Mind the gap... between seat selections
A baffling technology snafu will leave hundred of tickets unoccupied at Bramall Lane tonight - surely there was a simple and predictable solution?
Sam Parry
Positivity…
I radiate with the stuff and have done ever since the play-off possibility became a certainty. These games are the memory-makers. But not for everyone, thanks to a ticketing oversight that’s just plain bonkers.
As you navigate the SUFC website to find tickets for tonight’s play-off semi-final second leg, you are eventually met with an encouraging blanket of grey - it’ll be pretty packed. But as the eye scans each section of the ground, a little red square marks a lonely seat. A single seat. All on its own. And they are everywhere.
Speaking after the 3-0 win over Bristol City, Chris Wilder said: “I think we deserve a full house at Bramall Lane.”
He wasn’t wrong. But I’m sure he never countenanced the fact that a full house is near impossible if you allow a football ground to become littered with unoccupied single seats.
If you’ve ever been to the cinema, or the theatre, or a gig, or a football match hosted by another club, such a thing never happens. How hard would it have been to prevent this, with the addition of a warning message when single seats were left over by punters making any selection they wanted?
You’ve left a single seat unoccupied next to your selected seats.
Please adjust your selection.
Perhaps I need something to moan about on the morning before the biggest game of the season so far, a bit of catharsis before the storm of nerves and doubts creep in. I’m sure that’s true. But it remains somewhat astounding that, as a club, we find ourselves missing the mark when it comes to the small details.
It can’t be that difficult to get a grip on ticketing, given that the crowd size and ticket demand are deeply predictable. The only thing more predictable is Sheffield United fans having cause to moan about tickets in some way. It’s not the fans’ fault, though. We should expect the simple things to be done at least as well as other clubs. Note to the new owners: This is basic stuff, and it shouldn’t be too tricky to get these kinds of things right in future.
Spot on Sam ⚔️