Magpies fans pick out ideas for games

Hawke's Bay Rugby Union commercial and marketing manager Jay Campbell spoke at the first meeting of the new fan council, at McLean Park, Napier, last night. Photo / Duncan Brown

A new era for Magpies games was ushered in last night at the first Hawke's Bay Rugby Union's fan council meeting.

Held in the McLean Park Chapman Lounge, the 25 individually selected council members met to discuss fresh ideas to bring more people to games, and improve the experience.

Union commercial and marketing manager Jay Campbell said the council was about giving fans a voice in creating what they want to experience at Magpies games.

"They're representatives of fans, driving what they want to see and what they believe are the key initiatives.

"[Last night] was about handing it over to the fan council and asking 'Ok, what do you want to see added to the Magpies experience'."

Mr Campbell said the average turnout for games in 2015 was about 6000 - the ideal would be upward of 10,000.

Following the initiatives developed last night, Mr Campbell said the next move was to "go out and prioritise which are the most important for 2016".

These initiatives would be reviewed at the end of the 2016 campaign.

"Some things we won't be able to do, like we can't put a roof on the stadium", he said. "The changes might be more subtle, or clear cut, they might be adding more food vendors or coffee.

"It's about understanding what those across the fan base want from the experience."

To select the members of the council, Mr Campbell said they canvassed people to see who wanted to be involved.

Those selected for the council represented a cross-section of the fan base, with people of different ages and demographics represented.

They would meet again during the year to implement initiatives and assess their success.