I do not contribute often to this forum, partly due to the supercilious attitude to new posters by some of the 'experts"
I fear the route that the Saints are on, I have been a season ticket holder for 10 years with a seat in the Tetleys stand.
many of the folk i sit with have been STH's for much longer,I was shocked to learn recently that all are not renewing their seats next year( 12 supporters).
Reasons
Inept management of the club and team, signings or (non-signings), old fashioned and clueless style of rugby, poor use of younger(hungry) players.
If we cannot beat sides like Worcester and newcastle, give the young players a chance, they surely can be no worse.
IMO the team sheet under the present management picks itself, too much dead wood and a lack of commitment among many players who do not warrant a starting slot in the team.

I understand their(supporters) frustration over the past 3 seasons, but do not see an end to the current malaise

I wish the saints well but will not be attending any further games this season.

Agree with a lot of what’s being said. The only thing I’m not 100% on is the whole play the youngsters vote. We did that in Dublin and got smashed.

Young Grayson immense talent, got smashed through on Friday. I think our issues are bigger than that and throwing youngsters at the situation will only hinder development and confidence

Sad to here that BobbyG, when real fans are so disillusioned like yourself, I for one do not see you as a lesser fan like some on here. I have not been posting because I would just be saying the same things that I have been saying.
I am so sad that I now watch Calum and Futuali (not sure of spelling) and cheer them on, as if they were still 'ours'.
I am at the point when I think 'our arry', Stevo, T, and several others should leave to further their careers.
A certain player achieving 150 consecutive appearances would be playing for his country given better coaching.
The empty seats tell the story.
Sad, sad, sad.
Remember Bath and Mike Ford? Newcastle when Wells was coaching? Cockers is different but all have moved on.

Although I have made a few comments/observations on this site over time,including the title of this thread,I feel,after watching the shambles of Fridays defeat to Falcons that I whole heartedly agree with comments by Bobby G.
My son,who was a STH till this season,bought a ticket for the game(having travelled down from the Wirral)and very sadly said to me on the way home in the car,Dad the whole experience of attending the Gardens has gone!!!
Having attended for many many years together I feel extremely sad that my own flesh and blood felt this way.
This only confirmed to me,as stated on here some time ago,that it will definitely,for what it may be worth to the Saints board etc,be my last season as a season ticket holder.
As a 71 plus year old I will spend my hard earn pension on watching my local rugby team,where blood,sweat and tears are the norm (the beer is good and cheap as well)
I will always be a Saints man but enough is enough.

For anyone worried about writing what they feel, don’t worry about it!

Most on here will respect your opinion and if they don’t, they are the ones not welcome. Not you!

This is what I’m trying to get across

Well said Bobby. Heartbreaking dissolution for many of us.

When I recall that not so distant time of 2014 when I watched Saints parade through the town and experienced the excitement, pride and joy following their winning of the AP in such dramatic circumstances, I can scarcely believe that in such a short time it has come to this. What on earth has gone wrong ? Well the various reasons have been expressed by many of us on many occasions over the last two or three years as we have seen the team gradually decline. Whether or not most of us are experts on the game, we the supporters are the heartbeat of an historic sporting club in our town and we deserve, yes deserve better than what is currently on offer. There have been other dark moments over the years I have been following Saints but I cannot recall any period when morale amongst us has seemed so low. We are all frustrated because we can't do anything other than express our dis-satisfaction, except to urge those in TEMPORARY charge to pull their fingers out and try to give us cause for optimism.

Well written Bobby. That is the reality of the current supporters psychology.

Something has to be done and sharpish.

Makes you wonder if anyone that matters is listening. No evidence of it.

The situation is certainly deteriorating fast at the moment and it is difficult to know what the solution is.
Reluctantly it probably IS time for a change of DoR and coaches. Why they have lost their mojo I have no idea but it does look like it has gone and will not be coming back any time soon.

But there are massive issues around changing them mid season and is it a gamble too far? Quite possibly. I think we are just going to have to accept that we will have a very poor season but should not be relegated.
My proposal would be to instruct Jim to bring on as many of the younger players as possible and really see what we have for the future. Some of the older players are long past their best and have lost some of their drive.

We have a new chairman and CEO at what is the most challenging time, perhaps, in the club's history. We would be better served giving them some breathing space to sort out all the issues we have than constantly haranguing them. They do not just have the playing side to deal with, but a serious financial situation as well.

It could be a bumpy 6 months but let's just get on with it.

I think the board need to know the supporters do not accept this current level of rugby and general feeling. The crowds, atmosphere and chattering will see to that anyway.

But look, John White knows this and he’s meant to be a good man. Mr Darbon is new, but seems switched on. Of course the rugby/passion/history etc side will be less easy for him to latch onto, especially since that side of the club has been ignored in recent years.

The key thing that has already been alluded to by other posters is that going to the gardens these days feels like a chore rather than an enjoyable hobby. A lot of people will only be going to try and get value for money out of their season tickets, to meet up with friends, or just simply to get out of the house.

For as long as I can remember, Saints have been a huge part of my life, the highlight of the week was always shouting the team on, feeling proud even when things weren't going right, from crying at Adams Park having been thumped in the 2004 semis, to relegation to the 2011 Heineken cup final, it still felt like fun.

I'm quite superstitious, and during my younger days it was very evident. For every 'big' game, I would always wear the same jeans, shoes etc. and always had cheeseburgers from the old burger van (remember the days before Fine Foods eh?) I was so desperate for Saints to win that I tried to help in whatever way I could, and would only deviate from the superstitions for games which were 'easier' or anglo welsh. This sounds silly I know but it just felt important at the time.

Nowadays, my hunger to help seems about the same as the players. There's no superstitions anymore, I spend half the game wondering why I'm there. When I went to university I thought I'd plan my weekend visits home around Saints home fixtures, and I do, I try to avoid them at all costs.

I'm exactly the same Saint at Uni, I live up in Aberdeen and would always try to combine going to a Saints game with visiting home. I'd only make it to 2-3 games a season, but I'd feel a real excitement about going. Now it doesn't even really cross my mind to look up whether I could make a game or not. The excitement is gone, the atmosphere is deteriorating, I find it hard to enjoy any sport when the ground is half empty. Even watching on TV I've lost interest. I used to plan my weekends around watching the game, or if I was busy I'd record and make sure I watched it later. Too often recently I've watched the games and wondered whether I'd have got a greater sense of fulfilment cleaning my flat. Now I record games and end up checking the score and never watching it.

Season ticket holders had the opportunity to voice their concerns at the forum a couple of weeks ago - a couple of questions apart, it seems the most important issues were beer and half-time entertainment.

I tnink that UniSaint has got the mood dead right, going to the Gardens is simply not fun at the moment and I say that regardless of whether we win or lose. Looking at Exeter's form, Quins game yesterday and Gloucesters confidence, I remain very unsure where the next league win is coming from.

I empathise with much of the sentiment on this thread. I used to drive 2 hours to FG and 2 hours plus back for every home game until the 2016/17 season. Slowly I had fallen out of love with the experience. The thrill of the contest slowly evaporated, and I lost the excitement of anticipation. The atmosphere became flat for me, negative at times, and ultimately an unenjoyable day out. I’m dissolusioned with where the club is headed, and sadly I feel disconnected from the club I’ve grown up loving. It feels a little bit like the club no longer cares about the supporters, and that becomes infectious. Could just be me though.

I empathise with much of the sentiment on this thread. I used to drive 2 hours to FG and 2 hours plus back for every home game until the 2016/17 season. Slowly I had fallen out of love with the experience. The thrill of the contest slowly evaporated, and I lost the excitement of anticipation. The atmosphere became flat for me, negative at times, and ultimately an unenjoyable day out. I’m dissolusioned with where the club is headed, and sadly I feel disconnected from the club I’ve grown up loving. It feels a little bit like the club no longer cares about the supporters, and that becomes infectious. Could just be me though.

Quote:

ElySaint
............The atmosphere became flat for me, negative at times, and ultimately an unenjoyable day out. I’m dissolusioned with where the club is headed, and sadly I feel disconnected from the club I’ve grown up loving. It feels a little bit like the club no longer cares about the supporters, and that becomes infectious. Could just be me though.....

No ElySaint, I don't think it is just you. There are many like you. Note all those empty seats. The worst aspect for me in all this is the apparent disconnect you refer to.

Are the supporters no longer important? Once upon a time, there were email addresses on the club website. Not any more. Just the one "contact us" form, and a telephone number for Sue Hewitt. Opportunities for commenting were removed rather than addressed.

No, the club is currently lost. Hopefully one of the bright young things brought in will acknowledge this and begin to do something about it.

Agree with pretty much all of the above. Times as a spectator were far more enjoyable/interesting even when we were battling relegation - why? Because it felt like we were all in it together - fighting as a club! Now it feels like a gulf between us and them. For me this was amplified by Jim’s terrible response to a supporters question of passion on display. Zero club culture appears to exist anymore and we could be on a seriously rapid decline from here on. When was the last time we had such poor attendances?!

I am so glad it's not just me.

I was with the club through relegation, so it's not just the fact that we aren't winning. There just seems to be a void growing ever larger between the club and the supporters.

I have bent over backwards for this club, as others have. I've travelled thousands of miles, taken days holidays from work to watch matches, arranged a wedding around our fixtures, bought shares to help the rebuild, turned down paid work to attend matches and paid extra for the privilege of being a First XV member to listen to the honesty of Wayne Smith and to help pay for the technical analysis that the club wanted.

This season, I've had a run-in with one of the managers at the club, who affectively called me a liar, when in truth it was the club employees that had lied to him... I had the evidence that I was right, so the manager backed down, but never had the class or dignity to apologise.

It's been a 22 year love affair that no longer feels reciprocal.

Quote:

BobbyG
I wish the saints well but will not be attending any further games this season.

That's pretty much how I feel too. I'm definitely not going to the next one. As I said on another thread "I'll turn up again when the team do".

12 months ago my main complaint about match day was the relentless negativity of a certain cohort of fans who spent the whole game whinging about the mistakes rather than supporting the team. Also heard a few things shouted that have no place in a rugby stadium which made me rather ashamed to be a Saints supporter.

Now it really feels like the relationship between the team and the crowd is broken. We are getting a reputation amongst other teams as a pantomime villain crowd who are totally one-eyed and spend more time booing than cheering, and it is deserved to some extent.

I can cope with Saints losing or falling short if the heart, pride & passion is there but right now with a few exceptions, it isn't.

The Saracens game did immeasurable damage. Not the first one, but the second one. The team were probably hoping to inflict some revenge on Saracens for the defeat at Twickers but they were completely outplayed and out thought for 80 minutes rather than 40. Way way worse than Twickenham. The fans started to walk with 10 minutes on the clock and the team completely lost its mojo to the extent that only the "development" AW side have won a game since.

I don't know what happened but most of the side didn't look like they had turned up that night. It was about the worst night I've had at the Gardens.

I've gone to every game since and supported the team, and they haven't delivered. The final straw for me was watching the breakdown vs Falcons and seeing a total lack of intensity and commitment from a pack 50% of whom were capped England internationals.

To an extent I feel bad for the players, but on the other hand they are not doing the club or the shirt or in many cases, their large salaries paid for from our eye-watering ticket prices any justice at all. Low on confidence is one thing, low on effort is something else - as I said, watch the breakdowns.

I've seen enough and they will have to sort themselves out with my seat empty.

I used to go to every game. Would arrange my life around the fixture list. I cancelled my season ticket this year. I watch them o the TV but I don’t really go to the ground anymore. It’s just not entertaining anymore.

That’s said I have bought a ticket for Saturday purely on the basis that the wife is away and I have nothing else on.

"It's been a 22 year love affair that no longer feels reciprocal."

Hard to disagree with that sentiment other than adding about thirty years to the figure !

The trouble is that it will be so difficult, no matter how Saints perform over the next two or three years, to get back the people who are lost now. Attendance is habitual and, once broken, habits are very difficult to re-ignite.

I made the long trip from Brancaster on Friday to watch the game, and brought along a mate for his 1st premiership experience.
I have to say it may be a while before I waste 7hrs of my time like that again.
the totally inept and flat performance rubbed off on the supporters and the atmosphere the players speak of in the pre-match video was non existent.
the amount of empty seats staggered me, and should serve as a clear message to the players, coaching staff and board, carry on as we are and we may struggle to fill one side of the ground for a match.
i couldcarry on as others have about skill levels, passion etc etc but I feel so despondant it's time to stop typing
on the plus side my mate who is a die hard wendyball man loved it, thought the whole experience was great, but like everyone was mystified about our inability to "smash" the falcons

I was going to buy Mrs WHS a half season ticket for Christmas, but now think that'll be a complete waste of money.

For the first time in over 20 years I will probably not bother going to the Ospreys game. If enough of us vote with our feet, there's even more empty seats, the takings will drop and then surely the bean counters that now run the club with have to take action?

BTW I'm a bean counter myself, but at least I don't pretend I can run a rugby club!

Been a season ticket holder for 12 years, so seen some good times and bad times. I have always believed that you stick with your team through the bad times and celebrate the good times.

However, after the dross I have seen this season I won't be renewing. I will go to the Casuals, watch my lad play for the 1st team, a team that is playing well and cares about their rugby. Plus buy a pint for a decent price.

Then on a Sunday morning I will carry on coaching the juniors, young lads who will give it 100% every game.

Saints have been on warning for a season but I've had enough.

---

Once a scrum half .... always a scrum half

I remember back to the last relegation, and the pledge. Don’t know if I could be bothered now - no one else seems to be that interested either. I would change management ASAP personally... a change would be a risk, but so is staying with what’s clearly not working now. The team is NOT clear of relegation yet in any event.

The first thing you have to do in order to solve a problem is to accept the fact that you do have a problem. According to the CEO, Saints ambition is to be the top rugby club in Europe; well, we all need dreams but eight defeats in nine games would appear to me to be at odds with that ambition and thus we have indeed got a problem. It seems obvious that a large number of season tickets were not renewed prior to the beginning of the current campaign; how many more will disappear if finish in our current position or worse. Last time we were indeed all in it together, this time there appear to be levels of disconnect with every facet of Northampton Rugby Football Club.

So, the first half of my start of the season prediction has been correct, in that we would struggle. Now it’s time for the second half.
That prediction was that we found our way after the euro games, started to string some performances together and with the arrival of broussow (sp) we found our confidence and aclimbed back up to 3rd by the end of the regular season.

We have been so bad of late that the only way to go is up. The players should be feeling raw - as raw as we do, and I think that this will act at the catalyst to change.

We have bucket loads of experience and I expect those seasoned international campaigners to show their mettle and prove that they are and always have been top drawer.
I want to see the team leave nothing out on the park. To give it all. To bleed for the team and to not go down without one hell of a fight.
I want other teams to come here and have to fight tooth and nail for points and to know that that they have been in a major battle by the end of the game.
But most of all, I want to be proud of what the team do, win, lose or draw. I want to be able to look at the annoyingly smug sarries fans around here and know that points against us have to be earned and not gifted and that we are a tough nut to crack.

Now, I’m not religious and I’m a bit old to believe in Santa, but come on lads, give us all an early Christmas present by showing us that you have it in you. Just like we all know you do.

COYS!!

My problem with the club, is that given the string of defeats, the many empty seats and spaces, and so many heartfelt comments from supporters with the club’s future at heart, there seems to be no real reaction other than taking the Facebook feed off the website and implying there are no problems. Saints in our DNA etc is all very well but marketing slogans do not win league points, only a strong, well organised and motivated squad can do that, and we currently don’t have one.