How I see it

John Hughes 26/06/2008 24comments  |  Jump to last
I saw a fantastic court room film once?.ok maybe I?ve seen a few but the finishing statement made by the lawyer in this film really hits you.

Now a lawyer would probably tell you too close your eyes for this but obviously this isn?t going to work! So for this purpose keep them open. Read this and keep an open mind. Don?t make any comparisons, don?t think of any questions just read what the statement says and answer the question at the end. Are you ready??

So imagine there?s a football team, Imagine the football team has a magnificent history, this football team is one of the most successful in the history of the league they play in.

They were founder members of both the football leagues they have played in and were the premier club in the vast city they live in. They have a fierce rivalry with the cities second club and families are divided not by religion or war but by football.

However they have stumbled on bad times. They?ve been badly run over the last couple of decades and had fallen from grace. Now during the last 4 or 5 years they have begun to turn the fortunes around much the same as the city they live in. They?ve broken the hold on the top four places in their league with very little to spend through some shrewd deals and excellent management.

They have aspirations to bring the glory days back to the club but find that the home they live in is no longer up to scratch. This once magnificent stadium, the first purpose built stadium in the country, the only stadium in the country apart from the national stadium to host a world cup semi-final, the first stadium to have under soil heating and floodlights, the first stadium to have dugouts in the country, the stadium that houses all of their trophies, were legends both team and international roamed. Unfortunately it can no longer sustain the club in its current state.

The game of football in their country has changed. Money now dictates who the best players play for. There?s a decision to be made and a man has the answer. There it is?.suddenly there?s a light at the end of the tunnel?.can you see it. This man says he can restore this club to their former glories. He can make the money available for the best players. He can once again make the club the best in the land. But?..and it?s a big BUT?.they have to leave their home. However their new home won?t cost them anything. It?ll be practically free. It?ll be a state of the art home with all the best facilities, with the best transport links, the best match day experience and in the best location?..

Now the man paints the picture of how it?s going to be?he tells the fans?we can have this stadium. It?s the deal of the century. It?ll put the club back on the map. The new state of the art stadium will be built on a brand new development. It?ll have shops and bars and parking and restaurants and you won?t have to walk anywhere as the buses and trains will be perfect.

Now this is hard for some of the people to take. They all know that the game has changed. They all know that they need a bigger stadium; they all know there is a possibility that they will have to move. Some people want to go others don?t. They?re torn but to be fair the man says look, we can?t do anything with our old stadium. It?s going to fall down. We have to move and to be fair to all the fans we will let you decide if we should move or not; we?ll have a vote. You tell us if you want to move to the new state of the art stadium which is going to move us back to the top of the tree or you decide if we stay until our once grand stadium falls down around us.

The location of the new stadium is in a run down neighbouring town. The city they have to leave is in the process of re-inventing it self and has billions of pounds invested in new developments and upgrades making it among the most desirable places to be. The club makes no plans to invest in the city of its birth as it won?t be there for long. Why should it as they will be moving to the state of the art stadium in the suburbs with nice green areas and bars and restaurant and shops and the most perfect of transport facilities in the country.

Obviously the fans seeing this vote to move to the new utopia. The perfect place in a run down town. Suddenly the man who painted the picture of the deal of the century tell fans that the stadium won?t be state of the art but will be a mid range stadium. That the transport will be too complicated and they can?t figure it out. The stadium will cost more than £78million and not practically nothing and we won?t have the money we needed to make this once fantastic team fantastic again. There is outrage, confusion, disgust and apathy. What? they say, we are not getting the stadium anymore. Yes the man says but not the one we said you were getting but you voted for it and you are having it. The second team in the city, remember those? They are laughing and calling, were a one club city. We always knew it was ours. Fuck off to the suburbs.

This once proud institution of a football club. Founder members of the leagues, the fourth most successful club in their country! One of the proudest well known and loved stadiums in the world. A team who?s history changed the rules of the game. Legends who will never be forgotten, the best centre forward in the history of the game. Innovators in the world of football and stadium design. Now reduced to leaving their home. Not getting what they were told they were getting and moving out of the city of their birth leaving it to their fiercest rivals.

They are hurting. They don?t know what to do. They have no guidance. No leadership. No guts to say they are wrong. No proof of what they are doing is right! They?re on their knees. Panicking that they might not survive. That they?ll no longer be able to compete. Can you see them? Can you see them lying there? A shivering wreck of a club. Look at them clearly?.picture it in your head?..see them??

???.now imagine they play in red!!!!!!!!!!!!

If it were them??. would you be pissing yourself laughing???

Reader Comments

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jimmy fearns
1   Posted 26/06/2008 at 21:27:08

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John, fantastic post, it’s exactly how i see it too.
Dave Wilson
2   Posted 26/06/2008 at 21:57:30

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Sorry John,

There are no circumstances that I can imagine were 15,000 gobshites surrendering the city to us
Jay Campbell
3   Posted 26/06/2008 at 22:14:56

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John great article.

We have Wyness and Kenwright to thank for doing more damage than any RS could ever do.

Steve Hogan
4   Posted 26/06/2008 at 22:42:59

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Yawn yawn, another load of sentimental tosh. Please add someting new to the debate instead of regurgitating the same old mantra.

Imagne this, imagine that, dear oh dear, don’t insult our intelligence any more please.
Bilbo Baggins
5   Posted 26/06/2008 at 22:29:18

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Spot on John, stil find it hard to comprehend what is happening to mine and thousands of others cherrished club.
I have already decided that I am not getting a season ticket this season and will buy my tickets for each game instead, as I dont trust anyone at the club anymore.
Talk about gulable, a work colleague of mine who voted yes, came out with a classic today, he said when we move it will be like forming a new club and we will be furhter away from the shite and wait for it we will have an extra 10 million pounds to spend on players each season........................
Graham Brandwood
6   Posted 26/06/2008 at 22:53:01

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Each articl written on this subject gets more and more despearate, as we are possibly a week away from the the club being given the go ahead to make the move. I will continue supporting the team to the full and hope that I have been wrong about the negative effect that Kirkby will have on our long-term fanbase. I will have to accept that the move is taking place and i will divert my focus onto selling the club to the young people in my family and friends. It may be time to divert our focus. It may be hard to swallow but we may be wasting our energy fighting this. I know it will be harder to sell an EFC based in Knowsley than in Liverpool City Centre but we may not have any choice.
rich jones
7   Posted 27/06/2008 at 08:22:44

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The club no we have no choice but to swallow this, we should try to make them think again. Real Everton or St Domingos playing on the loop or Walton Park.
Perry Umbown
8   Posted 27/06/2008 at 09:25:55

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"The light at the end of the tunnel... is the light of an oncoming train!"
EJ Ruane
9   Posted 27/06/2008 at 09:17:32

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Your honour, we have heard Mr Hogan’s ’sentimental Tosh’ defense on more than one occasion - can he be instructed therefore to just answer the question ’yes’ or ’no’. Could I also ask your honour to remind Mr Hogan of the penalty for perjury.
John Sreet
10   Posted 27/06/2008 at 09:54:53

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This is pathetic, but it contains grains of truth....like WE HAVE NO MONEY....well compared to other clubs......our stadium is old......but still in use........we need a new ground.......BUT WE HAVE NO MONEY....History counts for nothing....Britannia used to rule the waves dindn? it...........we even got songs to prove it....Why don?t you guys get real and post real alternate ideas that have sunstance and merit.........you sound like kids....dad can I have this, dad can I have that..............it?s all your fault dad that we live in a dingy damp smelling old house...dad can we move...........I have not seen one viable alternate idea that won?t cost us under 150/200 mill.
John Wilson
11   Posted 27/06/2008 at 09:52:27

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What is it with you deluded whoppers?

All this ’one of the most successful clubs in the country’, and ’one of the most famous stadiums on the world’ bollocks, I don’t know who you’re trying to fool, but it’s marvellous entertainment.

Your no-mark club are virtually unknown outside of this country, you haven’t even reached a final, nevermind won anything, for 14 years ffs!

Absolutely staggering levels of delusion displayed yet again on this comical website. To everyone outside of your own tiny, clueless fanbase, you’re either a small, no-mark club who never win anything, or they’ve never heard of you.

You said it yourself, ’They?ve been badly run over the last couple of decades and had fallen from grace’. ’The last couple of decades’!! Not the last few years, or the last 10 years, no, decades (plural)!

And that’s the thing. A few years in the 80’s aside, when you had a half decent team and won a couple of trophies, what have little everton actually achieved in the past 40 years?

Not very much really. That’s 40 years, or one third of your pathetic existance, and the most important and relevant third too, as it’s the most recent.

No trophies for 14 years. One trophy in 21 years. About 5 trophies in 40 years.

Who on earth do you think you’re kidding when you talk about your no-mark club in such glowing terms?

And let’s not even talk about your support, which is amongst the worst in the league. Free season tickets, adverts on the radio before every game, and still you never sell out your poxy 40,000 seater shithole.

A tiny, unsuccessful ,poorly supported club, who are insanely jealous of far, far bigger and more successful neighbour.

THAT is an accurate description of everton football club, and you all know it.
Simon McCulloch
12   Posted 27/06/2008 at 10:15:30

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Yet another boring article of old tosh. This site has become a boring forum for sad, twisted, miserable people to moan about the stadium move.

If the new stadium gets rid of all the supporters with a negative attitude that are constantly posting their drivel on this site then I can?t wait to move.

People have had their vote, the answer was ?yes?. Time to move on an embrace the new era. If you can?t do that go support someone else!!
John Hughes
13   Posted 27/06/2008 at 10:36:55

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Simon M ? you were obviously interested enough to read the piece and from your response are obviously very articulate? So answer me this. Which part of it isn?t true?

Can you tell me for a fact that we are getting the following?
? World Class Stadium
? State of the Art Facilities
? A Practically Free Stadium
? Extra funds from more revenue for Moyes to build the squad
? The best transport infrastructure in the country

Can you also tell me how we haven?t been screwed?

If you can confirm to me that all of the above backed up by facts is actually what you voted for (I had a vote too so I know the info you got was no different to mine) and is what is proposed to being DELIVERED I will never post another article on the stadium again.

If you can?t don?t bother posting a reply to any of the posts because you won?t be able to back your argument up. So convince me and all the ?Sentimental idiots? who voted no for the stadium that we are wrong to raise our concerns. We obviously feel strongly enough about it to question it. I?ve not seen a pro Move post on here or anywhere. Would you like to be the first?
Dave Sheedy
14   Posted 27/06/2008 at 12:28:30

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Tell me one other club who had the option to vote on a new ground!!!!
People tend to forget this little point like it or not you were given an option.
Damian Wilde
15   Posted 27/06/2008 at 12:26:04

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Well said Simon! I thought this was a site about ’Everton’. 50-75% of articles these days are the same old stuff (stadium debate, slagging off the board, etc.). Any chance we can change the record? Perhaps the name of the site should be renamed? www.moanaboutthestadiumand slagtheboardoffwiththesamepointson everysinglearticle.com

And as for those people who bang on about never going again, so what? Do you think anyone will give a toss? Real fans will still go. Stop being so bitter.
Rupert Sullivan
16   Posted 27/06/2008 at 12:50:04

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Dave Sheedy - Have you ever asked yourself why the fans were given a vote?

Call me cynical, but I think that the fans were given a vote (no mention here of the disparity or control of the information - or the exclusivity agreements!!) so that the board have deniability when it all goes horribly wrong.

Why, when you are responsible for the financial future of a company/ football club - would you ask the fans their opinion? How many Everton fans have experience in financial management, business case preparation, market trends, transport planning etc? Wouldn’t you rather expect that a decision is made by a well informed, trained individual?!
Dave Sheedy
17   Posted 27/06/2008 at 13:10:39

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Robert,

it still doesn’t hide the fact that fans were given an opportunity to vote. I sometimes think the club would have been better off not consulting the fans as every other team that has new stadia have done. At least then we could have avoided the civil war that threatens to tear our great club apart.
Gary Creaney
18   Posted 27/06/2008 at 13:00:05

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John, couldn’t agree more.
Although the result of the vote was ’yes’, it only took in a select few of the many thousands of evertonians. Those who voted yes based it on the points John has made above ie.
? World Class Stadium
? State of the Art Facilities
? A Practically Free Stadium
? Extra funds from more revenue for Moyes to build the squad
? The best transport infrastructure in the country.

Had the wool not been pulled over our eyes from the start the result would almost certainly be different.

And another thing for al those mentioning the sentimentality of the article, there are two things heavily involved in influencing opinions on the ground move. One is the effect it will have on our great club (financial, outside percievement etc) the other is the fact that we’ve been in Goodison in the city for years upon years and we fucking love it.

Say no the the Kirkbydome!!!!
Paul Lally
19   Posted 27/06/2008 at 13:27:13

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Excellent John.
I believe we are now at at a stage were pride comes before a fall for a lot of yes voters.
To now find out that what you voted for no longer exists is hard to take.
To trust the board and then be let down after believing you were making a historic decision based on the facts provided by the club only to find out later those facts were inaccurate.
Very hard to swallow even for the no voters let alone yes voters.
It is now all there, out in the open and in black and white why moving to Kirkby is wrong.
We have had to put up with LFC since Shankley - only 40 years - what about the previous 70 years ?
Everything works in cycles.
I for one would rather see Everton back at the top at Goodison where we belong - right next to the shower over the park (in the park - still a disgraceful decision).
We will get there on the pitch and do it where we belong.
IN THE CITY OF OUR BIRTH.
Success on the pitch = success off the pitch.
Therefore as we progress on the pitch we can improve Goodison as we go.
This will vastly reduce the financial risk and eventually put us in a position as the most attractive package in the league for a take-over.
Successful team in one of the oldest but newly refurbished grounds in the world and still keep the history and rivalry.

Yes I am getting frustrated - frustrated how some supporters want to simply wipe away our existence in Liverpool and think this is the right move for the future of the club.
FIRST CLUB IN THE CITY.



Simon M(and others) -
’People have had their vote, the answer was ?yes?. Time to move on an embrace the new era. If you can?t do that go support someone else!!

The vote included lost ballot papers,ballot papers sent to wrong addresses etc etc.
But is was a yes.
So what ? Read John’s post again.
What was voted on is not what is now on offer - end of.
Move on ? Embrace new era ?
No I will not throw away our history for a so called new dawn. What new dawn ?
We are moving along nicely under Moyes so why put it all at risk as we enter the ’Vile Decade’ as quoted recently by the Chairman of the Bank of England ?
Rising construction costs plus moving away from our roots should be enough to put a huge question mark over the project regardless of all the other problems.
Goodison, as said, can be developed in stages - far safer financially.

We will have nothing at Kirkby.
At Goodison we will be envied by the vast majority of clubs worldwide.
Great team, great stadium, great tradition, great history, great rivalry, great city, great fans.
It seems the only argument now is the money question.
So why would any Evertonian want to spend 100 million on Kirkby when they know it could be spent on Goodison in stages( as we earn it ) and we get all of the above ?
Unless you are prepared to risk the misty eyed ’those where the days’ type sentiment if we move.

As for Wyness - does anyone out there truly believe that this man has EFC’s best interests at heart ?
I have read as much as I can about him -good and bad - and do not have any faith in him at all.
Ask Aberdeen fans.

KEEP THE FAITH. KEEP FIGHTING.
Christine Foster
20   Posted 27/06/2008 at 14:09:43

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John, when you read it you could be mistaken for thinking its a B grade movie script except its closer to the truth than any fiction Clancy or Ludnam could write.

Thats what is so sad. It hurts to read it but the knife and the twist at the end was the killer, because I would probably be laughing if it was the reds too. So, I guess some 50,000 red suporters are getting the posters ready with One Club... One City..

Or how about.. This new banner for our proposed stadium ?

EFC, The Kirkby Social Club,

Advertising post match Sat night Bingo courtesy of Knowsley BC.

Its not even funny

Tony Williams
21   Posted 27/06/2008 at 14:55:11

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I am getting confused again, are we shopkeepers or lawyers? Or are we train drivers with tunnels and lights, I thought the fat controller was with the dark side?

Roll on the first game of the season.
Chris Roberts
22   Posted 27/06/2008 at 16:07:50

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"I am getting confused again, are we shopkeepers or lawyers? Or are we train drivers with tunnels and lights, I thought the fat controller was with the dark side?"

Not suprised you?re confused Tony but easiest way to remember it. If the article is about accountancy then everyone on here is an expert on that, if it?s architecture then they?re whizzy building designers. Town Transport planners? Lousy with them. PR? But of course we know all about that.

Yes no doubt we are the best educated most knowledge bunch of moaners the world has ever seen.
Simon McCulloch
23   Posted 27/06/2008 at 17:16:16

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For all of you that claim you were misled by the information sent out before the vote and therefore feel the move does not reflect what was on offer before are either extremely dumb or (as I suspect) trying to justify a reason to continue the argument not to move to Kirkby despite clearly having ?lost? the vote.

The information sent out before the vote was obviously a sales pitch for the move. As with all sales pitches they need to be taken with a pinch of salt, especially terms that are clearly subjective - ?World Class?

Now are you really telling me that most people voted thinking they we going to get Wembley or the Emirates Stadium for Free?

The point of my original post was: this site has become very boring and negative; full of sad bitter people who refuse to accept that they have not got their way in the vote and now sit around moaning. Using pathetic sentimental arguments, lies and half truths to justify reasons why we should not move. The vote is over, move on!! Let's have some fun and postive posts. Everton are on the up!
Gary Morgan
24   Posted 27/06/2008 at 19:32:57

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If it was a sales pitch, and the yes voters voted knowing they should expect a certain amount of ’spin’, then any credit or justification I once had for them has just gone the same way as Peter Beagrie on a motorcycle.
Graham Brandwood
25   Posted 27/06/2008 at 19:36:15

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I said above that it might be time to accept that the move may now happen and start to concentrate our efforts on making it work. That does not mean that we should feel happy about this. The truth is we are really scared. We are about to become the first big city club to make the move to the suburbs. This is an experiment that if it goes wrong will kill the club. I understand that we sound depressed and miserable but we can?t deny our feelings and please don?t criticise us for having them.
Gavin Ramejkis
26   Posted 27/06/2008 at 19:29:57

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Simon M and any others than care to respond, can you let us know what exactly you did vote for if you claim to have not be taken by KW’s lies or semantics? Can you let us know what future you thought the documentation presented before and during the ballot that turned your head and what you believed you were getting and if that belief has changed at all?


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