Everton FC E-mails 219 - Stadium Special (2)

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We have had hundreds of mails on the proposed Stadium Move. We will put them on the site over the next few days

I'm 100% In Favour

I am compelled to write in. I seem to be in a minority. It has to be Kirkby. I grew up there. No longer resident however. 22 years+. Resides London. The business case is simply too strong guys and girls; economies of scale, sponsorship, fixed and variable costs etc. I could go on an on. Pop concert revenues etc.

Tesco as sponsor-what kind of transfer kitty will that develop? Sir Terry Leahy is a Scouser and Blue Nose unlike the Arabs taking over Liverpool FC. The community element of the clubs ownership will be retained. The prices @ LFC will go sky high, watch this space. It will go the away of Chelsea and Man U. Beyond the reach of working class fans. Trust me.

Q. Should we stay @ Goodison? The old girl is creaking and leaking; basically hemorrhaging future revenues. We simply cannot generate the
revenues required to attract the best players globally. This is reality no matter what your views. The stock price of Goodison is falling long term. Get used to it please. We have the tradition, and the passion. Let's move forward with that.

Kirkby was created from the Scotland Road demolition in the 1950's the people there are good proud Scousers. trust me. Loads of bluenoses too. Like me! Promise man! The infrastructure-Motorways, road, rail etc is already in place. People from the South End and Town can get to Kirkby easily by train. Build a tram from the railway station. Why not? Bars can be built. Kirkby has pubs too you know.

Spare a thought for this message please. Everton FC and Kirkby needs this regeneration. Simple as that! A leap of faith is required here; let's get on with this please Everton! A big thank you to all we the fans we met @ Charlton-cracking day out despite the result. Really made me homesick for once. Regards, Kevin Perkes. (14/12/06)

Grasp This Opportunity

I’ve just got half way down ‘Today’s Emails’ and couldn’t be bothered wasting anymore of my lunch hour. The general air of negativity that surrounds a good number of supporters is beginning to stifle me (never mind the club), like the prat who sits behind be on row C of the Top Balcony (near the middle) – if you sit by me you’ll know the one. The one who always is at the top of his voice proclaiming we’ll get beat today, Cahill’s of to United, Arteta to the Shite, you know the type.

I think everyone needs to have a huge injection of realism surrounding this proposal. We all know the failure to convert the glorious opportunity of the Kings Dock in to a reality was a bitter pill to swallow, and I would love to spend an hour or two with our board to discover how they let this slip through their fingers. But where does that leave us?

For me we are in a stadium that is beginning to fall down around us and is becoming an embarrassment to be associated with, despite its glorious history. Most importantly if we stay at GP in its current state the long protracted death we are currently experiencing will only be escalated. Now this is where realism has to be considered. We are a club that independently doesn’t have the financial clout to build a new stadium, or re-develop GP so we have to find a partner to help us get back on to an equal footing with the clubs surrounding us, never mind those that we once competed with on a like-for-like basis.

Hence, we have an opportunity with Tesco to find a way back from the ‘brink’. You will not hear me dispute that we should aim to stay in the City boundaries or that LCC should be ashamed of its treatment of this great club, but hey what’s new? They’ve treated us like second class citizens for some time. But, if this improved ground can help us achieve our aims and get back at the very forefront of English football then it HAS to be a good thing and it certainly will not mean we have an erosion of our fan base. Whether we like it or not fans the world over are attracted by success and it being 2 miles outside of the City boundaries won’t matter in the slightest. In fact I would go further and say that if we stay in our dilapidated stadium, falling further behind the majority of other clubs, this is what will erode our fan base - the faithful will lose hope and the young will find us an unattractive proposition to view each week.

Kirkby & Tesco’s may not be ideal, but presently it is the best option and one we must review urgently and seriously. Failure to do so will be the death knell of this club and we will be like so many glorious names of the past. Chris. (14/12/06)

New Ground - The Sooner The Better

All this talk about the ground move from the fans who live in the city, do they ever think of the support from outside the city. My family and i are season ticket holders in the Top Balcony and we travel from North Wales. We meet people who travel from Ireland the Isle of Man. There is no where to park so the sooner we get a new ground the better, at least Terry leahey (Tesco) is an Evertonian not a Sheik riding in on a camel. Anne Henry MOlD NORTH Wales. (14/12/06)

It's All About Money

Although it’s a massive shame to us supporters that the king’s dock plans fell through due to finances, and the redevelopment of Goodison is, admittedly, not viable due to restrictions on space in and around the ground, I honestly feel that the Knowsley site is a good option for the future of the football club as a business and as a force to be reckoned in the Premier league and hopefully Europe. Yet this is only in the business sense of the game. However, FOUR things worry me at this early stage.

1. We have a fraction of the money to spend on a stadium that Arsenal have for the Emirates, it would not be a ‘super-stadium’, and it would merely tick all the boxes (hospitality, unrestricted views, corporate suite).

2. Is the club ready to fill this number of seats? Just because we build it – does not guarantee success on the pitch. Would the move generate enough extra support to fill 50,000 seats? – sorry but the way we have been playing the last couple of weeks would not justify two extra people coming to watch, let alone 15,000. The Club needs to do a lot of consumer research to judge whether the new location would make it easier for the non-Scouse to travel to the game, as these are the people we need to bring to the club to make up seats and make our money back (North Wales, Yorkshire, Runcorn, Warrington etc.). In the long-term, would more people from the City actually come to watch just because we have a shiny stadium with a Tesco Express?

3. Importantly… Will we lose that special thing that every Evertonian feels, being proud to be in Liverpool... and being different to the all the shite that goes on over the Park. There is a nostalgic and almost retro feel to Goodison Park and its supporters.

4. Corporate favouritism over family and Child ticket prices… is there enough chippy’s there … and Richard Wright. Just a thought. Dave. (14/12/06)

Our Vote

The issue of moving out of the city has a few points on either side and has been argued to death by everyone already. The one problem I have is that of choice. Kenwright has stressed that voting and all our opinions count, which is fair enough. Yet we have already been told renovating Goodison is prohibitively expensive and the council don't seem to care. Roll out the 'exclusivity agreement'. This means that we are looking into Kirkby and no other site for now. So when it comes to voting time what information will we be basing our decision on? One very well expensively presented plan for a supermarket come football stadium (how does that work?), Goodison costing too much without but nothing to back that up and a shrug from the council. Guess what everyone will vote for?

I'm sure the Tesco plans will cover any doubts about buying the weekly shop before the match and leaving your bags at the turnstyles, but what
choice are we really going to be presented with? If one council and and private company want to attract our attention let them. Then tell them
to present the plans to us like any other business proposal, but an exclusivity agreement means its as good as done and that is not good enough and constitutes a lie from the chairman when he promised we had a choice. I'm off for a lie down before I check what zone Kirkby is in on an saveaway, can you get there on a saveaway? Vinny. (14/12/06)

Other Teams Have Moved

I have been an Everton fan all my life although I live in Bolton. I can't therefore profess to really understand the hardened feelings shown by some on this thread to moving 'outside the city boundaries.' This was, and is, never going to be an easy decision to make however I don't think we can let memories, nostalgia and petty geographical posturing detract from the harsh facts of modern footballing life. Those facts being that in nearly every situation in life, change is necessary and change is good. Football is not the game it was 30 years ago.

I'm quite sure Middlesborough, Bolton Wanderers, Derby County etc. had the same arguments when they were considering their respective moves to new grounds. Has their fan base diminished? Are they worse clubs for it? No in both cases. Did anybody visit Ayresome Park? It was a shit hole. I can genuinely understand peoples misgivings about moving outside the city boundaries, Everton as a club has more history than a lot of our Premiership compatriots. But the way I see it we move or we die, and you can argue the toss about having more history and being the first team in Liverpool to fellow fans from Scunthorpe and Lincoln as we slide down the leagues in our dilapidated but historical old stadium. Business partnerships, joint ventures, outside investment is the key to a Premiership clubs survival nowadays and we are in danger of cutting off our nose to spite our face. And to the fan who is finished with football if we move, you sound like my Grandad - grow up.

The worst thing about the argument is that a lot of concerns seem to centre around what Liverpool fans will say - get over yourself and have a look at the long term bigger picture for the benefit of Everton FC, not that your Redshite mate at the next desk is going to take the piss for a bit. And finally, I was born in Lancashire which is now officially Greater Manchester and more realistically is a satellite town of Manchester. Borders change with time, beaurocracy and governments. Whose to say that in ten years time when we've moved to a less suitable site within the city boundary that those boundaries won't be moved and we find ourselves 'outside' them? What do we do then, find another new stadium inside them again? All I would say is lets have a healthy grown up debate about this and not let our judgement be clouded by misty eyed sentimentality, tribal instincts and geographical boundaries. P.S. How many people in Kirkby don't consider themselves to be from Liverpool? Holty. (14/12/06)

Don't Forget Your Postcode

The proposed site for the new ground is on Cherryfield Drive Kirkby L33. L stands for Liverpool or to be precise district of Liverpool like Walton like Aintree like Anfield like Old Swan like Speke like Bootle. I presently have a season ticket in the front row of the Upper Bullens right on the Gwladys Street goal line. And the only reason to make me think twice about moving is am I going to get just a good a spec in the new ground. But the concourse at the back of the stand for bets, food toilets etc. is an absolute death trap. I now reside in Parbold which is closer to Wigan than Liverpool but the first 28 years of my life where spent in Kirkby and believe you me the area around the site is a lot better than the area surrounding Goodison at the moment. Any fan who refuses to support us because we have moved 4 miles should be ashamed of themselves how many of us have travelled the length and breadth of the country to see the Boys under perform but still turn up the week after and cheer them onto the pitch. We are Evertonians we stick together and we support the team no matter where or how we play. Kevin Jones. (14/12/06)

Not For Me

I have listened to the debate so far and have remained agnostic. I can see the advantages and disadvantages and to date I thought my opinion didn't matter and I'd go with the flow. However, having just read Graeme's email 13/12/06 I can state I understand the financial ramifications of not moving but agree that LCC should hang their heads in shame for allowing our great team to move outside the boundary. I am a scouser who has moved away to earn a living and going home is a proud moment. If we do move outside the boundary, I fear I wont be making the long journey home very often. Nick Hogan. (14/12/06)

Don't Leave The City

If Everton move out of the city I would not renew my season ticket. I am only 19 but have been going for 12 years and in that time have missed 2 home games. It will be a joke if we leave the city. I can't believe they are even considering it!!!! Leanne. (14/12/06)

No To Kirkby

Not for me. Nothing against Kirkby or it's people. It's not full of pubs where people can meet up for a game. Even away fans would struggle for a beer before the match. I know redevelopment of GP is a non-starter as it's land locked, but there are other options that someone within the club should approach Liverpool Council about.

1. Walton Hall Park. Not far from GP and to use an excuse from the Stanley Park fiasco, 'The park is not in full use all year round'.

2. Newsham Park. As above, 'not in full use all year round'. Plenty of land left to build.

I mention the above parks as after the sale of Stanley Park, all parkland in this city is now up for grabs. These are two good sites worth going for.

3. In the St Domingo area, Granton and Salisbury Roads along with Herschel Street and other buildings around the area are shortly to be demolished. Again a good site to build on and still within a short distance from GP and still in the city.

Football is pricing the ordinary fan out. They are being replaced with Sky TV middle-England 'let's make a day of it' once a season wonders who profess to be died in the wool fans from birth. The so called 'Big 4' only got the label from Sky. Let them go to a euro super league and the rest can carry on. They will come back crawling when it dies out and those 'Big 4' Sky fans go back to Rugby Union.

If you walk around Anfield on matchdays, you'll know what I'm on about. Dave. T. (14/12/06)

Pride of Merseyside

Imagine the scene . . .

A young hotshot (and his sweaty agent) is being lined up by Liverpool and Everton. Liverpool show them around their shiny new stadium while Everton show them around the historic, but very crumbly Goodison. What club do you think the player is going to pick? Even a die-hard blue recently chose to turn down the chance to be club captain and the highest paid player ever at the club in order to leave, so how would a non-Evertonian choose?

I am a top balcony season ticket holder and we cannot deny the fact that the old lady is now not up to the standards that we have historically set. Do we really want to try and redevelop? Where would we play when this was happening? (even if it was possible). If we tried to play on at Goodison, how big would the attendances be when the stands were being redeveloped? Could we survive financially until the redevelopment was complete? I cannot believe we can stay at Goodison as it is, while in a few years the RS will showcase the new Xxxxxxx (Insert sponsors name here) Stadium – how bad is that going to make us look? That is far more likely to make us the laughing stock than moving outside some city boundary that was drawn up by politicians – is there some ‘Berlin Wall’ type fence keeping the non-scousers out of the city? Thought not.

If we must move then I would much prefer a site within Liverpool, but if a site was found would the Tesco money still be available? Personally, I wouldn’t mind moving to Kirkby, as the song goes we are the “Pride of Merseyside” and not the “Pride of Liverpool”, if that was the only alternative. Wherever we end up, the stadium must have the crowd as close to the pitch as possible and it must set new standards – just like Goodison used to when it was being redeveloped over the years. There are probably loads of things going on behind the scenes that we are not being told about, and I also fear that the Tesco money is available on their terms and not our terms, but as a blue, I’d prefer any cash we have sloshing around to go on the team and not on a new stadium solely funded by the club.

It is up to us (the fans) to ensure that "they" do not "airbrush Everton Football Club out of the history books. Just like the fifth beatle, we'll become a footnote".

For the argument "If Everton FC does move out of the City of Liverpool, I can guarantee that we will loose the next generation of support. Which child from Liverpool would choose to support a team that wasn't even in their city?" The answer is "An Evertonian!!!!!". I wasn't born in Liverpool, or even Merseyside - my old feller was and he let me make the right choice myself. You may as well use the argument "You can't support Everton unless you are from Everton!" It is up to us to guide the next generation and steer them away from the dark side, but as the phrase goes “Evertonians are born ….” I was a blue before I even knew it – I remember this small ginger chap running about with white boots and I wanted to be him!

One final point – If we did move away from Goodison, would people stop supporting the club? What happens when we play away then? We all have memories of Goodison, but the way that football is going these days (cheating players, dodgy agents, whining managers, incompetent refs etc…) we have to look to the future and not the past. With that in mind easy 3 points on Sunday!!!! Gaz (Shropshire Blue) (14/12/06)

Support The Team Wherever They Play

I have been reading all sorts of articles for, and mainly, against moving to Kirkby and have been wondering from where are some of the ideas people have coming. My main bugbear is the statement that we will lose fans in the city. I have to say that this is utter nonsense. How many of you started watching Everton because it was just down the road? Eh how many?? I started going because my Granddad supported Everton who instilled this belief into my Uncle who then started to take me when I was 7 or 8 (even though my Nan and other Uncle tried to dissuade me). This was in the dark days of the 70s (around the time of Bingham). I did not go because it was down the road (it was a trip on the number 46 if you must know - now the bus depot's the bingo) but because it was something inside.

How many supporters are there who just wanted to watch Everton for no reason other than their Dad does, or their Granddad. I have a daughter who is just 1; I bought her an Everton kit when I got a shirt this year. My wife said why can't you let her choose her own team and I answered "because she might get it wrong!". Do people who think we'll lose support just because we're just the other side of the M57? Do they think their children/grandchildren will say they won't follow Everton because it's not in Liverpool? Are people really that fickle? Remember the adage of we are born and do not choose but are chosen.

I agree with some other comments about the lack of council support and bending over backwards for the RS but if we move to another borough (it's just where someone drew lines to delineate council boundaries) they'll lose out on that revenue and help another council improve their town centre and standing. I was personally disgusted that they got planning permission after showing everyone what they were going to do stating this that and the other before approval was given. I understood that all park land in Liverpool was given to the council by wealthy merchants to benefit the people and on the understanding that it would remain park land. Then again what do I know, that might just be Sefton Park or Newsham Park or Croxteth Park or ..... just not Stanley Park!

On the pure economic front, we can't afford to build on a brown field (or green field) site on our own. We need a backer and if that means a big supermarket on the same site then so be it. What I would want, however, is a proper ground we would be proud of and not just some mechano set; something with a roof that builds the noise, with perfect views from all areas of the ground and corporate facilities (we'll have to have them) that don't dominate large areas as in the Emirates. Oh and a name supporters choose, not Tesco bowl or something similarly cheesy! I don't necessarily think that it has to be Goodison - I know how can I say that? I've been going for 31 years and I'm attached but keeping the name doesn't seem right. Have one end called that but how about naming areas after our heroes - you're sitting in row Z, seat 12 in the Ralph "Dixie" Dean section - and have the name of the stadium something new? How about the Everton People's Stadium, just off the top of my head?

Anyway I felt I ought to get that off my chest so I can sleep peacefully. A stadium outside the city limits (I live in Fazakerly - part of Liverpool - and it's only a couple of miles down the road) will not result in all people in Liverpool overnight turning to the dark side of the RS, does not sound the death knell of the club and might even be a good thing. Steve L. (14/12/06)

Liverpool City Council Has A Lot To Answer For

Why did the Liverpool Council reject Everton's request of several years ago to look into the feasibility of building a new stadium on Stanley Park, when they have positively encouraged LFC's application? V A Webster. (14/12/06)

Stay At Goodison

Why why why? Lets put up a fight. Its our club not Tesco till Bill's. Let's renovate our ground. Lets keep Out the 'look at us crew' in the company boxes and put the future blues on seats in our great stadium. Let Tesco go to kirkby and leave Goodison and us fans in our proper place. Ronnie Profit. (14/12/06)

Stand Up And Be Counted! No To Knowsley

I felt I had to contribute to the debate of the new ground. I have been an Everton supporter all my life, I have brought my children up to do the same (although one has defected to the Gunners, but so long as he isn't a redneck, I can live with it!!). The proposed move is an utter disgrace and if I were a season ticket holder, I'd demand my money back.

I have had dealings, if you like with Knowsley Council as they are in the process of building new schools, let me tell you, one hint of the word Regeneration will have Knowsley Council begging like a dog and you will never get rid of them. If Knowsley Council believe they can use Everton and Tesco to boost Kirkby, they will, in fact Kirkby is quite renowned for getting what it wants, I believe this will go ahead unless dramatic action is taken by the fans, and this should be done in whatever way possible because they should not be allowed to get away with it.

Rallies, petitions, demos, boycotting matches, whatever it takes, this is what we should do, let Knowsley Council and Everton Football Club hear the fans and tell them we won't be treated as if we don't exist. Cheryl Draper (14/12/06)

Back The Move

Not being funny but if Liverpool City Council really wanted to keep Everton they'd be more obliging in helping find a suitable site in the city. Everyone remember Everton being told to Fuck right off when asking to put a stadium on Stanley Park yet no one can move quick enough to let The Shite build there. Bollocks to it. Everton have long since suffered through being in Liverpool's shadow. A large part I believe in not carrying the name of the City. Fuck em all. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum. I for one don't want to be in a crumbling Goodison in 10 years time just for the sake of 'Staying in the City'. Let's back the move and be content with being number one on MERSEYSIDE. Martin Roberts. (14/12/06)

We Need To Move On!

Goodison! What a place. However we need to move with the times and a move away will get us better revenue and in this day and age that's what it's all about. It's only just passed the city boundaries. CJK. (14/12/06)

What's Wrong With Kirkby?

I can't believe the hysteria over the possibility of Everton moving to Kirkby! Anyone would think it was near Swindon the way some of you are
reacting. Most blues seem to accept that to keep the club at the forefront (or put it back there) of English football we need to move on and self
generate the income that will see the team compete on the pitch, not just now, but in the long term future. The only way to achieve that is by moving, as let's face it, Goodison has seen much better days and there's not going to be a Roman, Randy, Glazer or Sheikh knocking on the door at the Main Stand - we'll have to make do with the bloke from Coronation Street.

Liverpool Council have clearly done nothing to help Everton, and the shocking way they have fallen over backwards to support the sh*tes' move
across Stanley Park is very suspicious, but if they aren't offering any viable alternatives to that being proposed by Knowsley Council then the club shouldn't go begging or turn it's nose up at the financial incentives involved. Why stay in the City boundaries if the City doesn't want you? As for joking about Tesco, let's not forgot, in the clubs most successful era of the eighties none of us gave a damn about wearing an advert for tinned ham across our shirts.

As someone whose family are all from Walton (Barlow Street / Tetlow Street), including a grandmother brought up in Gwladys Street who used to go and watch Dixie, we all moved to Kirkby and have travelled up and down the East Lancs Road many times down the years to watch the Blues without it bothering us. It's not actually that difficult to get to you know, we speak with the same accent, there are pubs not too far away from the proposed site and probably more to come if that's what you're more interested in, and if you know your history, you'll know where the Z Cars theme comes from too.

I now live in the Isle of Man and will have no trouble (gale force winds, storms and travel disruptions permitting) in taking my seat at the match on Sunday and then travel back afterwards, as many fellow Blues do week in week out. I can't imagine a few extra miles or minutes making too much difference to anyone if you love Everton Football Club. P.S. Despite the similar nose I'm no relation to Alan Stubbs, also from Kirkby. Dave Gannon. (14/12/06)

It Should Matter

It should f**king matter were the ground moves to !!! If you's are all real Evertonians you should be in support of the new ground even if it is out of the city!!! Only the childish nobs will argue against it because it's a new ground what we have been after for years. So look on the positive side of things even if we not going to be in the city and by the way I think it would have been great if we had moved to Speke but if the Liverpool council want to give the shite land and not us. F**k Them. Let them because Everton are the people's club and the people will move with the club!! Greg H. (14/12/06)

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