Quote ="Sadfish"I think the CM mentioned roller shutter to go on yet.'" viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2150 viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2170 His own pictures suggest the shutters are actually inbuilt just not required at present

Quote ="Sadfish"I think the CM mentioned roller shutter to go on yet.'" viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2150 viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2170 His own pictures suggest the shutters are actually inbuilt just not required at present

Quote ="Chris Saint"viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2150 viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2170 His own pictures suggest the shutters are actually inbuilt just not required at present'" Ah yes you can see them there.

Quote ="Chris Saint"viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2150 viewtopic.php?f=18&t=385845&start=2170 His own pictures suggest the shutters are actually inbuilt just not required at present'" Ah yes you can see them there.

This is what I was originally told back in mid August (from my post dated 16 August):

I watched some NFL at the weekend. One thing that appeals on that is the colour.

Why can't we have the ingoals painted like they do? Looks amazing. And have the white lines painted really thick and bold. I read online that they paint the markings on the NRL pitches as it makes the players appear faster on the TV because you've got the lines fizzing by.

Get it done...

We used to have ingoals all painted up.

Would Wello look faster with them NRL markings

Oh don't start Saddened! on Wello! Please!

Yeah it made viewing of a grounded ball hard, especially from little kick throughs.

Bad Idea

your somewhat wrong re the open concourses claim. I never said they were genius, just that on a pleasant summers day it would be better than a stifling concrete box, or words to that effect.

I did say the following though

"It also means fans in the West and East will have a reasonable amount of weather protection. A four meter high wall will pretty much protect you from wind and rain when combined with the large roof overhang. Certainly when i was there last week when it was chucking it down, all the concourses were dry.
This would certainly not be the case if we just had a fence around the edge of the ground."

Now this was based on what i had seen in summer. However having spoken to builders/security guards in September/October when the weather was worsening they confirmed that the concourses, particular the West stand concourses were getting very wet under heavy rain and wind. Clearly i was wrong and the concourses needed more protection.

The club have therefore themselves identified this and come up with an innovative solution re the perforated cladding. This in itself may prove to be a great move or just window dressing that wont really solve the weather protection issue.

With regard to Turnstiles, it seems purely a British thing to hide them away. In other countries they make features of them.

Stade Gilbert Brutus has a very impressive entrance



San Siro, less so but still a feature



The USA in particular likes to impress people as they enter a palace of sport.

They all look like shopping centre entrances though

and why would shopping centres opt for grand entrances?

Couple of things. Firstly, on your concourses point earlier in the therad, I actually agreed with you about it potentially being a pleasant experience.

My main issue is that when you praise something on this ground, you then often feel the need to criticise other grounds, as though this is a revolutionary build and that even things that don't necessarily look great are much better than other grounds. IIRC you have criticised enclosed concourses and enclosed turnstiles in this way, when in fact I expect they are built like this in this country due to the weather!

On the many examples of grounds you highlight, well you look to have selected the main entrances of most, and the couple you haven't look pretty terrible.

I feel that picking US stadia for comparison isn't a great source either.

Looks very good from the air..

It looks even better now as the cranes have gone and the landscaping has all been finished.

How often do they update the aerial photos?

Not often enough for me! But I want to see one every week and they must cost a fortune to take. I would imagine we'll get another one before the year's out. We've had three versions I think so far.

We need to get Bartonflyer from the Salford board over to St Helens, he takes a pic of the new Salford ground everytime he goes flying!

I know it might seem a bit premature to ask this, but has the stadium been designed in a way to easily build extensions to the capacity of the stadium?

Your new place looks very good.
Are Saints fans going to have your own version of the "Eamon McManus Stand"?
There won't be anything official like that but if you produced banners and flags and decided which part of the ground to "name" it could have a positive effect for the club and your chairman.
From outside of St Helens it seems that none of what has been built and now handed over would have happened without EM.
Just wondered if you'd thought about giving the bloke the credit that, IMO, he deserves by giving part of the ground his name!
As I mentioned, the club won't do it but the fans could!

Like calling one of the family stands "Eamon corner"

Showing your age?

Will the road in front of the South stand be the only area accessible to the public on a non match day?

I'm not sure, but it's pretty tight round the actual stadium, we could possibly build up, but that would be about it.

two corners could fit some in

Well here are my first set of pics from the completed stadium, (phase 1 anyway)

Lets just say that up close it just blows you away. Especially when looking in the direction of Keirons statue from the Western side.
The stadium then becomes a thing of beauty, and well you just start to feel a bit like a kid in a toy shop.

I would advise any self respecting Saints fan to make the pilgrimage and go for a walk round the stadium. The Tesco's which opens on Monday makes for a perfect parking spec. It really will take your breath away.

Today there was a steady stream of people walking or cycling up past the south stand, i spoke with many and all were very very impressed.

Anyway enjoy.


Paragons portacabins have been fitted in the East stand



A close inspection of the East stand turnstiles shows the shuutters down to prevent the incursion of undesirables



The South stand with a car parked in front of it. One of the many admirers of OUR stadium.



I managed to get some pictures inside the stadium, sorry about the reflections however it was unavoidable due to sticking my camera against the glass.

This is the community facility showing on the left between the double doors, the moveable partitions.



The main entrance. You need to go through two sets of doors to get inside. This should ensure the receptionist doesnt get cold from drafts. The floor is beautifully tiled in grey. In the background can be seen the reception desk.



The ticket office caters fully for wheelchair bound spectators, featuring a lower level ticket booth



The club shop and museum area is pretty spartan at present. Note on the right of the first picture what looks like a set of rugby posts. This is were the shop counter will i think go, as its linked by a doorway to the ticket office.
The club shop looks like it will be significantly larger than the shop in the town centre.





The cafe bar area is long but narrow. It currently has a classy looking wooden floor in need of a good clean and polish



end of part 1