Question. Why did our attendances start to rise?

[Billy Bests boot laces]

I was asking this yesterday, and none of my wise old heads knew the answer.
Back in the 90s when I started regularly attending RH, we enjoyed crowds of 2 or 3,000 and were flitting between the 2 lower divisions.

Early 80's were just as bad, attendances plummeted by 1,000's compared to a couple of seasons earlier. Several reasons why, hooliganism was at it's peak, general apathy amongst fans, as crowds diminished at a majority of clubs in all leagues.
I even stopped going for 2 seasons between 83 & 85, as had more important priorities in my life back then!.
Remember going to the League cup 2nd rd game v Man City in Sept 86 ( ? ), crowd was a paltry 6,000!.

 

[Billy Bests boot laces]

Things looked great under Fry, didn’t they? Judas ****. Where would we have been if he’d stayed.

TBH the half season in 1993-94 season when he was here, before being lured by a potful of gold, was the most exciting 4 months of going to games imo since i started going to games in 1967!.
I honestly think had he stayed, we would have been promoted albeit for one season?.

 

[ColinMorrisWalksOnWater]

When I first started attending at the end of the '76/.77 season our gates were around the 5,300.

Conversations about football and the ambition of Southend and size of the town usually came to the conclusion that the club should have been in a higher division than the old div 4 and if a board ever had any ambition the club should be able to attain then div 2 level.

When we eventually achieved that under Webby, gates weren't that much bigger and we did stay there for 6 years.

that was six years for young children to be taken to matches, grow up seeing the likes of West Ham, Charlton, Derby and Sunderland on a regular basis for example, as opposed to the likes of Darlington, Doncaster, Rochdale, Northampton, Torquay and Aldershot on a regular basis.

I certainly started taking my daughter when she got old enough home and away and I think and I certainly have no scientific reasoning, but suspect the next generation came through and grew quicker than without us having that first stay in level 2 of English football.

The Tilly years I think, kicked us on again fan base wise and a mixture of all the points mentioned above in the thread as a whole, have contributed to get us to where we are now.

Even the Ron years and especially the last few, it is clear an amount of fans stayed away and have never stopped having feelings for the club, otherwise we would not have the level of support we currently have, across a far bigger age spread than maybe we have had previously.

If we can achieve success on the pitch, I believe we are well placed for the fanbase to increase further with the rising costs of following London based premier league clubs.

 

[Roger The Alien]

On this rate, we could be close to 9k crowds on Friday vs Braintree

 

[Southend Elvis]

TBH the half season in 1993-94 season when he was here, before being lured by a potful of gold, was the most exciting 4 months of going to games imo since i started going to games in 1967!.
I honestly think had he stayed, we would have been promoted albeit for one season?.

Those were great days under his rule, if i can remember correctly, Fry would use all his subs at half time, if things weren't to his liking.

 

[Billy Bests boot laces]

Those were great days under his rule, if i can remember correctly, Fry would use all his subs at half time, if things weren't to his liking.

There was a home game when he played Joe Allon (?) a striker on loan from Brentford (?), who he subbed after 30 mins!.
Likewise with Andy Edwards in an Anglo- English cup game.
When was the last time that happened?.

 

[Exiled Shrimper]

Those numbers are really strange, playing such big teams and numbers stayed quite low.

This is largely because attendances, in general, have risen since the 1990s. In that second-tier spell between 1991 and 1997, our average attendance ranking amongst the 92 Football League clubs was between 50th and 60th. That’s comparable to the 15-year period between 2004 and 2020 (generally regardless of being in the second, third or fourth tier), where it was between 49th and 61st in 13 of the 16 seasons.

The period between 1997 and 2004 is the outlier, with our ranking falling between 68th and 79th during this time. Our attendances fell due to the drop in league status from second to fourth tier, and some poor squads, and didn’t recover until the Tilson era.

Our average attendances were low in the 1980s, but that was reflective of a wider trend and football’s reputation at the time. Only in the mid-1980s, when we sank to our lowest league position (until dropping out of the league in 2021), were we ranked between 73rd and 80th; other seasons either side during that decade saw us placed comparative to our overall average ranking of 61st during our time in the Football League.

 

[WestyReturns]

1997/98 24th in L1. Goals for 47
1998/99 18th in L2. Goals for 52
1999/00 16th in L2. Goals for 53

Compared to then we are now higher in our division, actually competing for something at the end of the season and playing meaningful games (although I suppose we were playing to avoid relegation in 98/99) and scoring more goals than then.

Do you really miss the days of watching Ben Lewis, Sada N’Diaye, Simon Livett, Neville Roach and Gordon Connelly?

The football today is so much better in every way even if Saturday was a disappointment.

This week 25 years ago we drew 0-0 at Rotherham.

Mel Capelton in goal
A back five of Mark Beard, Nathan Jones, Simon Coleman, Leo Roget, Dave Morley.
A midfield of Carl Pepper, Mark Tinkler and Gordon Connelly. Up front Steve Jones (sent off in the 88th minute for a second booking) and Martin Carruthers.

No wonder crowds have tripled. It is three times better than that.

No doubt some poor players mentioned above but I'd guess that if our current lot were playing in Lg2 the football would be extremely poor.

It would be in their wildest dreams to have Nathan Jones career and Carruthers would look like Isaak compared to our our current crop of strikers.

 

[Strykr]

TBH the half season in 1993-94 season when he was here, before being lured by a potful of gold, was the most exciting 4 months of going to games imo since i started going to games in 1967!.
I honestly think had he stayed, we would have been promoted albeit for one season?.

It was glorious. Just took teams to pieces, pure flair and attacking intent backed up by a seriously solid defense and midfield.

We could have beaten anyone with that squad. I wonder if he ever regrets leaving, with his packet of sweets and cheeky little smile.....

 

[LCBB72]

It was glorious. Just took teams to pieces, pure flair and attacking intent backed up by a seriously solid defense and midfield.

We could have beaten anyone with that squad. I wonder if he ever regrets leaving, with his packet of sweets and cheeky little smile.....

 

[LCBB72]

I believe that he wrote in his book that Southend would of gone up that season into the old 1st Division , and he regreted walking out on Southend . All together now 'Karen Brady Is a W***e' .

 

[LCBB72]

There was a home game when he played Joe Allon (?) a striker on loan from Brentford (?), who he subbed after 30 mins!.
Likewise with Andy Edwards in an Anglo- English cup game.
When was the last time that happened?.

When he subbed Joe Allon , Judas said that he would never play for him ever again .

 

[LCBB72]

Early 80's were just as bad, attendances plummeted by 1,000's compared to a couple of seasons earlier. Several reasons why, hooliganism was at it's peak, general apathy amongst fans, as crowds diminished at a majority of clubs in all leagues.
I even stopped going for 2 seasons between 83 & 85, as had more important priorities in my life back then!.
Remember going to the League cup 2nd rd game v Man City in Sept 86 ( ? ), crowd was a paltry 6,000!.

Hooliganism was far worse in the late 60s early 70s and did not effect crowds .

 

[bluethroughandthrough]

Pretty sure when Barry fry came in and we were up the 2nd div now championship that was a draw. We've been living that dream to get back there now for 30 years

 

[WickfordShrimper]

Supporting Southend United FC

Should come with a Public Health Warning ... EXPECT NO GLORY !!

Hahahaha joking aside I been watching Southend play since I was 5 years old and today a young 57.

Honestly loved every minute of it and have no regrets at all, I love supporting my local club and I make it known to everyone in the room and where i go who I support proudly saying I yes we are little rubbish but its my local club ....

And when we do win I feel on Top of the World

I AM SOUTHEND UNITED SUPPORTER

And yes I am the other One as there only two of us ........ hahahahahaha

 

[Mad Cyril]

People have less money in their pockets.

Watching Southend is the equivalent of getting a crate of Luftwaffe Pils in from Lidl rather than going to an expensive pub or club.

Cheap but authentic.

 

[NZamba Legend]

A related question/s:

Would we have stayed in the football league in 20/21 if we'd been allowed to have spectators that season? Would regular home attendances of 5k have made a difference?

 

[Shrimp and two veg]

A related question/s:

Would we have stayed in the football league in 20/21 if we'd been allowed to have spectators that season? Would regular home attendances of 5k have made a difference?

Definetly i believe.

Look what this fanbase has done for these current sorry-arsed motherfackas!

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

No doubt some poor players mentioned above but I'd guess that if our current lot were playing in Lg2 the football would be extremely poor.

It would be in their wildest dreams to have Nathan Jones career and Carruthers would look like Isaak compared to our our current crop of strikers.

Yes, the football in L2 was very poor last time we were there.

Carruthers would have been an excellent fit for Maher’s side. He’s someone I’ve often compared Harry Cardwell to. I think Tom Hopper first time around as well. Those three had very similar playing styles and attributes.

I’d take Leo Roget as well.

 

[The Eternal Optimist]

There was a home game when he played Joe Allon (?) a striker on loan from Brentford (?), who he subbed after 30 mins!.
Likewise with Andy Edwards in an Anglo- English cup game.
When was the last time that happened?.

Joe Allon did not play how Fry wanted him to play so he subbed him and sent him back to Brentford