Why is the atmosphere awful at the Capital FM arena?

[titch]

I'll first admit that I've only been to 10~ games at home and a couple of games away as this is my first season following the Panthers. Why does our home arena with 6000+ fans sound quiet with no chants other than "Panthers or lets go panthers"? and being outsang constantly by away fans that have only half a block full of fans? I went to the Sheffield arena and the atmosphere was deafening, regardless if they're winning or losing, they're constantly chanting and getting involved, I don't want to sound negative but apart from the third period in the loss vs Sheffield a couple of weeks ago, most fans look bored, depressed, drinking SO much alcohol that they're completely drunk by period two that they sit the entire game hurling terrible abuse at the opposition players, etc.

It's quite embarrassing and makes me wonder what most fans are doing at the game? If I can notice it in the stands, I bet the players notice it too.. Sometimes, we may as well be just playing in front of no fans as there is zero atmosphere! The fact that tonight, our biggest noise we made was when Cam knocked an opposing player out and ended up on a stretcher...

Rant over~

[LUFC]

First post in awhile.

But there are a couple of reasons in my mind.

Gary Moran - Without going into too much detail on this man and his strangle hold on match day presentations etc. But the same old same old style he forces down the mic and songs played and overall dumbed down family feel he wants. Well it means noise is not really pushed how it should be.

Arena Itself - Having been to many seasons of football matches. NHL matches state side and to many other different sports venues. I have to say the atmosphere of the stadium on a match day is so dull. The arena feels neutral all the time. Other than a few banners on one side and the ice done to match the team the arena has no team identity. It's so neutral around the outside. On the concourse and the general feel is just bland. It has no real This is the Panthers home feel. It doesn't have any real "This is our place" feel to it. It completely lacks the "You come here and will have a hard time" mentality.

Overall package - It's all wishy washy family friendly, clappy clappy when the music makes you have to clap along style format. It drowns out any spontaneity about chants. Many times i've been there when a random chant is started by the block gang(not sure which block they sit now group) and there is a break in play and on comes something stupid like Kalinka and the chant is drowned out by a stupid clap along. Don't get me wrong. there is a time and a place for clapping at sports events. But it should be spontaneous due to effort by the team. Chances, saves and more. NOT some stupid clap along song.

There are so many other minority sports in this country that do match day productions on a shoe string so so much better. We could easily learn from some of them and how other countries go about it. In many ways i wish we would also drop the family tag from the sport as it really does restrict growth imo.
It pains me at times how lame the show is at the NIC these days. Probably why i choose to pick and choose matches now.

[ken]

Hi guys. I am the match night DJ/MC... If you are on Twitter best to follow me @kenpanthers for interactive tweeting during game etc.

I have to say I think awful is a bit harsh to be fair but everyone is entitled to an opinion and so I respect that.

I, like you want the atmosphere on match nights to be amazing and this is down to many elements but the best noise and energy is when the fans really get going (makes my job easy as there is nothing to do)...

I make a point of trying to listen for the fans chanting ( you will note that sometimes in a break I don't start music straight away) and if I hear a possibility that there is a chant happening I will let it get established.

Also I don't have Kalinka (not sure if you mean another song) it is not in my playlist.

As for the clapping songs, they are part of the game I'm afraid... They are a staple and I try to add other music around them... I aim to play a wide variety of music pre game and during breaks etc...

Many that have got in touch or tweeted will testify to the fact that if a suggestion is made for a track I do my best to use it and welcome suggestions on how I can encourage the crowd to get active. Please send them in I will always do my best...

If people want rid of the happy clappy type stuff they should have a word with the several thousand that regularly participate and enjoy the chants...

As for the fans that sit in silence and don't make any noise at all... Well they have bought a ticket and it is their right to sit quietly and enjoy the game in their own way, I don't buy in to the notion that for a good atmosphere people must be in a constant state of manic hysteria for 3 hrs.

As always the best atmosphere is spontaneous when something happens on the ice worth cheering.

Tweet me, get in touch and spread the word, and send in your suggestions, I will do my best as always to keep improving...

Best Regards and seasons greetings

Ken

[Higgy]

Last night the atmosphere seemed really bad to me, hardly any chants got going and when they did they were out of time and all over the place!

Maybe its the time of year but so many people were totally smashed last night,that may have been something to do with it...advantage/disadvantage of a city centre arena I guess.

It always seems to me the games where we have less fans 4-5k, we seem to get better chants and a better atmosphere,big games with more casual fans/freebies always seem to dilute the noise.

[texpef]

Might be to due with going behind 2 goals... again...

Hard to get enthusiastic when there is little to get enthusiastic about...

[wgray]

Dec 20, 2015 9:23:36 GMT Higgy said:

Last night the atmosphere seemed really bad to me, hardly any chants got going and when they did they were out of time and all over the place!

Maybe its the time of year but so many people were totally smashed last night,that may have been something to do with it...advantage/disadvantage of a city centre arena I guess.

It always seems to me the games where we have less fans 4-5k, we seem to get better chants and a better atmosphere,big games with more casual fans/freebies always seem to dilute the noise.

100% agree with this, when you've got idiots that just come to get blind drunk it's impossible to have a good atmosphere, which is why Sheffield games are so poor in terms of the atmosphere, the Sunday game where we played Sheffield however was one of the best games in terms of atmosphere I've heard for a while, everyone was chanting and it made the hairs the back of your next stand up, this was because it was a Sunday and everyone was there for a good game of hockey, not the beer

[The Flying Shirt]

Talking about drunks, did the idiot who threw the drink half the way down block 5 get thrown out?

[The Flying Shirt]

Dec 20, 2015 10:04:32 GMT texpef said:

Might be to due with going behind 2 goals... again...

Hard to get enthusiastic when there is little to get enthusiastic about...

This.

Also Fife used to have an amazing atmosphere but this year you can hear a pin drop there.

[texpef]

one of the best atmospheres I have witnessed was a semi final of what was the autumn cup versus Manchester, we had lost the first game by the odd goal, they were the massive spenders and we were the underdogs by a mile and if memory serves we went a goal down... sheer effort from the players infected the crowd which got the crowd behind the team and that spurred the team on ever more... Important point here though was the effort and rewards from that effort ie goals energised the crowd, imho it HAS to come from the players on the ice first.. If the fans don't see something worth cheering they wont cheer...

[Deleted]

The bigger the crowd then the worse the atmosphere. Far too many part time fans there for the 'big games'.

In these games it becomes the clubs responsibility to get the atmosphere going whether that be from the team or the entertainment.

[pantherdman]

If you want an atmosphere go to away games.

[cjmatt42]

The opportunity to really make something of the arena came last year after the trip to Hamburg. People on social media were keen to start a fan block similar to Hamburg for making noise and singing, I seem to remember block 17 was the initial aim. Upon getting to the arena that night there was netting placed over the seats at that end to try and stop it. Block 10 directly behind the goal should be dedicated to those wanting to get involved, unfortunately their seems to be a real reluctance to embrace anything along these lines, get a couple of hundred people who know they are there to make some noise and the rest of the arena will soon join in. At the moment those couple of hundred people are dotted around everywhere.

Having watched many a game in the DEL the Fanblock is the key. Guys with drums and loudspeakers lead a few hundred people to be the focal point. The rest self perpetuates.

I still think the poorly created and edited entrance videos of recent years are a big problem, they simply don't inspire enthusiasm.

The final thing I'd like to see us try inspired from Germany is the announcement of the team. This is done by the announcer just shouting first names with the crowd doing surnames, gets the fan participation level going before the players have entered the ice. It's easy enough to do, the names of players are on the board, newbies can't fail to understand. Any every trip to Germany I've never had a problem understanding this!

[kievthegreat]

I suggested to Ken on Twitter that they should play Thunderstruck for the intro but with the "thunder" edited out so the crowd could fill with "Panthers". Simple, easy to pick up and should keep them more interested then at present when we're all just praying it will end.

However the big one for me is a singing block. It's a must. And the club should be actively encouraging rather than making it more difficult. If it wasn't for the ridiculous £20 each ST relocation fee and the fact that you'll have people who've paid for gold/silver potentially moving to a cheaper area thus wasting money, I'd urge people to move now.

[jdizpt8]

I think the atmosphere is down to s few things, the arena itself is a comfy place to be and its a good temperature and you kids relax into the seats abit too much, the old rink with the wooden benches and being crazy cold made you want to get up clap shout move do anything to warm up and not get splinters!

Secondly the family nicey nicey gets pushed far too much, I've never been a fan of asking the away fans to make noise, announcing them onto the ice or the man of the match, been to a few NHL games and the away team are never mentioned, come out in the dark aren't thanked fans are given anything to raise their voices and when the games done they're gone.

Thirdly I think we need to look at the fans, a lot of them are quite old and are happy to sit and watch and clap along. We don't have the biggest song book either and as much as I hate to be near one a drummer can get anything going. Went to a Peterborough phantoms games and then sing pretty much straight through and the drummer just goes and goes.

Finally I think it's down to everyone to get up and shout, get a chant going, shout at the boys, boo the away team ect. We need to do more

[P.G.F.I.]

There is so many things while it lacks atmosphere, the big thing is the match night presentation.
No offence to the ice skaters during the intervals but we need something else that gets the crowd involved and during the game, maybe giveaways via Paws or something.

Music is actually decent at times but sometimes it's too low to get pumped up, the intro and before needs more pump you up music.

It's really poor our match night presentation, but credit to Ken for trying to get the crowd going before the team comes out and during the games.

Sheffield even though it's cheesy at times has it right.

[Mark]

Going two goals down early doors does indeed suck the life out of the building. Shame it's becoming such a habit.

[blackpanther2011]

I've been a Panthers fan for going on 18+ years and seen cracking games at both the Ice Stadium and the NIC over the years. One thing I noticed is that when we get behind by 2 or more life gets sucked out. One thing which is missing in my opinion is the old pipe organ. Now that is what the Ice Stadium had which was excellent and the atmosphere was much better than it is now. I mean by that is that the organist would watch the game and play the music according to the tempo of the game he would play quick tempo songs when we're playing well and slow when we her a bit down which got the crowd going. Hopefully which time it'll get better but doubt it

[iginla]

Banning mobile phones whilst the game is in play would be a good start......because every time I glance around 40% of the crowd are messing around with one !!!!!!!!

[whiskey1]

Which clearly isn't going to happen iginla.

I like the idea of the organist!

[iginla]

Well I know that Whiskey1 but it's true,you have a look at the next game.

The atmosphere comes from the ice,you can have the best entry video in the world and the best DJ too but that means nothing when the game starts,the only time the Panthers crowd gets going is when we put the opposition under sustained pressure and keep them there.

It's the same in Sheffield and Belfast,but I do think a lot of Panthers fans just sit on their hands and react like zombies even when we score.
There must be 10 or 15 fans in the immediate vicinity of my seat who don't even stand up and cheer a goal,they just sit there watching on peacefully.

[titch]

Dec 20, 2015 8:00:41 GMT ken said:

Hi guys. I am the match night DJ/MC... If you are on Twitter best to follow me @kenpanthers for interactive tweeting during game etc.

I have to say I think awful is a bit harsh to be fair but everyone is entitled to an opinion and so I respect that.

I, like you want the atmosphere on match nights to be amazing and this is down to many elements but the best noise and energy is when the fans really get going (makes my job easy as there is nothing to do)...

I make a point of trying to listen for the fans chanting ( you will note that sometimes in a break I don't start music straight away) and if I hear a possibility that there is a chant happening I will let it get established.

Also I don't have Kalinka (not sure if you mean another song) it is not in my playlist.

As for the clapping songs, they are part of the game I'm afraid... They are a staple and I try to add other music around them... I aim to play a wide variety of music pre game and during breaks etc...

Many that have got in touch or tweeted will testify to the fact that if a suggestion is made for a track I do my best to use it and welcome suggestions on how I can encourage the crowd to get active. Please send them in I will always do my best...

If people want rid of the happy clappy type stuff they should have a word with the several thousand that regularly participate and enjoy the chants...

As for the fans that sit in silence and don't make any noise at all... Well they have bought a ticket and it is their right to sit quietly and enjoy the game in their own way, I don't buy in to the notion that for a good atmosphere people must be in a constant state of manic hysteria for 3 hrs.

As always the best atmosphere is spontaneous when something happens on the ice worth cheering.

Tweet me, get in touch and spread the word, and send in your suggestions, I will do my best as always to keep improving...

Best Regards and seasons greetings

Ken

Hi Ken,

I have no issues with the way you present the match day experience, honestly I feel you do a pretty good job and I don't put down bad atmospheres down to you at all. It's 100% down to the fans that attend the match.



Last night;



I had near enough a full row of 4 women and 6 men who came together, two of these men went down to the bar 3 minutes before the first period ended and came back 5 minutes after period 2 started, the other 4women/4men spent the entire match talking about how they can't wait to go out after the match to get smashed and who would be sleeping with who that night, classy. They hadn't a clue what was going on in the match and I can imagine there are far too many other people who attend a match as a pre-drink event rather than a hockey game.

I think my problem with the atmosphere is that the season ticket holders are too spread out to create a good atmosphere, for example, in the old days at the City Ground (Or any other football ground), the season ticket holders would usually gather up into one block or stand (Trent End and Main block A) and this would allow the most dedicated and loyal fans to dictate the chants and other parts of the ground would join in. If only there was 1 or 2 blocks in the arena that were dedicated to season tickets only, I believe this could force a way for the atmosphere to build up based on those fans alone. I often hear random people shouting out "Lets go panthers" very quietly to get the chant going but unfortunately not many people hear him / get involved.

I'm hoping from my moan on here that it could push new/old ideas to anybody in charge at the Panthers as I know A LOT of people higher up at the Panthers read these forums. I'm a very positive person and regardless if we're losing 3 - 0 at home or winning, I would love to see the fans getting on top of the Panthers with support and energy to give them the extra push, I want other fans going home and talking about how loud we were and that we sing and clap proudly regardless of what happened. It just feels very depressing at the moment when we start to lose, which isn't a great idea. We need to be the extra man on the ice, to intimidate the away teams on our ice and to support our boys no matter what!

[wgray]

Dec 20, 2015 15:25:43 GMT iginla said:

Well I know that Whiskey1 but it's true,you have a look at the next game.

The atmosphere comes from the ice,you can have the best entry video in the world and the best DJ too but that means nothing when the game starts,the only time the Panthers crowd gets going is when we put the opposition under sustained pressure and keep them there.

It's the same in Sheffield and Belfast,but I do think a lot of Panthers fans just sit on their hands and react like zombies even when we score.
There must be 10 or 15 fans in the immediate vicinity of my seat who don't even stand up and cheer a goal,they just sit there watching on peacefully.

I've noticed the same iginla, the amount of fans who don't stand or even celebrate is ridiculous!

[iginla]

Makes you wonder why they even bother going to the game doesn't it,maybe it's just to get out of the house.

Quite honestly,when we score in big and tight games my feet actually leave the floor when i jump up.

[dgardner]

Dec 20, 2015 11:34:08 GMT pantherdman said:

If you want an atmosphere go to away games.

this is so true, went to steelers away earlier this year with some relatively new hockey fans and the atmosphere was incredible and its down to the sheer fsct that if you as a fan are willing to travel miles to see your club then they are generally the type of person where hockey runs in there blood, however i feel although the atmosphere can be different at home games at times i feel that it is certainly not 'dead' especially on saturday on particular occasions where panthers were all over devils and you could feel that all we needed was a goal and the roof would of come off but instead devils soaked up the pressure and ended up scoring which really takes the sting out of the fans and probably the players too.

[shmyrohdear]

What i don't get is we always end up with a variety of chants during the playoffs. I appreciate it's the end of the season and basically a party weekend but why can't we do it every week? It'd give us all a better experience all year round.