The Town End....

[Reg Smeeton]

.....reading this article about lack of atmosphere at Prem grounds, made me think of how lucky we are to still have the TE.

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7168641.stm

    It may be small, a bit shit  in terms of facilities, but as we can still stand, it is still capable of generating some atmosphere.

   I often still get a buzz of excitement when walking into the TE at 2 mins to 3......it somehow feels like a spirtitual home.   I even see a few gnarled veterans from when I first started going in there 40 odd years ago.

  I suspect the scummers total demise coincided with nothing more than moving to a shit new ground, with no atmosphere.   The loss of their beloved London Road being the death knell for the club.

  So.....given the current trends I think we should treasure the TE whiile we can and try to ensure that in any ground move or development effort is made to try and keep something of its essence alive.

[axs]

i read that earlier and thought exactly the same, i love being able to stand and having a few hundred to sing with.

[adje]

I wouldn't go anywhere else

[matty]

Thats the only thing that worries me about a new or re-developed ground, we would lose the Town End.

Unless they have sorted out standing at footie by then (which I doubt) I would hope the trust and others would heap the pressure on the club to at least keep some parts of the Town End alive.

Despite it's view you can't beat it and I remember when of a few of the lads started going back in there post standing and despite only being about 50 or so in there still made a noise.

[Arriba]

i think the town end is a bit shit now.was ok back as a terrace and it does generate noise. but its a shit view and i'd welcome a new style stand over that anyday.something like walsalls home end maybe?

[redbullzeye]

Thats the only thing that worries me about a new or re-developed ground, we would lose the Town End.

Unless they have sorted out standing at footie by then (which I doubt) I would hope the trust and others would heap the pressure on the club to at least keep some parts of the Town End alive.

Despite it's view you can't beat it and I remember when of a few of the lads started going back in there post standing and despite only being about 50 or so in there still made a noise.

Matty, this might be of interest http://www.truststfc.co.uk/safe_standing.php  Haven't heard anything recently but I'm sure someone on here has.

[Reg Smeeton]

i think the town end is a bit shit now.was ok back as a terrace and it does generate noise. but its a shit view and i'd welcome a new style stand over that anyday.something like walsalls home end maybe?

 It may be a shit view, but that is probabaly why standing is tolerated, because its the only way to see.   Once that is lost, it will be very difficult to generate an atmosphere,  even if it a slightly bigger structure like Walsall and with better sight lines.

  It was always all about choice at the CG from the early 70's, if you didn't like standing then the Arkell's was for you....if you didn't like standing, but wanted a bit of atmosphere then the seats in Shrivenham Road gave you that.

 If you were a complete loon, then you'd stand on the Bank, even when pissing it down in your oilskin cycling cape.

  The Shrivenham Road terrace suited those who enjoyed a bit of banter but didn't want the possibility of trouble, which always lurked in the TE.

  If you have  a ground where all the seats are the same, and  the only choice is whether to go corporate or not, you take away teh atmosphere.

[Ardiles]

There was a scene in Six Days to Saturday - John Boorman’s 1963 documentary following a week in the life of STFC - with the groundsman shooting pidgeons in the Town End before a home game.  (For the anoraks, we stuffed Leyton Orient 5-0 in front of a 19,000 crowd.)

There was one obvious difference in that there were no seats - but it was amazing how little the Town End had changed in all other respects.  Looked and felt just as it does now.  I think that our fans in the Town End back in the 1960s would have been quite chuffed if they knew that their stand would still be going strong nearly 50 years later.

[Arriba]

i know what your saying reg and i dont disagree with you. but football is changing and if we get a new ground then thats the way it is.
i always prefered the shrivvy road, and in the late 80-s to early 90-s it generated the best atmosphere imo.
different people have good memories of grounds and stuff but times change.

[Arriba]

There was a scene in Six Days to Saturday - John Boorman’s 1963 documentary following a week in the life of STFC - with the groundsman shooting pidgeons in the Town End before a home game.  (For the anoraks, we stuffed Leyton Orient 5-0 in front of a 19,000 crowd.)

There was one obvious difference in that there were no seats - but it was amazing how little the Town End had changed in all other respects.  Looked and felt just as it does now.  I think that our fans in the Town End back in the 1960s would have been quite chuffed if they knew that their stand would still be going strong nearly 50 years later.

i'd love to see the documentary you mention.is it available anywhere?

[Spencer_White]

And the fans who payed for it in the 1930's Ardiles!

I always think the south stand looks too steep, like everyone is sitting on each others shoulders. From the other stands it doesnt look like a football stand. With a lower bank like the Town End the view isnt nearly as good, but you feel so much more connected with the rest of the crowd and the players too.

We are well respected by other fans for the way our fans have supported from the Town End this decade.

[Ardiles]

There was a scene in Six Days to Saturday - John Boorman’s 1963 documentary following a week in the life of STFC - with the groundsman shooting pidgeons in the Town End before a home game.  (For the anoraks, we stuffed Leyton Orient 5-0 in front of a 19,000 crowd.)

There was one obvious difference in that there were no seats - but it was amazing how little the Town End had changed in all other respects.  Looked and felt just as it does now.  I think that our fans in the Town End back in the 1960s would have been quite chuffed if they knew that their stand would still be going strong nearly 50 years later.

i'd love to see the documentary you mention.is it available anywhere?

The BBC only found the tape in their archives about 3 years ago.  But why it is not for sale in the club shop I don’t know.  If you’re interested in the history of STFC, or of Swindon in general, it’s priceless.

[Arriba]

i think i've seen clips of it.does it have don rogers in a corner shop spending some of his wages? and the corner house of shrivvy road featured?

[Ardiles]

That's the one.  I think the shop you're referring to was in Rodbourne.

[Spencer_White]

It is shown on BBC4 every now and then. Its on bootleg DVDs on ebay sometimes as well.