I see we are due to play Toulouse on Sat 24.

I am very concerned, that the crowd number will be very low for this game.
Toulouse will bring 20 at the most.

Will the crowd be less than 500?

What sort of crowds have you been pulling in this year? Obviously the points deduction must have been a hammerblow!

Usually just over the 1000 mark although it's noticable the lack of home fans there's been in recent games.

At the moment there's just so many excuses for people not to bother coming any more.

I think there will be about 350 at this game.

The RFL really needs to look at the atendances in the lower leagues, even for teams doing well they are rubbish. When i think back to the early eighties when i started watching the crowds were much better everywhere in the second division. My own team Donny used to get 1500-2000 at the end of the eighties, Swinton similar, Oldham 3-3500, i could go on.
I think we need to cut our cloth to suit the crowds we are getting now and only pay what we can afford.
I fear for the future with so many of the CC clubs struggling, not that the RFL Care about anyone outside of SL.

I wonder if a reserves game could be switched to allow a double header to try get folk in earlier.

It will be interesting to see if we get any new faces on a saturday.

The players are doing their best and anyone not impressed by sundays game must be crazy, just hope the stay aways make the effort too.

I think the club need a good crowd this weekend more than any other home game so far this season.

Not because Toulouse will bring very few, but I feel Gary will be shilling out some winning pay for the lads.

Prediction

Cougars 28 - Toulouse 12
Danny's record to continue to 51 games.
Jamaine to be denied his 7th perfectly good try of the season.
Crowd 778

Cars Clamped - Nil

I hoped the topic would have been how can we get the stay away fans back make it positive not negative.

Saying that the post has created debate.

I agree with Mickey we will beat Toulouse.

Im afraid to say that other than the die hard fans who turn up week in week out, the price of admission is a bit steep to attract new faces down. I know quite a few who would come down, but then when i mention the price, they assume im joking. Im just wondering what would happen if the price was dropped to a fiver say, for one game, ideally against the french on a saturday night, to see how many would come down. It would have to be properly advertised in the town and press though.

Cougardave has a good point but lets say for example the club did this and it had no real impact on the crowd they would make a substantial loss which no club can afford to do.

The idea is very good though would be interesting to hear view from club.

I can't make it that week as doing 3 peaks..... then again I should be done.....then again we pass through Keighley on train on way home....then again I would need a shower....hmmmmm

What we do know is that the Status Quo isn't working.

Any strategy to improve things will have an element of risk to it be it financial, alienating more fans etc.

It needs a detailed look at what worked when we and other clubs had 3-4 times more fans and what's changed since not just at club level but at the RFL.

Here's what factors I think are now different and could be changed for the better.

1. Very little for clubs/fans to aspire to as regards promotion to Super League.
2. Admission price have almost doubled in the last 15 years or so, wages haven't.
3. The "Rugby League is a family game" mularchy, it's killed the atmosphere in grounds.
4. "The Biff" when I was a kid I loved it when Joe Grima started a 26 man brawl every other week.Now they throw the book at them for it.
5. We don't play enough games.

What does everyone else think?

A nice idea but even if we doubled the crowd on this night the club would be out of pocket.

Not necessarily Mike

Twice as many people in the ground also means you're likely to double your revenue from merchandising, pints, pies, crossbar challenge tickets etc.

In theory 2000 paying £7 in is a lot better than 1000 paying £14.

But the figure quoted was £5 and our crowd would not double.