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Post by Henry Pratt on Apr 8, 2021 9:48:29 GMT
Oof, that extended Main Stand looks 😗👌 One of the worst aspects of EP is that the main stand is only just over half the length of the pitch. Really crappy original design. the original design incorporated a small terrace on the right looking at it from the pop side plus a standing area to the left where i actually watched my first game at EP. most clubs at the time had similar designed stands at our level with very few going the length of the pitch. in the 30,s standing was the thing at most grounds where sitting was really for those with the inability to stand for a couple of hours. Roots Hall's main stand always strikes me as similar age/design to the EP Main Stand whenever I see it on telly (not been). No reason why ours couldn't have been built like that:  |
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Post by Henry Pratt on Apr 8, 2021 9:57:11 GMT
the original design incorporated a small terrace on the right looking at it from the pop side plus a standing area to the left where i actually watched my first game at EP. most clubs at the time had similar designed stands at our level with very few going the length of the pitch. in the 30,s standing was the thing at most grounds where sitting was really for those with the inability to stand for a couple of hours. Do you mean pre-fire or post-fire? This is the ground in 1937, when the stand was new, and there doesn't seem to be a terrace as part of the design: old.stockport.gov.uk/sia/?accessionno=41508&picResultsNo=1#picInfo (can't embed the image, sorry) There were certainly standing areas - from when I started going in 72, at the Railway End of the stand, there were terrace steps in front of a toilet block, and at the Cheadle End, there was a flat area, both of them leading into the paddock. But they seem to be more wasted areas that had been put to use rather than terracing added as part of the main stand design. |
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Post by timberwolf on Apr 8, 2021 10:01:33 GMT
that view looks far better than the view at EP from the same angle. yes for anyone reading this i do not like the view of the CE from that angle or that MS bloody add on.
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Post by timberwolf on Apr 8, 2021 10:07:28 GMT
There were certainly standing areas - from when I started going in 72, at the Railway End of the stand, there were terrace steps in front of a toilet block, and at the Cheadle End, there was a flat area, both of them leading into the paddock. But they seem to be more wasted areas that had been put to use rather than terracing added as part of the main stand design. think both areas were only used when we had big crowds. only ever stood on those steps above the toilet block at the everton cup game in the 70,s. |
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Post by edinburghhatter on Apr 8, 2021 11:23:18 GMT
There were certainly standing areas - from when I started going in 72, at the Railway End of the stand, there were terrace steps in front of a toilet block, and at the Cheadle End, there was a flat area, both of them leading into the paddock. But they seem to be more wasted areas that had been put to use rather than terracing added as part of the main stand design. think both areas were only used when we had big crowds. only ever stood on those steps above the toilet block at the everton cup game in the 70,s. Both areas were always available to use, though the gently sloping (and un-terraced) area at the Cheadle end of the Main stand was not normally much favoured, as the view wasn't great. I was there in a 19,600 crowd to see a cup replay v Bristol Rovers in January 1965, and had to stand on tiptoe to see anything much of the action at the Railway end. Very sore on the legs next day! Normally, folk would simply choose the old Cheadle end terrace, accessed via the same turnstiles, which at least gave cover and an elevated view.
The small side terrace at the other end of the Main stand (situated about where the current crowd control box is located) at least had the benefit of about 10 steps of basic terracing, and was similarly available as an option for fans who would otherwise have stood on the Railway end or Pop side, all accessed from the turnstiles at the Railway end.
The Pop side itself until the late 1970s was of course about twice the depth of the current one, with an ancient barrel-roofed area at the back. The view from there, on account of the forest of uprights required to hold up the 2 separate roofs, was predictably and uniformly dire...  |
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Post by desmond on Apr 8, 2021 11:34:33 GMT
think both areas were only used when we had big crowds. only ever stood on those steps above the toilet block at the everton cup game in the 70,s. Both areas were always available to use, though the gently sloping (and un-terraced) area at the Cheadle end of the Main stand was not normally much favoured, as the view wasn't great. I was there in a 19,600 crowd to see a cup replay v Bristol Rovers in January 1965, and had to stand on tiptoe to see anything much of the action at the Railway end. Very sore on the legs next day! Normally, folk would simply choose the old Cheadle end terrace, accessed via the same turnstiles, which at least gave cover and an elevated view.
The small side terrace at the other end of the Main stand (situated about where the current crowd control box is located) at least had the benefit of about 10 steps of basic terracing, and was similarly available as an option for fans who would otherwise have stood on the Railway end or Pop side, all accessed from the turnstiles at the Railway end.
The Pop side itself until the late 1970s was of course about twice the depth of the current one, with an ancient barrel-roofed area at the back. The view from there, on account of the forest of uprights required to hold up the 2 separate roofs, was predictably and uniformly dire... That dire view was quite helpful at times given the quality of football on offer 😀 |
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Post by BWScarf on Apr 8, 2021 11:48:21 GMT
Oof, that extended Main Stand looks 😗👌 One of the worst aspects of EP is that the main stand is only just over half the length of the pitch. Really crappy original design. Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage. |
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Post by tgttiw on Apr 8, 2021 12:31:32 GMT
Oof, that extended Main Stand looks 😗👌 One of the worst aspects of EP is that the main stand is only just over half the length of the pitch. Really crappy original design. Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage. Couldn't agree with you more on that! So many iconic grounds/ stands have gone some need to be saved for prosperity. |
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Post by advent on Apr 8, 2021 12:35:11 GMT
So are we gonna see some plans for the ground or not, come on stotty pull your finger out!
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Post by trickster on Apr 8, 2021 12:39:38 GMT
Oof, that extended Main Stand looks 😗👌 One of the worst aspects of EP is that the main stand is only just over half the length of the pitch. Really crappy original design. Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage. I don't trust the people we have running the club to understand the significance of the facade or to preserve it. They'll likely have already concluded that it's old and unsightly and that the signage on the Main Stand needs to match the Cheadle End. We're almost certainly going to have to make a fuss about it when the time comes. |
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Post by edinburghhatter on Apr 8, 2021 12:44:10 GMT
Oof, that extended Main Stand looks 😗👌 One of the worst aspects of EP is that the main stand is only just over half the length of the pitch. Really crappy original design. Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage.
The Main stand's a bit more than half the length of the pitch! It actually stretches some 70 yards between the 2 penalty areas, so there'd be at least 18 to 20 yards available for it to be extended at each end.
Simply adding an extra bay with a column-supported roof wouldn't actually make the view any worse (as there'd still be only 3 uprights actually in view) and would probably be by far the cheapest option. At the same time, you would replace the existing roof, and almost certainly use slimmer columns as modern materials are much lighter. And a single-pitch roof - sloping away from the pitch - would also help with that.
Technically, though, you could easily reduce the number of uprights actually in view to just 2: simply by moving the 2 existing outer ones a few yards towards the centre line (and removing the middle one entirely) the span required between uprights would be around 35 yards, which (surprise, surprise!) is exactly what the builders of the present stand achieved 85 years ago. (A good example of such a roof is the main stand at Peterborough, built around 1960).
Basic extensions at each end could be added using a cantilever design, but this would probably cost more, wouldn't remove any uprights and would still require the existing roof to be replaced with something along the lines of the current one. (The main stand extensions at Carlisle followed this approach in the early 1970s).
For a completely unobstructed view from an extended stand, a goalpost support (similar to the Cheadle end) would be required. And would almost certainly be the most expensive option... but the only one which the existing Main stand structure could be adapted to support.
As for using reclaimed bricks, etc... I think all that is really required is an architect who's got enough sense and taste to design an outside facade that actually complements (and maybe resembles) the present one. It wouldn't have to be absolutely identical. Is that really so difficult to do?!  |
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Post by DaveLong79 on Apr 8, 2021 12:59:08 GMT
It's looking more likely we'll be back in for Woking on 22nd May, so I'd imagine we'll be seeing the new scoreboard area finished in the next few weeks.
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Post by suedehead on Apr 8, 2021 14:27:41 GMT
Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage. I don't trust the people we have running the club to understand the significance of the facade or to preserve it. They'll likely have already concluded that it's old and unsightly and that the signage on the Main Stand needs to match the Cheadle End. We're almost certainly going to have to make a fuss about it when the time comes. I drove past EP the other night and, as I always do, stopped to have a look. Took this pic out of the car window, it’s nothing special, but we need to make sure this is never, ever lost. It’s one of the most culturally important things in Stockport and one of the few remaining old school frontages on football grounds in the country. If there’s even a hint of it ever disappearing in its current form, we can’t allow it.  |
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Post by Durango95 on Apr 8, 2021 14:41:10 GMT
I'm sure the club are well aware of this. I mean, whoever planned the club shop refurb have the old corner gates signage recreated behind the counter. Someone knows what they're doing and will know of the importance of it to the club, the town and the identity.
Criminal that those horrible windows and doors were put in by Kennedy. I'd certainly look to change the doors at least at some point.
If it's not listed, it should be. There's also other alternatives that the community can put in to prevent anything happening. But I genuinely believe we'll not have to worry about that.
New stands at the RE and Pop Side are a must and it'd be nice to hear more and see some hints at the plans for them.
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Post by Henry Pratt on Apr 8, 2021 15:10:16 GMT
Typical of perpendicular stands built in the 1930s though, apparently! I'd like to see the façade listed. I don't think we always appreciate how iconic it is, but certainly people in football outside of County hold it up as a proper piece of footballing heritage. The Main stand's a bit more than half the length of the pitch! Not that much. Half the pitch is 55 yards. The stand is 75 yards. Simply adding an extra bay with a column-supported roof wouldn't actually make the view any worse (as there'd still be only 3 uprights actually in view) and would probably be by far the cheapest option. At the same time, you would replace the existing roof, and almost certainly use slimmer columns as modern materials are much lighter. And a single-pitch roof - sloping away from the pitch - would also help with that.
Technically, though, you could easily reduce the number of uprights actually in view to just 2: simply by moving the 2 existing outer ones a few yards towards the centre line (and removing the middle one entirely) the span required between uprights would be around 35 yards, which (surprise, surprise!) is exactly what the builders of the present stand achieved 85 years ago. (A good example of such a roof is the main stand at Peterborough, built around 1960). Basic extensions at each end could be added using a cantilever design, but this would probably cost more, wouldn't remove any uprights and would still require the existing roof to be replaced with something along the lines of the current one. (The main stand extensions at Carlisle followed this approach in the early 1970s). For a completely unobstructed view from an extended stand, a goalpost support (similar to the Cheadle end) would be required. And would almost certainly be the most expensive option... but the only one which the existing Main stand structure could be adapted to support. As for using reclaimed bricks, etc... I think all that is really required is an architect who's got enough sense and taste to design an outside facade that actually complements (and maybe resembles) the present one. It wouldn't have to be absolutely identical. Is that really so difficult to do?!  A cantilever would require supports sticking out over Hardcastle Road, though, wouldn't it? And a goalpost design would have to be much higher, as they've done at Blackburn. Such a design with the current stand dimensions (or even wider, as we'd hope) wouldn't have the structural integrity unless it was about twice as tall. Neither of those options would get planning, I don't think. I agree matching the bricks would be easy enough. The big cost would be in all the other aspects. If there's money to be spent, it'd be much more sensible to spend it on the RE and Pop Side, and leave the Main Stand as it is. |
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