Everton
FC E-mails 269 - Stadium Special 29
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Whatever
you think e-mail your views to info@bluekipper.com
The Vote Went "YES" in favour of Kirkby We Have To Leave Goodison Nobody wants to leave Goodison Park. its been our home for so long now. but FFS, anyone who is still harping on that Everton can't leave for whatever reason shouldn't call themselves Evertonions. THEY are who will kill the soul of the club. If we dont leave we will die a sorry death. 30 years ago and more, we were the biggest club in the country. 1st to have flood lights, 1st to have executive boxes, 1st to have under ground heated pitch, etc etc........ NOW, because we didn't market ourselves right or keep up with the times we went backwards to where we are now. I would prefer it if Everton stayed at Goodison, but not at the expense of moving forward. Put it this way. Would you rather tell your children how good it was at Goodison all those years ago when we were in the top flight of football, or, take them to the match at the new stadium and show them how good it is to BE in the top flight of the football league ? Duncan. (05/12/07) Protest Against What? Guy guys guys!! What are you protesting about? Everton's directors have been more than fair by putting the decision on the new stadium to the ballot and the MAJORITY of blues want it. I think you need to drop this now and get behind the rest of the club and support the majority decision. I can understand your argument that a lot of blues who weren't balloteddon't support the move, but also a lot would. It would be interesting to see the results of a ballot for those who weren't included. Personally I don't think the results would be too different from the ballot that the club instigated. I think any protest now is a feeble idea and only goes to demonstrate that a minority are unwilling to support what the majority agree is best for our club. Rob. (13/09/07) Did I Miss Something Am
I alone in being bewildered with the ongoing arguments about the new stadium?
Did I miss something? I'm sure Everton Football Club put the Get Behind The Club What a pathetic response to the overwhelming support given to the proposed move to Kirkby by the KEIOC group! 60% in favour IS a massive vote for real change. How many more times must they be told that there is no viable alternative as all their so called sites are not suitable and they cannot show how the funds could be raised. As regards who can and who can't vote the club used the fairest method available.What would KEIOC have done ,let every man and his dog vote? All true supporters should get behind the best Chairman and manager in the Premiership in this exciting new adventure. My advice to KEIOC is to grow up, stop behaving like spoiled brats, disband immediately and get behind the Board or go away and support another club. Keep up the great work on the best Blues site! Ancient & Loyal. (13/09/07) Time To Move On So
the vote is in and we now look to be moving. MAYBE , we have had the vote
before at kings dock and as we all know this came to nothing. Now we need
planning permission and the consent of the Kirkby residents (will the
opinion of the kirkby residents really count) . The difference this time
is the absence of Peter Johnson so maybe just maybe we might be in the
position to progress . We must embrace change if we are to move on, at
last the board are backing David Moyes with big money, the last thing
we want now is for people stuck in the mud who have unrealistic ambitions
to stay at goodison to disrupt our plans . Lets get behind the blues great
team great new stadium COME ON YOU BLUES ANGER,
APATHY THEN ABANDONMENT When black Friday came I like many already knew the result the night before despite the official site saying the result would be 10.30 in the morning it was leaked to SSN, who by? Does it matter now? From the offset when the manner of ballot procedure was declared many Evertonians shouted out unfair and undemocratic especially KEIOC .I myself will never accept that the 12000 walk ups who are inundated with mobile phone deals ,car loans etc direct from Everton or a third party could not receive a ballot form to that same address. The Peoples club handicapped some of our fans in this vote by their finances. We all know that if you buy a ticket on a weekly basis the decent people at the box office ask for your postal code it’s passed on for that new phone but not a, life changing too many, ballot paper. I wonder why? Is it because most of these fans are local, and have deeper roots to the area than maybe a fan from out of town in Evertonia? I know of Mancs who got ballot forms and most probably reds paying the twenty quid to acquire a ticket in our home ends. The 11,000 no voters was bizarre and stuck out, Evertonians are more passionate and knowledgeable were led to believe so why did this happen? Was it that they did not get the ballot paper or so fed up of the clubs promises and spin and thought why bother it’s a done deal anyway. I know loads that never got a ballot paper but qualified and when trying to acquire one it was like the crystal maze. One lad made twenty phone calls plus emails to Everton and the ERS to get his family votes ,( he was told by the head of communication at the club one family was allowed one vote when paying together),would many fans do the same and remember the phones were down for a long period at Everton. He was misinformed that one family gets one vote if paid altogether but others did get multiple votes .I got two more votes than I should have being a shareholder and one sent to me at another address. Sadly one of my mates mum got a vote sent for his late Dad of three years despite my mate telling the club on numerous occasions he has passed away. Maybe these are small exceptions how will we ever know the full magnatude. I’m not suggesting one minute the ERS would do anything underhand they are too respected but can only work on the data given. I know a friend of mine offered to sort out Everton’s data base with his manager of IT free of charge a few months ago, Everton declined last minute. The data base of our walk ups was not reliable we were told. No one can say the result was a clear mandate to move, it was more worrying to a business built on customers than a victory to march on without real concerns for the future fan base. If the move was right and good enough for all then there would be no need to vote in the fist place and cause all the infighting. More spin than a washing machine You can’t help but think that many of our fans where misinformed,
fed up of empty promises or duped to a large extent (well it must be true
it’s in the local papers), Lord Haw Haw would have approved the spin that
came from the local media and the Peoples club. Do you want examples to
back this up? Well here goes. When you speak to fans who voted yes and giving their
reasons when asked why many replied with the following. All the above
caused much anger to those who do not want to go to Kirkby but to stay
near to the City centre. In fact St Helens town centre is nearer to Kirkby
than our city centre now. Fans who saw a different view from the above
felt bullied and frustrated by the amount of coverage the clubs spin got
and its allies to their own ends. Bringing in star players and the manager
to sway the vote was seen to be below the belt. The amount of space for
pro Kirkby was there for all to see, like Bill said about big Keith he
is already on the train to Kirkby, it’s a done deal it seems. In recent years we perceive our club as being perennially skint and have to juggle sales and acquisitions .I think up until the Yakubo deal we had only spent something like 3.8 million net each year in the last seven years at a time that the Premiership has been awash with money. So this promised ten million extra to spend at Kirkby each season was a big lure to many .But again where are the facts on this ,where is anything of hard substance on Kirkby, they were all in the main just promises and even they had the goalposts moved each week when more searching questions where made. So to the ‘no’ voters I ask don’t give the ‘yes’ voters a hard time when challenged, respect their view but I also ask the same of the yes voters not say to the no voters “let it go”. They care deeply too much about the long term future of our club. In a nutshell if the yes voters had lost on black Friday would they have felt the same way as the no voters and the thousands of walk up fans ( every game home and away for many ) who I bet would have mostly said no? I know our hard core and they will fight back against this move in their own way, for many I know will not go to Kirkby or buy a season ticket again .They feel betrayed by Bill and to a degree the LCC. I ask the no voters to use that anger and frustration and implore the LCC and Everton board to get a viable deliverable (I hate that word now alongside exclusivity, due diligence and ring fenced, that’s our custodians for you), alternative to Kirkby before apathy comes in and then the saddest end for an Evertonian abandonment through the sheer hopelessness of it all and the way football has gone in general outside the top four. Put that phrase ‘top four’ also in the words I hate box now. Many that Friday felt that our club had finally gone from them and the fat cats were licking their paws laughing at us how easy it was with more than a little help from their friends. Terry Leahy wants us at Kirkby for his companies sake first and if believed so does Philip Green for BHS and Next stores or whatever on the retail site. A white elephant stadium in years to come in Kirkby will mean less disruption to their shoppers. The ‘yes’ voters are now sadly pigeonholed by many as sheep, lemmings etc. That’s a bit unfair like I said before you can only see and vote on the hype in front of you and the way our clubs impending fate was portrayed if we never took the Kirkby way out .We would get left behind was the main message.Scaremongering was not on Bill you should not have done this. The high profile yes voters are the ones I can’t stomach. They came across as they had hidden agendas and preached in a subservient manner. Get the information on their background and you will see what I mean, it was for self gain or their company’s gain. The same with KEIOC I don’t want them to be perceived as like the justice for fathers group in the coming months when all they have done was to ask certain questions, get the main players in this subject be made more accountable and had to go on the street to the fans to get the message across that there could be better options. Bill from the Peoples club would not meet them lately, why? The communications guy from Everton sent the chair of KEIOC nasty texts and shouted down the phone to him, why? KEIOC Achilles heel was not showing how to fund their alternatives, now that’s funny when you consider the concrete information on Kirkby. The club should have embraced these ideas, explored them fully not jest at them .Never forget who gets paid for their endeavours in all this. At a time when we have the best team in many a year with European football beckoning we find a divided fan base like never before. And who did this ? By giving the vote it was a calculated agenda not a gamble .Given the media, high profile acts and selective vote, Bill and co knew they were on a winner. KEIOC came across like in the film Zulu, wave after wave of media pro Kirkby came at them, they tried to shoot back but fired blanks in the space that should have been provided but never was balanced. I thought more of our local media and except for Radio Merseyside they did not disappoint the sceptics, I was told I was foolish too expect anything else. I’m disappointed in certain journalists I thought better of, but they have mortgages to pay and families and after all business is business. I’ll scratch your back you scratch mine with scoops, interviews and publishing’s. I must say the red journalist Tony Barrett has been a star in the last few weeks on two different counts. It took a good red to shout out for us about leaving our roots. Let’s face it were just fans not long term business associates. I thought our media had a moral duty to see fair play was to be seen in this Presidential election type ballot. I also believe in Father Christmas. But let’s have a truce eh? Let’s stop the civil war with the fan base being ripped apart. How about our club promise not to sign any irrevocable documents for Kirkby (in public), for at least twelve months, what’s the hurry? Tesco need us for Kirkby but what I can’t figure is why they don’t do a similar deal at Project Jennifer or somewhere else nearer the city centre where we all agree on. I even suggested to Terry Leahy to buy the Bestway site put the Tesco store proposed on there, put Everton’s new stadium on the original site proposed for the store .Ask Louise Ellerman and the LCC for more land around project Jennifer to make it work .Give the Kirkby people a leisure building they want and have an input, in that way Tesco still get the free land and everyone wins .Where there’s is a will there is a way. Lets give Bestway a proper chance to come up with a business plan and funding its only fair to them and Evertonians. You can’t expect them to stab at figures .Remember we have not seen any figures for Kirkby after 18 months or a detailed plan of the proposed stadium. Let’s get off Warren Bradley’s back and LCC and help them with suggestions of sites and how to fund them .But give them set deadlines. And ask for monthly updates. Joe Anderson has been very good in trying for alternatives and will work with Warren for the clubs sake. We need these people to stay focused. I still can’t believe they way our CEO basically told the LCC to get lost many times, why? If Kirkby fails we will need the help off LCC .Would you blame the LCC now if they told Everton to get lost if Kirkby fails. Our CEO must feel Kirkby is nailed on to be so bullish or foolish. This move
to Evertonians is too important to be rushed; the San Andrean fault line
is not directly underneath Goodison honest! It won’t fall down just now
.If Fratton Park, Fulham, Blackburn and St Andrews in parts can get Health
and Safety certificates I’m sure ours can for a while until we do the
right thing. Meanwhile at Goodison put adequate staff on our food and
drinks bars. Maintain the toilets better and chase Oliver Twist away and
get some hot water, were in Walton not a third world country. Our stadium
has been neglected for years like the business side of Everton. To Bill consider selling the club to a consortium that
will put money in now (twenty million would start the Park End re-development.
Remember the Holt End was built in one summer in the main), accept the
same money as Paul Gregg did and perhaps a bit more. Be remembered in
a far more benevolent way. You can’t run Everton this way anymore Bill
,borrowing all the time and selling assets. We need an injection of investment
for the first time in years. Trevor Birch advised similar. David Moore’s
stepped aside for the injection of monies for a new stadium and signings
why can’t Bill then ? Let’s get back to enjoying this best team in years instead
of worrying after the games gone where will I be in five years and do
I follow Everton the same way I do now. We deserve to see the better football
served up with this well assembled team and players that could give us
a brighter exiting future of watching Everton. Go to the
meeting at the Casa on Saturday by the Philharmonic pub (12.30pm) and
give your support with ideas and the will to bring the fans together again
.We need to find a way of healing these wounds of our ripped apart fan
base. The only recipe for this is a ground that most of the fan base will
agree on .See for yourself if Bestway have moved on from their initial
plans and images and listen to people who might find a way of bringing
us together again. Response to Mr Fitz I took the time to read through the whole of your article and was surprised just how many flaws &/or deliberate gaps in the finance package outlined by My Wyness, were omitted. I also agree (coming from the Wirral) that boundaries laid out by local councils should not be a decisive factor on where the ground should be built, but, try looking at other clubs around the country and see what works – Celtic/Rangers, Man Utd, Newcastle Utd etc etc – not all within the city’s boundaries but all accessible by short walk/ride from the city centre. I must admit my decision was split, until now, pro’s (according to the people who are supposedly adept at running OUR club) – new stadium, larger capacity, better facilities, not much debt – if any! Cons – being ousted by LCC because they are doing their utmost to promote LFC because their potential to generate revenue is far more attractive, regardless of who is the most successful English team. If majority of the fan base is within 5 mile radius of the city centre, why move it out further? I also think that using the players to give their reaction to the ground move is a bad choice…Stubbs, Arterta, Cahill, etc – don’t most of our players travel to the ground via the motorway from Cheshire & Formby etc? Only big Dunc has come out and stated we should not leave the city…don’t recall seeing that posted on official EFC site. Scaremongering tactics may work for other clubs & their supporters, but we are Everton, we have seen the bright lights of success & the darkest depths of continuous relegation battles and even seen off a certain Mr Johnson – a renowned supporter of the dark side & entrepreneur, who nearly managed to desecrate our existence. We have always come through it…making us stronger & more determined. After reading & analyzing your findings, I agree, there must be other options and I don’t believe that this vote – if not passed – will make or break our great team. We are Everton & we’ll be Everton forever! My decision is now made…NO TO KIRKBY! Andy, Wirral. "Spiritual Home" To all the people calling for the club to stay near, or in its "Spiritual Home", I have a suggestion. In a few years there will be a nice plot opening over the park, it even has a stadium on it already. Why not just buy Anfield, that was were the club started, so it really is the "Spiritual Home" in which some folk seem to place so much stock. It will be cheap as Liverpool will want to get shot of it after they move. A lick of blue paint and it will be good as new. We could all stand on the Kop every other week, great. On
the other hand we could stop trying to block every single attempt the
club makes to progress and grow and view this in a realistic light. We
all love Goodison Park, but its groaning under the weight of its years.
A new modern stadium, with little debt attached and great prospects for Unite The Supporters It would have been nice if KEIOC could have accepted defeat gracefully, unfortunately having just read their statement they couldn't! Their continued UNFOUNDED attacks on the club and the board are tiresome not once have they produced evidence to back up their claims, they even had the audacity to suggest the vote was rigged! Granted some people chose not to vote but there is no evidence to suggest had they voted they would have voted against going to Kirkby. KEIOC have highlighted what they call a divide amongst supporters and I tend to agree with this, but they are adding fuel to this fire. They should help and get behind the Kirkby project and help unite the supporters and get behind the club we support. Anthony David. Season Ticket Holder Paddock. (05/09/07) Congratulations - Now Lets Move On Regarding KEIOC. First of all I'd like to congratulate you on your campaign and thank you for providing a balanced opinion to the new stadium debate. However, I now think that its time you should give up this 'slagging off' of our club and directors and join the majority of fans who voted in favour of the move. Our current board of directors with Blue Bill at the helm have worked wonders for our club and I personally trust them implicitly. Lets get behind them again now, unite the club and move on to bigger and better things. Rob (Warrington). (05/09/07) KEIOC Time To Go In
response to the statement by KEIOC
after the vote for the ground move to Kirkby, did we expect anything else
from them. No doubt about it they started off with the best intentions
for the club but what is there to prove now. All we are hearing is how
the kings dock would have been whats best for the club yet i recall Goodison
for Everton being against this move and rejoicing when it did not go ahead,
doubt there quite so happy now. Negative Effect Whilst
the objectives of KEIOC are in the best interests of the future of Everton
and its fanbase I do sometime wonder about the way they have gone about
things and whether their attempts have had a negative effect. The rather
inadequate "Loop" was a deciding factor in the previously undecided
having voted No, as it is just not right - the location is tied up by
busy roads in all except one direction and the site is extremely small.
Don't Fall Out I found out about the result of the vote as I walked into a sports bar in France. I'm a season ticket holder with my lad and we both voted no for the reasons that many have given. I felt sick when I heard the news. Now I've had time to come to terms with it I think the main thing is to heal the rifts as quickly as we possibly can. Some of my mates voted yes and I haven't fallen out with them over it. Argued the toss with them yes but they are still my mates and love Everton just as much as I do. We all have to pull together and get on with it now. If we are honest there is something really phoney about the Premiership and all the corporate bollocks that surrounds it but that is the world we now compete in. I love Everton and so does my son and daughter so we'll be going to Kirkby with everyone else who truly loves the blues. Time to move on but not forget. COYB. Brown Bitter Blue. (05/09/07) KEIOC Regarding
the statement and the voting process. Do they not understand the Electoral
Reform Service facilitated the voting process. KEIOC were The
leak of the result to Sky sports. What advantage would leaking the information
have to EFC, losing out on a fanfare announcement? The fans have voted,
stop embarrassing yourselves and embrace democracy. The points you have
made have been valid but in the minority. End of New Goodison The vote is in. I’ve followed the debate closely over the last few weeks and have been swayed one way then the other. I’ve followed the Blues for ever – first match was 3-0 against Sheffield Wednesday in about 1968 and hooked ever since. I love Goodison and everything about it. I have been living in Australia for the last 17 years and so haven’t seen how the old stadium is going but it seems everyone is agreed that it’s looking a bit tired now. Clearly something needs to change. Kirkby? I was staggered to hear that we might be looking at a move to Kirkby but. . . football these days is a huge money making business and, like it or not, you either jump on the bus or forget it. We are a great club, the best there is and we need to recognize the realities of life. It will be very sad to go but let’s look on the positive side, Everton will have a fantastic new facility with lots of amenities, we will have a minimal debt to service, more money for players and a whole new start. It’s not all bad. What we need to do is recognize that the club has been decent enough to leave the decision to the people that really matter – what other club would have put its fate in the hands of the fans? There isn’t another club in the world that would have done that. It was a high risk strategy for the directors, who obviously wanted the move for the right reasons but credit where it is due. For those who voted yes, I would suspect that most did so with a heavy heart and for those who voted no, let’s recognize what the club did and accept the decision and all get behind Everton and make New Goodison a goer. Steve Rowson. Perth, Australia. (29/08/07) I Don't Care What.... I did not want to go as much as the most traditional blues but in 5years time when the new stadium will be complete the old lady will be falling apart. We need to move to a new stadium,we cant pay for it ourselves so we do need tesco. i don't like it but i will still have my season ticket for the frozen food stand. because i don't care what the RS say! Andrew McGrady. (29/08/07) No Vote I, and my sons, are some of the 10,901 who did not vote. Why? Because we did not receive our ballot papers. I wonder how many of the other 10,901 did not receive theirs? Like John B I cannot believe that many Evertonians 'could not be bothered' to vote on such an important issue. In my opinion the whole thing has been fixed from start to finish anyway. Andy T. (29/08/07) We Can Now Attract Better Players I think it’s unfortunate that it had to come to this but if the club is going to move on and try and excel it needs to take the opportunities offered to them. This just means we can attract bigger and better players and compete in Europe every season rather than every now and again. It’s all about money at the end of the day and we’ve struggled for far too long with next to nothing. Barrel. (29/08/07) So the result is finally in. Don’t think the result was a surprise to anyone really. I am glad we are moving, we need to move to keep up with the rest of the Premier League and we will now be much more attractive for investors, players and fans alike. What I am not glad about is the fact that we didn’t have more choice and that is down to one simple thing, money. The club has been grossly mismanaged over the years so we can’t afford the much-needed new stadium without the backing of 3rd parties such as Tesco’s and Knowsley council. The facts are we were given a vote and 29.7% chose not to vote (why I don’t know!). 63 people managed to invalidate their vote (how did they manage this?). 5,238 more people voted yes than no, that’s 45% more Yes’s than No’s. Now that the vote has been cast we need to move on collectively. Whether you were a Yes voter, a No voter, a fence sitter or didn’t have a vote, the fact is we are all Evertonian’s. We support the club and we are one big family. Players change, managers change, sponsors change, the board change, grounds change….simple! What doesn’t change is our love and passion for Everton Football Club. It is for this reason that I beg all Evertonian’s to unite and accept this decision, however hard it may be for some. Don’t play into the red shites hands by letting this divide our fan base further apart. We have already played into their hands in many ways: - · By not having the right funds or investment to
have our pick of site and stadia. We now need to prove to all the doubters that we are the best supporters in the world and unite as one force and back the club. I have seen some ridiculous comments about rounding up the ringleaders of KEOIC and banning them for life! Whoever said that should be banned for life not them. They are passionate Evertonian’s and did what they believe is the right thing to do; unfortunately for them they didn’t have enough time and resources available to them, unlike the board. People who are against the move are saying it could be the worst thing to happen to us in our glorious history. I disagree. The worst thing could be the fall out of the ballot, which could lead to a failure to unite, continuing debate, arguments, bad feeling and resentment that could split the support in two. The votes are cast; the result is final (and please lets not start saying the result was fixed). Lets move on. Please lets have no gloating from the yes voters, no resentment from the no voters. KEOIC, well done for all your efforts but please let it go gracefully. Please lets not have anyone saying they wont go to the match out of principle (I bet the majority of the FC United brigade are back as season ticket holders now, the only one who I know who isn’t revealed his real reason is that the season ticket price is now too high, not the Glazers). We all have our grievances about various things, we can’t have everything our own way. Only time will tell if it’s the right move or not (I for one think it is in the circumstances, and I did vote yes before u ask). We have finally sorted out our on field situation; lets not overshadow that by off field arguments. Back the Blues wherever they play, and enjoy being part of the biggest and best family in the world. COYB. Rob Usher. (29/08/07) The Apathy Vote John B mentions about apathy with only 70% turn out for the vote and maybe he is right. However I returned from holiday early hours of thursday morning which was the deadline for the votes to be cast and wouldn't have been able to get my vote in on time. However I DID NOT even receive my ballot papers nor did my son - maybe we are the only 2 out of the 36000 odd that were sent out, or maybe we were not !! How many others did not receive papers from our club?? For the record I would have voted YES anyway but that is not the point, I should have had the opportunity to vote. John G. (29/08/07) Explanation of the 10,901 A friend of mine and his son are season ticket holders and each had a vote. One was for the move and the other against. They therefore cancelled out each other's vote and this may be one of the reasons why so many did not return their ballot papers. Alan Wainwright. (29/08/07) Common Sense I am delighted that common sense has eventually prevailed in regards to the move, it was a very tiring and evocative process, and I didn't even have a vote! I can understand, (apart from the non-arrival of ballot papers) why so many were not returned, I've weighed up the pro's and con's every day since the announcement and am pleased in a way I didn't have the responsibility for this kind of decision. I'm relieved that now we can move onwards and upwards and in years to come I will feel privileged to say I've been to the grand old lady. At the end of the day, Everton is Everton is Everton. COYB. Chris Pucci. (29/08/07) Top Ten stadiums Here's a list of the current Top Ten stadiums in the premier League. 1 The Emirates stadium Where would you place The Kirkby Stadium ? considering the New Anfield we might go up Three or Four places We would not be in the Top four for sure hardly " Nothing but the Best" ! Craig Plant (Stafford Woollyback). (29/08/07) Go With The Flow This has to be the right decision. To anybody other than a Scouser, Kirkby is a part of Liverpool. I was born in the city and my dad and grandad were born in Everton, I went to school next to Bellefield but I have lived most of my life in Cheshire or in the south east. I cannot believe some of the rubbish I've read about the move. Some peddle the myth that 90% of Blues come from Liverpool. Stand on a bridge over the M62 at Huyton and have count the cars coming into the city with blue scarves on match day. Alan Stubbs is from Kirkby. Tell him he's not a Scouser I dare you. This may be the People's Club but football is no longer the people's game. We either go with the flow or perish into the Championship. Kirkby is as much a part of Liverpool as Speke and is closer to Goodison. So what if the RS take the piss. I could understand the outcry if we were moving down the motorway to Widnes or Warrington but Kirkby...Mike B. (25/08/07) Yes Vote I was against the Kirkby Project, but now that the vote is over and has decided yes, we must all get together behind the club, and progress to become a real force in football once again, without any inside bickering to spoil our aims. We should also take pride in the fact that the Club has been the only one to put their fans foremost and offer the choice, Thanks Bill. Frank (COYB). (25/08/07) Apathy Will the move be good or bad for Everton, only time will tell. But what has disappointed me more than anything is the very poor 70.27% return of the ballot papers. Whatever people think of the ballot be it good, bad or as some will bound to say, a fix. Everton DID what no other club has done (and I guess, will never do again) is give supporters a say in what is the most crucial decision in their team's history to date, not only as a football team but also as a business. Then can someone please explain how can 10,901 people, for whatever reason, and to me there can be very few valid reasons, warrant not even returning their ballot papers, or am I that naive that I expected a return in the very high 90's. What must the powers that be think, when nearly 30% couldn't even be bothered to return their ballot papers. Even the most staunch of Evertonians be it pro or anti the move, must now show 200% loyalty toward any decision that is made by Everton FC and lets ALL be involved in taking our beloved Everton forward and enjoy a long, prosperous & successful future. John B, Wirral. (25/08/07) Embrace It Firstly I'm am extremely disappointed at the just under 11,000 evertonians who had the responsibility to make a crucial decision regarding the future of this great club and didn't even bother i find this absolutely ridiculous. as you could have changed this decision and keep this club in the city we owned and own no longer... As you will have already found those RS are havin an absolute field day... My views to the move are depressing to say the least i believe this stadium will prove to be like eastlands in the fact that it will not be full week in week out due to its location... i also believe the atmosphere in these new stadiums are piss poor with shit acoustics not rocking like the old lady goodison when jumping up and down on that wooden floor... this of course will lead to the players not stepping up a leave las they love to due to the passion of the fans... but its happen and we must of course embrace it and keep together as EVERTONIANS that we are and love... regards james c. (25/08/07) Thank Christ that's over It must have ripped most Everton supporters in half deciding which way to go with this vote. Heart says stay at Goodison with all the magic times. Head says move on because we can't be left behind in what is now a massive money generating business. I can understand where the fans that voted 'no' are coming from, pure traditionalists, with our great Club playing a massive part in their lives. That can never be taken away from Everton supporters. Once you're bitten, you're hooked for life. Everton fans have great Goodison memories, too many to mention. From generation to generation magical memories and stories are passed on. Dixie, The Holy Trinity, Big Bob, Duncan (McKenzie and Ferguson), Reidy and Co. right up tp present day heroes. Goodison Park will stay with us forever. Now the part that hurts. It's time to move on. It will be a massive wrench to say farewell. But, we have to move on to achieve better things. It would be great to carry on with the unique atmosphere that can be generated on a match day at Goodison. We have to be realistic and understand that we will be overtaken by lesser Clubs than Everton that have realised that the income from the corporate element of football is now massive. If the no voters are honest and I'm not trying to patronise here they will admit this is true. We have to trust the Board now. We have to stick together now the votes have been counted. We are a massive family, that fends off adversaries with a passion beyond belief. We have to remain as one now that the 'yes' decision has been made. I voted 'yes'. I wanted to rip up that damned voting slip because I don't want to leave Goodison. I'm not going to slag off my fellow supporters for the decisions they made. The choice was theirs. I can understand the reasons for voting ''yes' and 'no'. My yes vote was because I firmly believe that we have to move on. We have to embrace the chance to improve. We will hopefully move to a state of the art Stadium that will reflect the expectations of the magnificent Everton supporters. The new stadium will have facilities that are second to none. The Tesco partnership should be welcomed with open arms because we won't get a better offer. Money to be spent on new players rather than paying off the debt of a stadium has to be welcomed. Every game that now remains at Goodison, up to the day they shut the gates behind us, should be special. We should remain positive and consider the benefits that could accrue from the move. Painful as it will be to go, we need to keep apace with the 'others' if not better them. Keep the Faith. Eddieparkend COYB. (25/08/07) The Vote After
days of ringing my beloved club asking the whereabouts of my voting pack
and hearing the same old answer......'they've been sent out sir', I read
this morning that over 10,000 'EVERTONIANS' have not either bothered to
vote or have (in the more likely scenario & in my case) not received
them. If you believe what you hear & read around our historic stadium
come match day, this was always going to be a Sepp Blatter / Mugabe style
ballot. I am angrier this morning than i was the day i found out the Mrs
was cheating on me, the days that Graham Poll & Jeff Winter gave the
red shite points in the derby (both at OUR Goodison Park) when they didn't
deserve to & the day that all this talk of moving out of the city
came about. Missing Votes If 51% or more of eligible voters said Yes I would have accepted the decision, however apparently around 11,000 never voted (almost a third) so the majority in my eye didn’t say yes. Something fishy I smell and it’s not a Blue kipper!!! Eddy Tosney. (25/08/07) Yes Is Right Evertonians have been strong in their conviction to vote for Kirkby, despite some of the threatening and loud behaviour of some of the 'no' brigade. I feel that Evertonians know what they want and even those who were undecided have been swayed to vote 'Yes' because in the cold light of day when they had to put the 'x' in the box, they did it because they love this club. Cam. (25/08/07) Aftermath EFC We all know ‘Blue Kipper’ is the best Everton web-site (even if MBE over-doses on the ‘Collins Thesaurus’ and the ‘Oxford Book of Famous Quotations’ from time to time! – only joking Michael!). Just thought I’d say that either by a combination of good editorial control or the fact that we are a more discerning bunch of Evertonians, the stadium debate has been heated but largely intelligent on this site – well done everyone (well, 95% of you at least). However, if you’re of a strong disposition and have a taste for blood and gore, I recommend you pop over to ‘ToffeeWeb’ amongst the other fan sites and see the civil war going on there! I hope some of the guys don’t find out where some of the other ones live, or it could significantly reduce our attendances over the next few matches! It would actually be amusing if it wasn’t for the fact that it suggests we are in for a period of internal strive for some time to come. The vote’s over – the ‘Yes’ guys won. It wasn’t as conclusive as most of us would have liked and on a personal basis I think it’s the wrong result – but please let’s all ‘calm down, calm down…’ and now get on with the job of supporting our great club and save our energies for making sure the Kirby stadium and the financial arrangements are in the best possible shape for the future, or making sure that viable alternatives are still discussed (i.e. don’t let Wyness off the hook yet!). We need to start letting the wounds of the last few months heal! Agreed? COYBs and long live the ‘Blue Kipper’! Paddock Boy. (25/08/07) 10,000 Missing Votes We now know its a yes vote,but for the club to state the MAJORITY of fans voted in favour is typical of the spin put forward by the Board in relation to this matter.I just hope the 10,000 plus who couldn't be arsed to vote realise their say could have been pivotal. STEVE, CREWE. (25/08/07) Kirkby It Is Then Just learnt that the majority vote is in favour of Kirkby, don’t get me wrong I don’t want to leave Goodison, that’s were it all started for me, but we have to move forward. But what gets me about the design for Kirkby is that it looks so lifeless and dull and I can’t imagine it ever being the passionate and roaring theatre that is Goodison. In short, if we have to move to Kirkby, let’s try and take with us some of the features that make Goodison such a great place i.e. being yards away from the pitch, stands like the Gwladys’s St., Warm Chang?! Plus, what are we going to call this place, The Tesco Ground, Cherryfield Drive Stadium?!? Surely, the name of the stadium should be linked to the club and its history, not some corporate sponsorship deal. If we retained some of our identity, it would at least it would appease the fans who didn’t ever want to leave. COYB. Neil, Huyton. (25/08/07) The Move and Result Saying Kirkby is not Liverpool is like saying Croxteth, Toxteth, Speke, Aintree and loads of other outlying areas aren't either. It's just rubbish really imo. I am in favour of the move - only if they keep a permanent statue/reminder that Goodison is/was ours from 1878. And something that points all the way down the 3.5 miles to the new place. We can keep our history - and generate a brilliant new 21st century one that continues Dixie's & Co.'s legacy I'm
not happy to be moving from Goodison who in their right mind would be?
- but confident a £4 billion profit organisation like Tesco partnering
us will deliver on time / budget. And at end of the day - it's us fans
that make the club.... we'ever we go EFC goes too.... No more living under
any Redshite yoke. This way we can compete with them ON EQUAL TERMS -
without any assistance THEY ALWAYS SEEM TO GET... i.e. the easy ride.
Also
Kirkby IS in Liverpool. Look at how Liverpool has grown during the past
50 years The Choice Is Made Well there you have it, its a yes and by nearly 60% which i think gives the board the mandate. It was said a simple majority would decide however i feel that this makes it a it more concrete. What infuriates me however is the fact that turnout was only 70%. Fair enough, it is higher than most elections, but these people were given the opportunity to vote on the future of the club, over other Everton supporters who felt just as strongly either way. I don't know whether this is a misguided protest vote, apathy at the lengthy and sometimes heated debate and process or other practical reasons. It just saddens me to see 10,000 people who were asked to vote not give a shit enough to send back a piece of paper when there were others who would have voted given the chance. It was a clear choice, yes or no. This was a first in European club football, no other club has had this opportunity before and I know people have used their vote as a vote against the board. Not necessarily against the move but the process and how they have instigated it and although i found some peoples comments cynical and at times far fetched it was of course their choice. But at least they made it and shame on the 30% that couldn't be arsed. Well done to the lads at Bluekipper for airing both sides of the debate, i hope we can all now get behind the club and do what is right. Dominic, Crosby. (25/08/07) What Do You Think? Have your say! e-mail info@bluekipper.com e-mails index New Stadium - The Fans Views |