Everton
FC E-mails 222 - Stadium Special (5)
|
|
|
|
Whatever
you think e-mail your views to info@bluekipper.com
We have had hundreds of mails on the proposed Stadium Move. We will put them on the site over the next few days What About The Ashes At Goodison? I have been reading the debate on our proposed new ground. Now until we hear something more concrete from board level I'm happy to wait and see what happens. One thing that does concern me is what happens to the plaques around the ground where people have had their ashes spread? Will these be lost under some car park or supermarket? Also because of this does this make Goodison consecrated ground? I would not be happy if I had a family member there, where would you go to pay your respects?? I bet you are wonderful board members have not even given this a thought. Once A Blue Always A Blue. Rob Black. (30/12/06) Leahys a blue too!
I am another blue who winces at the prospect of 'abandoning the City'
to the shite as we all know they will portray it. As with many others
here, who put their views forward with skill and eloquence, I find that
I can live with this tough if it means the future of the club I love is
assured and is destined to be more competitive where it counts these days...on
the balance-sheet. City Boundary Why is everyone so concerned about a ground inside the city boundary? Queens Drive was once the boundary. Walton Hospital was outside the city. The boundary can always expand and anyway Old Trafford is NOT in the city of Manchester but everyone tells you its a Manchester team. True Blue Joe. (30/12/06) Whether or not its in Kirby, Speke, Knowsley, Kings dock - The whole thing of moving to a new ground is dodgy for me. Our home form is critical to us, look at Arsenal they have struggled in their new home - they are out of the premiership title race by November, if we had the same problem adapting to a new home the consequences would be catastrophic. I'll quickly list off clubs that have had new homes built in recent years and tell me the one thing that stands out: Middlesborough, Bolton, Sunderland, Derby County. Yes - all four had new grounds and got relegated from the premiership! Huddersfield, Hull City, Stoke City, Millwall, Oxford Yes - all had new grounds and got relegated I know there have been one or two success stories, Wigan perhaps although they have had the new ground a few years and have developed from a little club to a little premiership club. Man City got given a stadium so that doesn't count! Is Goodison really that bad? Jim, Birmingham. (30/12/06) Calling LCC's Bluff When we win the FA Cup and League Championship again, which we will if you know your history. Does that mean we will have the open top bus around Kirkby and Huyton? Surely not!!! A move WILL happen but I believe that the talks with Knowsley Council and Tesco will call LCC's bluff. LCC I believe don't want to miss out on the Millions that would be lost on council tax revenue (over the years) not forgeting the impact on surrounding businesses. If we do move then good riddance to LCC. We must look forward to the future. Everton's boundaries will need to be international in the future to Secure our place at the top and this can be achieved with the help of our Business partners like Tesco. NSNO. PINO. (30/12/06) Pick A Park! Any Park Why can't we move to Walton Hall Park? I'm already gettin' stick in work from them gobsh!tes and nothing is definite yet! Walton Hall Park is far bigger than Stanley Park plus the is f*ckall there. Or what about knocking down the Heritage Dock, filling it with concrete and building it there? Or Old Speke Airport? They wouldn't wanna move to WHP coz' there is a Tesco nearby! Leavey is more interested in making money than the History of the club..................If we move to Kirkby there will be no more "And If You Know Your History"..............& Kenwright has got the nerve to have "The People's Club" on the Park End. Alan Hoy. (30/12/06) More Revenue I will hate to leave Goodison, but it has to be done, I don’t care if we move to Knowsley as the only thing that matters is the club and how it goes forward, this is a major step forward in creating revenue for the team. The further away from them the better, this city has always been bias towards them. We know what we are as Evertonians. Come on you blues. John S. Aintree. (30/12/06) Prawn Sandwich Brigade A Necessary Evil In answer to el tel's e-mail concerning the increased capacity of a new stadium. The extra 10,000 capacity will be snapped up by corporate and business clients and not more Evertonians. There maybe a small increase of Evertonians coming to the game, but don't be fooled that the reason for the increased capacity is to squeeze Evertonians into the ground. Ever wondered why the seats next to the directors box are always empty? Because companies won't pay out money and be outside the directors box. The would rather go elsewhere. As a C.E.O. of a medium size company, who uses Everton's corporate facilities and have done for 8 years, the increased revenue from any new stadium will come from what Roy Keane called the 'prawn sandwich' brigade. I have spoken to various business colleagues, who simply won't entertain going to Goodison, because the facilities are one of the worst in the Premiership. The top people at Goodison know this and want to be an attractive proposition to big multi million companies who want to throw cash at them. I have tried to bring other companies to Goodison, but they won't move from the comfort zone of the other Premiership clubs. The don't care which club as long as the package is good value. One C.E.O. of a top Bank told me: "Why should I come to Everton, when I can fly 30 of my people to London, stay at a five star hotel virtually next to the ground and be waited on for two days with 5 star service and facilities. Then fly 30 satisfied customers back home to Scotland." You see these top business people don't care for Everton. They want a top hospitality package, which Everton just can't provide at Goodison Park. Everton have improved their hospitality side of the business to a good standard, but just can't match the top clubs like Man Utd, Chelsea and Arsenal. Even Spurs and Aston Villa have more boxes than us in their old stadiums. Man City, Bolton and would you believe it Wigan have better facilities with their new stadiums. I can imagine lots of Blues saying we don't want them here. I agree, but lets live in the real world. It's all about money. Everton don't have any. The only way to get sustainable income into the club is by bringing more business people into ground on matchday's. The only way to do that is to get a new ground with more corporate boxes. Then there would be the knock on effect with companies using the stadium for conferences and other business meetings. Don't knock the prawn sandwich brigade. They are a necessary evil. Ray. (30/12/06) Give me land, lots of land....don't fence me in ! On the way to the match as I travelled through the areas cleared in the 1930s, 50's and 60's re-locating the people of Scottie and Netherfeld Rd out of town and out of sight I thought the wide open spaces that had been created. These parklands supposed to serve as communal gardens to the people of tower blocks raised in the 1960s are now under-utilised but provide a perfect opportunity for Liverpool Council under Warren 'Vote for me I'm a Blue' Bradley to find a home for Everton F.C. So today I go onto Google and start looking at the satellite maps of North Liverpool. By superimposing the foot print of Goodison on the maps I can come up with at least 3 areas where we could re locate to within a couple of miles of the City and Goodison. My favourite would be in the green space on St Domingo Rd. It is close to the City, overlooks the Mersey and is a stones throw from Everton Brow. Then there is the industrial land between Commercial Rd and Great Howard St. well served by Mersey Rail. What about Trafalgar Dock and even Newsham Park. I know its park land but what's good enough for Liverpool FC should be good enough for the Blues. Liverpool council match the offer made by Knowsley and donate the land; Tesco buy Goodison and put their Hyper market on the site (local jobs and re-generation) and we use the money to build a stadium. Vin Ferguson. (30/12/06) Goodison Park IS Everton Do you people have no sentimental value at all? Ok its not old trafford and yeah its defiantly not the best ground we've ever been to but at the end of the day its home 2 me and hell of alot of other people. We don't need a bigger ground we occasionally fill the one we have. I live in yorkshire but every time i walk out onto the top balcony and look out on to the pitch and can see the city we once solely represented before the shite existed, i feel as if I'm home and that i should never leave. How many others of you feel like me? True Goodison's not hi-tech,but put it like this, it isn't the riverside, so we should be bloody proud to keep it where it is. Ad Wright. (29/12/06) Keep It Rectangular Rather than develop a new oval (soulless) bowl, can not somebody redesign the new ground to be a modern version of Goodison? Far too many of these new stadiums look the same as the next one, the new Goodison, wherever it may be, should look different. Lets keep it Rectangular, with supporters close to the pitch, towering stands to all sides. I’d love to see that. Derek. (29/12/06) It Doesn't Matter Where The Ground Is If
your a true blue you will travel to watch your beloved Everton where ever
their ground is. I travel 184 miles round trip from Harrogate in Yorkshire
every home game so what difference is 4 miles up the road from Goodison?
Yes Goodison is our spiritual home and I love the place, "Divide and conquer!" someone said along time ago. As far as I can see, the proposed move to Kirkby is dividing Evertonians to breaking point. The debate blog on BBC sport web page had more Shite fans airing their views on the subject than us Everton supporters (note how the writer cleverly differentiated between fans and supporters). Most of the drivel was littered with cheap jokes about the 'Pound Shop' becoming a partner, some were quite funny - but they all failed to acknowledge that their own ship wasn't exactly in order. Given the option between an Arabian slave trader and the biggest home shopping company in the world as a supporter...well the answers obvious. The
long term security of Everton Football Club must be the priority - please
don't let emotive issues cloud your judgment. I like most of you love
Goodison Park - it's a special place, that is not at question; what is
in question - in my eyes is what becomes of our beloved Home. The
move is going to happen, just read between the lines - it's abundantly
clear. I'd hate to see a shopping complex or housing estate built on the The
centre circle where Sunderland's Roker Park once stood now has a roundabout
on it. If this can happen to them it can happen to us - so as Re-develop Goodison Park With regard to a new stadium. I think a way could be found to re - develop Goodison Park, but there is no enthusiasm at board level for such a scheme. Therefore why not take up the whole of Stanley Park and build identical back to back stadiums, building two at the same time must be more economical than building two separate stadiums. This would be unique and everyone gets what they want. Mark Howard (29/12/06) EVERTON Is All That Matters Well,
after reading the previous e-mails thought i`d throw my two penneth in
as well. I went to my first game at Goodison in 1973 ( got beat by Burnley
3-2, Bryan Hamilton got 2, Peter Noble & Brian Flynn were playing
for them) Such an unforgettable buzz going to my first game, unforgettable.
Bayern in`85, amazing night, Sharpy`s goal at analfield in 85, stuffing
manure 5-0 the week before.......all priceless memories that bring goosebumps
to my arms even now............would it have mattered if these matches
were played on the local park, at Old Trafford or on the bloody moon......NO
!!! New Ground Does Not Mean Big Money Income Out gate receipts account for about 30% of total turnover (with 50%+ from TV). If a move added 15,000 to our crowds (very unlikely in my opinion, unless there was a dramatic improvement on the pitch), very crudely our total turnover would go up 10-15% -- no more than £10 I wouldn't think, or, if you like, about two and a half Simon Davies's. A small reward for a sickeningly high price. Of
course, a move would bring in other investments -- but amounts that would
propel us into the same ball park as the horrible moneybags clubs? Goodison needs a major revamp, no doubt, and this is much easier said than done. But Bill, you've got to make it happen. You can be the fella who we tell our grand kids: "this is the man that made sure we stayed at Goodison". I voted to move in the first two votes. I hope I get chance to get it right third time around. Sentimental and nostalgic? Too right. But there's many a sound argument to stay put. Cheers, Jim. (29/12/06) Kirkby Read Kings Dock Like many Evertonians I can say that my Great Grandad, my Grandad, my Dad and now my son were/are passionate about this great club of ours. It feels right to be a blue and I don’t care how much the RedShite win, they will always be inferior to us. Of course we will always watch Everton wherever they play but I sincerely hope that we don’t move out of Liverpool. I was born right in the middle of Liverpool and I lived for many years in Kirkby before emigrating to the Wirral but Everton is a club that belongs to Liverpool because that is our tradition and our tradition will see us become a winning club again. We can’t afford to take the chance and lose our heritage. It is our heritage that sets us apart from the likes of the RS, Bolton, Boro and Derby etc. I know how far Kirkby is and it isn’t far, in terms of miles. In terms of what it means to out history and what we leave behind it is a huge leap. I want my grandchildren to go to a rebuilt Goodison Park, Newcastle did it, why cant we? The only reason is that this short sighted Liverpool Council can’t be bothered to help us. We should do more to stay at Goodison and if that is not possible then we must stay within Liverpool and remain as we are now part of a City that can boast two great clubs (it pains me to say that but I suppose it is true). Surly Bill Kenwright does not want to move to Kirkby, I could understand Wyness because he has no true feeling of what it is to be blue and how much it hurts when we get beat or feel so powerless. I never felt that the move to King’s Dock would happen and I truly feel that EFC won't move to Kirkby and more time will be lost. Eventually we will get what we want but my fear is that the amount of time it takes may damage our ability to do what really matters and that is win on the pitch. UP THE BLUES! Paul Webb. (29/12/06) It Doesn't Matter Where Everton Play Lets face it guys - we all live and die for this club. If Goodison all of a sudden came tumbling down and we ended up playing out the rest of our home games on the Verney car park then we would all be there fighting for space to watch. The point is that would a ground move to Kirby ACTUALLY stop you from going to the game?? If the answer is yes then you may as well stay in the city and support them nob heads across the park To
me it doesn't matter where the mighty blues play their football as I'll
go and watch them regardless. Outside the city boundaries??? who the hell
cares, so we'll get the piss taken out of us by a few red shite fans,
but who listens to them anyway's and what does that matter when it's the
performances on the pitch that we should be talking about. I'd rather
listen to that 'one team in the city' shit that they'll drivel out than
the The old Lady has had her day, time to give her a good send off and move onto pastures new. If that's in Kirkby then so be it! the only downside being that it's probably further in a taxi from town but then I'll be looking forward to the train journeys instead :) Ste Willo. (29/12/06) I
have read the various messages on the board from fellow readers, and agree
that every one has a valid point, and I can empathise with each one. I
do not want to leave G P, it's where I go, where I meet my mates, and
watch every move, every minute wishing that I was out there on the park,
it's where my Dad, Grandad, and others, no longer with us used to go.
If we could stay and "facelift" the Old Lady, I would give as
much as I could towards any fund. I don't think that the the Club/we have
a choice. As other have stated, EFC has had no support from the Council,
or admittedly from previous Board members, but for me, there are two reasons
why staying just isn't viable. We fill Goodison twice a season with a ground capacity of around 42,000. What are the benifits of moving to a 50,000 seat stadium when we can't fill our own. Is it to give the shite and mancs more tickets? el tel. (21/12/06) What's the problem? I’m really confused by the furore over the proposed move down the road. If fans don’t want to move from our beloved ground that’s fair enough but to reject it based on Kirkby not being in Liverpool seems ludicrous. Here’s 2 dates to consider 1878 – needs no explanation 1974 – the date Kirkby ceased to be part of Liverpool due to a politically motivated reorganisation of local government. Presumably it would have been ok if we built the new ground in 1973. Just a thought… dids. (21/12/06) As far as I'm concerned, Everton F.C. is a Liverpool club. We were the first major club in the city, we still are... if you only count local fans. It's something we should be proud of, and it's also something LCC should be proud of. When the board, and any new investors are thinking about moving to a new ground, and let's face it, we desperately need a new ground (even if it only means we can get a bevvy at half time) then the clubs motto should be the first thing on their minds. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum. Isn't that what we're all about?? Or is it 'every little helps' from now on?? Come on Bill, get us a site in the city. We deserved it!!!! Born a Blue, Live a blue, Die a Tesco Clubcard holder?? Fuck off!!! Blue till I die!!! mersey_beatts. (21/12/06) Go For It People talk about the club losing their traditions and in one case "losing their heart". i myself will support everton wherever the clubs ground is, and for some Evertonians to say that Kenwright is profit driven in my opinion is ridiculous. I don't see any arsenal fans, bolton fans complaining about their new grounds. Over the past 5 years i have seen everton improve no end from the early 90's and believe that in order for our football club to progress the move is both essential and inevitable. I for one will be proud that everton will have such a good stadium.BlueBigz. (21/12/06) Look At The Bigger Picture Hay lets look at the bigger picture here we more or less started the football league with help from others ( shite not involved) we are a very BIG club. I have traveled from kirkby for more nearly 30 years having moved from the top of scotty road with the redevelopment of kirkby taking off. all my relatives brothers and sisters are true blues, apart from a couple are not that clever. So i don't think a move to kirkby would be a bad thing. New development, new ground and more finance put into the club. No one wants to put money on or into an old lady so lets be positive. This is the biggest move and could be the best and no matter where the boys in the royal blue jerseys play i will go..blueforlife. (21/12/06) Kirkby Is Liverpool How can any true fan have the nerve to say they will stop going the match if we move to Kirkby. And have ya heard some of the lame excuses being touted, get a grip people. 1.
Kirkby may be outside the city boundaries on paper but you ask anybody
there where they come from and what they are an I guarantee it'll be 100%
SCOUSERS, just like people from Huyton, and Bootle. We pride ourselves
on being scouse as much as the rest of you. Sentimentality Right lets get things into perspective. we are dealing with a county council that is welcoming us with open arms here are , liverpool council the licking the arse of the shite and bending over backwards to sell a large section of a one of the only green spaces left in the walton / everton area whilst sticking two very shit encrusted fingers at us , so fuck them , lets go somewhere else , lets take the money we generate, the taxes and rates we pay to a fuckin county council that openly welcomes us . Lets not dwell in the past as we have done for so long , we've moved once already and left one shit hole to the shite makes no difference to me if we do it again. If you have a car for years and it starts costing you money you fuckin well sell it same case scenario here . its a case of i had that car for years but look at the shiny new one jive got now ! This shit eating Liverpool county council wont do fuck all for us , so bollocks to them ,lets move to Kirby , lets have a world class stadium and when the shite get their appeal for building the new Analfield on an historic victorian park thrown out of court we will be playing in the best stadium on merseyside . JUST LIKE WE DID LAST TIME. Joeverton. (21/12/06) Support Everton Anywhere What's
the score with all this 'I won't support if we move' rubbish?...I even
had a red from hereford trying to give me sh*t about the move until I
told the soft glory hunting tw*t that when we originally moved to Goodison
walton was classed as 'outside' the city as it wasn't in Liverpool! Move And Prosper My
view on the move for what it's worth. Why can one club get permission
to build in a public park, whilst there is no offer from the council for
similar permission for us? What about Walton Hall Park, or another part
of Stanley Park, Calderstones, Allerton, Otterspool etc. seeing as the
precedent has been broken? Simply because the biased bigots of the council
do not want to know about EFC. My mum lives in Anfield and I know there
was considerable local opposition to the sh*te moving a few yards, but
hey they still got permission, I always thought that public parks were
sacrosanct, obviously not. Having now read a good few days worth of the healthy (yes of course it is) debate which is rightly filling our time i have completely changed my mind over the probable move. Months ago i would have been too emotional about GP to say this, but we simply have to move. I have come to this conclusion for a few reasons - not even considering the economics. Firstly, now that the RS seem to be certain to move onto the park where i spent most of my youth, GP will simply look like their outside toilet- think Notts Forest vs Notts County. Secondly, Kirkby is a proud scouser town- no question of where a fairly recent line on a map is drawn. As far as the fan base is concerned for the future, the way the club embraces communities all over Merseyside will have a massive effect and anyone with a bit of sense can see that this should present EFC with a fantastic opportunity to bring the community closer to the club with regeneration and facilities that the community could use. Thirdly, although we still have a very large Walk to the Ground fan base compared to other clubs- anyone who tries to travel to GP from say Speke or Skem knows that public transport is neither a cheap or reliable option- Even now without the improved access or dedicated slip roads which we could put into Kirkby- its easier to jump in the car- as long as you can find a safe scally free parking space. I went to school in Walton and will be first in the queue to grab a brick or two when the bashers move in- just as i was in1970 when we knocked down the old stand- and yes i know i will cry-in fact I'll really bloody sob at the last match in the old lady- just like my mackem mate did at Roker- but try and tell him it wasn't for the best. Finally- the way the club manage the move with the right publicity and real community action will be vital -including naming the stadium. Let's have NO PR COCK UPS!.Let the RS keep their Sheik yer money arena or whatever they want. The name for our new ground must be one which invokes pride, passion and everything it means to be an Evertonian. Mick Nolan. (20/12/06) Kirkby Would you believe it......Kirkby Town in the premier league, sponsored by Tesco. Ablueb4iwasborn. (20/12/06) City Boundaries I can't believe all you nob heads complaining of leaving the city boundaries. It's 400 meters outside to be precise, that’s if you count Fazakerley as Liverpool!. That must mean we cant move to Bootle then because that’s outside the city boundaries. They come under different councils that’s all. L33 counts for Liverpool. Fozza. (20/12/06) It
is politically a load of bollocks that we cannot improve the Goodison
site. As one of the previous comrades has stated, the shite, through their
masonic 'glorious 12th' political persuasions, have goat fucked their
way into claiming Stanley Park. It shits me. We moved from Analfield because
of some dispute with a secret handshake merchant, who went on to form
the shite, so here's what I say;OPTIONS- Enough is enough! Get
this negative atmosphere out of your systems lads OMG. We have the chance
to build a new ground and have financial stability from tescos main man
who's a blue nose and with blue bill who BOTH love the club like us! wot
could b better?????? All I hear is people saying "why wont anyone
take over our club? wots wrong with us???....blah blah blah" Do we
really want some foreigners coming in and turning it into a circus????
As far as I can see were goin in the right direction (slowly) with people
who LOVE the club, were all Evertonians!! Why don't LCC show us the plans
they had?? Haha coz there wasn't any!! Everyone IN liverpool knows its
a blue city its the wools that make up the numbers at ANALFIELD and an
arab soon to be at the helm is gonna funny to see. He's not another Roman
that's hell bent on buying every player.. Lick of paint We need a new stadium- theres' a shite coloured one being vacated in about 3 years- will be sold for less than x hundred million. Lick of paint- thank you very much. 45,000 capacity and allegedly excellent corporate facilities- would be going back home! Question is - Is it a better option than Kirkby? Ha! Daniel Morton. (20/12/06) New Ground Does Not Mean More Profit Someone please explain to me why a new ground AUTOMATICALLY means more profit? More revenues possibly – but more profit and therefore money for better players……? Not proven. Also let’s be clear as to the obstacles preventing the upgrading and expansion of GP. Obviously there are the financial aspects, but these are there whether we redevelop or leave. But the real obstacle is the refusal of the Council to support any extension to the GP ‘footprint’. The club has previously of course extended its ownership of surrounding land at the Park End. There was also a time in the 90s when Peter Johnson ordered the buying of the houses in Gwladys Street. If the Club was free to bid for and buy the land between Bullens Rd and Walton Lane then it would have all it needed to construct a 50,000+ stadium with attendant facilities. What about the school? Well why not have it housed inside one of the stadium stands? What a coup for the ‘local community’ aspect of the Club’s activities. Playground? One of the stadium’s car park areas. Can’t be done? That’s what they said about St James’s Park and Old Trafford. It can be done. It requires vision; it requires money – it also requires a supportive City Council. Stephen Carse. (20/12/06) Clarification I've just read Graeme Adams article on your site and whilst he has made some valid points I have to say that when he asks "Which child from Liverpool would choose to support a team that wasn't even in their city?" he only needs to look down the East Lancs Road. Manchester United are in the Stretford area which is part of Trafford, not Manchester yet they fill 60,000 - 75,000 every week, not all of whom come from London. So I don't think that argument will wash. I would also point out that by moving to Knowsley they would be getting the land valued at £50 million for nothing, I would hardly call that a " Bit of money". In an ideal world I would love The Might Blues to stay at Goodison Park, but we don't live in an ideal world so unless a new investor comes in with a huge block of cash I don't see any other option but moving to Kirkby. Grahm Carlson. (20/12/06) Belly Up I’ve accepted that we need to move from Goodison. It seems obvious we can’t re-develop the old girl, since the council won’t let us. But I for one can see the Kirkby idea going belly up. Even looking at it from a fiscal point of view, the vast majority of Everton fans are adult men who like a pint before and after the game. Piss them off by moving to Kirkby and you risk losing at least 10,000 season ticket holders and to be honest, I fully expect that this could in fact be up to 10,000 higher in reality. So not only would we be moving into a ground with a capacity already 20,000 seats higher that our average attendance, (35,000 av attendance versus 55,000 potential capacity) but we risk making that 30,000. So we’re told it’s only 4 miles as the crow flies (By road it’s 6 miles incidentally) and this will increase the likelihood of Everton fans from that catchment area coming to the game. Really? Well why did they never come to Goodison? It’s only 4 miles further, as the crow flies – which strikes the question, when people say what kind of fan are you for stopping going to the match because we moved to Kirkby, what kind of fans would make the trip to Kirkby more often than they ever did Goodison? Not to mention that a move to Kirkby would be, as one shareholder said, “raising the white flag and telling the dirty red bastards that they have the city” – or something like that. In some families, kids are given a choice of who they want to support – who are they going to choose? Not only that, but no one can honestly believe that they will replace, in volume, the number of fans who will drop off because of moving to Kirkby? And the corporate fans? Any lads out there who’ve been to away grounds on comps will no not a peep is made in those corporate areas, because they’re made up of loads of away fans, so they hardly add to the atmosphere. (Of course, that could just be because Evertonians get everywhere, no matter what ground you’re at and it might not be like that with other teams) My rational here is not that we shouldn’t move – Goodison, as much as I love the old girl, is dated now. But that we shouldn’t move to Kirkby too hastily. The problem of course is we’re not the club in this city that the council want to bend over backwards to help. I’ve got no problem with Kirkby itself, I’m sure it’s great there and that it would really benefit greatly from the redevelopment, but it will benefit from a large Tesco built there regardless of whether the club is attached. If we move to Kirkby, I’ll still go. There’s no point in me pretending I won’t, I will just get sucked again in after a while, so for me, why fight the inevitable. But I’d not even be thinking about this if the move was to another site in the city. I’m not even FROM Liverpool, I’m a Welsh extradite, but even I can see it’s wrong to leave the city boundaries. For me, the sense is not just looking to improve the club as a business, but remembering who it was that kept this club going through the toughest of times and doing what is right by them, because without them, the club could well have been dead and buried a long time ago. Nicholas Hughes. (19/12/06) Reserving My Judgment I myself will be waiting until kenwright has said we are definitely moving to kirkby before laying my cards on the table. By saying we are "investigating" a move to kirkby Bill is throwing down the gauntlet to LCC who said they will do everything in their power to keep us in the city. He wants them to offer us a better or equal deal. if two equal offers were on the table (liverpool or kirkby) were do you think he would want to go. Heno. (19/12/06) It's gotten to the point where I need to vent my views on the somewhat flawed thinking of how a new stadium will allow us to "compete" with the big three (plus The Shite) and that the move is somehow "inevitable". What proof is there that switching stadiums will provide us the catalyst to success? Are Middlesboro, Sunderland, Bolton, Man City, etc being overwhelmed by trophy winning success? Let us examine 'the contenders'. Man Utd, despite being the most financially successful club in the world, have taken the decision to stay at and redevelop Old Trafford to keep up with the demand from their fans, demand generated by continual footballing success. Arsenal, all their recent glories that propelled them to be the biggest most fashionable club in London were achieved at Highbury, another old restricted view stadium; that Highbury was too small to cope with their fan base was of no consequence to the success of the team that played in the stadium. When Arsene Wenger arrived Arsenal were scratching around with us for a UEFA cup spot, he has built them up, created the success and because of that the fan base has burgeoned and they genuinely needed to move to maximise on this. Perhaps if Arsenal had persisted with Bruce Rioch and we had got Wenger in we would be at the King's Dock as we speak? The Shite have won what they've won at Analfield, nowadays the huge amount of Norweigans using budget airlines to travel to their matches means the demand for tickets is well in-excess of Kopite capacity and this is why they feel the need for an extravagant new stadium, but again let's highlight the serious point that it is the increasing fan base that makes this a necessity. Chelsea, inspite of having all the money in the world and spending £400 odd million on players since Roman arrived, have been strangely muted in their calls for a new stadium, why?, perhaps because it is obvious that a stadium has bugger all to do with generating success, it is down to a rich enthusiastic chairman prepared to put his hand in his pocket…he probably realises that moving from their spiritual home would be the only thing he could do wrong in the eyes of the Chelsea faithful Look further down south for even further evidence of a 'fools gold' belief that a stadium will bring success. Harry Redknapp leaves crap stadium Pompey to manage flashy-new-stadium-and-obviously-on-the-up-Southampton, Southampton get relegated and lo and behold Pompey get snapped up by a rich Russian and before you can say "loyalty" Redknapp is back at Pompey. Do we have a huge prawn sandwich eating fan-base? Is there a 5-10 year waiting list to get a season ticket at Goodison? Even excluding restricted view from the argument, do we sell-out all out all matches at Goodison? I think you will find the answer to all these questions is no. I've seen it written that having our new stadium will somehow make us more attractive to a new investor, again where is the evidence? Villa Park, comparable to Goodison, was no barrier to the Randy Lerner takeover, why?…I'll tell you, it's because Villa had good business fundamentals which can be considered to be low debt and good, if not great, off-field management. I imagine the aforementioned Pompey were the same. So how will the creation of a colossal new debt in the shape of a new stadium suddenly make us a viable investment for your average billionaire investor who wants his first £100 million to be spent on better players and not on servicing debt? The formula for success involves getting your house in order on and off the pitch, this will then attract an enthusiastic rich person, to buy the club. The stadium you play in has little to no bearing on this. Moyesy has us moving in the right direction on the pitch, I truly believe Billy and Bully are doing the best that they can off it, so if the current rate of billionaires/super-rich entering English football continues it surely won't be too long before we are plucked off the shelf as it were. The new stadium has every chance of being a hindrance to this opportunity occurring. Forgetting these financial and evidential arguments, there is also the feeling that if our Tescodrome gets built it will be nothing more than an IKEA flat pack, anonymous "A stadium" a la The Riverside, Reebok. Tesco's are your typical ruthless corporation and they will want costs kept to a minimum - shareholders and all that. With our current financial situation and the input we will be able to offer i'm 100% certain any new stadium we build will be less Emirates and more Eastlands. In comparison the Shite do seem to have attracted an enthusiastic billionaire who no-doubt will be able to embellish their stadium with details such as Norweigan herrings engraved on the seats and Middle Eastern domes on every corner to make their fans feel at home, putting us even further in the shade. We can counter this by remaining at Goodison. The history it represents and it's importance to Liverpool cannot and should not be under-estimated, we are the original City of Liverpool club and that will not and cannot be taken away by the Shite's fandangled new 'sporting arena' , remember…They don't build 'em like they used to! Also with the move to Kirkby there is the feeling that The Shite will have chased us out of Liverpool, it is only the tiniest distance geographically, but it's significance really should be obvious even to the most pro-new stadium fan. It can be glossed over, but I can't believe anyone is truly happy with that part of the proposal. Other subjective arguments for staying such as loss of atmosphere, etc are just that, subjective, so I will leave them out so as not to cheapen my opinion. I would not want to stand in the way of a move if I genuinely thought there would be a significant benefit to our beloved club, but I just can't see it. This whole episode looks like a desperate rush to 'keep up with the Jones'', and far from benefiting Everton it could actually hurt us in the long term. We turn our back on our heritage at a risk far greater than putting the noses of a few sentimentalists out of place. Mike, London. (19/12/06) Finance The Key I am a 41 year old season ticket holder of many years and fear this could be the nail in the coffin for me. I'm already disillusioned with the sky soap opera of football that we now have to live with, sick of Sunday/Monday games, sick of armchair non fans telling me the rights and wrongs of the games I've paid money to watch, sick of the elite clubs monopoly of trophy's and money. A great part of being an Evertonian and going the match for me has been the social aspect, meeting mates on a SATURDAY in the pubs on County Road ranting on about the blues (it's the only chance I get cos me missus wont listen to me). Goodison still gives me a buzz, I have a great seat and it's a great venue for footie, maybe not great for it's hot food selection & drinks (but I go to a pub or restaurant for them). It's not that I'm against change as I would have been all for the King's Dock arena but this new idea of a soulless, shopping mall stadium leaves me empty. Can't see me going all the way to Kirby on Sunday service for a sky dictated 4pm ko somehow, and I'm died in the heart blue who got wed at Goodison, and if I lose faith then my 2 kids (under 3) may well be lost to the future generation of fans. I personally won't believe that any new ground venture is for real until the last brick is in place especially with EFC's finances. Andy E. (19/12/06) No To Kirkby I think moving to Kirkby will be a major mistake. I have been a season holder for 8 seasons and I think season ticket holders should have a say in the matter, we are the peoples club from Liverpool, if the shite can get a ground in this city when all that is watching them is foreigners then so can we!!!. NEW GROUND YES . KIRKBY NOOOOO. CAROLYN TOWNLEY. (19/12/06) Move On My
12 old son and myself went to watch the Blues at Old Trafford (Stretford
end) a couple of weeks ago, and where taken back by the ground Having
read the many many mails is this and other sites regarding the moving
to Kirkby, I feel that we are missing the point. As an expat in Europe
I don't get to many matches, which will negate my view for many of the
luddites. I watch the blues religiously every week and our family discussions
are dominated by player/club issues. The biggest issue for me is what
if we don't move. Ten years ago the Euro championships came to Liverpool,
Everton THE club of Merseyside was overlooked, the games went to them.
We have been overtaken by the likes of Bolton, Middlesborough and Sunderland
for representative games. Bill Kenwright has done a great scene painting
job, but I have never once been to Goodison and been lifted by the stadium,
the team, the fans but never the stadium. I have however been angered
and frustrated by the stadium, queues, concessions, obstructed views and,
of course problems getting in and out of the ground. Know Your History Why
are there so many negative comments about moving, we do sing "IF
YOU KNOW UR HISTORY" Knowsley council This morning I heard on the radio that Steven Gerrard's been presented the 'Key to the Borough' by Knowsley council. Does this mean that when we get our shiny new stadium, at any time he chooses, Gerrard will be able to walk in and take a dump in the centre circle? Why do these council officials continue to take the piss out of us? Drew. (19/12/06) New Ground?? Having read through the new emails that have been submitted onto our Everton website, it is clear that some people have disagreed with my original letter. However the only people who do actually want this ground move to happen are from the likes of Shropshire, Lancashire, North Wales, Ireland, Isle of Man or previously from Kirkby (who in-turn moved away to London). Of course they don’t mind about boundaries, neither do the people from Bolton (relocated stadium) or Man U (again relocated stadium), which is why they don’t realise what it is actually like to be a Scouser and have that pride. Anyone from Liverpool would claim they are first and foremost a Scouser, rather than English or indeed British. Liverpool can be compared to Barcelona in numerous ways, especially the way they separate themselves from Spain using the tag Catalonians. This is the reason why us Scousers are getting so touchy about 4 miles. It’s a matter of principle that we should not be forced out of the city. Graeme Adams. (19/12/06) Move Or Not Move This is the 3rd Season I’ve now had a season ticket and before that I came to Goodison as often as I could, I'm not a Scouser and I don’t live in Liverpool, I'm from Mansfield near Nottingham, I have to Travel a good 5-6 hrs there and back per home game to watch the team I love, and I go to numerous away games, Middlesborough being the last. Anyway enough about me, I think the Club’s future is the priority, if this means moving 4 miles down the road then so be it – its not like where doing a Wimbledon, But id rather Goodison be updated like Old Trafford as been done rather than move to an concrete block like the Arsenal have done. However that doesn’t seem to be an option, and i know Goodison is Outdated now and is no longer a top class venue, has numerous faults, however its our home and id just love to stay there, but could we afford to lose several thousands off the gates as redevelopment is being done. People speak about the regeneration it will do to Kirby, as anybody discussed the damage it will do to the area surrounding Goodison, what about the people whose income relies on Everton’s Home Game’s, are there future’s even being considered. Also where are the wealthy Everton Fans like Paul McCartney when there needed, I'm sure instead of losing all is money to Heather “I really did love him” Mills, he could stick some in the club now or even help promote our case to stay in the city. All in all I don’t really have a point, I just like to add my views to what is a good debate to both sides. Ian Sutton. (19/12/06) Consider The Juventus (Delle Alpi) Case A few seconds should be given to consider what has happened to Juventus & their stadium (Delle Alpi). In 1990, as part of the world cup, Juventus moved into a brand new, state of the art ground. The stadium had, initially, a capacity of 70,040, with easy transport links for the fans. Everything sounds great. But, the stadium was built OUTSIDE of the city. With the travel times & lack of amenities around the stadium supporter numbers started to dwindle, with one cup game attracting only 237 (yes, two hundred & thirty seven, no misprint!). The circumstances with Everton are obviously different. The cup games in Italy aren’t taken too seriously, there will be a Tesco & a couple of pubs around Kirkby & Everton fans are great. Personally I think a ground move would be good fro the club, but should it go outside the city boundaries? I don’t think so. “Build it and they will come” might have worked for Kevin Costner, but will it work for Bill Kenwright& Co? Andy Macrae. (19/12/06) IS KIRKBY REALLY A BAD OPTION? Evertonians everywhere. I feel i should make a point about the proposed ground move to Kirkby. I watched Everton for years, home and away, and i believe Goodison lost its passion and sense of invisibility as soon as we had to SIT DOWN ( we all know why ).I'm a wool from St Helens and as far as I've always been concerned, Kirkby is in Liverpool, they all speak with scouse accents, have an 'L' postcode and hate Mancs, so what's the problem? I've worked in Kirkby for 30 yrs and try telling the Kirkbyites that they're not scousers!. . . We could always move the new ground to St Helens. . . Now that would cause a stir . . . We could share with the greatest rugby team ever! Joking apart, think about it, IS KIRKBY REALLY A BAD OPTION? Mark. ST HELENS. (19/12/06) I love the Club, everything else is a bonus I don't normally write into the site, just read while I'm at work, but this is getting ridiculous. I'm not a scouser, I don't pretend to be one, nor have I ever lived in Liverpool. I grew up in North Wales and I love Everton Football Club. I don't know why, I just do. I have no reason to love them so much, no connection to the club, but for as long as I can remember I have supported the Greatest Football Club on Earth. I can understand all the concern regarding moving outside of the city boundary, but it's time to move on. From what I understand the postcode of the proposed Kirkby site is L33, L means something doesn't it??!! So
what if it's 2 or 3 miles outside of the 'city'. Any club wanting to progress
is going to move stadium and take on some sort of investment but What the fuck have we achieved in the past 15 years? FUCK ALL, We've been shite and it's only now that we have begun to stabalise and slowly improve. We all know that moving to a new stadium is inevitable for us to progress further. If we move to Kirkby, so be it. I'm not saying I'm all for the proposed move but I love the club, I support the club and no matter where they play this will never waver!!!! Great Site lads....Jase (Coventry) (19/12/06) What Do You Think? Have your say! e-mail info@bluekipper.com |