Varsity Tyler Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 Now that we have a set date for our first home WCQ, I think it is time that we begin preparations for the event. I feel that this involves securing a spot in whichever venue we play at. Canadian voices need unification, and I think that the CSA can aid us in achieving this. The Voyageurs should request a supporters’ section for the game. This is going one step beyond organizing our own group buy. I would like the CSA to request to the promoter that there be a section for all vocal Canadian supporters. This way all Canadian fans that want to be loud and create a uniquely Canadian atmosphere can dwell together in the stands. I would love to see two options when purchasing tickets online: the first for regular viewing stressed as a family section, the second with an appeal to all supporters. The latter could read: This section is a standing room, general admission section. Those who opt to view the game from this area will be in a Canadian supporters’ section, which partakes in creating a pro-Canadian atmosphere via singing, music and feverous cheering. This seems realistic. One section comprised of a couple hundred people can be very loud, and I don’t think that it would be hard to fill. Any comments? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamiltonfan Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 I think that's a GREAT idea! You should forsure e-mail the CSA about this. Where would you want the group located in the stadium? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 Me and Marc have already talked about this, we were just going to wait till Kingston was announced as the venue. But I think this is a great idea. I think that wanting a few hundred is a bit much, but we could try. Tyler give me an email or somthing and we can talk about this idea indepth (keay1@rogers.com) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthew Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 This is a great idea and something we should strive to do for each and every home game IMO. Basically all we need to do is pick a section (and for venues where we expect to have more than just a one-off we should try to keep it the same place so don't have to reinvent the wheel for each match), promote its existence and then make sure we're having enough fun so everyone else in the stadium thinks "I wish I were standing there." I'm not going to be there, so those that are can do their thing, but what does everyone think about postering? I've always though it was something easy and simple to do and helps get the non-initiated involved. Do we have anyone in Kingston though? The idea of having song sheets with the Voyageurs web address on them to hand out in the section (or leave on seats or whatever) has also been brought up before and I thought was a good one. As far as where in the stadium to stand, does anyone know much about Richardson? For example, where would the loudest Queen's fans normally sit for a CIS football game? Some stadiums already have sections where you know it's going to be a loud, R-rated, drunken time. If this one does we might as well incorporate it. Anyway good luck with the oranization, I think it's a great idea, just a my two bits. cheers, matthew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reza Posted December 24, 2003 Share Posted December 24, 2003 Yeah..it usually takes a lot of time to organize for this stuff. You might be able to pull off a dedicated supporters section in Kingston but it has never happened in Edmonton. We always have had to buy tickets ahead of time by estimating the number. But maybe we could somehow pull it off this time around. Though the Kingston match is important, it would be vitally important to prepare for the 2nd round games. BTW, the flags are over with Marc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamiltonfan Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 dont worry sigma there's still a 1% chanse you might be able to go. haha there's still a chanse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted December 25, 2003 Share Posted December 25, 2003 Yeah, sorry, I kept the flags in the possibility that we might head over to Columbus for a WWC match but it fell through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Varsity Tyler Posted December 29, 2003 Author Share Posted December 29, 2003 *bump* Any other comments on this one? I'm going to draft a proposal for the CSA and post it here prior to submitting it. We've got nothing to lose and everything to gain from this experience. I say we go for it. Let's try and grab our own section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 FRANCO BANNER! I probably won't make it, but I'm gonna try to get this banner ready for 2006 and our opening game in Frankfurt . "Les Canadiens sont là!", a play on an old Habs song from the 30's-40's. In white, on red, with a tiny Fleur de Lys in the corner, representin' . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthew Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 Les Canadiens sont quoi? cheers, matthew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeta Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 Well, I'll pipe in my two bits. Re; Varsity Tyler. Suggest a promised allotment of places reserved for Us Truly, sold through the Voyageurs website if anyone can take it on. A modest number. Forty, fifty say tops. To be released for general sales if unspoken for (ie sold) three or four days before kick off. All in attendance who'd want to gather as a group should be accounted for by then. Pick a section at the back of the grandstand someplace. Park looks small enough that no matter where you're seated you shouldn't be too far away from the action. That way if you're standing, as is my own want when possible, no special considerations need to be made regarding seated supporters behind you. We're all Canadian here after all. A certain amount of civility to your neighbour is expected. So as far from the family fun zones as possible and as close to the beer gardens as can be. Geezus, I'm just making myself thirsty and hyper here. It's been far, far to long since I've been to a match where I've had an emotional attachment. Can you tell? We're talking about Belize after all. Hell, you don't even need to sell the tickets through the web site. Just have them promise to designate section X,Y, or Z as the "Voyageur Section" and purchases of seating in said section go with the understanding that a certain amount of alcohol, voice, and general adult roudyness is to be expected and experienced. P.S. Just to make this post longer... Wonder if Sleeman Brewery would be keen on sponsoring an "Adult Fun Zone"? You see, I've recently changed my domestic brand of choice. Is Guelph far from Kingston? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free kick Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 I would go one step forward. If hopefully Winnpeg could get some matches I would be very much interested in attending the games at that location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthew Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 How about this. Ask the CSA to set asside a section for us (or the top half of a section). Anyone calling for tickets can specify that they're looking for the Canadian supporters section and can caution anyone else what they're getting into. We promote the section's existence (on the site, in the streets of Kingston, in the Whig-Standard, whatever) and hopefully fill as much of it as possible. Once we're there do as we usually do in Edmonton and stand wherever we want as long as we're basically where we're supposed to be. I like the idea of being at the back where we can stand. I would also suggest we should be on the non-camera side so we can get some air time (this is of course assuming the game will be televised). I like the sponsorship idea. That would partly solve the promotion side of this. I say all of this comfortable in the knowledge I don't expect to be there, so do whatever those going see fit, but I think we could have a nice section for this game. A couple more things - G-L how far is the Kingston Brewing Company from Richardson? It doesn't look too far to me. Is Richardson on the corner of Union St. and Albert? Looks like a good place to at least have a pre-match drink if not a place to help promote what we're looking to do. Also, Queen's, god bless em, have a whole whack of school bands. http://myams.org/home/bands/ Pipes, drums etc. They seem pretty formal and impressive, but an informal invite to come and blast a few tunes during their summer vacation might be a good idea. Or not. Yeah I'm bored, sorry. cheers, matthew P.S. Not sure if this has been posted yet, but the Belize FA is reporting that the game is definitely on at Richardson and have a 2 p.m. kickoff time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Varsity Tyler Posted December 29, 2003 Author Share Posted December 29, 2003 Sitting at the top doesn't concern me. As others have stated, Richardson is small and wherever we end up we'll be able to make an impact. The main point that I'd like ironed out is distribution and purchasing methods. If the CSA is handling ticketing as it has for recent women's friendlies in Toronto then they can do the work to stipulate supporter's sections. However, every MNT game that I've seen in North America has been with tickets purchased on ticketmaster. If this is the case again - and I expect it to be - then we'll have to get something arranged with them, or get the CSA to hold a bunch of its reserve for us (should it have such a cache). I think I've got enough to put together a rough proposal. The only other thing is numbers. I'd expect many of Toronto's supporters to make the trip with friends in hand, and I'd certainly hope that Montreal's Ultras will be the same. Throw in a couple from Ottawa, Kingston and the rest of the St. Lawrence lowlands and I'm confident of a decent turnout. From Toronto: 30? From Montreal: 30? From Elsewhere: 20? To me that sounds reaslistic. 80 people mashed together, figuring the combined drum arsenal of the Toronto and Montreal Ultas, would make for an impressive 11th man. I can't wait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhat Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Varsity Tyler From Toronto: 30? From Montreal: 30? From Elsewhere: 20? To me that sounds reaslistic. 80 people mashed together, figuring the combined drum arsenal of the Toronto and Montreal Ultas, would make for an impressive 11th man. I can't wait. I'll likely be there; depends if I can convince some people including the wife to drive or fly. We do need more people from the West (aside from Kevin McKenna's parents). Not too sure if I want to drive 20+ hours from Winnipeg ... But shorter trek than Boston. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattbin Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Cheeta P.S. Just to make this post longer... Wonder if Sleeman Brewery would be keen on sponsoring an "Adult Fun Zone"? You see, I've recently changed my domestic brand of choice. Is Guelph far from Kingston? Well I'm gonna be making the drive from Guelph! Though I may be living in Cambridge by then, same difference. It's only about 3 1/2 hours' drive as the beer truck flies. It would be great to get a place like the Kingston Brewing Company though to sponsor an event before and after the match. Get them to help promote it and so on. It might even be possible to get them to help us arrange for a bus to and from the game, like a lot of bars do for CFL games--you know, $30 gets you a ride, your game ticket, and some chicken wings. Anyone know anyone in Kingston who might help out with this? Do any of the bars host that kind of thing for Queen's games maybe? This is shaping up to be a heck of a party... we'll see how many people I can get on the 401 road trip! Allez les Rouges, M@ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 Personally I would want to be in a front row for this match, for one you get noticed by the players more and make more of an impact. Yes it could cause problems since if we dont fill a section then the people behind us would bitch and complain for us to sit down. But the ideal spot for us to be the most effecive is in the front. I have talked to alot of my friends and they all seem to be interested. So im thinking that I will bring a van full. But honestly, the idea of getting 100 is a bit far fetched. Tho Toronto will be up for the challange since well we owned the goldcup section I like the idea of having tickets beign available via the voyaguers site. Im just wondering if we would have to splash the cash to get lets say 100 tickets, or would the csa possibly strike us a deal for us to sell them off first then give them the cash? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew W Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by redhat I'll likely be there; depends if I can convince some people including the wife to drive or fly. We do need more people from the West (aside from Kevin McKenna's parents). Not too sure if I want to drive 20+ hours from Winnipeg ... But shorter trek than Boston. I'd like to drive or get a ride from Calgary, so I wouldn't be adverse to picking up or being part of a car(s) or van(s) load from the west (we gotta represent). I'm already off work for that week so I can make the trek via road or train (plus, I have Dennis Bergkamp's fear of flying). Let's keep discussing. I'm sure we can work something out for the western Voyageurs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 The Toronto numbers of only 30 seem a bit pessimistic - I've already talked to several friends & family members who are not "Voyageurs" in terms of posting on this site but are really interestd in going. The Montreal numbers seem a bit optimistic in my view, especially if Daniel & his brother aren't likely to make it. I hope they prove me wrong. There are many Montreal Ultras, but from talking to a few in person over the past couple of years I don't know how many of them are really interested in the Canadian national team. Some are, but some aren't - we didn't get anybody from Montreal at the Gold Cup in Boston, despite it being half the driving time than Toronto, where we got close to 30. If we can get close to 30 from Toronto to drive 9 hours to Boston, we should be able to surpass that for the 2.5 to 3 hours drive to Kingston. There is also the Ottawa gang to factor in, I suspect we will see more from Ottawa for this match than Montreal, though I hope we see a lot from Montreal. To get to Richardson Stadium is extremely easy - take the 401 to the Sir John A. Macdonald Blvd exit, get off at the exit & drive south towards the lake. The stadium is easy to spot on your right as you drive south. It's soon followed by the Queen's West Campus (where I lived in 1995-96), the Woman's Maximum security prison, the Prison Museum, the Men's Maximum Security Prison, & then the lake. The stadium isn't really on the corner of anything - its on the west side of Sir John A. MacDonald Blvd. The nearest intersection is a few hundred yards to the south (though I can't recall the name of the street which runs west-east - either University Ave. or Union, if I recall correctly - we need to ask Christian, who posts only on the old board but still reads this one). I have never heard of the Kingston Brewery Company, but I'm not much of a drinker, not even as a student, so that's not to say it doesn't exist, I just don't know where it is. Most of the pubs are near the main campus though, which is about a 20 minute walk away, to the east, and not really suitable. The only drinking establishment that I remember being anywhere close by (about a 10 or 15 minute walk if you take the right shortcuts) is the Portsmouth Tavern, located in the Portsmouth Olympic Harbour (they had some Olympic events there in 1976 & the residence that I stayed in 20 years later was actually originally Olympic residences for the Athletes). The Tavern isn't that big, but quite nice, and right on the lake with lots of boats around, old houses around that make you feel like your in England, rather than Canada. My fondest memory of the pub is forsaking studying for a law school exam I had the next morning (which was worth 100% of my mark for the course) in order to watch Game 5 of the Leafs-Blues playoffs match in April 1996. The Leafs were trying to stave off elimination & won 6-5 in OT on a goal by Mike Gartner. I don't regret my decision to forsake studying that evening in the slightest, as not only did I get a decent mark on the exam, it turned out (although nobody knew it at the time) that this was the last playoff match ever to be held in Maple Leaf Gardens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimglow Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca There is also the Ottawa gang to factor in, I suspect we will see more from Ottawa for this match than Montreal, though I hope we see a lot from Montreal. To get to Richardson Stadium is extremely easy - take the 401 to the Sir John A. Macdonald Blvd exit, get off at the exit & drive south towards the lake. The stadium is easy to spot on your right as you drive south. It's soon followed by the Queen's West Campus (where I lived in 1995-96), the Woman's Maximum security prison, the Prison Museum, the Men's Maximum Security Prison, & then the lake. Women's maximum security prison? Looks like I'll arrive a little early in Kingston boys! Hahahaha Can you say "Conjugal visit"? When T&T played Canada in Toronto in 2000, we had 2 cars from Ottawa (all my friends, no Voyageurs...didn't even know the site then), so I'm guessing I can deliver that again, if not more. In all I'd estimate we can get roughly 15 people from Ottawa, probably more. Oh, and Leafs S*ck... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elaine Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 just something to note, but i was at the canada-aussie women's game at richardson stadium and the stands are not very "viewer friendly" ... in the sense that if somebody on the field is just standing behind the team bench, they will obstruct your view because the angle the stands are at is not that great. i remember a bunch of the CSA staffers had to ask some medical ppl to crouch down and/or not stand where they were so that fans cound view the field better. this only applies to the 'grandstand' side which is the side that has the "media" box thingie ... the opposite side of the field the stands are higher up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted December 29, 2003 Share Posted December 29, 2003 I'd prefer close to the field, but I'll take whatever we can get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vancouver Fan Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 It's looking more and more like I'll be taking my June holidays in Toronto this year.So thats at least 2 people from the west coast.I've never been outside of Pearson Airport so this is a great opportunity to finally see Canada play at home(since 97)and also explore Tee Ohh. In Vancouver the hardcore supporters stand behind the south goal(hence the name "Southsiders")and heckle the opposition keeper in the 2nd half.Of course we are closer to the pitch than FIFA probably allows but it sure helps putting the pressure on the other teams.So I'd say that the location of the Voyageurs section should be as close to where we can have the biggest impact in terms of intimidating the opposition in the 2nd half.I'm guessing that there are no bleachers behind any of the goals at Richardson.Lower down to one side of the field would make sense but not so low that we get obstructed.(As mentioned by Elaine) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Correct, there are no seats behind the goals at Richardson. At least not yet. Who knows what extra-demand might get them to do for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 No seats behind the goal - sounds ripe for a standing section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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