c-krulak Posted November 18, 2008 Author Share Posted November 18, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. The individual in the picture is Paul Faulkner. I would not say that he is the CEO...nor would he....nor would Randy...de facto or not. Randy has made it very clear that Villa will be run in a similar manner as the Browns....with Randy and the Board making the big decisions. Paul has been with Randy and with me since our days at MBNA, Europe. He is a Brit with a great business sense and tremendous loyalty. He is "on the ground" almost every day and reports to Randy and the Board on a daily basis. We have GREAT faith and trust in Paul. I personally think he is one of the brightest lads I have met in a long time and he has great leadership qualities. Paul is well-liked around the grounds and has a good relationship with MON and with others at Bodymoor Heath. At the same time, I don't think it would be fair to Paul to label him as the CEO. 2. I have not heard anything from President-elect Obama re. the Scarf but he does have a wee bit more on his plate than writing me a thank-you letter. Interestingly, I hope to see him in early December on a completely different issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gort Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 General, just seen the details for Hamburg but theres no announcement on the allocation of tickets, why is this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuse Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 General K How many tickets have we got for Hamburg? Myself and 8 other mates have booked travel ad hotels already and are spending a fortune to follow the Villa. It would be horrendous if we went all that way and couldn't get in the ground. Can you let us know how many tickets we have got please? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted November 18, 2008 Moderator Share Posted November 18, 2008 General, Can I say how disappointed I am with the decision to play our home reserve games over 30 miles from Villa Park. A 60-70 miles round trip will unfortunately rule out the majority of regular reserves watchers and will make it difficult to support the youngsters this season. Would it not have been more sensible to seek out a local option like Sutton Town or Solihull Moors? It seems very surpising that the club could not source another stadium within the City or at least within the County. Will the club be publishing more information once we get closer to the games? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largelugs Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 Got to agree with Outbyeaster, I go to the occassionally reserve game at bescott and about 50% at Villa Park. At these games you get a lot of young families and real hardcore and knowledgable fans of all ages. To move games to such an inconvienient venue shows a lot of disrespect to thses fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brommy Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 General, 1) Do you ever wish that some questions and statements that are put to you on this thread had more respect in their content? 2) With reference to the reserve team playing four 'home' games at Hinckley United's ground, if the official website had explained the reason for playing away from Villa Park and that unfortunately the closest suitable venue available was 30 miles away, it may have helped. Adding a 'why not come and see us' aimed at Villa fans to the East of our region would also seem more welcoming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gort Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. Free transportation: I am not sure when/if we will be doing that again in the near future. With the amount of "need" we have at the Club right now, we must be smart about how we spend money. My sense is that when the time is "right", Randy will again pull the trigger. I understand this, but Bolton do it regularly and last season they did it three times which cost them £81000...however; they got 5 points from the 3 games they paid for travel expenses, keeping them up and bagging them an extra £3.75m in league places - fan support is essential and perhaps it may be something to look in to for the future? I know you shouldn't really be doing it due to recession and keeping all profits etc, and I'm not saying every game or every other game. Maybe once or twice a season to the games that you think we may get the lowest attendance from Villa fans at, i.e. Portsmouth away on the Tuesday in new year, or Man City away on the Wednesday in new year coming up? Just a thought Regards, hope all is well Bolton are doing free travel again this season for their forthcoming games at Boro' and Sunderland. I agree it would be a good idea for midweek away games at Pompey or Man City, that way we would get the full 2500 at Pompey and the full 3000 at Man City rather than a half empty away end Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_b78 Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Where we playing the games and why aren't they at VP? http://www.avfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~1458248,00.html Source: OS Villa will play a quartet of winter reserve games at Hinckley United's Marstons Stadium. The games, which kick off at 7pm are: West Ham Utd - Monday 5 January Chelsea - Monday 19 January Arsenal - Monday 16 February WBA - Monday 23 February Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomaszk Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Agreeing with those mentioning the reserve matches. I know changing it now is extra admin but there is going to be much fewer home spectators now, i think playing the occasional match at VP helps the lads lift their game and see what they can achieve. Keep up the good work Boss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gort Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 General what is our allocation for Hamburg? On the site it says 2986, yet the ticket office are saying 1500... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaajax Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Hi General, I've seen the Villa cook book on the official site and I would like to buy one. Will it be available from the online shop? as I live in Oxford which is quite far away from Birmingham and so I cannot get to the club shop. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JG Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Blackcountry Villa The total allocation is 2986. The 1500 is the 1st part of the allocation which Villa can sell and do not have to pay for up front, therefore they can not lose any money. The 2nd part 1486 Villa have to pay for up front, therefore they will see how sales go for the 1st 1500 and judge wether we need the remaining allocation. If we took the 2nd allocation and didnt sell them we still have to give Hamburg the money for them and the club would lose out. This applies to most away games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-krulak Posted November 21, 2008 Author Share Posted November 21, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. Reserve Games: I looked into this issue and the answer I got was that the number of games played on our Pitch this season...is greater than normal. Adding Reserve Games would increase the usage of the Pitch. At this time, the Club is seeking to preserve the Pitch in its current condition for what we hope will be some crucial games to be played. The amount of damage done by a single game is such that adding more than what will come with our regular fixtures plus cup games, etc. prompted the decision. 2. I will be checking on the total number of tickets available for Hamburg. I should have a good sense soon....but JG is pretty close to the mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brommy Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. Reserve Games: I looked into this issue and the answer I got was that the number of games played on our Pitch this season...is greater than normal. Adding Reserve Games would increase the usage of the Pitch. At this time, the Club is seeking to preserve the Pitch in its current condition for what we hope will be some crucial games to be played. The amount of damage done by a single game is such that adding more than what will come with our regular fixtures plus cup games, etc. prompted the decision. General, I think most fans appreciate the importance of protecting the pitch at Villa Park. Reserve games have been played at Walsall's Bescot stadium for this reason. The big difference is that, taking Villa Park as the average starting point, Bescot is a 14 mile round trip and Hinckley is 61 miles! It would appease some fans if the club explained why the games are being played so far away. I'm guessing that the club has done it's best to find a venue that is: available for the dates; has a decent quality playing surface; has suitable facilities; is affordable. However, without a statement to this effect, some fans are left scratching their heads or even annoyed. Just a minor matter in our mission to conquer Europe again, but as a successful British company states...'every little helps'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1968 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 General, Can I say how disappointed I am with the decision to play our home reserve games over 30 miles from Villa Park. A 60-70 miles round trip will unfortunately rule out the majority of regular reserves watchers and will make it difficult to support the youngsters this season. Would it not have been more sensible to seek out a local option like Sutton Town or Solihull Moors? It seems very surpising that the club could not source another stadium within the City or at least within the County. Will the club be publishing more information once we get closer to the games? As someone who lives 30 miles from villa park can i say this is a great idea. Lots of villa fans in hinkley and nuneaton. My son has played in football tournaments at hinkley utd and the setup is superb . Well done villa , keep spreading the word. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villahero Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Hi Gen what were Randy's views on the abusive ' e-mail ' that some idiot was sending to the Browns' general manager and the subsequent response ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-krulak Posted November 21, 2008 Author Share Posted November 21, 2008 General Krulak here: 1. Ticket allocation: We are allocated 5% of stadium capacity. The capacity is 51,000 so you can do the math. Villa has gone back and been given a total of 3200 tickets. We have accepted these in two tranches and will watch closely at how many in the first tranche are sold before opening up the second tranche. 2. We basically got the Pitch that was available during the time slots we were given. 3. Randy and the Board are never happy with communication that is not sent with a sense of respect. None of us are against honest differences of opinion but we believe that those differences should be articulated with respect. Simply put, no one ever comes to a job with the idea that "I think I will do a bad job today." People deserve respect for doing the best job they can. If that job is not "good enough", then action can be taken...but with respect. An abusive e-mail (I don't even know about it) would not be something Randy would give much attention to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gort Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 What if we sell the first 1500, then say theres another 400/500 people who want to go but not enough people to sell all of the last batch of tickets, then what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condimentalist Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 3. Randy and the Board are never happy with communication that is not sent with a sense of respect. None of us are against honest differences of opinion but we believe that those differences should be articulated with respect. Simply put, no one ever comes to a job with the idea that "I think I will do a bad job today." People deserve respect for doing the best job they can. If that job is not "good enough", then action can be taken...but with respect. An abusive e-mail (I don't even know about it) would not be something Randy would give much attention to. Absolutely right. I sincerely hope that you feel the respect and appreciation on here and from Villa fans generally that yourself, Randy and the rest of the team have earned. UtV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villahero Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 the aforementioned Browns email story is here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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