What's it like to see a crowd? Weekend Matchgoing

[Walt Flanagans Dog]

In a remarkable improvement in marketing competence Carlisle launched a campaign a few weeks ago to get an 8,000 crowd for tomorrow's game, imaginatively tagged #8kforMK. The key is that they've cut prices to £10 (£2 kids), again an improvement on their usual opaque 'offers. Backed up by an impressive social media / poster campaign it looks like they might actually pull this off (sales stood at 7000 yesterday lunchtime).

However, we never win in front of a big crowd, and the bars will be chaotic.

[HORN]

A similar-sized crowd will be at Rodney Parade for the visit of Manchester City, though the embittered Newport fans who missed out on tickets are bemoaning the extra five thousand plastics who’’’ve sprung from the woodwork.

[Ray de Galles]

Wimbledon's fifth round home tie with Millwall is unsurprisingly also a sell out and where I'll be. Interesting to see if The Dons raise their game as they did for the West Ham victory in the last round given their league form is still chronic (despite the first league win since Boxing Day at Walsall in midweek).

It's no replay and straight to extra time and penalties from this point in the competition from this season, no?

[seand]

Good luck with that one Ray, hopefully Dylan Connolly will hit the ground running (very fast). It's an ex-Dundalk derby with Shaun William in the Millwall camp!
https://www.theguardian.com/football...ed-this-season
No replays confirmed, which presumably is good news for Wimbledon? You hardly want a 'glamour' replay at The Den.

Dundalk v Sligo for me tonight with my boys while their mother and her Dad go to the other end of the country for Waterford v Shamrock Rovers. A mixed marriage, sigh.

[Nocturnal Submission]

If we're extending the weekend to the Monday then I'm off to the Bridge for Chelsea V Manchester Utd. I think the former is still rather shell-shocked by the humping at the Etihad last weekend so I'm not really sure what to expect, if I'm being honest.

[EIM]

I'll be flicking the Vs at NS from the away end on Monday night. We never win at Stamford Bridge. Our only hope will be if Chelsea's players continue this bold campaign to get Sarri the boot.

[Nocturnal Submission]

Hmmmmm, your record at the Bridge has been poor of late it's true, but I've witnessed at least two FA Cup defeats, one in the Champions League and a fair few in the league in recent years to your boys so I don't think that you're exactly cursed. Should be a cracking atmosphere though.

Not sure when you last came to a Chelsea game but a lot of the local pubs are now home fans only and ask to see your ticket. Weird, really, as there's no real trouble in the local boozers after matches as far as I'm aware.

[Ray de Galles]

The Chelsea v Man U Cup quarter-final a couple of seasons back is definitely one of the worst games of football I've been to in recent years. Granted this was partially because I was in the away end, though I can't imagine the home stands being much better. Gawd, I'm coming out in a rash just thinking about the evening.

[Gangster Octopus]

I should be going to Wealdstone v St. Albans City tomorrow, but my current track record of actually making it to matches isn't good...

[Nocturnal Submission]

The Chelsea v Man U Cup quarter-final a couple of seasons back is definitely one of the worst games of football I've been to in recent years. Granted this was partially because I was in the away end, though I can't imagine the home stands being much better. Gawd, I'm coming out in a rash just thinking about the evening.

Haha! Was that the 1-0 Chelsea win with Kante getting the goal? However bad it was I enjoyed it a lot more than the 5-3 defeat in 1998 when we were 5-0 down after a hour or so.

[Patrick Thistle]

I don't have any football plans this weekend. My Dad was trying to persuade me to go up and watch Shrewsbury v Burton, but it's a tank of petrol and six hours in the car and I'm knackered.

I might go to Goytre in the Welsh League if my mate is playing. Hopefully their clubhouse has BT Sport and I could stay on and watch the Newport game. Failing that it will be finding a pub and watching it there.

[elguapo4]

Bohemians v Finn Harps in the opening game of the league season, big crowd, big atmosphere, lots of new players to check out, damp squib nil all guaranteed.

[Ray de Galles]

Haha! Was that the 1-0 Chelsea win with Kante getting the goal? However bad it was I enjoyed it a lot more than the 5-3 defeat in 1998 when we were 5-0 down after a hour or so.

Yeah, that was it. Dreadful, dreadful evening.

I was only there because I was doing every round of the Cup that year from the Extra-Preliminary Round in early August onwards. I'd hit a problem in getting tickets at the quarter-final stage so put out feelers with friends and a Man U supporting friend made a great effort to get me a ticket with her but at the same time a Spurs fan turned up a ticket for their tie. Rather than appear ungrateful I went to both games on consecutive days and the Tottenham game was even more loathsome, sat amongst home fans singing about "Yids" for two hours while large chunks of Millwall's travelling support racially abused Son.

[jameswba]

It's the long-awaited (at least by me) start of the Slovak league's spring phase. To mark the occasion, the weather is truly spring-like (8 degrees and sunshine). The visitors are Spartak Trnava, who had an eventful 2018 to say the least ; they won the league in May, then got to the group stages of the Europa League in autumn. That campaign had barely ended when their owner announced that he and his money were leaving for Bohemians Praha.

So Trnava are in reduced circumstances, with an almost completely new squad, and no real ambitions beyond getting to the end of the season. They're supposed to be bringing 500+ fans with them tomorrow though, and that has led to Zilina's own rather pathetic group of 100 or so 'ultras' announcing that they are returning to the stands after a half-season absence.

After all that, it'll be a tedious 0-0.

[Billy Casper]

Barnsley v Wycombe

We lost away to them in mid December in what was our last poor performance before this current run. (And it was poor. Very poor.)

Hopefully we won't miss Kieffer Moore too much.

[Bermuda Iron]

FA Cup quarter finals weekend. On Sunday I will be at Somerset Trojans against Dandy Town Hornets. Trojans are bottom of the Premier, and only won their first league game last weekend. Hornets are mid-table, and a bit unpredictable, so could be a good game. No replays here either...

[JVL]

We're off to Ottawa for the weekend and we've got tickets for the 67s v. Kitchener Rangers in the Ontario Hockey League on Sunday. It's a family day event, as Monday is Heritage Day/Family Day (seems to have different names in different provinces) - the ticket mentions 'bottomless pop and a free hot-dog' so it looks we will be dealing with a 5-year-old on a sugar rush after the game!

[Artificial Hipster]

I'll be accompanying an army of travelling in laws to watch Norwich at whatever Bolton are calling their ground this week. The vagaries (I'm sticking with the auto correct) looked far from impressive from what I saw of their defeat of Ipswich on a dodgy stream last week and meekly surrendered top spot in losing at Preston mid week so I'm not sure what to expect.

[cantagalo]

Double header for me.

Notts v Mansfield. Early kick-off to stop people getting too drunk before the game.

Swansea v Brentford. A daunting 400 mile round trip but I’ve got Cup fever.

[Uros Predic]

Another FA Cup sell out crowd on Sunday as TheLikesOfDoncaster host the Premier League's Mike Dean, and Crystal Palace.

No idea what to expect, Rovers will probably try and go all out at Palace which could be incredible if it comes off, but could also be a disaster if we don't take our chances. Still, we're in the bloody 5th round, and the whole country gets a chance to see little James Coppinger... which means he'll probably have a rare off day.

In advance of that might take the edge off with a local game Saturday; possibly Lewisham.

[San Bernardhinault]

I don't normally get to contribute to this thread, but I'm about to go and see the terribly named San Diego Sockers in the Major Arena Soccer League for the first time.

It appears that "we" are top of the league: played 13, won 12, lost 1.

We're playing Tacoma. It's all the big cities in the MASL Pacific Division: Tacoma, Ontario and Turlock!

But the big deal with today's match is that it's the debut of... Landon Donovan

I have no idea how many players there are on the pitch, nor how long the match is. I have literally no idea what I'm going to go and see... It's a bit like going to watch waterpolo or handball at the Olympics.

[ursus arctos]

You may think the club has a terrible name, but at least they have moved on from the child abuse-friendly badge they had when I was going to every home game.

[jefe]

I don't normally get to contribute to this thread, but I'm about to go and see the terribly named San Diego Sockers in the Major Arena Soccer League for the first time.

It appears that "we" are top of the league: played 13, won 12, lost 1.

We're playing Tacoma. It's all the big cities in the MASL Pacific Division: Tacoma, Ontario and Turlock!

But the big deal with today's match is that it's the debut of... Landon Donovan

I have no idea how many players there are on the pitch, nor how long the match is. I have literally no idea what I'm going to go and see... It's a bit like going to watch waterpolo or handball at the Olympics.

4 15 minute quarters, 5v5 plus keepers.

[CY_Boaby]

Perth Glory v Brisbane Roar. Glory currently 7 points clear at the top, whilst the Roar are having a shocker of a season, being 2nd bottom with only 2 wins all season and have just lost their top goalscorer, Adam Taggart, who triggered a clause in his contract & has buggered off to South Korea. Brisbane could be on the end of a hiding this evening.

[Felicity, I guess so]

I’m already in Dumfries ahead of our match at Palmerston Park. Poor record against them and they have goal machine Dobbie, but our clear out at Xmas means at least half a new team so I’m looking forwards to seeing them