Paul
Robert Lachowicz
Posts: 425
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Post by Paul on Oct 20, 2016 14:04:22 GMT
You may (or may not) have seen this on Twitter / Facebook but a few of us have gotten together to start promoting the idea of a 'loud block' at Nottingham Panthers home games. I wasn't going to post here due to the *ahem* reputation surrounding this forum BUT I figured that I may find a few 'loud & proud' panthers fans here regardless. What is this about?I've been a Panthers fan for a while now, compared to other barns & arenas, the Panthers & the Steelers have by far the most boring fans in the elite league when it comes to both atmosphere and chants, away fans almost ALWAYS out sing us constantly, even when they have 100~ fans in the away block. The introduction from this season is pretty much sorted, I think it's one of the best we've ever had (kudos to Ken & co for that). The biggest problem now is that during games, the atmosphere is awful, this isn't something Ken can fix alone. A few of us from the old loud block have been discussing and organizing a way to get more 'loud' Panthers fans into ONE block to create a new 'loud block' which will hopefully entice the louder fans to come over and get chants/songs going all the way through a match. We're in discussion with the Panthers to allow us to use banners/flags during the intro and to really push the boat out when it comes to the light show during the black out. Why?Block 17 was chosen because this block already has a loud following of season ticket holders, this makes our job easier as we only have to attract 200~ more people to the block in general. We wanted a season ticket block close to the home bench with as many seats as possible, this one fitted the description perfectly. We know that some people will not care, understand and may find it a stupid idea but we're just a bunch of people who pay for our tickets/season tickets and regardless of the result, we just want to enjoy our evening out at the Panthers and give our boys the support they deserve at home, other teams do it, so why can't we? We do not need drums or squeaky toys, just old fashioned voice boxes and our hands to make a difference to the match night experience. When?We are aiming for the home game against the Yorkshire Puddings on the 3rd of December in Elite League action. We chose this game because we knew the part time fans would be out in force, which means we need to be extra loud to make a difference in the arena. It also means that people can be ready to buy tickets in block 17 the morning they go on sale, hopefully we will see the block sell out in quick time and hopefully we'll start to see the difference game by game in atmosphere improving. #PanthersNation #LetsGoPanthers Facebook: www.facebook.com/panthersblock17Twitter: twitter.com/block17panthersSerious question. Will you also be setting up a block for those people who don't want to chant? Those who simply want to sit quietly and enjoy the game?
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Yotes
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Post by Yotes on Oct 20, 2016 15:42:24 GMT
Isn't that any other block?
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Post by ted logan on Oct 20, 2016 16:32:59 GMT
Isn't that any other block? Block 6 from memory. Only one season. Never again. It was the 'Mike Berube' season too.
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Post by texpef on Oct 20, 2016 16:45:40 GMT
Yes I'm intrigued.... manages to insult the fans, the forum and the Steelers in one post... Clearly we're boring fans! The cage has a reputation for being a bunch of uber-negative moaners. In reality it's pretty similar to the Facebook group with a spread of opinions, except here is more civil. Also I don't think we are ALL boring fans, but I think we have less die hards as a proportion compared to most of the league (I think we have more in absolute terms). We also don't encourage an atmosphere with things like singing blocks or clappers, etc... Instead we actively try to stop the singing block as with block 18. We are one of the oldest fanbases in the league so I suspect it has a fair proportion of fans that range in age and outlook from keen youngsters to old timers. From keen new fans to perhaps more cynical older long time ones (like me maybe!!!), to class all panthers fans even those on here as boring is like saying hockey is played by thugs, patently not true. Yes I personally am a fan who criticises the club when I feel shortcuts are being taken or I feel I am being taken for a ride but I would do that in most walks of life now. If I order a meal and its poor quality or I buy a tv and the picture is fuzzy I want accept it and I don't think I should when I pay hard earned out to watch a particular sport. Yes I personally have been that vocal fan who shouts and screams and goes to all the away games but now I am older I don't have the time or inclination so I leave this to others but this doesn't mean I am "boring" or I don't appreciate the skill on show I just choose not to come away with a sore throat. The same goes for the cage it has quite an eclectic mix of fans that criticise and ones that imho blindly defend the club to say we are ALL uber moaners isn't true. Less diehards is a difficult one because as one of the older clubs its those fans that kept it going when we weren't one of the big fish so you could say these are the diehard fans. It really does depend how you define diehard, if you are talking a younger fans who goes to all the away games and screams his lungs out then I think as a fan base we have plenty of those, if you mean still goes after 30 years, well we have plenty of those too. As for the "we actively try to stop singing" who do you mean by we because as fans we all pay our ticket prices and can do whatever we want within reason be that screaming or sitting quietly and no one can stop you doing it. If you mean the club stopping you singing, you cant blame the fans for that.
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Post by kievthegreat on Oct 20, 2016 19:21:59 GMT
The cage has a reputation for being a bunch of uber-negative moaners. In reality it's pretty similar to the Facebook group with a spread of opinions, except here is more civil. Also I don't think we are ALL boring fans, but I think we have less die hards as a proportion compared to most of the league (I think we have more in absolute terms). We also don't encourage an atmosphere with things like singing blocks or clappers, etc... Instead we actively try to stop the singing block as with block 18. We are one of the oldest fanbases in the league so I suspect it has a fair proportion of fans that range in age and outlook from keen youngsters to old timers. From keen new fans to perhaps more cynical older long time ones (like me maybe!!!), to class all panthers fans even those on here as boring is like saying hockey is played by thugs, patently not true. Yes I personally am a fan who criticises the club when I feel shortcuts are being taken or I feel I am being taken for a ride but I would do that in most walks of life now. If I order a meal and its poor quality or I buy a tv and the picture is fuzzy I want accept it and I don't think I should when I pay hard earned out to watch a particular sport. Yes I personally have been that vocal fan who shouts and screams and goes to all the away games but now I am older I don't have the time or inclination so I leave this to others but this doesn't mean I am "boring" or I don't appreciate the skill on show I just choose not to come away with a sore throat. The same goes for the cage it has quite an eclectic mix of fans that criticise and ones that imho blindly defend the club to say we are ALL uber moaners isn't true. Less diehards is a difficult one because as one of the older clubs its those fans that kept it going when we weren't one of the big fish so you could say these are the diehard fans. It really does depend how you define diehard, if you are talking a younger fans who goes to all the away games and screams his lungs out then I think as a fan base we have plenty of those, if you mean still goes after 30 years, well we have plenty of those too. As for the "we actively try to stop singing" who do you mean by we because as fans we all pay our ticket prices and can do whatever we want within reason be that screaming or sitting quietly and no one can stop you doing it. If you mean the club stopping you singing, you cant blame the fans for that. I'm slightly confused. I've NOT said we're all boring, I've said the opposite. I've not said the Cage IS "uber moaners", I've stated that is it's reputation (and that it is unfair and no different to other fora). As for the last bit, that is a bit unclear on my part. The "we" in that instance is referring to the club and it is about when they hiked the prices for the back of block 18 to that of the gold blocks.
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Post by Kovalchuk17 on Oct 20, 2016 21:01:10 GMT
Didn't this block 17 thing start up a few years ago and fizzle out?
Having seen a bit of Euro hockey, it's something they do well (often have 'fan blocks' or 'fan curves') but it's just not really a British thing. Don't want to sound negative as it would be great to see it take off, but I fear your objective may soon begin to resemble pushing treacle up hill.
I always feel a little alone in this thought but I don't think the NIC atmosphere is bad at all. Accepted that Boxing Day against Steelers creates a better & louder atmosphere than a Tuesday night against Edinburgh... but for an arena, it's generally good.
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Post by kievthegreat on Oct 20, 2016 22:00:12 GMT
Didn't this block 17 thing start up a few years ago and fizzle out? Having seen a bit of Euro hockey, it's something they do well (often have 'fan blocks' or 'fan curves') but it's just not really a British thing. Don't want to sound negative as it would be great to see it take off, but I fear your objective may soon begin to resemble pushing treacle up hill. I always feel a little alone in this thought but I don't think the NIC atmosphere is bad at all. Accepted that Boxing Day against Steelers creates a better & louder atmosphere than a Tuesday night against Edinburgh... but for an arena, it's generally good. There was a block 18 group which sat up the back of the block and did a good job. However the club then put the prices of those seats at the back of block 18 up to gold and promptly killed it off. Also you say it's not a British thing, but Belfast, Braehead and Coventry all do it, and possibly other arenas as well. In addition every football club has a stand, tier, etc... set aside for those fans. It's actually a pretty normal thing in lots of sports.
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Shaggy
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Am I a cynical idealist or an idealistic cynic?
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Post by Shaggy on Oct 21, 2016 9:35:06 GMT
We need a couple drums really, even Paws should walk around with a small drum just to go block to block and start a few chants. The Arena can hold an awesome atmosphere but there is far too many occasions when it's dead. Sunday for example, best Sunday crowd i've seen for a long time, almost like a Saturday night crowd, it was dead. Having it around Block 8-12 wouldn't be a bad idea but that's generally where Panthers dump their freebie recipients and 'schools' so vast chunks of Block 8 and 12 are usually sold a few weeks in advance. As Spik said though, if this catches on then expect a price increase of Block 17 next season. correct me if I'm wrong but I thought I'd heard the arena's policy doesn't allow drums in the arena, if they are allowed I'm all for them though. If the prices go up this time then the club are taking the wee wee and there will probably be a backlash Has it ever been established exactly who instituted the 'no drums' policy? I remember there used to be a three-way blame game... the Panthers, the arena and the Supporters' Club all blaming and being blamed by each other... not sure if we ever did get to the bottom of it. There is a problem with drums, however... not everyone likes them. I'm one of the GBSC drummers when we're away at the World Championships, and I know for a fact that there are some fans who won't sit anywhere near us noisy lot at the back because they don't want the drums banging in their ear all game - and that's a perfectly fair viewpoint. I know that I'd hate one right behind my season ticket seat at the Panthers, I do actually like to be able to talk to the friends around me for a start! (at least at the Worlds, we all tend to sit pretty much where we want, so the drums aren't as much of a problem).
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Post by wgray on Oct 21, 2016 13:28:56 GMT
correct me if I'm wrong but I thought I'd heard the arena's policy doesn't allow drums in the arena, if they are allowed I'm all for them though. If the prices go up this time then the club are taking the wee wee and there will probably be a backlash Has it ever been established exactly who instituted the 'no drums' policy? I remember there used to be a three-way blame game... the Panthers, the arena and the Supporters' Club all blaming and being blamed by each other... not sure if we ever did get to the bottom of it. There is a problem with drums, however... not everyone likes them. I'm one of the GBSC drummers when we're away at the World Championships, and I know for a fact that there are some fans who won't sit anywhere near us noisy lot at the back because they don't want the drums banging in their ear all game - and that's a perfectly fair viewpoint. I know that I'd hate one right behind my season ticket seat at the Panthers, I do actually like to be able to talk to the friends around me for a start! (at least at the Worlds, we all tend to sit pretty much where we want, so the drums aren't as much of a problem). No I personally don't know what the situation is and that's why I asked, i'd seen or heard someone say that the Arena doesn't allow them so I took that as gospel. I think if drums were incorporated they need to be used in the correct manner, it would really really grind my gears if someone was banging one constantly, non-stop during a panthers game, if they were used while we were on the PK, or when someone gets a chant going for example then that would be great, I don't see the point in banging one just to create background noise, they need to be used to create energy. I do think that it would be good if we could allow drums to be used when we do this thing by the way
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Yotes
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Post by Yotes on Oct 21, 2016 14:04:09 GMT
I'm a bit of a drum NIMBY tbh. Probably OK if you can ship them off somewhere in splendid isolation, but not going to happen with our crowds. You'd perhaps be pretty miffed if you were a long time block 17er and a drum suddenly shows up right behind you.
I don't really think they're needed in our situation either, the 17ers need to come up with stuff that will catch on, and is easy to pick up (easier said than done of course).
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Post by kezypanther on Oct 21, 2016 21:31:52 GMT
Have to agree, I dislike drums and think chanting/claps are much more effective. Especially if you can get the rest of the arena involved which is what this block 17 is for. Looking forward to seeing how well this block 17 turns out as I really hope it does work.
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Post by blockseventeen on Oct 22, 2016 1:13:44 GMT
We've got a couple of fans on board with us who will be buying tickets in block 17 who usually start the chants in block 3/4/5 so we'll have no shortage of chant starters, we're already on our way to designing a sort of leaflet which will explain what we're trying to do in 17 and also include the lyrics to the popular chants for newer fans that sit in 17. This all depends on if I'm allowed to place these on seats prior to face-off on the 3rd.
For me, it would be a success if the block is completely lit up with phone lights during blackout, we can keep a 2-minute PK chant going for the entire 2 minutes and that we can get a 'if you all hate the steelers clap your hands' chant going! Hopefully it'll be noticeable to the rest of the arena and the boys on the ice. The main thing for me is that the people in block 17 have a good time and want to keep coming back. I remember during the playoffs in block 8 in which the atmosphere was buzzing in the stands but the other side of the arena couldn't hear us. I didn't care that the arena couldn't hear us because I was having such a good time.
Thankfully in block 17, it's much harder for the Panthers to turn it into a gold adult only block (like they previously did in block 18) because it already has a massive bunch of ST holders and children sitting there.
ALL football stadiums I've been in, have a block or stand that the loud fans go into (lower bridgford, the kop, stretford end) and most hockey barns/arenas do as well! I think we're one of very few who do not. We don't need drums or paper toys, we just need our voices, our feet (front rows) and our hands!
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Chris
Jade Galbraith
Posts: 51
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Post by Chris on Oct 22, 2016 12:37:30 GMT
This all depends on if I'm allowed to place these on seats prior to face-off on the 3rd. Good luck with that one mate. Seriously though, I like the whole idea and hopes it works out well. The atmosphere is embarrassingly poor most of the time so it's great that you and others are doing this. Should be making it over to Nottingham for the Steelers game so I look forward to it!
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Higgy
Les Strongman
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Post by Higgy on Oct 22, 2016 15:53:39 GMT
I hope it works and certain people don't try and put a stop to it.
I did slightly cringe at chant sheets though,they aren't that complicated to learn!
I'd love massive flags on poles...but I know that would never be allowed.
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Post by blockseventeen on Oct 25, 2016 4:48:29 GMT
I hope it works and certain people don't try and put a stop to it. I did slightly cringe at chant sheets though,they aren't that complicated to learn! I'd love massive flags on poles...but I know that would never be allowed. The 'chant sheets' shouldn't be needed. Just an update for any one interested, we're attending a meeting at the Bunkers Hill on the 4th of November, this isn't just for the loud block but a meeting for all things Panthers and how we can help improve the organisation as a whole. As far as I'm aware, there will be Panthers representation attending so that it won't fall on deaf ears. You're all welcome to attend and get involved in the discussions. @npsupporterstrust on Twitter for more information. As for the loud block, we're trying to advertise to get people in block 17 previous to the 3rd of December but the main aim IS for the evening at home to the Sheffield Steelers (and every game after). Everything is going to plan, we have over 900 members in the Facebook group, many people already pledging to sit in the block and advertising it to friends/family, we have McGrattan / Paws retweeting block 17 images/videos and we've got our chanters in place to help us out on the night. We're going to try and hopefully get DJ Ken & Paws involved on match night somehow but I'm not completely sure they're allowed to single out blocks and such, we'll see. We're not expecting this whole campaign to be successful but we will do everything we can to try and make it successful, we are more enough just hoping that we'll see an improvement game by game and improve match nights for those of us who love to get drunk, sing and get involved in the game more, I'm sure the boys on the ice would appreciate it if anything.
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Post by Rob Scott on Oct 25, 2016 12:22:15 GMT
Hi everyone, Just wanted to post a quick reply.
The meeting on the 4th of November is about the formation of a supporters trust. Among the topics discussed will be relations between club and fans and match night experience.
We don't expect to have any formal representation from the club at the meeting.
Would be great to see as many fans there as possible.
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Post by pantherdman on Oct 25, 2016 18:05:09 GMT
Good luck block 17. The louder the better (and the bigger the score obviously).
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Post by panthersdave on Oct 25, 2016 18:40:11 GMT
All for this, just one request though.....
Please don't do that bloody "everywhere we go...." thing.
Please.
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Post by shmyrohdear on Oct 25, 2016 22:23:58 GMT
All for this, just one request though..... Please don't do that bloody "everywhere we go...." thing. Please. Sounded ace at the playoffs a couple of years back, i hope this is more tongue in cheek and not a serious request..
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Post by wgray on Oct 25, 2016 23:24:27 GMT
All for this, just one request though..... Please don't do that bloody "everywhere we go...." thing. Please. Sounded ace at the playoffs a couple of years back, i hope this is more tongue in cheek and not a serious request.. I enjoy that one as well, something different I feel
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Post by kezypanther on Oct 26, 2016 7:32:49 GMT
I liked that one as well.
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Post by panthersdave on Oct 26, 2016 7:54:20 GMT
All for this, just one request though..... Please don't do that bloody "everywhere we go...." thing. Please. Sounded ace at the playoffs a couple of years back, i hope this is more tongue in cheek and not a serious request.. A bit of both, first time around found it a bit overused as a result sometimes people didn't join in as much. When the whole arena joins then it's good, as with all chants.
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Post by jdizpt8 on Oct 26, 2016 8:00:16 GMT
Whilst we're on the topic of chants and singing along it'd be great if those who shout "we hate steelers" during the national anthem would do it in their heads, it's so cheap and cringe worthy
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Yotes
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Post by Yotes on Oct 26, 2016 9:21:10 GMT
Sounded ace at the playoffs a couple of years back, i hope this is more tongue in cheek and not a serious request.. A bit of both, first time around found it a bit overused as a result sometimes people didn't join in as much. When the whole arena joins then it's good, as with all chants. I always assumed Gary had given away a bunch of tickets to the local Cubs and Brownies? Can't say I'm much of a fan, but if you want a say I guess you gotta join in. I'm hoping for some new stuff, maybe a few player songs, for those that deserve it.
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Post by kievthegreat on Oct 26, 2016 18:18:06 GMT
Whilst we're on the topic of chants and singing along it'd be great if those who shout "we hate steelers" during the national anthem would do it in their heads, it's so cheap and cringe worthy But that's the only part I'd be willing to sing!!!!!!
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