how they see that margate won again and that they are top of the table. All I do is tell them what their are missing

Word of mouth and current supporters being vocal adverts for the club can help in a small way

 

Great idea, I believe this can help in a big way. Just one extra supporter each from all of us then ask the new fans to bring another with them next time.

 

It's then the turn of the team to deliver, as someone once said recently we are all it it together. Up the Gate.

[marksandwell]

A quick reasonable cheap Christmas present treat a friend to MFC game.

[Broadstairs Dave]

A quick reasonable cheap Christmas present treat a friend to MFC game.

 

And buy them some raffle tickets

[Coffin Ender]

A quick reasonable cheap Christmas present treat a friend to MFC game.

 

And if they don't like football take them to Southwood.

[Jeff Trice]

In the course of my historical duties recently I've spoken to 3 fairly elderly former supporters who said they'd go to games if there was a bus to the ground. Have wondered before if Stagecoach or whoever could be persuaded to route a bus or two past Hartsdown on match days.

[dannyriding]

In the course of my historical duties recently I've spoken to 3 fairly elderly former supporters who said they'd go to games if there was a bus to the ground. Have wondered before if Stagecoach or whoever could be persuaded to route a bus or two past Hartsdown on match days.

 

Im led to believe that changing a bus route costs a lot of money for some reason and I think that the neighbours might cause a bit of stink as well

[Frankie100]

The best we will get is the loop to Victoria traffic lights and the stroll through Tivoli.

[dflman]

I brought people to a game - we came early and saw a Premier League game in the bar so a few bob was spent there but unfortunately ours was the Maidstone one - they were not impressed to say the least and on the next visit arranged the timing so they arrived in the area after kick off to avoid coming. We shall see what happens on Boxing Day !

[Klewliss]

I am sure the rest of my fellow committee members, along with myself, would be pleased to receive any new fund-raising ideas for discussion. The only stipulation I would add, as the organisation's 'financial gate-keeper', is that suggestions do not come with the tag 'speculate to accumulate'. I'm sorry to say we do not carry any funds to enable us to operate in this way; what we raise goes into the club almost immediately.

It would also be useful if a group other than the hard-pressed MFC fans could be targeted.

I hope this helps.

[Wellsie]

See www.margate-fc.com for an official response to this discussion.

[Roseyboy]

I like the fact that this discussion has been started and acknowledged by the club.... Just that alone will raise a bit more publicity...

Is there a Facebook page for the club?