I would like to preface this diatribe with a bit of background on me as a fan. I was born in Hamilton, but moved away before I was concious of what football was. My father (who is an avid poster on this site) has been a ticats nut since before I was born and it rubbed off.
When we lived in Edmonton we would go to games and cheer on the Eskies until the Ticats came to town. Every year the entire family would go, decked out in hats, jerseys, cat claws and flags. When we got to the cup final in 99, he handed out paper banners that read "Go Eskie-Cats!" to sooth bitter Edmontonians that their QB was winning a cup for someone else.
Then we moved back into the area, and started going to games once again. Of course by this time McManus had begun his decline and although we did see some wins we never really saw a great team. We came out whenever we could, and last year he finally managed to get 2 season tickets. He got them again this year and we've made it to all the games we can.
I have been impressed by the conduct and enthusiasm of Bob Young; he has managed to revive a dying franchise. We were in the depths and barely managing 15,000 fans to games. We kept going simply because we were supporting the team and that's what you do.
I have remarked several times that I have been impressed at the turnaround and the ability to get people back into the stadium.
I understand the need for beer price hikes and advertising everywhere. (Although I believe sponsored penalties and yard sticks is a little much.) This team may be doing better, but I remember hearing Bob say it has a lot of work to do before it reaches profitability. I wish I could look at the financial books as that would be incredibly interesting, but I will take the man at his word.
In the off-season I was again impressed. The aquisitions that were made in terms of player personel gave some hope coming out of a dismal season. I was still wary of the inexperience of the coaching and front office, but I was willing to let that play out and see what happened because of the (apparently misplaced) optimisim I had.
That being said, I have been very disappointed in the entire game experience whenever I have gone this year. I previously enjoyed the community atmosphere; this wasnt the ACC or the Skydome, it was Ivor Wynne Stadium where normal folks came to watch a good game of football. Now I get accosted and frisked by security personel and am forced to throw out beverages that I purchase minutes before. That is an invasion of privacy I can expect if I am going to a rock concert, but a Ti-cats game?
I understand the need to restrict outside food. It's a business and as I stated before I know the money is needed. There are 2 reasons that I bring in outside beverages. The first being that the choice of consessions is terrible. If I want healthier juices or teas, I have no options other than attempting to smuggle in a mug or bottle. The second is that the last couple times I have attempted to purchase consessions they have been a mess. The first was the pre-season game in which everything went horribly wrong. Watching some poor kids wonder why no popcorn isn't being made because they havent put the kernels in is not fun. The second was the last game against Calgary in which I was treated very poorly by the staff and ended up with absolutley the most horrid coffee I had ever had. Not my idea of good value for my concession dollar.
Lets recap, shall we?
Now you've been frisked by security, glared at and served sludge by the concession staff, realized it costs more to get a ti-cats t-shirt than a shirt at a rock concert and you're on your way up the stairs. You are greeted by the staff in red shirts. There is a thread in this forum talking about experiences in which the red shirted staff has threatened people and generally made themselves a nuisance with powertripping. I am unsure of why this is happening, but I can asure you that those stories are true. You have now found your 2-foot wide section of board with a hand-painted number on it. Around you are fans, already disheartened but willing to cheer their team on, because by golly they've still got hope.
You are then accosted by loud (The volume has been better as of late, but is still offensively loud. This is coming from a 21 year old who regularily attends rock concerts.) music of the most diverse genres. I appreciate that the music selection has been diversified and that we no longer have to listen to all 5 of AC/DCs hits every game. I do not believe bubblegum pop belongs at a football game, but that is my own personal preference.
You are all set to watch the game, and then a night like this evening happens.
I have been holding back, waiting for the team to come together and fight. There was some promise last week, but it all fell apart. The team had no drive and looked like it had given up before the first half was done. A miserable display topped off by players yelling and fighting with each other on the ti-cats bench.
Then when the game is over I enjoy listening to the 5th quarter. I have been listening to them since I've been within listening distance and have been a little surprised this year. Instead of responding to valid criticism (along with some absurd drunken comments) with solid feedback and anwsers, there seems to be only excuses. You can only say they are a young team for so long, youngsters can still play, I know they can.
That is the game experience, top to bottom. I have to say that I am not satisfied with a single part of it.
I'm not pretending to have all the anwsers because I know for a fact that I do not. This was not meant to be a ripping apart of the orgainization at all, I would prefer to keep this team intact. I meant this as constructive criticism from the point of view of a younger fan who is in the biggest target demographic. A loyal fan who has been cheering for years and will continue to cheer long after he can remember why he does. I thank the Ti-Cats for the entertainment they have provided me over the years, and I look forward to more!
