IntenseDebate - clack1

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - A Tribute to Gary Speed · 0 replies · +1 points

Was it depression?

It's extraordinarily unusual for someone to commit suicide without any previous signs of depression,

He was doing a good job as Wales manager, with no signs of anything wrong at all, according to players and staff.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - An Opportunity Scorned... · 5 replies · +1 points

Personally, nearly all the West Ham fans I know are opposed to the move to the O/S, the main reason because they don't want to watch football in a stadium with an athletics track.

When I posted my opinion on the need for a referendum last week, posters such as Ironsides, Headmaster and others objected to it, citing 'sentimentality for wanting to stay at the Boleyn' as backwardsness, but I think they got the wrong end of the stick - many fans who don't want to go to the O/S are not opposed to a move away from the Boleyn per se, and would be very happy to move into a bigger and better football stadium, but they do not want to go one with an athletics track. The issue is the track.

Even though I hate football with athletics tracks, I would not be against moving to a stadium with an athletics track if I knew that was genuinely what the majority of West Ham fans wanted, but it would be totally wrong to go there iif it's not want the fans want. - And until there's somesort of proper poll and consulation with the fans, we really have no idea how many are for or against.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - An Opportunity Scorned... · 1 reply · +1 points

We really have no idea how many fans are for or against the move, and there is no way of knowing until a proper poll/ referendum is conducted amongst season ticket holders and club members.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - An Opportunity Scorned... · 0 replies · +1 points

I went to the meeting in Liverpool St, and thought it was very balanced & constructive. The results will be published on Monday.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - As I Wasn't Saying Yes... · 0 replies · +1 points

It's not about 'sentimentality'

I'm very happy to move away from the Boleyn.

But I don't want to move to a stadium with an athletics track - that's the issue.

The Man City comparison is all wrong:

1) They moved to a stadium that was purposly designed and built to be a football stadium.
2) Their current success is due to having billionaire arabic owners

Moving to a new stadium doesn't necessarily mean success for a team - look at Derby and Southampton, they're examples of where it hasn't worked - they've just been burdened by massive debt.

But, again, I'm not aginst moving if it was to a proper football stadium. I honestly don't think a lot of people realise how bad watching football with a track between the fans and the pitch is - I seriously think there's a chance that move could be a disaster, that due to the terrible sightlines of the Olympic stadium we won't attract 'new fans', and we'll be watching football in a half-empty stadium, a long way from the action, and with no atmosphere.

Even those in favour of the move to a stadium with a track, must see at the very least it;s a gamble?

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - As I Wasn't Saying Yes... · 0 replies · +1 points

Very good post, RoyClark

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - As I Wasn't Saying Yes... · 3 replies · +1 points

Reading through many of the WHU forums over the last day or so, it's quite noticable how many fans don't actually want to move to the O/S.

Ok, I know the forums aren't an accurate gauge of opinion - a lot ot posters probably don't even go to matches - but I do detect a definite sea-change, compared to a few months ago.

I would like to see the fans given a proper referendum on the move - one organised by the electoral reform society, so that it would be accurate and fair, and not manipulated by the club.

It seems to me that a lot of fans are tired of all the politics.

While the lawyers, politicians, club chairmen and chairwomen play their games, the fans have been forgotton.

This is a comment that caught my eye on another forum

- We seem to be getting side tracked (no pun intended). It's not about Tottenham, Boris Johnson, OPLC, Barry Hearn, Sullivan stitching Levy up or any of that ****. It's about YOU watching your team in a half-empty stadium which wasn't designed for football, where you're a million miles away from the pitch.

It might be a good move for the 'club', but for a West Ham supporter it's not. Sure, you can park more easily and perhaps do a bit of shopping before the game, but for your actual game experience, you're gonna hate it.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - Hammers Olympic Move L... · 11 replies · +1 points

All these latest shenanigans are distraciing from the real issue - the athletics track.

(Although perhaps one good thing coming out of it is that, at least now, some of the papers are showing some real photos of the inside of the stadium, so people can see just how far the seats are from the pitch - it's not just an athletics track either, but a warm-up track alongsie it aswell..

Something that's really beginning to irritate is the comparison with Man City's stadium - the OPLC did it in their statement yestaerday, and the Evening Standard also had a piece citing City as an example of how renting can work....Aaarrrrr!!! -

MAN CITY'S STADIUM WAS PURPOSELY DESIGNED AND BUILT TO BE A FOOTBALL STADIUM!!! - it's a completely different situation to ours.

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - Hammers Olympic Move L... · 0 replies · +1 points

There was a very small paragraph in some of the papers yesterday about Boris Johnson being due to meet David Levy yesterday.

Can only guess that Tottenham turned down the offer of another 'bung' to drop the case against the OPLC

And can only guess that the OPLC weren't confident of winning the case against Tottenham's claim that the bidding process was unfair and biased?

FWIW, I always thought the issue of local council money (£40 million) being loaned to a private football club was a bit dodgy?

I think the fact that a decision on the venue for the 2017 World Athletics Champiomships is due soon (the Inspectors were in town last week) has had a massive bearing on today's events - ie. the O/S wouldn't've got Championships if the court case was still pending.

A lot of people do seem to think it's a smart move on the part of WHU - calling Tottemham's bluff if you like - I'm not so sure? As tenants how much say will we have over stadium design etc ,

14 years ago @ West Ham Till I Die - Montano Back and Strai... · 0 replies · +1 points

It's a big ask of Allardyce to get us promoted this season, in my opinion.

He' s got a 2yr contract, and, like Pardew, I reckon he's going to need all that time to get a 'new team' to gel, Promotion next season is a more realistic prospect?

Ideally, I would've liked to have seen us build a younger team, one that can develop and improve, much like the team John Lyall built in the 3 yrs down from 78 to 81, or, to a lesser degree, Pardew's team of mainly young players that got promoted in in 2005. But the Olympic Stadium situation doesn't allow for that - we have to be in the Prem for the opening of that no matter what, so all planning is short-term at the mo (the ageing Faye, Diop, Carew won't be around long-term, and Stanlisas and Hines have been discarded, two players who, while by no means the finished articles, possibly had the potential to develop and improve in this league? Unfortunately, circumstances dictate that all planning has to be short-term

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