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McCarthy: I Can't Make People Come to Games, I Can Only Try to Affect Results
Monday, 18th Sep 2017 12:24

Town boss Mick McCarthy says he can do nothing to affect the size of Portman Road crowds other than to get results. Saturday’s 2-0 victory over bottom-of-the-table Bolton Wanderers was watched by only 14,164 fans, the lowest home crowd for a league game since 13,212 attended the 1-0 victory over Swindon in October 1998.

Following last season’s disappointing 16th-place finish and a 1.5 per cent price rise, season ticket sales dropped by nearly 2,000 to the high 10,000s, while struggling Wanderers brought only 337 fans to Suffolk for Saturday's match.

"In terms of the crowd, I can't make people come in, I can only try to affect results," McCarthy told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"We're in the top six with 15 points from seven games, which is way beyond any of our expectations when we started, mine included.

"I said I don't think we're one of the best teams in the league and we're going to have to be tough and belligerent and organised - and all those horrible things people don't particularly like - but we have got a bit of something.

"I try my best to create a winning team and a good atmosphere amongst everybody, and I think we've got that. It's the club that gets more concerned about the crowd.”

In order to try to address the drop in season ticket numbers Town reduced their matchday prices and introduced a new ticket bundle scheme ahead of the start of the campaign.

The Blues, who take on leaders Leeds United, who they trail by two points with a game in hand at Elland Road on Saturday, are next in action at home to Sunderland a week tomorrow with another Portman Road fixture, against Bristol City, the following Saturday.


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Blue_Moses added 12:28 - Sep 18
You've made them stop coming to games.
16

martin587 added 12:29 - Sep 18
With limited resources available,for me you are doing a very good job.Points on the board is more important.
Of course we all want entertaining football but we are doing the best we can with the players we have.
25

itfchorry added 12:31 - Sep 18
Trying playing some decent Football
19

OwainG1992 added 12:38 - Sep 18
I'd love entertaining football. That's not Mick's style.
He's certainly giving us better football than last season with a few goals. Keep it up!
16

eMeM added 12:38 - Sep 18
Just looked at whoscored.com stats. We are league leaders in.. number of opposition shots. We are second bottom in our shots. We have 47% possession on average. This is no joke, disaster football performance with lucky outcome. It won't last forever.
9

dangerous30 added 12:43 - Sep 18
When we cannot afford anymore players in January or next season due to poor gates. Let's see how we get on.
0

goat_man added 12:43 - Sep 18
Why are we always so negative? If we win a game in hand we would be top of the league. Why is there no mention of finishing in the top two after the start we've had?
13

ipswichben added 12:47 - Sep 18
Look at Crystal Palace. Tried to change style with players who couldn't and lost all their games with no goals scored. Two options for me: Mick in charge and we carry on as we are and play with a win at any cost attitude with the players and budget we've got. Or get Marcus to sack Mick, hire a new manager and £50 million to overhaul the whole squad bare 2 or 3 players.
8

evansblue added 12:48 - Sep 18
I miss the free flowing total football we played under Jewell and Keane.
Such a shame those days are over
28

Edmundo added 12:56 - Sep 18
REALITY CHECK. We're two points off top. Playing average to poorly and still winning most games is the form of most Champions. That and a never say die attitude. Sorry, we're not Barcelona and this isn't Fifa computer games.
27

muccletonjoe added 13:09 - Sep 18
Steps have been taken to re -engage supporters this season and it will have a positive effect in time. I do not think the league position or performances have lowered gates this season. The damage was done in the previous 2 seasons and will not be easy to reverse.
24

vanmunt added 13:16 - Sep 18
It's no surprise when you verbally belittle your paying customers they don't come back.
17

cat added 13:20 - Sep 18
14k for Saturday's game on the back of a successful start is worrying to say the least. What happens if we get a downturn in results, as MM stated, we are overachieving so this is probably inevitable, 12k maybe??
Another big concern for me though is the abundance of youth talent and current flair players such as Rowe & Celina getting overlooked, MM's hard to beat mentality can only accommodate 2 maybe 3 flair players at a time, cause as we know it's all about the hard work not the flair or the entertainment side of things. Collectively they won't get a look in IMO as he will always favour his hairy arsed grafters who put in a good shift over quality footballers. For the good of the long term future of the club, the youth talent coming through & the current flair players, he simply has to go before he fecks everything up.
15

baxter7 added 13:22 - Sep 18
Perhaps you stop playing so defensive at home against the bottom team you might get a few more to turn up
31

Bert added 13:25 - Sep 18
Funny how the anti brigade quote statistics which only suit their own prejudiced opinions. I like the stat that says we have scored the most goals except for four other teams. We all know that MM has limited options at his disposal so give him some credit please. If so called supporters don't like the open and frank manner in which he speaks perhaps they should look at themselves and ask the question would you like a Manager who hides behind his chairman.
1

Cakeman added 13:25 - Sep 18
There are a couple of concerning comments from our manager:-

1: I don't think we are one of the best teams in the league and 2: its the club that gets more concerned about the crowd.

If McCarthy doesn't think we are one of the best teams then how does that make our players feel!
Also McCarthy IS part of our club or at least should be.
All in all not very encouraging comments from a manager with his wealth of experience.
13

BringBackFinidi added 13:27 - Sep 18
This comment isn't going to go down a storm, but some fans really need to start getting realistic and stop blaming McCarthy for low attendances. The vast majority of fans are unbelievable fickle. MM has worked on one of the lowest budgets and to put us in a position where we've been 6th, 7th etc he was owed a poor season. We're never going to play fantastic football, we don't have the budgets to bring these kind of players in.

We all need to start enjoying the position that we find ourselves out. We've won 5/7 league games and if anything are massively overachieving. Wins breed confidence and with alot of first team players yet to return things can only improve.
7

BlueMachines added 13:29 - Sep 18
Martin587. I feel the exact opposite. My main issue with MM is he doesn't get the best out of what we have. We have players that will look forward and create but they either aren't in the team at all, out of position or battling the negative tactics MM imposes. We won't be world beaters, I can live with that. But I do expect us to be better than we are.
15

tempzzzz added 13:31 - Sep 18
You can affect the attendances Dino, you can resign and leave. If we got a more exciting manager who has us playing younger players and exciting, flowing football I'm sure attendances would go back up. I cancelled my season ticket last season, and I've been a to a few games this season so far but I won't break my back to go as I like to be entertained for my money.
8

evansblue added 13:33 - Sep 18
Crowds are down because its too expensive. If you are a town fan, and don't have other commitments then you will be at Portman road on a Saturday afternoon regardless of the type of footy we play if tickets are £20. I was there home and away under Duncan and the footy was awful but it was a relatively cheap day out and we went with zero expectation and didn't over analyze it.
14

ChestnutSe added 13:45 - Sep 18
Be interesting to see how the loss of the OAP discount for the 60-65 age group has affected attendances. As one of those affected if it wasn't for the fact I go with my mate and didn't want to let him down I would probably have told them to shove it. Commercially the club have not got a clue as regards ticket prices and arrangements for buying tickets
19

Westy added 13:48 - Sep 18
The embarrassment will come when we play Norwich in front of a half empty stadium on Sky for the World to see. I'll never live it down !
5

Dissboyitfc added 13:48 - Sep 18
Ipswichben that is the problem we dont have a win at any cost attitude, we have a lets not lose at any cost attitude. I wouldnt mind if he sets out to win games, sadly he does not feel its his job to entertain the fans.
19

TimmyH added 14:08 - Sep 18
Sooner Mick's gone then I'm fairly sure you'll see somewhat more entertaining games that coupled with the fact that a lot of supporters know we're going no where but staying in the Championship with him in charge.
Notice too how he just had to mention we were 5th which was well beyond 'our expectations' - whose? yours, the players, supporters, the board? and if that's the case there's not much ambition left so why is Mick still in charge?
16

Swn98 added 14:11 - Sep 18
You could sack Mick get a young progressive manager play exciting football get beat and relegated, Portman Rd will be rocking then.
-9


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