ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

It's what's on the inside that counts..

OK, so a lot has been said and will continue to be said about the stadium debacle but one thing strikes me about this that I've not read or heard anyone mention.

We've been continually shown images of a new ground which we all think looks bad/plastic/too close to Tesco's etc, but there's been little or no mention of the actual interior of the stadium.

Now I don't know about you but I've seen Wembley from the outside and it looks shite - the area around the ground is pretty crappy, but inside it's great. The views of the inside of our proposed ground look very similar to Goodison from the limited versions I've seen which must surely satiate some people?

I'm sure this will provoke the standard vitriol from many, but I for one am more bothered about what goes on inside the ground, rather than what happens outside it. If we build a 60,000 seater stadium in Kirkby, which has anything approaching that amount of bums on seats come match days, then will anyone really care, or even notice that it's in Kirkby and not bang in the middle of Liverpool?!

Whenever I go to football matches, no matter where they are, north, south, east or west, I don't get any sense of where I actually am once the game starts ? my mind is fully focussed on the game in front of me, in the same way it is for everyone in the ground. On that basis I don't give much for all this 'keep Everton in our City' stuff (thats not a dig at the KEIOC boys, I just nicked their slogan) because it actually doesn't really matter once the ball is kicked.

As long as it's big, modern, even intimidating; which it should be given our usually vociferous supprt, on the inside then it just doesn't matter.

A big new ground for a team that's on the up currently, to me can only be a good thing ? I would prefer it not to be in Kirkby, I would prefer us to stay at Goodison if I'm honest, but being that I am honest regarding the way I feel about this matter, I just want to watch my team play somewhere fitting of the modern age. If that has to be Kirkby, then so what? Make it big, make it modern, make it noisy, make it passionate ? if that's what we want, that's what we'll get.
Allan Hobbs, London Posted 23/11/2007 at 15:54:41

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Tony Marsh
1 Posted 23/11/2007 at 18:06:23

So you want it passionate and noisy and you dont care were it is?Well some of us do care were it is and wont be going if we ever do move to Kirkby.How many more times will people like you have to read about other fans, there fears
and the utter disgust we feel about this whole shitty affair before it sinks in?Its a total farce this Kirby proposal and once it happens [if it does] then we will have to live with it forever and it wont work out the way you seem to think.How any intimidating atmosphere or noise will be generated in a ground that is open on 4 sides and half empty has got me stumped For the last time Alan its not about being in the city boundary that matters its the exact location we want right.How the fuck any buisness minded people would want to move further away from Liverpool city center and all the facilities and infrastructure it has to offer for a plastic ground miles from any where on a super market car park is one of lifes great mysteries.New buisnesses are flocking in to Liverpool at present and we as a club should be tapping in to these potential revenue streams and not leaving it wide open for the RS.Its common sense to locate ourselves near to train stations,bus stations,hotels,bars,
resteraunts and taxi ranks isnt it?Why would any one want to endure a nightmare journey to Kirkby retail park for a day out?FFS I give up I really do.If you cant see that this proposal for Kirkby will be a disater then its not worth saying any more on the matter.You will be alright though Alan another 2 hours travelling time back to London after games wont hurt you that much will it?

Colin Fell
2 Posted 23/11/2007 at 18:35:51

Trust Tony Marsh to see the black side of one of the most exciting and innovative projects in our great club?s history.Like most Evertonians who are not set in the last century-or the one before that-I can?t wait for the opening of the Kirkby stadium.
Keith Wyness has earned every penny of his (modest by modern standards )salary and even if -as some have rumoured -his private company has benefitted via a consultancy fee,I am sure the scheme could not become a reality without him.
Please,please,let?s put the controversy of the move behind us and use our energy in a positive way to ensure that our new home is a place feared by evey opposing team who visits us.

Tom Hughes
3 Posted 24/11/2007 at 00:17:07

Colin..... out of town is so "middle of the last century" it’s untrue..... It was tried all over the states in the 1950’s-70’s. They’re getting demolished now for new inner city or even downtown stadia. The success of several of these has generated the biggest stadium building boom in the US since the first generation of stadia where built in the 1900’s. Wyness’ Salary is not modest by anyone’s standards. So far he has presided over the sale of all our assets, and we even rent our new training ground, the failure of the retail store in town, the abysmal turnouts in our premier seating sections, and god knows how many ticketing fiascos. The farming out of various once in-house activities leaving us with poorer services and facilities. I don’t think our financial results show his efforst in a great light either. It’s a good job Mr Moyes is making a decent fist of the on the pitch activities, or is Wyness picking the team too these days.

lee rogers
4 Posted 24/11/2007 at 04:15:10

alan i totally agree with what you’ve said infact i’m really excited about the new stadium i think we should have a roof put on so we can make loads of money from pop concerts so i’ll see you there for a pint tony marsh !!!!!

Kevin Sparke
5 Posted 24/11/2007 at 07:31:07

For the first time ever on this site I am in absolute agreement with Tony Marsh

Kirkby, if it goes ahead will be an absolute disaster for Everton football club.

Dave Wilson
6 Posted 24/11/2007 at 07:13:55

Absolute twaddle Alan

When your in a shit hole, you know your in a shit hole,
This getting fucken pathetic, how many lies have to be exposed before you see this sham for what it is ? ? ?
Leecongratulations, thats the most inane post I’ve read since this circus hit the road
I hold my head in disbelief at the comments I read on here, we’re Evertonians, I thought as a group we were pretty street wise, why the fuck do large numbers of our fanbase continue to be lead up the garden path by KW’S fairy stories ?

David Bent
7 Posted 24/11/2007 at 09:33:29

Well said,Colin Fell! Wyness has done a great job since arriving at Goodison and has made sure funds are available for Moyes to make us great again.The new ground will be the icing on the cake and all this carping just illustrates what a moaning,ungrateful lot we have amongst our following.

Paul Gladwell
8 Posted 24/11/2007 at 09:59:06

wymess has earned every penny of his salary !!!!!!!!!!!
Are you fucking blind ?
Turnover down £10 mill in 48 months borrowing up to £70 million!!!!!!!!
Assets eg Bellfield dissapearing in the wind by the day.
Sorry mate I am director of my own company and I would be questioning my own capabilities if I saw these stats on paper, but people like yourself are willing to trust this man with 130 years of glorious history.
I will back any move or progress if it is done right by honest people I can trust and I would not trust him with the controls to the Tv.
Tony Marsh said it all ,it is commercial suicide to leave such a fast growing city, believe me , when Peel holdings get the go-ahead for this Shanghai dock scheme you wont know the place and the ammount of money , tourists etc flowing into this city will be enormous , but guess where silly old Everton will be ?
Ask yourself this , would our greatest chairman ever Mr Mores have decided on running away from our birthplace?
Would he fuck , He was ruthless a true blue and most of all a winner something wymess could never be in amillion years.

paulgladwell
9 Posted 24/11/2007 at 10:23:22

Sorry Mr Moores , I thought this as l sat last night watching the old official history film and realised he would be turning in his grave now.

tom morris
10 Posted 24/11/2007 at 10:21:29

So Tony Marsh doesn’t like the idea of going to Kirkby.

We shouldn’t be too concerned about this because, as any regular reader of this mailbag will be well aware, Tony Marsh doesn’t like ANYTHING.

He doesn’t like Moyes, he doesn’t like the style of play, doesn’t like this, doesn’t like that.....

Most of all though, he doesn’t like anyone who dares to have an opinion with views that are contrary to his own ("people like you" ?!).

Greg Murphy
11 Posted 24/11/2007 at 10:59:43

Valid points Allan (not meant to sound patronising, honest) and whilst I don’t agree with most of what you say, I know where you’re coming from on one point i.e. that whatever ground I’m sat in, the last thing on my mind at the time is what’s going on outside.

Saying that, though, why is that so many of those who are pro-Kirkby justify their position on the basis that currently they have to "walk through dog shit" on the way to Goodison?

Can’t work both ways: either the exteriors of a ground do matter or they don’t?

On a side note: there was a distinctly apologetic tone I detected laced throughout your piece. You shouldn’t be so, Blue. If you’ve got convictions - and you clearly have - just go for it. Keep on.

Kevin Mitchell
12 Posted 25/11/2007 at 18:53:47

Allan Hobbs from London, this is Kevin Mitchell from Liverpool.
Unlike you I do care where everton play.
I live and breathe our club from the streets of Liverpool which in case you havn’t noticed we share with another premiership club.
Don’t you realise the impact a move away from the city will have on us locals.