FGR stadium plans unveiled

[DarkSithLord]

I'VE CAUGHT A BIG ONE!!

Are you Sparrow in disguise?

 

[Sparrow]

Who's going to fill the 10,000 seater stadium?

Sounds all a bit Darlington to me.

 

[Chris FGR]

Who's going to fill the 10,000 seater stadium?

Sounds all a bit Darlington to me.

Maybe some of the 4,000 people employed at the site?

 

[Greenacres]

Who's going to fill the 10,000 seater stadium?

Sounds all a bit Darlington to me.

The way I read it is that the stadium would initially hold 5,000, with the ability to double capacity if or when required, so not much different in size to The New Lawn.

We all hear constant demands in the media for more money to be invested in sport and sporting facilities, to counter the loss of school playing fields and the obesity epidemic. When a rich man decides to invest his fortune in building a state of the art sports facility, albeit that it is also a business venture, that will ultimately benefit generations to come, shouldn't we all celebrate. Far better that he spends his money on something like that than on a yacht to cruise round the Caribbean, but that wouldn't be very Dale Vince anyway.

 

[Chris FGR]

Far better that he spends his money on something like that than on a yacht to cruise round the Caribbean, but that wouldn't be very Dale Vince anyway.

Erm, he owns a £1m supercar (nemesis), which he regularly drives in to games, and lives in Rodborough Fort.

Not flash at all is Dale....

 

[JE93]

Who's going to fill the 10,000 seater stadium?

Sounds all a bit Darlington to me.

To be honest he should invest the whole 100 million in building a stadium around the boarders ofthe town of Stroud then everyone would have to attend home games, non of this business park attached rubbish. That would be Darlington style. Go hard or go home

 

[Vanni]

A 5000 seater ground is just about right for a club like FGR. I reckon they have the potential to double their gates should they make the FL. With all due respect, if Accrington survive in the FL on only 900-1200 home fans, then it shouldn't be a problem for Rovers.

 

[Sparrow]

Maybe some of the 4,000 people employed at the site?

Ah yes, of course, I'm sure they're all interested in Forest Green Rovers.

 

[Pliny Harris]

I like how the proposed stadium is an all-seater. Like a few consultants got together with Dale Vince and decided that if anything, the atmosphere's too raucous at the New Lawn.

 

[Chris FGR]

I like how the proposed stadium is an all-seater. Like a few consultants got together with Dale Vince and decided that if anything, the atmosphere's too raucous at the New Lawn.

Don't worry, the noise of traffic rushing past will create a bit of noise anyway, no need for raucous fans.

 

[PaulHaddock]

I assume it's going to be powered by wind or some other renewable energy? Maybe John Parkin can blow on the turbine every time he runs 10m.

 

[BeesKnees]

It's really no surprise and looks the best option for FGR if they ever want to go higher than non-league. Effectively the owner is building a new headquarters for his company and incorporating Ecotricity Rovers along the way.

 

[1884 Belmont]

It's pretty impressive, but it seems stupidly expensive. We're currently building a new training ground with multiple full size pitches for community use, plus training facilities for the first and youth teams and it's only costing £2m (ish). Obviously, not all of the £100m is going on the stadium, but how much did the new stadiums for Burton, Morecambe and Chesterfield cost? (They seem comparable in size).

 

[BeesKnees]

Our facilities have had £30m committed since development started. I get the impression the 100 million is mostly to build the business park.

 

[GTFC1979]

I like how the proposed stadium is an all-seater. Like a few consultants got together with Dale Vince and decided that if anything, the atmosphere's too raucous at the New Lawn.

That will be in preperation for when they get to the Championship and have to go all seater.....

 

[Chris FGR]

That will be in preperation for when they get to the Championship and have to go all seater.....

That's the plan...

For Vince, the long-term vision is a place in the Championship: “Part of our rationale is the higher up the leagues we move, the bigger platform we have for our message."

 

[GTFC1979]

That's the plan...

For Vince, the long-term vision is a place in the Championship: “Part of our rationale is the higher up the leagues we move, the bigger platform we have for our message."

You will definately get there, I mean look how well you have done the last few years with the biggest budget in the league (sorry, i mean "allegedly" the biggest budget in the
league..........)

One thing i don't quite understand though is why build a bigger ground, when you do not have any fans to put in it.....?

 

[Chris FGR]

Our crowds are going up year on year though, we averaged 1578 last season and our ambassadors scheme now has 35 local schools enrolled.

We're a growing, progressive club and there is no reason why we can't be averaging 2-2500 gates in 5 years time if this upward curve continues, the projected timescale this development will take.

 

[Southern Shayman]

Our crowds are going up year on year though, we averaged 1578 last season and our ambassadors scheme now has 35 local schools enrolled.

We're a growing, progressive club and there is no reason why we can't be averaging 2-2500 gates in 5 years time if this upward curve continues, the projected timescale this development will take.

Maybe after you've moved you might get that many. There's not many others in the local area that care about football!

 

[Pliny Harris]

One thing FGR do seem to have is a good proportion of the locals behind their team. Their crowds, which I'm sure are bolstered from a few living further out, must represent over 1/6 of Nailsworth, and that's supposedly in posh egger territory too. If the same proportion of Haligonians came to our games we'd be selling out.

 

[Greenacres]

One thing FGR do seem to have is a good proportion of the locals behind their team. Their crowds, which I'm sure are bolstered from a few living further out, must represent over 1/6 of Nailsworth, and that's supposedly in posh egger territory too. If the same proportion of Haligonians came to our games we'd be selling out.

Spot on. We must be one of the few places where the whole population of where we represent can fit inside its football stadiums, if you include Shortwood. However, quite a few of us don't actually live in Nailsworth itself, most of the people I know through watching the team live some distance away, although mostly within 20-30 minutes of the ground. On an average Saturday, while travelling to a home game, I see loads of cars filled with people dressed in Gloucester rugby colours heading off to watch their game. This is definitely not a football heartland, but it doesn't mean there isn't a market for the beautiful game. We just have to be creative when it comes to encouraging new support, but anyone else whose team plays in an area more traditionally associated with another sport will probably be doing just the same.

 

[Si Robin]

Gloucestershire doesn't care about football regardless of how well the team is doing. In the last 15 years we spent 4 in League 1/Div 2, including doing the double over Leeds United (who only 6 years before had been in the Champions' League semis). Our home attendance never averaged more than about 3,500. Our attendances have gradually been going downhill for the last 7/8 years. You only have to look at how our finals attendances dropped over time:

Wembley 98 - 18,000 CTFC fans
Millennium 02 - 15,000 CTFC fans
Millennium 06 - 12,000 CTFC fans
Wembley 12 - 9,000 CTFC fans

Even the fairweather fans were giving up on the club.

FGR can do all they like, but the sad fact is that after the novelty of being n the Football League wears off (and that won't be all that long) attendances will stop growing and start heading back down to their traditional level.

 

[Sparrow]

We're a growing, progressive club and there is no reason why we can't be averaging 2-2500 gates in 5 years time if this upward curve continues, the projected timescale this development will take.

Is there a projected timescale as to when Vince gets bored and your club goes bust?

 

[Greenacres]

Gloucestershire doesn't care about football regardless of how well the team is doing.

FGR can do all they like, but the sad fact is that after the novelty of being n the Football League wears off (and that won't be all that long) attendances will stop growing and start heading back down to their traditional level.

Sadly that is pretty much the truth, it is a county that is largely obsessed with rugby, the irony is that many (not all) of the rugby fans I have met have been right miserable b******s. They are constantly whingeing about how hard done by their team is and that the World is against them. I have been living in this area for a very long time but have no interest in the oval ball, to quote one R5 football commentator "if rugby was being played in my back garden I would close the curtains". As for attendances, our approach is to target people who are interested in football, in the hope that if we catch them young enough they might stick with our game. What would happen to attendances if we made it to the Football League, whether our experience would mirror yours, I have to say that although I hope they wouldn't the likelihood is that they might.

 

[Si Robin]

I'm actually a little wrong. Gloucestershire people love football, sadly they're only interested in the Premiership and Champions' League. I have tried to get people to come along to Cheltenham games, even when we were at our best, but if it's not visible on a screen and they don't know the players, then they just ain't interested.

 

[Pliny Harris]

Spot on. We must be one of the few places where the whole population of where we represent can fit inside its football stadiums, if you include Shortwood. However, quite a few of us don't actually live in Nailsworth itself, most of the people I know through watching the team live some distance away, although mostly within 20-30 minutes of the ground. On an average Saturday, while travelling to a home game, I see loads of cars filled with people dressed in Gloucester rugby colours heading off to watch their game. This is definitely not a football heartland, but it doesn't mean there isn't a market for the beautiful game. We just have to be creative when it comes to encouraging new support, but anyone else whose team plays in an area more traditionally associated with another sport will probably be doing just the same.

Yeah. The Green can't groan, really. Even when the tide is overwhelmingly towards Gloucester for the union, a staple 1,000 staying in the town is really good going for where you are, the prices you charge and most of all the population of the catchment area. I'm just over 20 minutes away from the Shay, obviously it's still my local team and I come over from the outer sprawl identifying as Haligonian. Whatever are the most popular activities in Calderdale at 3pm (guesses tentatively welcome), going to watch the Town must be very overwhelmed by plastics either watching their favourite foreign millionaires on the telly, or taking a jaunt to Turd Moor/Elland Road/The Galbladder. Feels like the footie fans in Nailsworth are more likely to be sporting FGR shirts instead of Liverpool ones which is really cool, even if you hold Dale Vince in contempt.

 

[Clem Fandango]

FGR are nothing more than a Happy Shopper MK Dons now. Club badge changed, colours changed, banned meat, now moving them out of Nailsworth. It wouldn't surprise me if the next change is the name of the club to Ecotricity Green Rovers. I'm sure that was the plan all along.

He seems to think that the nearer he gets to Gloucester the better chance he has of suddenly attracting thousands of new fans. He's deluded. That tofu chomping, Linda McCartney sausage BBQ'ing, Hyper Global t-shirt wearing, long haired Swampy wannabe needs to stay out of our turf.

 

[rudebwoyben]

FGR are nothing more than a Happy Shopper MK Dons now. Club badge changed, colours changed, banned meat, now moving them out of Nailsworth. It wouldn't surprise me if the next change is the name of the club to Ecotricity Green Rovers. I'm sure that was the plan all along.

He seems to think that the nearer he gets to Gloucester the better chance he has of suddenly attracting thousands of new fans. He's deluded. That tofu chomping, Linda McCartney sausage BBQ'ing, Hyper Global t-shirt wearing, long haired Swampy wannabe needs to stay out of our turf.

That's a definite welcome to the forum there!

 

[DarkSithLord]

FGR are nothing more than a Happy Shopper MK Dons now. Club badge changed, colours changed, banned meat, now moving them out of Nailsworth. It wouldn't surprise me if the next change is the name of the club to Ecotricity Green Rovers. I'm sure that was the plan all along.

He seems to think that the nearer he gets to Gloucester the better chance he has of suddenly attracting thousands of new fans. He's deluded. That tofu chomping, Linda McCartney sausage BBQ'ing, Hyper Global t-shirt wearing, long haired Swampy wannabe needs to stay out of our turf.

Welcome to the forum! Great to see another National League North side represented.

 

[Si Robin]

Nowt so great as a bitter Gloucester City fan.