What happened to the atmosphere?

I don't think the club have helped by giving the South Stand the tag 'Family Stand'.

For the small area in the East stand that the club have designated for singing, the club have made this reserved seating for big games - which again doesn't contribute to creating an atmosphere (if you're stuck next to people who don't like or want to join in any singing you tend to just keep quiet so as not to get a tut or a dirty look).

After discussing this with some of my male early twenties relatives (in my opinion, the most likely type of group who would start any singing etc..), they just see a 'family' stand as a 'naff/uncool' place to be.

It just conjures up an image of sitting with a load of middle aged people with flasks, & kids with painted faces.

Also, from what I can see, the average age of our fan base is far too old, & there aren't enough teens, twenty, or thirty year olds turning up at games.

The West stand appears to be a place where OAPs go for a quiet afternoon & a kip when the library is shut. The East stand isn't much better (apart from the occasional 'Wigan, Wigan fingerpoint special' chant - why do they only ever join in one song?), & for the 'Family' South stand - see above.

The club seem hell bent on trying kill any atmosphere and discourage the type of people who are most likely to bring the passion and enthusiasm to try to create an atmosphere. Although I don't think you can artificially generate an atmosphere, the club could certainly put things in place to encourage a better atmosphere - just a few obvious examples off the top of my head (I'm sure there are many others):

- Get rid of the family tag in the South stand & all of its trimmings (face painting/kids club etc.. - or limit it to a couple of sections in, for example, the East stand).

- If one or two people want to bring a drum to designated areas of the ground, let them bring a bl**dy drum. They are hardly the greatest H&S risk. As far as I'm aware no one has ever suffered a serious injury at the DW due to a drum. Surely the stewards can manage to 'steward' this.

- Make the two sections of the South Stand nearest to the East Stand singing friendly areas (ie make it clear that anyone who doesn't like singing, drums, flags, people standing up more than usual - don't sit there), and ensure unreserved seating in that section for all matches.

If the club wants to reverse the current trend of an ageing fanbase, and the impression of watching Wigan at the DW being a 'naff/uncool/boring' place to come to where after paying your £20 quid or whatever, there is a chance you'll get moaned at for not sitting quietly while the game is on, or for accidentally knocking someone's flask over (surely these potential lethal weapons should be banned under H&S rules), the club needs to get serious about attracting a younger age group.

Also, it seems to me that every individual fan is responsible for their part in generating an atmosphere. I know it's not easy when it's a boring, one-sided game, or you can comfortably fit the entire away following in the seats that spell out 'DW' in the North stand. But it's a simple choice really. We can either choose to sit in silence, or make some noise/sing up. At Wigan I do think we generally have a mindset that we will leave it to someone else to create the atmosphere, or worry about what people will think if you start a tune off (or at least try to join in). I know many people may disagree with the above, but it's my honest opinion.