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Well done the club! Even though it was the last game at the willows I think some of the reason we hit the 10,000 mark had to be due to it being a sunday afternoon game.

I understand that the corporate side of things brings in big money to the club. Especially after all the hard work Trish did in her stint with us to get it sorted.

However I do think that the club spouts on so much about getting bums on seats then throws away the chance to do it.

I look forward to hearing from the club when they are dissapointed that crowds are low as people get put of from bringing their families after being stuck in fri night traffic on the M60. This will potentially stop hundreds of supporters from other teams coming to watch their teams from clubs with known large travelling crowds such as Leeds, Hull etc...

Saturday evening would be best, just so long as games were moved when they clashed with Man Utd. being close to the Trafford Centre blokes could send the wife shopping then walk under the M60 to the game. This would mean no rush to get to the game after work on Friday, or no worries about having a few beers with the Sunday game and having a sore head on the Monday. And the corporates can still have their pre-match entertainment!

That's almost as stupid an idea as your normal every ticket should only be £10 posts!

I do agree that Friday night isn't ideal for your average fan. Getting to Barton at 7pm on a Friday will be a nightmare for most. Big fan of Saturday at 6.30 personally but I dno't know whether the corporates would have an issue with this. I just hope Salford have actually asked them.

Depends on which sort of corporate market they aim for mate - if it's generally people who are already Salford fans then the day is less of an issue but if it's to companies who wish to bring along clients etc then apparently it's much easier to do it straight from work on a Friday. That said, they don't seem to have any problem in getting corporate clients at Old Trafford regardless of daft kick off times, though I expect that's an unfair comparison.

The club always put money before fans I have wrote several occasions to the club and not had one reply that is why I won't waste any more money on a club that frankly needs all supporters it can get. The end of the day the franchise states you have to increase to stay in super league yet are club wants money more than supporters they don't even speak to supporters or answer letters. Sorry to say you won't get much support on friday night we have had friday nights for ages and gates have stayed the same. So why do they not listen to the average fan. They dint have the decency to contact me so why should I be bothered.
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Maybe they couldnt understand your letter so didnt bother replying!

On a serious note, yes the club puts money first because it HAS to. That way it can buy better players and build a side that people will pay to watch, therefore increasing attendances.

Whilst sunday afternoon would have been nice, we have to accept the club have taken the best decision for the club, and we need to embrace it!

Is it the best decision, though? Based on the impact Friday nights have had so far I'm not so sure myself. It's hardly led to a major improvement on or off the pitch.

To quote James May, "Oh c*ck!"

While I agree that Friday might not be best for some when are people going to stop using the lame excuse (Greater Manchester based people) that getting to the ground will be difficult. When has anyone seen excess traffic gone 18:00 on a Friday on the M60? unless there has been a mishap on the motorway the M60 clears a good hour earlier on a Friday.

As most fans will be coming down the A57 corridor that would have very little effect.
In theory the trip to Barton will be no more difficult than getting to the Willows.

I agree with the poster, It will effect our crowds considerably. The club should at the very least reconsider this decision for the Hull games.

To get to The Willows i have to get a train from Warrington to Manchester. Then jump on a tram to Weaste followed by a 2 minute walk to the ground. Easy peasy!! I still don't get home until gone midnight though.

Explain to me how, in theory, getting to Barton will be no more difficult then getting to The Willows for those of us who live out of town and therefore rely on public transport.

You get the 100 down the A57 and walk maybe 500 yards from the bus stop.
Is that not easier for you?

Because...? No reasoning there fella. I suppose football always struggles with its 3pm kick off times

Nope. The bus is not an option. I don't live anywhere near where the 100 goes so i'd have to travel to Warrington Interchange in the town centre adding extra cost and time to a journey that already takes an hour.

Plus from looking at the timetable the last bus home gets into Warrington for 19:31. You can see how that would be a problem.

Are you old enough to remember the UCP shops? UCP stood for United Cattle Products and they sold a lot of tripe, not as much as you come up with though.

Does a club that gives a free shirt with every season ticket put money before fans?

Does a club that has possibly the cheapest child season ticket,including a free shirt put money before fans.

Our regular party has a dozen season tickets and Friday night is the best for us as we can usually all attend the game,whereas on a Sunday due to other activities with the youngsters it is difficult for the majority of us to attend the game together, so we are better with the club going for a Friday night.

Friends prefer a Sunday but will still buy a season ticket and come when they can and whatever day was chosen some people will like it others will not, that's life.

With regards writing to the club, I have on several occasions contacted the club over various matters and replies have normally come quickly and on the odd time that a reply has not been forthcoming I have approached the person concerned personally and got the reply.

You are correct in that we need to improve our gates dramatically but we also have to increase the turnover to a figure above what we can do solely by increasing the gates and that includes the corporate side of things and if we can sell out the boxes and the dining areas there's another 1000 or so spectators before anyone comes through a turnstile.

Our recent gates have been affected by the rugby that we have played on occasions more than playing on a Friday night and hopefully the new coach and his team will improve this aspect of the club.

Get off at Irlam Train station and then get the 67 bus, job done!

Couldn't the club maybe pick and choose which day certain games will be on? For instance, Warrington and Wigan would be good games to have on a Sunday afternoon, whereas Harlequins and Catalans, who have little/no away following, could go on a Friday night.

You’re forgetting the corporate angle. This money is seen as more favourable to away support money. Why? Because it is controllable. The ideal situation for a club is where away support monies is just seen as a bonus rather than a factor in the business plan.

Ahh yeah. I thought a bit about this, having eg. Harlequins on a Friday so the corporate side can make their money. I think they should definitely still have at least of couple Sunday ones, such as for Warrington (if it isn't a Good Friday game), they can easily bring a couple of thousand fans.

Shame really, because I know a Friday night will make things more difficult for a lot of people, buses home in my case.

Can't see many families wanting to bring their kids on a freezing cold Friday night in February. Wouldn't mind Fridays later on in the season but would reckon we would get bigger crowds on a Sunday for the first couple of months, especially if we are aiming at attracting more of a family audience at the new stadium.

I can understand the club wanting money in through the corporate side of things. It does after all bring in large amounts of cash. However when it comes down to franchising one of the main concerns held by the RFL is the lack of numbers on the terrace. It has been singled out as one of the main factors which will influence our next bid.

No matter how you look at it the M60 on a friday night is gonna be much busier than the M60 on a sunday afternoon. The club and JW has stated in the media that they are also hoping to increase bums on seats via away numbers, as they felt large numbers were being put off due to the immediate area of the willows. So it doesn't make sense to make it just as hard for away support to come to away games when the thought of having to travel on the M60 on a fri night after both work and family commitments.

I honestly think the club haven't a clue about what they are doing. They say one thing then contradict themselves with another.

I personally don't care what day we play. Fri night is actually better for me work wise. I do however want the club to do the right thing and get the numbers up. And I think sunday will do that.

And stew argument against sat games. The club suffer bad enough as it is when united etc... are playing at the same time. So it's stupid to think that those Who go and watch united or city etc.... will then rush across to watch Salford? You will be putting the club up against opposition it can't win against on a weekly basis.

Were asking for a few thousand, were not trying to fill old Trafford!!! Saints and Leeds seem to get fans on a Friday night, so why can't we!

Saints and Leeds are good teams

. The best way to increase attendances is to win things. If we start to produce the goods on the pitch, I'm sure our attendances will rise quite significantly, regardless of which day we play on.

Think the answer is in the question there fella...