Is there a middle ground?
There's been lots of discussion in the last couple of days about English Test crowds - they were loud at Edgbaston and are expected to be even louder at Headingley. Giles Clarke has told the fans at Headingley not to boo the Australian captain, and yesterday he was encouraged to do that in articles in The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mail.
And yet, Lord's has often been deemed too flat by players, with the recent increase in volume welcomed by many. There has to be a middle ground between the cricket fan of old and the newer lager swilling Twenty20 fan, doesn't there? There has of course been raucous elements and any cricket fan knows that if they want a peaceful day at the cricket they should try to avoid the Hollies stand at Edgbaston or the Western Terrace at Headingley - whether it should be that way is open to question but that's unlikely to change any time soon.
As The Guardian have reported, the ECB have openly agreed they have an issue to deal with when widening the games appeal while remaining true to traditional cricket supporters and (while of course I'd relish the challenge!), I don't envy them. How do you tackle it?
For me, I'd try and put in place come kind of "respect" campaign for the players on the pitch, but much more importantly on the supporters around you. It's really simple - if your behaviour is detracting from someone else at the ground's enjoyment, you've gone too far. By buying a ticket you must have bought into that and it needs to be firmly policed/stewarded for years rather than one season.
I hope there is a middle ground to be found that doesn't allienate traditional cricket followers in the chase for increased revenue....
1 comment:
A further thought - I quite like the idea of a "can't handle your beer?" campaign which makes those that go too far feel pretty small. Perhaps a jointly funded campaign between the FA and the ECB?
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