PompeyVillan Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Were you there Gen? The night Villa reannounced themselves to the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sellyoakvilla Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Hi general. Just a quick one Dissapointed with the programmes. Seems as if you paid the extra £2.50 just for the cover. There were less pages (30 odd, there are close to 70 in our premiership programmes) I know there's always been a smaller programme for cup games but it said on the Villa site that there would be 'in depth' analysis on Villa and the rest of the group...not exactly in depth is it? There were only a couple of pages if that on the rest of the group. Perhaps a scarf + programme combo at £10 for both would of been better. Also they sold out incredibly quickly. Perhaps this needs to be looked at for further special edition publications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy666 Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Last nights catering provision in the Doug Ellis upper was VERY LACKING INDEED. Upon arrival at 7.10pm there wasn't any hot food at all ! At around 7.50pm some steak and kidney pies turned up but that was it. At half time when I asked for a pie I was told " You're too late innit !"................ How can half time be too late for a pie or any kind of refreshment for that matter ? By this time there wasn't ANY food of any description available at all ! When you are paying £1.80 for coffee/tea/bovril I don't think it is too much to ask that the catering dept of our wonderful club gets their arse in gear and looks after the fans properly. We have a fabulously clean and tidy ground, a great team and manager and a great owner and staff but it is these little details on which any organization is truly judged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bromsgrove_avfc Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Hi general. Just a quick one Dissapointed with the programmes. Seems as if you paid the extra £2.50 just for the cover. There were less pages (30 odd, there are close to 70 in our premiership programmes) I know there's always been a smaller programme for cup games but it said on the Villa site that there would be 'in depth' analysis on Villa and the rest of the group...not exactly in depth is it? There were only a couple of pages if that on the rest of the group. Perhaps a scarf + programme combo at £10 for both would of been better. Also they sold out incredibly quickly. Perhaps this needs to be looked at for further special edition publications. I'd like to echo this. A big marketing push was made by the club promoting these 'special' programmes and all we actually got for twice the normal price was a programme half the thickness with a shiny stiff cover.They are not even limited edition as your going to reprint them and sell them in the club shop! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-krulak Posted October 24, 2008 Author Share Posted October 24, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. Yes, I was at the game and so was Randy. I spent time in all 4 stands during the game and was in two of the concourses during half-time. I saw the normal queues for food...and I saw people working at the kiosks doing their best to keep up with the requests. I saw polite servers who had smiles on their faces. Was everything perfect??? NO!!! At the same time, I continue to be convinced that Alison Plant and her Team are making big strides every game. There is NO doubt that our biggest problems come from the infrastructure itself...not enough room to move food in and out, avoid the huge queues and the packed concourses. We will eventually fix that problem. Still, I firmly believe that we are doing better and ask everyone to remember what it was like before Alison established more kiosks, hire more people and conducted more training. 2. MON was correct...Randy and the Board were very disappointed in the coin tossing incident. It does absolutely NOTHING for our reputation! When it comes to tickets for away games, especially in Europe, these sort of incidents (when tied to a specific Club) do not make things easy for us. It can also cause real problems...to include playing at a neutral site or closed games. We are not a bunch of thugs but when something like this happens, it does nothing for our reputation. Aston Villa has always stood for what is good in football...our reputation and our ethos and our tradition is very high. We cannot afford to allow one "knucklehead" to put this in jeopardy. If we discover who threw the coin, he/she will NOT be welcome at Villa Park again. Someone out there...a fan...saw who threw that coin. To date, no one has stepped forward to identify that person. 3. Rules dictate that a Club is required to provide 5% of their stadium capacity to away fans. I am sure that all of you realize that we always ask for an "additional allocation" for these Cup Games. Your Club does not just sit there and say, "Thanks for the allocation"...they try for as many as possible. We either get the added number or we don't. It is NOT something we control. The number of people going on the "official travel" is no where near the total number of tickets allocated. Simply put, a % of Fans who pay for the travel get the tickets...but, by no means, all of the allocation. Obviously these tickets are going to be very sought after...and when it is posted that they are going on sale, people need to hustle to get them. I wish we had more but we don't...we allocate them as fairly as possible whilst, at the same time, offfering a special package. The fans who take the special package are no less Villa fans than those who don't. 4. yes, we do have plans for Villa Park...MON is correct. We are not fully prepared to articulate those plans as yet because they have not been totally vetted and argreed upon. I have said on many occasions that we commissioned a study on Villa Park and will announce the results when ready. 5. A GREAT win last night!! The fans were spectacular...as MON and the Team have said. The atmosphere was superb! Thank you! I am at Heathrow right now and could probably "fly" to the US on my own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choffer Posted October 24, 2008 VT Supporter Share Posted October 24, 2008 Hi General, Long time reader, first time posted in this thread. I just wanted to add my name to the list of supporters who want to thank you, Randy and MON for all the work you put in for OUR club. We are truly spoilt to have you guys running our club and as someone who has been a regular visitor to VP for 25+ years, the changes during Randy's tenure have been nothing short of miraculous. I am sure you must get a little frustrated at the percentage of negative comments in this thread so I just wanted to try to redress the balance a little. It must be a little disheartening to know the efforts being put in on our behalf, only to hear gripes about issues where your hands are tied. Obviously, I'm not saying that these issues aren't real and don't effect our enjoyment, I just wanted to show my appreciation for all the work done to make our VP experiences more enjoyable. We truly are the envy of many other clubs and for that, I am very much thankful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sellyoakvilla Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Hi general. Just a quick one Dissapointed with the programmes. Seems as if you paid the extra £2.50 just for the cover. There were less pages (30 odd, there are close to 70 in our premiership programmes) I know there's always been a smaller programme for cup games but it said on the Villa site that there would be 'in depth' analysis on Villa and the rest of the group...not exactly in depth is it? There were only a couple of pages if that on the rest of the group. Perhaps a scarf + programme combo at £10 for both would of been better. Also they sold out incredibly quickly. Perhaps this needs to be looked at for further special edition publications. I'd like to echo this. A big marketing push was made by the club promoting these 'special' programmes and all we actually got for twice the normal price was a programme half the thickness with a shiny stiff cover.They are not even limited edition as your going to reprint them and sell them in the club shop! 50p off the next programme isn't exactly a generous offer too, is it? I expect the majority of people have lost the vouchers that were given out yesterday as well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulanddonya Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Gen I just want to duplicate what I said on another thread. Last night can just be summed up in an absolutely superb night of entertainment. The atmosphere (mosty) was great, the performance was great, the match was great, the result was great, You know, I sometimes whinge at MON, and honestly, I still question if he is the guy to take us that next step (but by god does he deserve the chance). But nights like last night, well, we couldn't even think of them 4 yrs ago - and I think we all should remember that. Thanks a million !!. Produce a league winning team on the pitch, and, for me, I don't care if all you offer is Pedigree Chum at £20 a tin for food !!! - Up the Villa !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Just a bit of back slapping here, i think we are entitled to it though. I live in Nuneaton, which is the first real town to the east of Birmingham, some 15-20 miles away. Certainly catchment area but not quite the beating heart of out fanbase. Just want to say how many Villa shirts i saw in the town centre today was superb. People are proud of the club again. Well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NulliSecundus Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Hi Gen, Havent really posted on this thread before. Here to echo the support more than anything, I know you get a lot of comments from people whinging about this and that but I think everything is pretty much perfect. Not everything is going to please everyone and I realise, you, Randy and the other crew are doing their best to make this club the best in the land! Queued up early this morning to get Sl. Prague tickets and got them, thankfully! Enjoy the flight home! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy666 Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Thankyou very much for your reply General. Keep up the good work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gort Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 What sort of attendance we looking at/hoping for; for the Blackburn game? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omariqy Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 What a great game and I'm sure you and Randy like us were proud of the boys display. But on a side note I have to echo the views above re the programme, I still bought the programme but I was dissapointed with its content considering the build up it got. Anyways enough of that keep up the good work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myb Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 was really looking forward to the game... arrived late, parked in usual spot at the top of the park, began to walk through the park then 3 of us got jumped out the blue by about 15 "brave" Pakistani lads. Missed the first half hour having to receive some treatment, could have been worse but not sure why i think that's positive!! As a note of caution apparently this is becoming a bit more common now for people who park around there especially when dark. Just be aware... General I posted this in another thread. Anyway, the police have been in touch today which is unusual i think (in the sense that there isn't much they can do after the event etc.) anyway, i get the feeling as it's something that may becoming a problem they want to pursue it and possibly begin evidence gathering. I was wondering if i should speak to anyone at the club at all?? Obviously a police issue in the main but i'd imagine the club would want to know if it's customers are at risk like this. Just a further note, the first sign of officialdom were some stewards outside the ground (Trinity Road/North Stand end) and there response was first class. Looked after us, got the police and made sure all was ok. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 General, are you going to deal with big JC personally? I wouldn't want to be on the end of a bollocking off you and Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleMissVillan Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 Hi General, Not posted before - but felt I had to today... What a fab night last night. Villa Park was buzzing - 2 great goals (nice to see - Gareth back on the scoresheet) and a message to Europe that the mighty Aston Villa are BACK! So thanks to MON, Randy and everyone behind the scenes that has helped us reach this major milestone in the MON revolution! My question is back to the UEFA Cup Special Edition Programme I'm afraid. I'd love to be able to comment about whether or not it was value for money - But I was one of well over a hundred fans in the Upper Holte that were met with the SOLD OUT signs upon arrival in the ground. I understand that some more are being printed and will be available from the Club shop.. but it really was a BIG disappointment NOT to be able to buy one on the night. So my question is how many programmes were produced? And will you be increasing the print run for the 2nd part of the special edition for the Zilina game? Oh - and just finally - some positive feedback for you about the Club shop in New Street. I went in before the game to get a new shirt - and the 2 guys in there were both incredibly helpful - but also really friendly. I ended up spending far more money that I intended to.. (I'm sure you're pleased about that!!!) - but it just shows... Good customer service does result in more sales! Thanks! UTV! 8) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-krulak Posted October 25, 2008 Author Share Posted October 25, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. To lodge a concern re. security, please contact John Handley at AVFC...he is the Head of Security and will take your issue and work it hard. He is a good man with a great relationship with the police. Let him know the problem and he will attempt to sort it asap. 2. Thanks to everyone for the kind comments made to MON, Randy and the Board. Believe me, I pass all of them on...just as I pass on those that have legitimate complaints. I have always said I look for the "good, bad and ugly" but it sure is NICE to get some of the good. 3. Programmes: We printed up the number we thought would be required but people purchased multiple copies per individual. The actual programme was not intended to have a bunch of extra pages and extra words...it was to "celebrate" our entry back into Europe against a team of great tradition and quality. I personally purchased one for each of my children...to keep as a memory...and carried them back to the US. If you felt that they were not worth the 5 quid...I am sorry. My sense is that 10 years from now you will look at the programme and be darn happy you purchased it. You were at Villa Park on a very special night and saw a very special result. One thing you should know, we did NOT make a bunch of money on the programme...the cover itself was very expensive to the Club. We were trying to provide the fans with something special...I am sorry there are those who did not feel we succeeded. What IS IMPORTANT is that YOUR Club tried to do something special for YOU, the fan. 4. Training day at Villa Park will really be something special!!!!! Try to get there!! It is free and will be a great time for children and adults. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettington_Nrake Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 General, first of all thanks for your honesty in awnsering questions. It really is appreciated. Just like to say if you can pass this message on to Randy and the rest of your board members: THANK YOU FOR GIVING US OUR FOOTBALL CLUB BACK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NulliSecundus Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 Yes definately. Fair enough about the programmes, its value will go up no doubt as the years pass! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salsa Party Animal Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 I have noticed John Carew haven't played any European game this season. I would love to see him bully Ajax defenders. Good result and game. If Randy Lerner were given a choice. Champions League trophy for Aston Villa or Superbowl for Cleveland Browns what he would prefer to win ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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