Ultimately moving to a new ground would be ideal given it's in the right location but my point of view both my daughters stopped getting season tickets due to lack of student discount something they get at most other grounds so pick and choose there games as do all there mates ,the vast majority of armchair fans really don't know what there missing this season so there's the problem for so many years we were gash , as for Bellevue most people listen to what's broadcast constantly told its a tip strangely I've stood at most grounds and bizarrely I see the grass and field it's what s on it that will bring people back in we need a successful team with a final

Wakey RU, name a Rugby Union club in this area that does well in the 80s they had a decent team and were probably the biggest club in Yorkshire, didn't Bradford Bulls contribute to their demise. Wakefield FC what do you expect? It would take years to establish a new football club, it'd love a professional Wakefield football club as it would make the stadium issues a lot easier.
If The club continues its progress on and off the pitch and stadium gets sorted we continue to add to our support and the club will get stronger.

Yes there were higher crowds in the Glover/Elston era, but the cost of a season ticket was much lower. So in effect we had a near on full ground, but unfortunately empty tills.

Maybe the costs of them do need looking at a bit, as they are higher than those of other clubs, but I would say snipping them rather than slashing the costs.

Its incentives thats needed to entice more fans to come in.

Mini packages, memberships that include other bonuses, getting out into the city more to promote the club. I even heard the other day about a super league club, that all season ticket holders receive a thank you from the club for their continued support. Sometimes that personal touch can go a long way in gaining new and retaining old business. Before the comments start, it wasn't Hull KR

Lets face it, unless you buy the Wakefield Express or have Sky sports then Wakefield Trinity do not exist in the lives / minds of the general public. Try it, do without those two sources of information and you will never hear the name of the club,let alone the sport of rugby league. Some of us are lucky enough to move in circles where the game is talked about but without mates and family who indulge themselves in our passion then how do the rest get to hear about the game? let alone our position in the league. I have always been a follower but in the late 70s I had other things to do and even for me, league dropped completely of my radar, and that included a time when Trinity went to Wembley. Glover had the right idea but as someone said, not enough money coming in.

I do sense the tide is turning slightly over the last couple of seasons with our continued success with people in general actually talking about the club again. There seems to be a little buzz in the pub, in the supermarket, around the town. I see more Trinity shirts than I did 5 years ago, there doesn't seem to be the numbers of Bulls or Rhinos shirts there used to be. Fans seem to be proud to wear their shirts, to stop and have a chat about the team. It doesn't seem much I know and whether it will increase numbers time will tell but I've certainly had a feelgood factor about the club since MC took over. We're heading in the right direction and as other posters have said, if we could only get some positive stadium news that would really give us a huge boost.

Maybe this should go on the stadium thread, but what happened to the deal offered by MC to the council regarding lending the funds then paying back with interest?

Spot on. The only time I hear anything about Wakefield Trinity other than Sky Sports and the local papers is in the pubs on match days, and that's because the people are either going or have been to the game. Compare this to Castleford where the whole town literally lives and breathes Cas Tigers 365 days a year.

For those saying that the only way to hear about Trinity is the Wakefield Express or Sky, where do you expect to hear about them ?

Maybe we should be trying to get some local pubs to show re-runs of games and perhaps they can advertise more but, in reality, it's down to the fans to talk the club up a little more and get our friends interested in coming to a game.

There isn't a magic wand here, although, some on field success would certainly help.

certainly winning the Super league Grand Final would go a long way to informing the Wakefield public that a professional sports team exists in the town. Looking around the crowd the other night it strikes me that the majority of supporters seem to be middle aged/ older men which suggests we need to appeal more to the younger population of Wakefield somehow.

I'm not 100% sure that a new stadiums the answer to Trinity s prayers. Playing wise the clubs on the up and seems to be financially sound that's two massive strides taken in a short space of time.
Season ticket sales are generally sold to out and out supporters Wakefield challenge must be to get more people to want to buy them and that will not happen overnight.
Incentives will probably need to be offered to your more casual visitor to the ground. All sorts of offers could be introduced 2 for 3 etc etc.
Bell vue although past it can be a great place to visit and I don't think that your more casual supporter minds it's dated facilities.
I think younger supporters need accommodating more and would be interested to know how many student season ticket holders actually purchased a full season ticket.
Would it be possible for instance to throw the gates open against Catalans and have a family fun day at the same time.

Hmmm, it would appear that way but I always hesitate to categorise a huge group of people. In theory, I cannot see any reason why the public of Wakefield would be any different to the public of any other town or city.
My feelings on attendances are as follows:
1. We look like we have a hard core of 4000 - 4500 judging by Thurs night attendances and the Catalans game when we are the only ones there. This is probably up on say 3 or 4 years ago but not by as much as it ought to be considering the past 2 seasons.
2. We are still in the middle of an economic black period; this we can do nothing about other than offers on ticket prices and we have been down this line before and the problems that cheap/ free tickets can create, though I do think we should do more to get young kids in. Our core support looks like it is ageing when I look around! We need to address this
3. The ground is the main issue. If you are not an aficionado of the sport but are looking for something to take up following or even an occasional visit, I am sad to say Belle Vue will put you off us. Bad weather I am sure knocks hundreds, if not thousands sometimes, off some games.
4. Marketing. I am not sure what the club does if I am honest as I live in Beverley so I might be missing local initiatives. But I see nothing in my Dad's letter pile in Horbury. Whilst I am sure cost is an issue, maybe we do need to target key groups. Maybe a bit of local market research if it hasn't been done already, is in order.

Just my thoughts. I don't think Wakefield folk are any more or less apathetic re sport than anyone else, personally