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Fan Zone (not my Scotsman column!)


baz

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6 hours ago, Squirrelhumper said:

Aye no bother.

Just like kids aren't allowed into pubs, hotels, restaurants etc where alcohol is sold eh? English clubs serve beer at the pie stalls.

Football clubs the world over have fan zones that allow kids and sell beer.

A frothy pint at the pie stall in England is the dogs Bollox :) 

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Some great input folk thanks, plenty of food for thought. The beer tent idea is probably the most contentious in some people's eyes but I think it would be necessary to attract guys like me (for lack of a better example). I like the global village thing that the council run in the town, being able to try some different beers and different food even for novelty value is a good thing, even better when we could change it up whenever we like.

I think the key is to keep it simple while offering a good reason to attend. I would like to think that both the football club and the licensing board would see the merit of trying this out, as has been noted there are many similar successful schemes already in operation and working well, there is no reason we can't give it a bash and set it up however we like it.

Video game idea is good, but it might be difficult outside, need to check out the logistics of that, live music also a probability, shouldn't be too much trouble for them to get their gear out of the ground if we are wrapping up at 2:30pm and they can shift it when the match is on as everyone will be in the stadium then and the Moffat area will be clear.

Transport idea is a definite one to chase, even if we don't get the go-ahead for the Fan Zone. We could be the first club in Scotland to secure some kind of deal in regards cheap/free transport and what we really need to generate support is to be innovative and try new things to attract people to Rugby Park.

I think we'd restrict it to home fans at the outset to see how well it operates, then if we got the okay we could roll it out to fans of, let's say more 'friendly' clubs whom we don't anticipate any problems from...that may or may not be an option, I think the match day commander would have the final say.

Sorry if I've missed any points, rest assured we will be going over the thread thoroughly and taking note of everything before formalising any plans...keep the ideas coming.

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1 hour ago, baz said:

 

Transport idea is a definite one to chase, even if we don't get the go-ahead for the Fan Zone. We could be the first club in Scotland to secure some kind of deal in regards cheap/free transport and what we really need to generate support is to be innovative and try new things to attract people to Rugby Park.

.

I think some clubs already have this, or at the very least subsidised. Celtic under McCann got their season ticket holders vastly discounted travel on SPT Trains.

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The licensing aspect is probably the greatest hurdle but having the club on board would make it far easier to have it approved. 

Essentially any Personal Licence Holder could apply for an Occasional Licence to hold the event but it would hold more weight if the club extended their own Licence for the duration of the selling period. This would have to be approved by the council. 

I doubt the Hotel has the same Licence as the club as they are separate entities now so it shouldn't  matter that we would be taking revenue from them. Having said that their could be political ramifications if they weren't consulted as I dare say they still hold a bit of power.

The Licence would analysed on the basis that an operating plan was put forward outlining capacity, planned activities and how you would deal with those intoxicated and kids. Pretty standard fair that I'm sure the club has dealt with before. If they've ever sold beer out with the stadium/hotel then it's already something they've succeeded with.

As for comparisons with English football, unfortunately, Scottish Licensing Law doesn't apply in the same way but in theory there's nothing to stop us applying for such a thing. 

There are a few hoops to jump through but by and large open dialogue with the club and council would be a fair bit more reassuring than listening to some of the nonsense spouted on here.

I think it would be a great idea before the game and kudos for attempting it.

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12 minutes ago, Piersquared said:

The Licence would analysed on the basis that an operating plan was put forward outlining capacity, planned activities and how you would deal with those intoxicated and kids. Pretty standard fair that I'm sure the club has dealt with before. If they've ever sold beer out with the stadium/hotel then it's already something they've succeeded with.

I wasn't at Rod Stewart, but I'd imagine booze was sold in the tea bars or at "pop up" bars underneath the stands - in pretty much same way proposed on this thread.  The club will have some sort of operating plan for events that can sell booze, having done concerts and SRU in the past.

Problem in my mind is; this is a match day, pre match and behind the Moffat is actually in the ground itself, past the turnstiles.

If there was an additional wall the turnstiles were placed in, closer to the Moffat stand - that wouldn't be a problem.

It'd be really easy to adapt the Moffat "pen" to include a fanzone area - you're talking one extra brick wall.

I've a mate who works at Hampden and the most arrests they've ever had at any event there was a Take That concert!

Scottish football fans, get unfair treatment in the stadium.

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5 minutes ago, RAG said:

I wasn't at Rod Stewart, but I'd imagine booze was sold in the tea bars or at "pop up" bars underneath the stands - in pretty much same way proposed on this thread.  The club will have some sort of operating plan for events that can sell booze, having done concerts and SRU in the past.

Problem in my mind is; this is a match day, pre match and behind the Moffat is actually in the ground itself, past the turnstiles.

If there was an additional wall the turnstiles were placed in, closer to the Moffat stand - that wouldn't be a problem.

It'd be really easy to adapt the Moffat "pen" to include a fanzone area - you're talking one extra brick wall.

I've a mate who works at Hampden and the most arrests they've ever had at any event there was a Take That concert!

Scottish football fans, get unfair treatment in the stadium.

No need for a wall. Tape off the stairwells and restrict access to the stands. Shouldn't be a problem if the event finishes at 2:30 anyway, just get the area cleared.

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I'm not sure the licensing board accept tape as a suitable barrier for guys that have had a few beers!  They're a bit unreasonable like that.  Besides, a 2:30 bar close is really 2:45 before you could start clearing up, as you need to give drinking up time to the punters present.  Piersquared sounds like he knows his beans on the issue anyway!

 

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10 minutes ago, RAG said:

I wasn't at Rod Stewart, but I'd imagine booze was sold in the tea bars or at "pop up" bars underneath the stands - in pretty much same way proposed on this thread.  The club will have some sort of operating plan for events that can sell booze, having done concerts and SRU in the past.

Problem in my mind is; this is a match day, pre match and behind the Moffat is actually in the ground itself, past the turnstiles.

If there was an additional wall the turnstiles were placed in, closer to the Moffat stand - that wouldn't be a problem.

It'd be really easy to adapt the Moffat "pen" to include a fanzone area - you're talking one extra brick wall.

I've a mate who works at Hampden and the most arrests they've ever had at any event there was a Take That concert!

Scottish football fans, get unfair treatment in the stadium.

If the stand was closed and the stairways stewarded I think this would be sufficient. By far the worst crowds to deal with are middle-aged women. Anyone that has ever attended a party night or gig of that nature will have a story to tell. Football fans would be far behind the darts/boxing crowds too.

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7 minutes ago, Killie1984 said:

From what I remember of the fanzone when we went to the claymores at hampden.

There was a beer tent with an outside area surrounded by a picket fence type affair.

Don't think kids where allowed in

Sounds minimum specification, but fixed barriers are important to get the go-ahead, as would be bouncers, ID checks on the door.

The more secure an environment you sell the booze in becomes, the less contentious a proposition it becomes.

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21 minutes ago, Caldow said:

What if this......what if that?

Decide what you want  - ask if you can do it.....take it from there.

Selling booze pre - match (kind of) in the ground is groundbreaking by Scottish football standards.

Fair enough a lot of whats been talked on this thread may be bollocks, but is important to put a right good pitch in, for whats a groundbreaking idea in Scotland.

5 years ago you wouldn't have thought the Green Brigade would have the only standing section in Scotland.

They did their background research and the terrace is German style flexible seating - had they lobbied for an old school terrace, they wouldn't be standing at games.

To be successful and break the mould, you gotta do the research.

Edited by RAG
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2 hours ago, Piersquared said:

The licensing aspect is probably the greatest hurdle but having the club on board would make it far easier to have it approved. 

Essentially any Personal Licence Holder could apply for an Occasional Licence to hold the event but it would hold more weight if the club extended their own Licence for the duration of the selling period. This would have to be approved by the council. 

I doubt the Hotel has the same Licence as the club as they are separate entities now so it shouldn't  matter that we would be taking revenue from them. Having said that their could be political ramifications if they weren't consulted as I dare say they still hold a bit of power.

The Licence would analysed on the basis that an operating plan was put forward outlining capacity, planned activities and how you would deal with those intoxicated and kids. Pretty standard fair that I'm sure the club has dealt with before. If they've ever sold beer out with the stadium/hotel then it's already something they've succeeded with.

As for comparisons with English football, unfortunately, Scottish Licensing Law doesn't apply in the same way but in theory there's nothing to stop us applying for such a thing. 

There are a few hoops to jump through but by and large open dialogue with the club and council would be a fair bit more reassuring than listening to some of the nonsense spouted on here.

I think it would be a great idea before the game and kudos for attempting it.

Worked fine for the rugby. I know football is different. We could do a big social media campaign/ challenge to try and fill the home end for the event.

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On 28/08/2017 at 4:34 PM, baz said:

The Trust Board have been trying to come up with some ideas for TIK events and also to improve the match day experience. One idea that we are currently trying to flesh out before taking to the Club is that of a Fan Zone in the otherwise empty Moffat Stand from 12:30-2:30 before a game. Its a bit like a mini open day with a couple of fun events, beer tents, food and music of some sort. We could have it themed (quite fancy an Oktoberfest style idea and invite our Kaiserslautern friends over) and as we'd be 'hiring' the area we wouldn't be tied to anything contractually that the club was, so we could bring in beers and food that would suit the theme. The weather is always going to be a problem and we'd just have to deal with that but there is no point in taking it any further until we do some market research and ask you, the fans, what you think of the idea and for your ideas as well...things which you'd like to see on offer and that you would support and come to Rugby Park early to see/take part in.

Magnificent idea and I've often felt that we should use that area for a BBQ, bouncy castle for the kids and a bar. Open the gates up and encourage people round.....have prizes to win tickets to the game (and only tickets to the game, nothing else).

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17 hours ago, RAG said:

Problem in my mind is; this is a match day, pre match and behind the Moffat is actually in the ground itself, past the turnstiles.

If there was an additional wall the turnstiles were placed in, closer to the Moffat stand - that wouldn't be a problem.

It'd be really easy to adapt the Moffat "pen" to include a fanzone area - you're talking one extra brick wall.

The Moffat Stand would be closed as with every other home game out with the old firm.

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7 hours ago, Squirrelhumper said:

The Moffat is shut though?

It would be usually, but if you're in the walled pen behind the stand and within turnstiles having a fan zone on match day - the Moffat might not be shut in the eyes of the licensing board!

The licensing board is stuffed with local publicans.  They may all think its a grand idea, or may behave like a protectionist organisation.

 

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