Home Sweet Home

Once, Bill Shankly was writing his details into a hotel receptionist's book when he was asked to fill out his address. 'Anfield' he dutifully wrote, and to the irritation of the receptionist he gathered up his bags and began to make his way to his allocated room. 'You can't put that down', cried the receptionist, 'that's not a proper address'. 'Why not?' retorted Shanks, 'It's where I live', and with that he duly disappeared towards the lifts. 
 
The location of the hotel and the year of the incident is irrelevant, as is, to be truthful, the authenticity of the facts. It's the spirit of the story that raises a knowing smile amongst the Anfield faithful. Knowing Shankly, as we all did in our own way, the anecdote rings true. Wouldn't we all love the wit to have done the same once in our lives?
 
At first glance, the news that the club, so beloved by Shankly and it's legions of fans, is contemplating building a new stadium and leaving the only home it has ever known is shocking. Millions have been spent on Anfield in the last 10 years to bring it up to scratch in this new all-seater era, and the ground now ranks with the best stadia in the country. So what's wrong with Anfield? And why move, you could justly ask?
 
Well, a capacity of 45,000 or so is much reduced from the capacity enjoyed in the club's golden years of the 60's and 70's, and the club are now being overtaken by others such as Newcastle, Aston Villa and Sunderland who will all soon be able to entertain over 50,000 fans in their redeveloped (and in Sunderland's case, brand new) stadia. Even worse for Liverpool supporters is the grim realisation that dreaded rivals Manchester United are moving towards a capacity upwards of 60,000. It's not just a case of numbers, it's money. The commercial aspects of the game today mean that as many people as possible must pass through the turnstiles as often as possible. In this respect, Liverpool are in danger of being lapped by Manchester United never mind overtaken. The fact that Manchester United's annual turnover is now three times that of Liverpool's says it all.
 
Traditionalists will pour scorn on the very idea that Liverpool could even contemplate building a new stadium. The history and fabric of the club is entwined in the stadium itself. This is true and it's a view I have sympathy for. The thing that we must not lose sight of however is the realisation that the game is undergoing a fundamental change. For better or worse the game has become big business and if Liverpool stay where they are, Anfield will be nothing more than a museum in years to come. As fans we must ask the question, do we want to be just a big chapter in the history of the game, or do we want to be big players in its future too ? The answer is obvious. We must move on. The game is dynamic not static, even more so now businessmen pull the strings. Any business that stays still withers and dies.
 
The beauty in the planning for a new stadium is that the club only wants to move 200 yards, across into Stanley Park. The fear amongst Liverpool supporters has always been that the club would relocate to an out of city location near the M62 motorway. Moving into the local park would mean the club stays in Anfield. I feel this is the key to winning the argument. As something of a traditionalist myself, I would abhor the idea of the club moving miles away from it's spiritual home, but shifting a few yards across Anfield Road is an inspirational and audacious plan. What would the Evertonians make of such an eye-popping new ground in their midst? Maybe we could thank them very much for giving us the original Anfield in the first place and hand them the keys back as we leave? Well, it's just a thought.
 
The area of park where the ground will be sited is the 'car park', an area roughly the size of three football pitches. This tarmacced former field was laid out in the late 60's and held two football pitches across its width, complete with floodlights. and a sports centre, The Vernon Sangster. However, at the beginning of the 1980's the pitches began to fall into disrepair. The floodlights were too expensive to operate and maintain on a regular basis and slowly the pitch markings vanished and the goals began to wobble and collapse. By the mid-90's the pitches were to all intents and purposes a lost relic. Nowadays you have to have the skills of an archaeologist on a field trip to detect the pitch markings and to find the holes where the goalposts used to stand.
 
The pitches were always used as a car park during Liverpool and Everton home games. This used to be quite amusing if you happened to be playing a game on the park at the time. If you played on the top pitch, nearest to Anfield Road, you would watch anxiously as the parked cars began to build up from the other end. Occasionally, the game would have to be abandoned because the cars had encroached onto the pitch! Of course the problem was always more severe when Liverpool were at home because we always had bigger crowds than Everton, but on those occasions we'd all be on the Kop anyway, waiting to watch real football rather than out trying to play it!
 
There will be horrendous practical and emotional problems to iron out if this move goes ahead. For instance, where do all those cars that currently use the park on match days go? What about the current stadium? What about the Paisley Gates, the Shankly Gates and the Hillsborough Memorial?
 
Well, the good news is that Liverpool's chief executive Rick Parry recognises that these are issues every bit as important as the new stadium itself. The club are looking at a park-and-ride scheme to take fans directly to the stadium. The possibility of opening a new railway station (called 'Anfield'?) using existing rail infrastructure is also a viability. As for the current stadium, Rick Parry is in tune with the feeling of grass roots fans.
 
"We must recognise that we would have to give this to the local community and do something imaginative with it. It must not become a supermarket or a car park. It should not be for commercial development. We also have to be sensitive to things like the Hillsborough Memorial, the Shankly Gates and statue and the Bob Paisley gates. It is paramount that local people are involved in the planning process. Ultimately, we want something to happen that everyone in Anfield can feel proud of. This should be a catalyst for the regeneration of the Anfield area."
 
The recognition by all parties involved of the importance of consulting with the local community is a good sign. The only way everyone can move forward together is in complete trust. There will be opposition, and some of it has already been voiced, but I would say this to the local residents. As someone who lived the first 28 years of his life in Anfield I know what the park means to you. From being taken there as a small boy and playing hours and hours of football right into my early twenties (most of it on the 'car park') I can relate to those concerns about its demise. I walked my dog through the park every day and I completed the family cycle by taking my own kids there on long sunny afternoons. I think the club and the City Council have a duty to make an absolute assurance that the rest of the park's future is secure.
 
But I would also say this. The football club is what puts Anfield on the map. Any relocation of the ground into Stanley Park presents enormous opportunities to regenerate local businesses (shops, cafes, pubs) and should be looked upon as a chance to break the cycle of decay and dereliction that has afflicted the area in recent years. An influx into the area of tens of thousands of people for a few hours once a fortnight should be a cause for celebration. Rick Parry makes it clear that the club have no intention of throwing away this local heritage.
 
"Whatever happens, we will not lose our heritage. That is what the club is all about. We must talk through big decisions, but we will never forget our heritage."
 
I really believe if Liverpool and the Council can pull this off, everyone gets the best possible deal. The club gets a badly needed state-of-the-art new stadium. The local community benefits from the spin-off employment and regeneration of its infrastructure and, best of all, the club stays in Anfield. Go anywhere in the world and tell people you come from Anfield and you will find someone who raises an approving eyebrow or two because they know it's the home of Liverpool Football Club. That should make us enormously proud. After all, as Shankly told that hotel receptionist all those years ago, it's the place he called home, and if it was good enough for Bill Shankly...
 
For a virtual tour of Anfield Stadium click here
 
Adapted and reproduced courtesy of www.footie51.co.uk.

by Derek Dohren