The Bertie Bowl ye or ney

Magwitch

The contoversy over the new National Stadium rumbles on.

How much money has the Government spent so far on blowing hot air (the Luas line come to mind"!)? The costs are rocketsing and now the Government is saying that they are prepared to "scale back" the project. SO are we to be left with a field? What a waste of tax payers time and money....

GreenHell

Build it. its about time this country had proper sports facilities.

Karl Hungus

Yeah, we need a stadium.

Metallica didn't come here when they toured with the Orchestra becaue there wasn't a big enough venue.
And Iron Maiden didn't come here either because of the same reason.

I MISSED OUT BECAUSE OF THAT!

Manach

Yea if it was built in Cork, or Limerick Or Galway for there is life outside Dublin.

GreenHell

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by AngelWhore:

Metallica didn't come here when they toured with the Orchestra becaue there wasn't a big enough venue.
And Iron Maiden didn't come here either because of the same reason.

I MISSED OUT BECAUSE OF THAT! </font>

Erm they onlt played one concert in europe newway in germany which was broadcasted over the net

yossarin

build it - we'll never get that Bananna republic statis without an enormous stadium or two

Belisarius

Well Id have to say no , I mean with estimates on the stadium spiraling in to Fantastic figures and the fact that were a country of 5million people building a 1bln monstrosity like this ,Thats a fair chomp out of the taxpayers money you have to admit and Im none to happy about it.Of course to take a more Philanthropic angle you have to have to stand back and compare it to the countless numbers of deserving groups who continually Have to claw money from the clenched fists of the government , both Sporting and domestic . split the cost of this fiasco between them and it would solve alot of this countries social problems , but Im a dreamer , I know that the funds allocated to the stadium will only go back into the exchequer rather than be re-allocated to the bettering of the nation . For the amount of money on the table political points would be negligible , also the dispersion of funds would be obviously be seen as a post-defeat act of appeasement . So what the hey , build it but this very acceptance it shows the Arrogance of this government to push a bleedin fiasco like this through ,If you had asked me before they crushed the FAI stadium I would never have accepted the stadium . As for Concerts , it would increase our profile ,getting a few big names in , but It wont be done for ages

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Shrewgar!

Belisarius

Heh , yoss is on the ball there

Itll proabably be opened with a massive Rally of adoring citizens , clamouring around "El Presidente mucho bueno Bertio Ahernio" However the throng will not be able to get through , due to the wall of Gruff FCA Stormtroopers forming a cordon around El Presidente , he stands on a massive podium , cigar in one hand , Celia in the other .he waves says a few words and is quickly whisked away by his Crack Garda Bodyguard unit back to the Capital by Luas . Heh , and people will cheer when it happens , believe me.Publics got the memory of Goldfish

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Shrewgar!

[This message has been edited by Belisarius (edited 27-04-2001).]

GreenHell

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Belisarius:
However the throng will not be able to get through , due to the wall of Gruff FCA Stormtroopers forming a cordon around El Presidente
</font>

lol

plastic membrane

It's a pointless exercise in Bertie Egomania. It'll give Land developers loads of brown envelopes no doubt. There's no way 80,000 seats will be filled for even the most important games. It'll most likely bring ecomonic ruin on this country, as well as be derelict within ten years, nothing but a useless, rusted statue to Irish folly.


Well, im all for it !!

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Damn it Jim, im a doctor, not a Beefy King !

Dustaz

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by AngelWhore:

Metallica didn't come here when they toured with the Orchestra becaue there wasn't a big enough venue.
</font>

Yeh, Slane is tiny.

Im not too pushed about SI, i just wish those ****wits in the GAA would open up croker.

Paladin

We already have a big bloody stadium.
Its just being wasted. Which is annoying.

Spend the money on the first few hundred yards of a Cork-Bantry Dual Carriageway, the route with the highest traffic to sh|te roadway ratio.

the fnj

I think we could do with a new venue for soccer. Realistickly a 40,000 all seater would suffice. But keep Lansdowne road for Rugby. The terraces do so much for the atmosphere.

SheroN

But it's more than just a stadium....load of other ****e too...they should build it all....the country needs a decent set up if we're to progress

Magwitch

I agree with the theory the governemt puts forward and to be fair despite the governments obvious vanity they do have vision beyond that of the years of bog standard back stabbing irish politics that was the hall mark of this country. For instance Irelands recent inclusion in the UN security council.

BUT the price tag of 1 billion is crazy. So much more long term good could be done with that money. We are due a slump at some stage and when it comes the governmetn will still be committed to building this folly, so I do not think controversy will fade away.

SHADOW

yah should be built...

amp

Dunno, I mean yes we need a kick ass stadium. But then we also need more money for hospitals and schools.

I suspose eventually it could generate a lot of cash by bringing big events that would not normally be staged here. And some of that money might eventually end up in the countries coffers.

We should look to the Lord High Baby Jesus for the answer.

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Lunacy Abounds! GLminesweeper RO><ORS!
art is everything and of course nothing and possibly also a sausage

Excelsior

If we are talking about infrastructure development that will lead to success in the future lets invest the money in broadband.

If we are looking to really leave a legacy from the Celtic Tiger lets set up heroin treatment plans and lets deal with the unspoken problem of the homeless.

Or we could invest the money in the development of early schooling and general health care.

They are all more deserving than a football stadium that will not be used and a velodrome. A velodrome!
We need sporting facilities but they should be de-centralized. Our intentions should be to get as many kids playing sports as possible. And hopefully getting them to keep them going. There is no better way to educate a kid in teamwork, and it is a great idea for the health of the nation, and it is a fun thing. So I would build a smaller stadium that can hold a tidy 30,000 people. Something small that can create a good atmosphere and I would invest the rest in local sports centers that aren't the GAA. (Not to attack the GAA, at this point )

Between Croker, Landsdowne, the National Basketball Areana, the Point, the new National Conference Center and a smaller, scaled back, non-Dublin based National Stadium, we should be able to cover everything.

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My Adolescent website:
http://www.iol.net/~mullent

TwoShedsJackson

Whilst I agree that we need more and better infrastructure, the billion pound price tag along with the ridiculous location means that the Abbotstown idea is ridiculous.

Scale it back to 50,000 or so, cut out rubbish like the cycling arena, build it in a better spot if possible.

It would be typical Ireland to build a real showpiece stadium and have absolutely bugger all transport links to it. The city's transport system needs to be overhauled/upgraded before any of this stuff should be built.

Belisarius

LOL , the strangled cries of another mid-morning pedestrian

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Shrewgar!

harVee

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">the country needs a decent set up if we're to progress</font>

Progress to what ? We're a country of just over 4m people. we're never going to amount to anything major on the international sporting scene, we'll never host an Olympics or a world cup.
How many times a year would an 80,000 seater stadium sell out? There's only ever 2or3 big rugby matches and the same for soccer. All the big gaelic games will be in croaker despite what anybody says to the contrary. How many bands in the world would sell 80,000 tickets in this country, and how many of them tour ?
So we are left with 80,000 empty seats for a minimum of 355 days a year.
Does anybody have any idea how much it takes to keep this in good condition for any amount of time.
McDaid and Ahern keep reminding us of places like the SkyDome in tronto and stadia in the US. Well over the last 5 years, nearly half of the cities with big pro sports teams have opened or commissioned new stadia? and what's new about these statia? theay are all smalletr than the ones they are replacing. and most of them are going into downtown locations, rather than at the edge of the city like abbotstown. Why is this? Well nobody really liked sitting in a half empty stadium miles from the nearest pub or restaurant or even train station. and after the first few hyped years, attendance levels plumeted.

How about a 25,000 seater stadium for say Cork, and a 35/40,000 one for dublin (which contains half the population of the country). Then spend the rest of the money on training facilities (pools, indooor tracks, indoor courts etc.) throughout the country.




[This message has been edited by harVee (edited 30-04-2001).]

Excelsior

I second that idea.

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My Adolescent website:
http://www.iol.net/~mullent

Bard

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by harVee:
Progress to what ? We're a country of just over 4m people. we're never going to amount to anything major on the international sporting scene, we'll never host an Olympics or a world cup. </font>

Sod the Olympics, but if the GAA opened up (which isn't very likely) to other sports, we could at least co-host a world cup (with Wales, say) if not host it ourselves. Think of the infrastructure they have in place - Croke Park, Páirc Uí Chaoímh, Semple Stadium, Limerick Gaelic Grounds,... couple these with Stadium Ireland (which I think should but probably won't be built), Landsdowne Road (and possibly other rugby grounds, such as Thomond Park, that could be rented from the IRFU) ... it's not impossible! ... and it'd be pretty cool too

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Bard

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"We do know it was we who scorched the sky..."

[This message has been edited by Bard (edited 01-05-2001).]

Magwitch

Well the Wembly Stadium is to cost..wait for it....£550 Million! And the UK government say that is too much. Cardiff Arms was built for much less, so why such an expensive stadium in an out-of-the-way place like Abbotstown?

The review being set up should find out where in the public sector is throwing bundles of cash for no good reason and who the fat cats are ripping off the tax payer.

Goverment claims that £150mill will be raised through provite investment is nonsense. When have the private sector ever delivered something they siad they would and to the advantage of the state? They always promise, but they always lie.

No Cash for Bandits = No Stadium = pity