Re: its official
 

great for stanley glad the bookings still stand as there's a combined meet going on in club on the 30th june accyweb & osc gosh will we make the opening the day after ..........................

congratulations stanley good luck in the coming year .

onwards & upwards .

Re: its official
 

the question is will they make money? its not like the club house were they can get good deals on the beer they sell .the more that goes over the bar the higher the rent will go then there is the wages to pay out in my opinion speaking with experience the only way to have mayed good money for the club would have been to buy the pub and become a free house.

Re: its official
 

I reckon it's a good move by the club and as for will they make money, Eric wouldn't even have considered going into it unless he knew that they could.

Re: its official
 

Anybody want to tell us a bit more about it from the Observer report?

Re: its official
 

Anybody?.....

Re: its official
 

Sorry WH, don't know how to post a link so I'll type out what it says in the Observer. Here goes :
The Crown is set to be turned into an Accrington Stanley themes pub after the club took over the lease. The Whalley Road pub has been shut since May when the former landlords left.
But Accrington Stanley will officially take over on 1 July for 5 years with the option to increase it. Chairman Eric Whalley said 'We hope to make it something of a museum for the club. We think it will be a great asset especially on matchdays as it attracts visiting supporters and hopefully we will reap the benefits'. He added ' It will hopefully help to subsidise the club and we hope this is another step forward for us'.
For many people the venue is synonymous with Stanley, the team's stadium was known as The Crown Ground for many years as the pub is so close by. The pub is owned by Punch Taverns.
That's the article in full Wynonie, phew - need a drink now :)

Re: its official
 

Ta very much for that, AM. Have some karma...and pour yourself a double! :D

Re: its official
 

Aye me too, Well done Stanley, can't wait to see what they do with it :)

Re: its official
 

If anybody has any serious questions about the viability of this venture then please PM me and I will get you answers in the next 10 days. The OSC committee will be meeting with the club to ascertain what direction we should both be aiming this season and next. I want PMs rather than postings because I don't want it descending into silly questions and then folk expecting answers to them, this is not a question and answer session, it is not a general forum. It is a meeting between fans (official representation) and the club with a view to developing a better working relationship and helping us both to achieve the ultimate goal of promoting Accrington Stanley within the local community.

Please direct your questions accordingly. If they are inappropriate for this particular meeting I will hold them until the beginning of the season where we should hope to hold a Q&A session with all relevant staff.

Re: its official
 

So Eric Whalley has taken over a pub, is it going to get us a roof on the Clayton End? Is it going to allow us to buy a pint at half-time? These to me are questions that need answers because there are plenty of other good pubs where I can go, Oakleigh for one. Why should I use The Crown? Are away fans to be allowed in? Have the loyal home fans been pushed out of the clubhouse in favour of as Roy Keane once said "The Prawn Sandwich Bridgade". There are plenty of other questions that I could ask but I don't think they should be answered by PMs.

Re: its official
 

I would be spending my drinking $$ there on match day,,every cent(penny?) helps Accy.As to the 'Prawn sandwich' brigade, they are needed by a club as much as the 'real' supporters who of course are the true backbone of any club.Can't wait to get there for a handle..:)

Re: its official
 

:DCould be a good move by the club, personally split my pre match between the Crown and the clubhouse, banter in Crown between rival fans is usually good, the Clubhouse will be a loss if that is the case, but again if used in the correct manner for corporate hospitality that makes the Club bring in bigger matchday sponsors and perhaps offers something affordable for the rest of us then could be a winner on both accounts. Could the Club not sell Alcohol in a similar way to the catering units aound the ground?:D

Re: its official
 

Surely, the good thing about Stanley's lease on the Crown, is that is will open up two new income streams to the club. Firstly, the profits from the pub itself (and don't forget, this won't just be on matchdays, it'll be all through the week). And secondly, the fact that the clubhouse can now be used for corporate hospitality. Bagpuss may sneeringly refer to them as the "prawn sandwich brigade", but the fact is, they could be a valuable source of income to the club. So, it seems to me that, yes, it might at least help us to get a roof on the Clayton End!

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To be honest I doubt we would get a "prawn sandwich brigade" at the FES unless we drew Man Utd in the FA Cup. There was on this occasion Mr Harris nothing "sneering" about my comment I'm just concerned that the club will say it's The Crown or nothing unless you are willing to pay extra money to enter the Sports Bar.

Re: its official
 

As far as I'm concerned, if the club want to use the Sports Bar for corporate hospitality to bring extra revenue into the club, that's fine by me. With a choice of Stanleys' own pub and the excellent Oakleigh, we're still spoilt for choice anyway. I just wish the club would tell us a bit more about their plans for the Crown.