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Gold Coast United’s owner Clive Palmer and coach Miron Bleiberg’s self-promotion have been blamed for the lack of support which will see them cap Skilled Park crowds at 5,000.
A-League boss Archie Fraser, angered by the controversial lockout of fans for Saturday night’s clash with North Queensland, on Wednesday blamed United for failing to connect with their community and promote “local heroes”.
Fraser said the Coast’s grass-roots supporters had turned their back on the self-confessed glamour club, which had shown in the meagre home attendances.
“I think the way they have approached promoting the product and their club has been more about promoting the owner and the coach than promoting the heroes,” Fraser said on SEN.
“Clearly the public at this point in time is switched off even though the team plays good football.
“They play stylish football and win but there are no local heroes.”
The comments of Fraser, who also claimed fragmentation within the fledgling club had led to Sunday’s record 6-0 loss in Wellington, led to denials from Coast officials who say they must cut costs to stay afloat.
“At the end of the day we need to be a successful venture or the club won’t be here for a long time,” club chief executive Clive Mensink told AAP.
Mensink, wary about the poor history of Coast teams in national competitions, said Palmer and Bleiberg’s big-talking ways were not designed to take the attention away from their players.
“At the end of the day we don’t control what the media prints,” he said.
“As we know Clive is an attraction all to himself. The media listens to every word he has to say and they dwell on it a lot.”
No more than 5,000 spectators will be allowed into the eastern grandstand at Skilled Park on Saturday night when Robbie Fowler’s North Queensland Fury look to avenge their 5-0 round two thrashing by United.
Palmer, currently overseas, and Bleiberg have defended the move on the basis that recent crowds of 4,209 and 4,509 have contributed to significant losses on their rent agreement with Stadiums Queensland.
Under their current arrangement, the rent drops from $140,000 to $40,000 per game for crowds less than 5,000.
By capping the crowd, United aren’t required to pay a state government transport levy and will also save money on stadium staff and not having to implement a traffic plan.
Mensink denied the third-placed club were taking the unconventional approach to haggle for a better deal, insisting that the charity of billionaire Palmer only extends so far.
“I think there’s a lot of expectation that Clive can pay for everything and that’s disappointing,” he said.
“By putting this team together Clive has done a favour to the community.
“If it wasn’t for Clive there wouldn’t be a team here now and we wouldn’t have players like Jason Culina or Shane Smeltz playing for the Gold Coast.”
The Coast on Wednesday dropped ticket prices for Saturday night’s game, with top-end adult tickets being reduced from $55 to $30 and $15 for children.
Rival club Brisbane Roar, who are also suffering from the lowest crowds in their five-year history, also attacked United’s approach.
“At a time where the game should be sticking together, this is a ridiculous situation and it’s sending out mixed messages to football fans,” Roar chairman Chris Bombolas said.
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