Men In Blazers on AFCB

Posting highlight snippets as I listen.

"We're just about to go majority control at Lorient". Interesting timing with the link to their young striker.

Also mentions the Portuguese team but also says there's "one other we're fooling around with" so sounds like the network could still grow even further.

Says they knew Neil Blake would be moving on from his role over a year ago and sees Pinto as his replacement. Kind of confused by that as surely their roles weren't equivalent? Maybe he got mixed up with Hughes?

We have a 20 player deep list of potential replacements for every position which is constantly refined. I don't think it's news to have a hitlist but I guess I would have thought the target list was shorter. Obviously there's always a backup pool to that but that still sounds good.

On the stadium: "Our next step is to build a new stadium.... We're well on way to getting our design finished." That sounds like new rather than rebuild to me.

"It's probably going to be about 19k people. That's what we're honing in on". A little disappointed that's still the number.

"Right now, if we can make it work we're probably going to stay where we are rather than build a new stadium". Ok, that sounds pretty unequivocal. Rebuild rather than new.

"We're going to rehabilitate it." Then talks about the digging down thing discussed on here earlier. South Stand would be a double deck. Then talked about rehabbing the East Stand to add a lot more hospitality and that going down is pretty much the only way to add the extra needed seats. North stand would stay as it is apart from a change to the roof. More seats in the Main Stand but all would be higher cost hospitality seats (if I understood correctly).

Even if we extended after the rebuild, we would top out at around 23k. I still think thats a very low ceiling on potential capacity. Kind of hoping we scrap the rebuild idea and go for the new build with more expansion potential.

Really gave the multiclub model the big sell.
 
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Says they knew Neil Blake would be moving on from his role over a year ago and sees Pinto as his replacement. Kind of confused by that as surely their roles weren't equivalent? Maybe he got mixed up with Hughes?.
Definitely meant Blake as mentioned he is still part of group. I suspect he just didn't want to go in the minutiae of backroom organisation.

Another note Kerkez and Zab 100% Hughes signing.
 
"We're going to rehabilitate it." Then talks about the digging down thing discussed on here earlier. South Stand would be a double deck. Then talked about rehabbing the East Stand to add a lot more hospitality and that going down is pretty much the only way to add the extra needed seats. North stand would stay as it is apart from a change to the roof. More seats in the Main Stand but all would be higher cost hospitality seats (if I understood correctly).

Even if we extended after the rebuild, we would top out at around 23k. I still think thats a very low ceiling on potential capacity. Kind of hoping we scrap the rebuild idea and go for the new build with more expansion potential.

Struggling to get my head around the ‘dig down’ concept. To my mind, that would require demolition of two stands to enable the pitch to be sufficiently repositioned. The south stand obviously, but assume the main as well? They dug down at Man City after the commonwealth games but that was possible thanks to the athletics track.
 
Struggling to get my head around the ‘dig down’ concept. To my mind, that would require demolition of two stands to enable the pitch to be sufficiently repositioned. The south stand obviously, but assume the main as well? They dug down at Man City after the commonwealth games but that was possible thanks to the athletics track.
I think that's pretty much it. East and North remains virtually untouched as I understood it. Maybe theres wiggle room to make the pitch
 
Not necessarily a move to Southampton. Build the main and south stand and when virtually complete, assuming end of May in whatever year, then remove main and south stands. Finally dig down and add more seats to possibly all sides. Finally resurfacing of pitch.
Match day may throw up a bit of a problem in the interim, but nothing that couldn't be overcome.
Not sure why my text is bold.
 
Not necessarily a move to Southampton. It would be feasible to start the build on the two new sides, obviously cording off for matches. Assuming completion of these was due for end of May in whatever year, demolition of stands and digging down could then be done. Finally resurfacing.
 
I’m sure the big stand at Anfield was constructed outside the stadium and then wheeled in over a summer, we’ve got plenty of room to do that.
I can’t see how the digging down idea will work out but I’m sure they know what they’re doing.
The groundsman won’t be happy, what a great job he does, the pitch always looks fantastic to me
 
I think that's pretty much it. East and North remains virtually untouched as I understood it. Maybe theres wiggle room to make the pitch
I think you’d have to expand both into the ground to align with new pitch level - both would then require a larger roof, albeit at the same level as currently.

I’ve worked through the phasing options in my head - it’s a real pig and definitely the most challenging and disruptive out of all options! I can’t personally see it, unless it’s our only option.
 
In terms of spending someone elses money: You'd have thought a new build from a blank sheet of paper and being more off the shelf in design would be much cheaper. Rather than wrangling the existing site and some of the existing stands into shape, getting bespoke to fit new works within it. That ignores the acquisition of the land and planning for it I know.
 
Unless I’m being really stupid (no need to answer this bit) unless you go straight down which wouldn’t work with the current stands digging down just reduces the size of the pitch and we are tight on the pitch.

Can anyone explain how digging down would allow both two stands to remain and not reduce pitch size…

To me the only solution for current stadium is two large stands for the Tedmac and the Main stand and fill the corners.
 
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Unless I’m being really stupid (no need to answer this bit) unless you go straight down which wouldn’t work with the current stands digging down just reduces the size of the pitch and we are tight on the pitch.

Can anyone explain how digging down would allow both two stands to remain and not reduce pitch size…

To me the only solution for current stadium is too large stands for the Tedmac and the Main stand and fill the corners.
I’ll meet you by the north / east corner at 2.45 (turnstiles permitting) and we can measure it out. I think it would work on the basis that you’re shifting the pitch away from that pinch point and you’d re-profile that corner area to suit.

Edit - you’d also possibly need rebuild the end block of both east and north - possibly, to create a wider and re-profiled corner.
 
I’ll meet you by the north / east corner at 2.45 (turnstiles permitting) and we can measure it out. I think it would work on the basis that you’re shifting the pitch away from that pinch point and you’d re-profile that corner area to suit.

Edit - you’d also possibly need rebuild the end block of both east and north - possibly, to create a wider and re-profiled corner.

You'd also need to extend the north and east stands at the other end so they run the full length of the pitch. One issue is that the concourses in those stands would be the same size which could cause issues with space and toilet provision. I suppose they open up the back these days but you'd think they would need to have enough space without that.

Presumably the club offices, shop etc. can be moved once the training ground is done. Perhaps you could knock it all down and build a big main stand with the current one still in use.
 

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