ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

City Council

A year or eighteen months ago, the city council seemed to have no interest in the club's issue of a new ground. Now, faced with the prospect of the club moving out of city to the suburbs, it would appear to have panicked. All of a sudden there are offers of sites coming at us from all over the place.

Football is a very cynical thing now and many, myself included, would say "Fine, let's see what they have to offer, let's see what's in it for us," and then take them for all they're worth. But then part of me is saying "No, stuff them. Let's run with Tesco's," — a deal the club has sourced itself and may manage to complete without the aid of the city council.

The reason for this is that in my mind the council is now seemingly only interested because of the fear of a very public embarressment. A major Premier League club, embedded in the psyche of generations of Liverpudlians, forced to go it alone as a lesser partner to a chain store for a new ground. All the way out to Kirkby too — and the city council stood by and let it happen.

I could well be wrong on this. With the way our club has been run over the years, the city council could well have rightly washed their hands of us, only for the football fan in it to change it's mind and try again at a late stage.

But it's just that the way that there has been no word from them in a while now, only for all this interest to be suddenly shown, does seem to be a little suspect...
Kieran Fitzgerald, Dublin Posted 24/07/2007 at 08:57:41

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Dan Walker
1 Posted 24/07/2007 at 14:21:53

I suspect that after the kings Dock debacle, LCC probably lost all faith in the competence of the EFC board and their ability to get their act together. The Kings Dock deadlines were extended and extended several times, each time with EFC failing to provide evidence of adequate funding.

So, once the Tesco offer came along and actually started moving ahead, that’s when the LCC ears eventually pricked up and started to take more notice. But initially the Kirkby project probably seemed like another false dawn, so it took time for LCC to treat it seriously...and I don’t think you can blame them. Kenwright has proven himself time and time again to be a clown.

Barry Bragg
2 Posted 24/07/2007 at 14:38:10

Yes Dan and therein lies the crux of the matter. This Kirkby deal is so financially weighted in the clubs favour that even a clown like Kenwright can’t mess it up.

Finally and too late the LCC are waking up to the fact that we are out of here and leaving them to stew in their pool of resentment over the Kings Dock. Well my friend this time they have bitten their noses off to spite their faces by refusing us any asistance after Kings Dock and they are going to pay the ultimate price of losing one of the original parts of this city’s culture as a result.

Only now when they realise that we have actualy pulled off a coup in landing this opportunity are they starting to make the rigfht noises but I will bet you my last pound that there are no viable plans in place. This is just a last minute attempt by them to throw a giant spoke in the wheel and rob the club of this opportunity so that we will again be at thier beck and call.

As a Councillor and an Evertonian Bradley should hang his head in shame for his actions over this matter. I sincerley hope when we move that we never see his face again at our new stadium. He is a traitor.

Karl Jones
3 Posted 24/07/2007 at 20:01:16

Spot on Kieran, I totally agree. The LCC doesnt want anybody to spoil their 2008 good news party. Bradley is a cynical politician (as most of ’em are), and to listen to him spitting the dummy out of the pram when he realised EFC were seriously close to the Kirkby move, and they might just lose some face, was just laughable.
Imagine if the Kirkby move was cancelled in the hope that the LCC could help with a ground move.
Half of the LCC would be against it, half would be for it, and it would dwindle away like the Kings Dock, and then back to square one again!

Tom Hughes
4 Posted 25/07/2007 at 11:24:28

Or converesly, Wyness is so desperate to get this vote through before a viable alternative(s) is flashed before Evertonian’s eyes that he will fabricate no end of misinformation to push it through.
How much does it cost? He changes his mind daily. What "green" guide legislation will be violated by GP? None!!! He’s making it up as he goes along. He wont enter open debate on radio interviews and will only answer questions he’s prepared for. He knows that when a viable plan for either redevelopment or relocation to Scotty is shown Kirkby would be lucky to hit double figures in a vote (and I’m not talking percentage figures). What’s criminal is that other people are having to generate these for the club..... £500k per year he gets for what? to line up some brown envelopes for him or his own company (doesn’t it have stadia in its title)?