COLUMNIST JOE JENNINGS

Kirkby- No thanks

By Joe Jennings :  17/07/2007 :  Comments (31) :

So we discovered earlier this week on the Official Site of a ?major announcement?. 33,000 fans were to be balloted on the prospect of a move outside the city boundaries to Kirkby. Evertonians seem to be divided on the issue. Do we move to a shiny new stadium, with world class facilities and risk losing a huge number of our fan base? Or do we remain at our beloved Goodison, stay for a few more years and see what Liverpool Council can conjure up. I feel the latter will benefit Everton Football in the long run.

People will argue, Goodison is falling down, the queues for food and ale are ridiculous, the toilets are disgusting, and the seats are uncomfortable. If people are going to watch Everton to have a nice bite to eat and a comfy seat then there in the wrong place. Character of a stadium is priceless and Goodison has it in abundance, will a brand spanking new stadium in Kirkby have such character? Doubtful.

We may not be the huge club we once were, at the moment, however we do have something the majority don?t, a special stadium that words cannot describe. The buzz you get when you arrive at Goodison on a matchday is impossible to describe. The pulse always speeds up the closer you get to Goodison. The z-cars theme, the blue shirt, the pitch, the ground, the history - it's all rolled in together in a mighty rush of pride. Do we really want to have a similar stadium to the likes of Bolton, Reading, and Middlesbrough? I have been to stadiums like the ones listed above and they are lifeless, heartless and away from the heart of the community. Moving to Kirkby gives us a huge amount of seats to fill. Granted we have enough fans to fill them but would we have say 50,000 every home game? Doubtful.

I genuinely believe the only long term conqueror in the whole scenario is Tesco. Why should future generations of youth support the team that left the city, when they will have a championship challenging team on their doorstep. Quite simply, it will take only a few years for Everton?s fanbase to drastically decrease, simple as. If the move does go ahead, against the fans backing then Everton will have NO right to call itself ?The Peoples Club?. It would be a mockery. You also have to wonder about Leahy. At the end of the day, first and foremost he is a businessman and he will have TESCO?s best interests at heart, not Everton?s. Will everybody really trust the voting system in place? Just how desperate are Kenwright and co in driving us out of the city. Questionable. It seems to have become evident that it?s either Kirkby or nothing for the next few years

Many will argue put passion and affection to one side, but why should we? They are pivotal reasons on why Everton are so special to all of us. Can anybody really imagine special nights like Man Utd, Bayern Munich at a lifeless new stadium in Kirkby. Somehow I cannot see such atmospheres being re-created. I feel strongly on this and we all deem ourselves ?great supporters? but we seem to be destined for a Wimbledon like scenario and we are being indoctrinated by people who are trying to make us see it differently. If Kenwright was the staunch Evertonian he proclaims to be he wouldn?t even ponder this move and nor should we as fans.

Many want us to be challenging the top clubs again, is this a distinct possibility if we surrender our local territory? Doubtful. Quite simply, the city of Liverpool will only have ONE football club and this will therefore result in the dramatic downfall of our local fanbase. I still feel hugely let down by the council. Although I wasn?t born when the initial plans for Everton moving to Stanley Park were rejected I know enough to suggest it is hugely unjustified to now allow Liverpool to build a stadium there. People will argue, it was a different council back then but the same principle should apply. The regeneration that has been promised to Liverpool in a park that EFC were strictly not allowed to touch is bizarre and comical to say the least.

Fans will argue if we don?t move now, we?ll be stuck at Goodison for years to come. Although revenue could be lost, although the place is falling down it remains indescribable and wells you with pride. If the club can be run more effectively and efficiently than in the years past, we could attract an investor. I believe it really does make far more financial sense in the long run to stay put for now, and see what happens. Ask yourself, what are you going to do if the club moves to Kirkby. What pubs are you going to meet your mates in, what chippy are you going to visit. Things like this are important to us as fans and why should we distrupt such rituals for a move to outside the city boundaries? If we move to Kirkby I know we will still go on living, but it will be like our soul has been taken away.

Overall I wanted to express my view that a move to Kirkby is not the best option for Everton Football Club in the long run. Although we would all like a new stadium, do we want one that much to move away from our city and surrender it to Liverpool? Or do we sit tight, resist and await future plans for a stadium within the city. This is the best team we?ve had in my lifetime, success comes on the pitch first. Ask yourself this, do you genuinely believe that Kenwright and co have Everton?s best interests at heart, or do they see this move as a quick way to make profit? A move to Kirkby would result in the downfall of Everton Football Club. We may live on but for how long? Do we really want to see our beloved club that has such history; tradition and honour fade away into the distance? I just pray that as fans we do our duty and vote AGAINST a move to Kirkby and stop this wholesale slaughter of our great club.

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