All Activity

Id take Falkirk's Stadium , obviously with 4 stands and the corners filled in. You would get a great atmosphere in such a ground but the costs would likely be prohibitive. Falkirk's feasibility study for a 4th stand similar to the other stands revealed cost in the region of £6 million, so a full stadium you are easily looking at £20/£25 million and we just cant finance that, sadly.... or could we? the sale of Fir Park for housing would realise no more than £3 million at current commercial valuations. We'd really need to get the £20/£25 million down to the region of £10/£15 million to make commercial financing over 30 years potentially viable, but the Revenue streams would need to increase to pay the near £1 million a year financing costs. Had we built a new ground 25 years ago the cost would probably have been in the region of £8/£10 million , expensive for the time but the great thing about inflation is the initial cost becomes smaller relative to income going forward. So perhaps £25 million now wouldn't look so bad in 15 years when a bog standard player will be selling for £3 million. Speculate to accumulate can be a real success but can also be a real disaster. New builds Id hate, from Scotland - nearly all of them - but particular hate for St Mirren Park McDiarmid Park New Douglas Park New Ones I could live with Doncaster Keepmoat Stadium Falkirk Stadium with filled in Corners - and 4 stands Rotheram United - New York Stadium Mind you all pie in the sky for the time being.

I looked up at the rust covered state of the metal beams in the POD yesterday, the wooden seats with no legroom, support poles impinging on the view, dirty 'windows' at the south end, the plastic bolted buckets in the south and north ends, the unsafe queues for catering and toilets, and realised this cannot go on for much longer. Add in the rotten pole covered view from most places in the Hunter stand, which we don't have the space to upgrade or step size to convert to safe standing. An away stand that I understand also needs some work. I've been going for over 50 years, the place is full of history and memories, but it's done, and I'm not sure even a complete rebuild of the POD, with all the cost and disruption that would cause fixes that. I trust our new Board to make the right choices, but there is jeopardy whatever route they go. I totally get the negativity towards new build both location and design wise, but again I would trust the Board to make sure any new stadium design would be fit for purpose and not soulless like St Mirren's dreadful place. Rotherham Utd's 12000 seater would be a good template, steep sides and close to the pitch, while on Madeira, Maritimo's 10600 seater with plenty corporate hospitality, closed in corners, and close to pitch (was at a game there in January) is another possible template. No easy solutions but if the finance question can be answered then its new for me, if not then the POD will have to be replaced, maybe with a lower height footprint at both ends to at least get it running the full length of the pitch, but as I say no easy answers, would love to see that report!

I see from a Dons site, that Mark Reynolds hung up his boots yesterday after the Highland League Cup semi for Banks O Dee. Good player for us, before he moved on to Sheffield Wed.

It's not about the location, although transport etc. is important. It's about the quality of the new facilities. Do we want what Falkirk, St Mirren or St Johnstone have? Even that would be a stretch financially, but I find it pretty uninspiring - probably the opposite of a Luddite, as I'd want something more modern, hi-tech and sustainable.

Thats it for me Allan. I get the attachment and sentimentality argument but for me its outweighed by other more practical considerations. If the Directors decide against moving for well thought out and researched financial reasons then I can accept that. However, as you say, we have 2 stands that simply aren't fit for purpose. The East Stand has a poor view due to its low angle and is simply a covered shed and it has poor access from one end only. Kiosk siting is far from ideal. I guess that the only way that stand could be refurbished satisfactorily would be to extend it into Knowetop School playground. Thats not going to happen anytime soon. The POD Stand was contructed over 60 years ago and is way past its sell by date. Refurbishment would represent a sticking plaster job. Catering and hospitality facilites are totally inadequate. We're also having to maintain an external structural framework which has no practical purpose whatsoever. As for seating, both ends are simply seats bolted onto benches and I think I'm right in saying that they don't meet European competition standards. Kiosk and toilet facilities are medieval, but more importantly are part of a safety issue. If the POD was to be demolished and rebuilt that woudl cause all manner of logistcal problems: loss of hospitality income temporarily; and having to accommodate current patrons elsewhere in the ground (again resulting in decreased income). In short, Fir Park is the wrong shape and too constrained. I don't think that moving to Ravenscraig would be the end of the world. Its not as if we'd be moving to Honningsvag or anywhere as remote as that. The site is being developed, albeit more slowly than originally envisaged but new facilities will come. The are has changed dramatically over the past 100 years or so and will continue to change and evolve. How many of our fans miss our old park at Roman Road for example? Anyway, its an interesting debate and personally I'm looking forward to finding out a summary of the Director's feasibility study (hopefully) and learning their conclusions.

You just stick to going to the theatre and restaurants that are safe from earthquakes and tsunamis then . I will still be taking the risk and going to the football hopefully at Fir Park. Oh and pigeons will still shite on the seats in a new stand just as much as an old one.

Agent there hopefully as Jens signs a new 5 Yr deal tomorrow!! Ahhhhhhh I wish

Nice internet debating technique. Don't want a substandard stadium build then you are a luddite. It's possible to hold two (or more) thoughts at once. I don't want a substandard new build and don't like the substandard facilities we have now. Maybe there are other options that are better, and that's why we have invested in reviewing options.

I wouldn’t suggest those against are luddites as such, perhaps overly sentimental? personally I’ve been going for well over 40 years with season tickets in East stand and now PO’D. I wasn’t born in Motherwell, have never lived there and so have no real connection to the place other than the ground itself. I was a Well fan in EK in late 70’s / 80’s while most around me were Old Firm because my dad took me to Fir Park after visiting friends in his home town, Wishaw. Maybe my lack of direct connection to the town but also having had an uncle who worked at the Craig explains why I wouldn’t be adverse to moving to the old site of the steelworks as a reasonable alternative. However I will also be perfectly happy to stay where we are and while improved facilities of all kinds would be ideal it’s not a deal breaker for me to keep being a supporter.

If we build a new stadium there then transport links poor, local businesses suffer also. I think we all have different opinions. Not wanting a new stadium doesn't make you a luddite. If a new stadium was built it would need to be unique and not the bog standard like usual new builds

I see the luddites are out in force tonight, we have two srands at Fir park that are not fit for purpose by todays standards and expectations from the paying public, bolting seats to old terracing and having people pay to sit on seats in the pod stained with pigeon crap, every 2nd or 3rd one broken, turnstyles that were modern the last time we won the league, unsafe congestion in public areas etc and people are getting teary eyed and sentimental about it, aye ok then. Would you accept sub standard and or potentially unsafe conditions in a theatre, restaurant etc, football grounds are no different.

Agreed. And if we have to build on our own, with no help or support from outside agencies, thats what we will end up with. We have done well to get control of our club and get a young enthusiastic forward looking board in place that reflects the aspirations of the support. We also have the prospect of some serious finance coming into the club by way of player trading / prize money coming soon. A good decision now sets us up for the future. A bad one can have us back scrambling around to make ends meet.

And that was just on Saturday. Looking at the form table over the last 6 games, our stats are phenomenal. 4 points better off than Hearts, 5 more than Celtic, 6 more than Rangers. More goals scored than any of them and just a single goal conceded. We're all waiting for the wheels to come off, because let's face it, we're Motherwell, and they always do. But then, I've never seen a Motherwell side or manager quite like this, so there's a first time for everything. That includes me going to Dens. Hope it's mobbed, they deserve it.

This.

Aye, Celtic is a pretty toxic environment these days, even by their standards.

Seems simple to me . Move to a soulless new stadium like all the other horrible new stadiums built in the last 30 years . Ruining the history and wiping out the legacy of our home Fir Park. Or keep the three existing new refurbished stands ,knock down the main stand and rebuild it from scratch as a modern base for a modern club to our required specifications. We have a great playing surface and three modern sides to the stadium 75% of a good stadium already in place . Obviously a lot of disruption ,planning and organisation required for this but the best one . Nowadays history and tradition seem to go for nothing in the corporate world and the sporting world.. Surely its a matter of pride that we have been at the same site for over 100 years and worth presrving. So what if you need to park in a street n walk to the ground on match day ,its all part of the matchday tradition . Everything has got to be so new , sanitised and shinny these days . You could have a stadium in the middle of no where with a carpark right next to it costing £10 to £20 park every home game and an hour to get out of after the game ,no thanks Redevelope the Main Stand for me.

Im sure if a new stadium was built at the craig, upper crust would open a 2nd outlet, or would more infrastucture be required?

Can't think of many things worse than a flat-pack effort of a stadium at that desolate Ravenscraig

Bryan Gunn, knowing each other from Norwich days. On Jens, why would he want to go there?? Needs a total rebuild, board apathetic and sections of the fans are professional victims who demand to run the club. Not a harmonious place.

Given that the pod was built long before the complex planning, and environmental rules and regulations we have now, is it realistic to expect that the pod can be demolished and rebuilt to the same size and capacity on the same footprint. For me i dont think it can be, the cooper stand was halved in size due to residents objections as it was originaly supposed to be the same as the McLean stand. For me a refurb is not an option given its wooden construction, and the difficulties that creates with saftey regulations etc and im not convinced a total rebuild would be allowed under todays regulations etc.

Rebuild, remain. It's home.

Rebuild and refurb please.

Rebuild POD stand for me. New stadium in ravenscraig a no for me, no infrastructure at all and no transport links

A new roof on the East Stand and rebuild of the Main Stain should be within financial limitations of the club. Last I read somewhere upgrading the Main Stand would be circa £2million a complete rebuild £5 million. Ayr Utd built a new stand with excellent corporate suites / Function Suite for £3 Million. However only 800 seats. Unless substantial outside investment is available a new ground would be very difficult to realise.

I very rarely post but have posted on this a few times in the distant past. I love Fir Park dearly and believe we must preserve our history and stay / redevelop if at all possible. If we leave Fir Park we will lose something we will never get back. Realistically, we would not get anything special or architecturally interesting, it would be Almondvale with different colours and a bigger away end. That is the economics. I don't know the ins and outs of course, but surely rebuilding the POD from scratch would provide a platform to modernise the stadium / facilities while addressing the worst of the problems, and though expensive would be a more manageable project than a complete move to RC?