Season ticket holder and ClaretandHugh Facebook Group member Marion Boswell is bitterly disappointed that the Hammers have involved fans in an end of season ballot for tickets in the last Boleyn season.
Here she explains why!
By Marion Boswell
Firstly, I must say as a season ticket holder this doesn’t directly affect me. However, I do have friends with work commitments that meant it was not financially viable to purchase a season ticket, and therefore, at the beginning of the season paid £40 to join the Academy so they could purchase tickets when available to games that they were able to attend.
Yesterday, I received an email from West Ham inviting people to join the Academy in order that they can be entered into a ballot for the last three home games.
I cannot believe how unfair this is that people joining the Academy now have the same chance of a ticket as those that joined at the beginning of the season.
Mr Gold and Mr Sullivan, whom I admire greatly and have done so much for our club, please sort this unfairness out as issues like this tarnish the good name of our club.
Well said. Another unfair way of making money, like the charges for hanging on the phone when purchasing tickets.
I know someone who Renews his academy membership each year and has done for years. He’s pretty annoyed that some people who only became academy members at the start of this season have as good a chance of getting tickets as he has. He says people have only become academy members at the start of this season to get priority for Olympic stadium and also academy members didn’t have to pay ten pounds to join priority list but we’re on it automatically.
I am not sure that is true, there were 20,000 members last season but only 18,000 this season so it suggests the number of Academy members have reduced.
The number of season ticket holders increased to a record 26,000 so maybe many of these were former academy members who converted.
Well said!
I thought as much Shaun. And what’s the story with the Brentwood gazette? Every other day we seem to be linked with a new player that we neither need or want. It seems they link us with everyone from Lionel messi to Elvis Presley.
I agree! I live in Ireland and travel to at least one match a year with my two boys.We picked the home match against Palace and booked the flights only to find out that it was sold out before the general sale. Now the costs alone of the flights and the weekend are more than enough without the extra charge to become Academy members.
We now have to wait for returns, arms and fingers now crossed.
Although its disappointing not getting a ticket for a game when in previous seasons you could, and Hammerfish69 you must be gutted to make the journey and not get a ticket for a low cat game, i am amazed that fans are moaning when it was always going to be a sold out season, and with the success we are having it makes it even more difficult to get tickets. And a season ticket was the only way to guarantee a seat in the farewell season and a seat in the OS. This surely hasn’t come as a surprise as we all knew what was happening, personally i would never book my journey before i purchased an event ticket for anything, and the Academy membership was good marketing by the club, and if you paid £10 then you can stay on the list until a seat becomes available, although why you would join a list when its over subscribed i don’t know. all i can say is if the club gets its planning to increase capacity then these seats should go to on the day tickets for fans.