Croker
- This topic has 4 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 23 years, 2 months ago by
.
- Posts
Just think this deserves its own thread… phwoooarr… sorry I hadnt been to croker in a few years (hey I am a Monaghan supporter)… last time just the rebuilt Cusack was open, the old Canal terrace still existed…
admiring the stand from the exterior is one thing… being inside is another….ease of access, the view, tha facilities…. althought clearly not finished yet, the hogan is magnificent although the quality of the concrete work is a little hit and miss visually….
the suites floor is the dogs bollox to watch football from – civilised, drinkies and toilets (remember the old toilets under the old Cusack – breeze block walls with an open drain at the bottom – must have been hell to be female)…. some of them were bigger than my apartment tho with marginally less interesting view
fabulous place – i want a suite…. or alternatively i want a company with a suite to sponsor archeire… and give me and my friends tickets….
apologies for the review high on football and low on architecture
Croker is indeed a fantastic development… people can say all they want about the GAA being a backward organisation but when it comes to capital developments they are so far ahead of the FAI and IRFU that it is not even funny…
I think it is quite interesting to note that there has been very little talk of the exact cost of the new Hogan Stand. If one remembers, the GAA were very forthcoming with the cost details of the new Cusack, i.e. £35million with 50% of the cost coming from the corporate sections etc. The fact that Sisk got the contract without it going to tender is understandable, and rising costs were to be expected, but it would be interesting to know how much Ãt cost in the end… well worth it of course as the GAA have a real use for such a big stadium…
One has to wonder therefore the eventual cost of any Stadium Ireland development, taking into account the time it will take to build it and inflation (was told by a QS some time back that it was running at 1% per month !!).
Interesting article in todays (Saturday) Indo about the ‘White Elephants’ the World Cup stadiums in Japan are turning into… Just hope Bertie gets his head together and builds a decent 50,000 stadium in a central location in Dublin…
Argh just remembered… in case you couldn’t be bothered registering, here is the article text (i cut some of the end stuff as the post was way too long):
World Cup stadiums turn to empty white elephants
A MONTH ago, Japan’s shimmering World Cup stadiums were packed with ecstatic fans. Today, the nation’s 10 new sporting venues stand mostly empty, occasionally hosting sparsely attended games between Japanese football teams.
The Nagai Stadium in Osaka filled with up to 45,000 fans for World Cup games in June. Locals begged for tickets to watch England play Nigeria and two days later, the whole country’s eyes turned to it as Japan beat Tunisia.
This month, the ground returned to its regular role as home to Cerezo Osaka, a team in the second flight of Japan’s J-League, and the 6,500 who attended the match against Mito Hollyoak looked lost amid the empty spaces in the stands.
But Nagai is a stadium that at least has a clear role beyond the World Cup. Japan spent €4.5bn on facilities for the event and now faces the question of how to justify its futuristic stadiums.
The cost was three times what the French spent in 1998, even though Japan was hosting only half the tournament. The South Koreans spent about €1.5bn on stadiums that will also have limited use.
Civic pride clearly played a major role in the construction of several venues, including the 60,000-capacity Saitama Arena in an area usually dismissed as a dormitory suburb of Tokyo.
Four existing football grounds with capacities of 50,000 or more, including the National Stadium in Tokyo, were not used for the tournament, and little serious thought was given to the role of the new stadiums after the World Cup.
A 1996 artist’s impression of the Saitama Arena showed a capacity crowd cheering a game of American football a game less popular in Japan than in England. This month there was delight when the ground recorded a crowd of 58,000 for a soccer game featuring the popular Urawa Reds, a local side.
Yet the stadium will only serve as an occasional venue for the team. Fans prefer the club’s original ground, within walking distance of Saitama town centre.
……”
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
