pissedagain
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- 5 Sep 2008
- Messages
- 3,226
sadly today everything is for sale and as for the nickname,i ve won countless bets over the years on that, some even with city fans
Maine Road,
- Thread starter Zaba-daba-doo
- Start date
blueskies2
Well-Known Member
RIP Maine Road. RIP The Parkside.
D
D
Deleted member 77198
Guest
Don’t get me wrong, we are in a GREAT location and have a large-ish stadium. But things still aren’t right at the Etihad. And I don’t love the place despite magical moments like “Agüerooooo!”.
It’s all been designed and aimed at families and corporates with a “match day experience” and proper football fans who should be the core support that everything should be aimed at, are an afterthought and have been falling away from our support for years (including our away support which is a far cry from what it used to be).
It’s sad that what used to be one main stand at Maine Road is now four main stands with two little shitty efforts set aside for people to stand up (supposedly to create an atmosphere but really they all just stand with their arms folded and sing the odd song).
We had an opportunity when the stadium looked like this:
to build a proper end and missed that opportunity. We had half an opportunity when we redeveloped the South Stand to build a proper end but I can see why it wasn’t taken. Now with the North Stand we have an opportunity to build a proper end again; will we miss the opportunity again though?
Nothing ever seems to be geared at making the Etihad a place where proper football fan culture of creating noise and hostility accompanied with the colour of flags and banners is top priority. Look at the second tier ban on banners and flags to be replaced with a digital advertising board - shite! And all the cheesy club made flags and banners (flags and banners should be SOLELY fan made!)
They provide us with the lowest percentage of space for singers compared to overall capacity in the whole country, in fact, find me anywhere in Europe with a lower %... 55000 seats and we have a space for singers of about 3000ish? That is absolutely pitiful! Pathetic! And even then we get completely surrounded and outnumbered hugely in the cups so what’s the point of them at all? It’s the equivalent of the Anfield Kop (holds 12000) being surrounded by 26000 away fans in cup games.
This lack of proper fan culture at the Etihad has had a knock-on effect on our away support too. Look around on an away trip these days [and no offence to any of these groups of people] but it’s all older blokes, women, kids, geeks and corporates. With the odd small groups of “lads”. Who used to be the “lads” years ago are the older blokes now and because of the way the loyalty points has come to a head these days they’re still the core element of the support, with their wives and kids these days, and the days of the huge groups of 20-40 years old blokes has long gone from our support - but it hasn’t with other sets of fans. And you really hear it in our away support noise these days too. We’ve fallen off a cliff in the last five years with our away atmospheres. If football fan culture had been a priority from the off at the Etihad, or from the takeover, or from the time Soriano came in, would our away support be the way it is these days?
I don’t like how three of the stands don’t have stand names and I don’t like how fans are split up low down by small tiers - that REALLY hinders the noise in the stadium IMO!
For anyone sat in the East Stand, we have to walk either all the way round the ground or all the way down to the bridge and back up the road if we want to get back to the South Stand end of the ground to parking or a pub like the Corner Shop or The Townley while everyone else in the ground including away fans just walk straight out.
There are nowhere near enough pubs around the ground and it’s a bloody scandal how there are so few pubs between Town and the ground.
Still now, nearly 22 years after the plans for the ground were made, nearly 18 years since the Commonwealth Games, nearly 15 years since we moved there and nearly 10 years since we’ve had the Sheikh... still the best and quickest way to get back to Town is to WALK! The transport and parking situation at the Etihad for 55000 people is extremely poor!
It’s not that I miss Maine Road. I actually don’t anymore. But I feel pretty down about what we’ve got in the Etihad in, almost, 2018 when you think of how almost everything else has come on in these years (especially the last ten).
Last edited by a moderator:
burnley blue mcfc
Well-Known Member
Nailed it mate 100% well done
kev20971
Well-Known Member
I find it strange how the pubs around Maine Road survived on the football each season, yet all the pubs around the Etihad have nearly all shut down since we moved there !Don’t get me wrong, we are in a GREAT location and have a large-ish stadium. But things still aren’t right at the Etihad. And I don’t love the place despite magical moments like “Agüerooooo!”.
It’s all been designed and aimed at families and corporates with a “match day experience” and proper football fans who should be the core support that everything should be aimed at, are an afterthought and have been falling away from our support for years (including our away support which is a far cry from what it used to be).
It’s sad that what used to be one main stand at Maine Road is now four main stands with two little shitty efforts set aside for people to stand up (supposedly to create an atmosphere but really they all just stand with their arms folded and sing the odd song).
We had an opportunity when the stadium looked like this:
to build a proper end and missed that opportunity. We had half an opportunity when we redeveloped the South Stand to build a proper end but I can see why it wasn’t taken. Now with the North Stand we have an opportunity to build a proper end again; will we miss the opportunity again though?
Nothing ever seems to be geared at making the Etihad a place where proper football fan culture of creating noise and hostility accompanied with the colour of flags and banners is top priority. Look at the second tier ban on banners and flags to be replaced with a digital advertising board - shite! And all the cheesy club made flags and banners (flags and banners should be SOLELY fan made!)
They provide us with the lowest percentage of space for singers compared to overall capacity in the whole country, in fact, find me anywhere in Europe with a lower %... 55000 seats and we have a space for singers of about 3000ish? That is absolutely pitiful! Pathetic! And even then we get completely surrounded and outnumbered hugely in the cups so what’s the point of them at all? It’s the equivalent of the Anfield Kop (holds 12000) being surrounded by 26000 away fans in cup games.
This lack of proper fan culture at the Etihad has had a knock-on effect on our away support too. Look around on an away trip these days [and no offence to any of these groups of people] but it’s all older blokes, women, kids, geeks and corporates. With the odd small groups of “lads”. Who used to be the “lads” years ago are the older blokes now and because of the way the loyalty points has come to a head these days they’re still the core element of the support, with their wives and kids these days, and the days of the huge groups of 20-40 years old blokes has long gone from our support - but it hasn’t with other sets of fans. And you really hear it in our away support noise these days too. We’ve fallen off a cliff in the last five years with our away atmospheres. If football fan culture had been a priority from the off at the Etihad, or from the takeover, or from the time Soriano came in, would our away support be the way it is these days?
I don’t like how three of the stands don’t have stand names and I don’t like how fans are split up low down by small tiers - that REALLY hinders the noise in the stadium IMO!
For anyone sat in the East Stand, we have to walk either all the way round the ground or all the way down to the bridge and back up the road if we want to get back to the South Stand end of the ground to parking or a pub like the Corner Shop or The Townley while everyone else in the ground including away fans just walk straight out.
There are nowhere near enough pubs around the ground and it’s a bloody scandal how there are so few pubs between Town and the ground.
Still now, nearly 22 years after the plans for the ground were made, nearly 18 years since the Commonwealth Games, nearly 15 years since we moved there and nearly 10 years since we’ve had the Sheikh... still the best and quickest way to get back to Town is to WALK! The transport and parking situation at the Etihad for 55000 people is extremely poor!
It’s not that I miss Maine Road. I actually don’t anymore. But I feel pretty down about what we’ve got in the Etihad in, almost, 2018 when you think of how almost everything else has come on in these years (especially the last ten).
Bluesince1979
Well-Known Member
Is that maybe down to pub culture in general with ‘spit n sawdust’ pubs closing wverywhere?
mancityvstoke
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- 15 Apr 2009
- Messages
- 21,453
- Location
- Vintage terraced Kippax
- Team supported
- The only football team to come from Manchester
Things changed years ago.........Won't be coming back either
Top post mateDon’t get me wrong, we are in a GREAT location and have a large-ish stadium. But things still aren’t right at the Etihad. And I don’t love the place despite magical moments like “Agüerooooo!”.
It’s all been designed and aimed at families and corporates with a “match day experience” and proper football fans who should be the core support that everything should be aimed at, are an afterthought and have been falling away from our support for years (including our away support which is a far cry from what it used to be).
It’s sad that what used to be one main stand at Maine Road is now four main stands with two little shitty efforts set aside for people to stand up (supposedly to create an atmosphere but really they all just stand with their arms folded and sing the odd song).
We had an opportunity when the stadium looked like this:
to build a proper end and missed that opportunity. We had half an opportunity when we redeveloped the South Stand to build a proper end but I can see why it wasn’t taken. Now with the North Stand we have an opportunity to build a proper end again; will we miss the opportunity again though?
Nothing ever seems to be geared at making the Etihad a place where proper football fan culture of creating noise and hostility accompanied with the colour of flags and banners is top priority. Look at the second tier ban on banners and flags to be replaced with a digital advertising board - shite! And all the cheesy club made flags and banners (flags and banners should be SOLELY fan made!)
They provide us with the lowest percentage of space for singers compared to overall capacity in the whole country, in fact, find me anywhere in Europe with a lower %... 55000 seats and we have a space for singers of about 3000ish? That is absolutely pitiful! Pathetic! And even then we get completely surrounded and outnumbered hugely in the cups so what’s the point of them at all? It’s the equivalent of the Anfield Kop (holds 12000) being surrounded by 26000 away fans in cup games.
This lack of proper fan culture at the Etihad has had a knock-on effect on our away support too. Look around on an away trip these days [and no offence to any of these groups of people] but it’s all older blokes, women, kids, geeks and corporates. With the odd small groups of “lads”. Who used to be the “lads” years ago are the older blokes now and because of the way the loyalty points has come to a head these days they’re still the core element of the support, with their wives and kids these days, and the days of the huge groups of 20-40 years old blokes has long gone from our support - but it hasn’t with other sets of fans. And you really hear it in our away support noise these days too. We’ve fallen off a cliff in the last five years with our away atmospheres. If football fan culture had been a priority from the off at the Etihad, or from the takeover, or from the time Soriano came in, would our away support be the way it is these days?
I don’t like how three of the stands don’t have stand names and I don’t like how fans are split up low down by small tiers - that REALLY hinders the noise in the stadium IMO!
For anyone sat in the East Stand, we have to walk either all the way round the ground or all the way down to the bridge and back up the road if we want to get back to the South Stand end of the ground to parking or a pub like the Corner Shop or The Townley while everyone else in the ground including away fans just walk straight out.
There are nowhere near enough pubs around the ground and it’s a bloody scandal how there are so few pubs between Town and the ground.
Still now, nearly 22 years after the plans for the ground were made, nearly 18 years since the Commonwealth Games, nearly 15 years since we moved there and nearly 10 years since we’ve had the Sheikh... still the best and quickest way to get back to Town is to WALK! The transport and parking situation at the Etihad for 55000 people is extremely poor!
It’s not that I miss Maine Road. I actually don’t anymore. But I feel pretty down about what we’ve got in the Etihad in, almost, 2018 when you think of how almost everything else has come on in these years (especially the last ten).
Abattoir Blue
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- 20 Sep 2006
- Messages
- 931
Yes. Nearly crashed a couple of times whilst trying to keep my eyes left on the way into town!