Condition of the stadium

[Monk]

Disappointed to say the condition of the stadium look's poor. The transparent plastic that circulates the stands is almost green with algae, the roof inside the stadium is almost black, a number of the metal joining's outside the entrances have running rust. A significant number of seats now discolored, yet we're prioritising padded seats. 

 

Must say the concourses appear to be in decent condition and having work done. Hopefully the items above are on the to do list this summer. 

[JRM]

4 minutes ago, Monk said:

Disappointed to say the condition of the stadium look's poor. The transparent plastic that circulates the stands is almost green with algae, the roof inside the stadium is almost black, a number of the metal joining's outside the entrances have running rust. A significant number of seats now discolored, yet we're prioritising padded seats. 

 

Must say the concourses appear to be in decent condition and having work done. Hopefully the items above are on the to do list this summer. 

Went past the other day to check on Ted (still looking good in the sun) but agree, 20 years on and it's starting to look aged and run down, not sure what the cost would be to renew or repair , most of it is cosmetic but St Mary's could do with some work. 

[miserableoldgit]

Never mind.....there will be padded seats in Block 31....so that's OK

[Saint Garrett]

They're meant to be doing a bit of a refresh this summer, they're well aware it's looking tired. Was mentioned at fans forum.

[Antrimsaint]

It’s funny how the new buildings seem to look shabby much quicker. I never thought the dell looked shabby after 100 years but maybe that’s nostalgia.

[Sunglasses Ron]

3 minutes ago, Antrimsaint said:

It’s funny how the new buildings seem to look shabby much quicker. I never thought the dell looked shabby after 100 years but maybe that’s nostalgia.

Definitely nostalgia! I loved the place, but it was a right, rundown, dump in parts 🙂

[Behind Enemy Lines]

4 minutes ago, Antrimsaint said:

It’s funny how the new buildings seem to look shabby much quicker. I never thought the dell looked shabby after 100 years but maybe that’s nostalgia.

You didn’t use the toilets there then?! 😂 

[Antrimsaint]

The place was great. I remember my first week in Southampton I walked into the Dell past the office and the doors 5o the west stand were open. I just walked in and sat in the stand and looked at the ground where George Best played. I was mesmerised at the size of the ground and thought it was totally normal to just sit in the stand on an non match day lol. That’s where my love affair began. St Mary’s always felt like the wife and the Dell my mistress. Lol

[Kenilworthy]

St Mary's was built down to a price and it is showing in the general deterioration. In contrast, Wolves completely rebuilt Molineux between the 80s and 90s using high quality materials and it still looks great (ok one of the stands is very new). The Dell being run down is a bit of a myth perpetuated by the media. While Saints actually looked after it very well. That's not my opinion. It's what Simon Inglis says in the Football Grounds of Britain (published 1996): "One of the unfortunate ironies of the post-Taylor period is that there are at least three grounds which have never been in such fine fettle, yet are now slated for the scrapheap. St James Park, Newcastle is the most extreme example - too small but perfectly formed. In the same category fall Blundell Patk and the Dell. ...And yet as I repeat, the Dell has never been so tidy or welcoming, as can be seen at the rear of the Milton Road Stand, which has a grey-clad upper storey with a decorative arch and glazed roundel...

[Antrimsaint]

I made a pilgrimage about a month ago. First time I’d been back since 2003. It’s a damn shame what they did with the Dell site. Was so underwhelmed 

[rooney]

I bet the gauze background to the Club Shop Signs has gone rusty again too.

[eurosaint]

4 hours ago, Sunglasses Ron said:

Definitely nostalgia! I loved the place, but it was a right, rundown, dump in parts 🙂

Ah, the memories 😇

I can still smell the aroma in our trough style urinals as we speak…..

[alehouseboys]

The Dell had two fairly new stands (albeit small and wonky!) at the time of leaving for St Mary's, the old Milton and Archers open terraces were an acquired taste.

Is it my old mind playing tricks or did the Milton toilets back in the 60s/70s have a sign asking "Gentlemen, please adjust your dress before leaving the lavatories" or something to that effect? 

[stknowle]

8 minutes ago, alehouseboys said:

The Dell had two fairly new stands (albeit small and wonky!) at the time of leaving for St Mary's, the old Milton and Archers open terraces were an acquired taste.

Is it my old mind playing tricks or did the Milton toilets back in the 60s/70s have a sign asking "Gentlemen, please adjust your dress before leaving the lavatories" or something to that effect? 

"Gentlemen please make sure you put your cocks back in before re-entering the stadium".  Forgot once and didn't get to see the 2nd half.

[alehouseboys]

8 minutes ago, stknowle said:

"Gentlemen please make sure you put your cocks back in before re-entering the stadium".  Forgot once and didn't get to see the 2nd half.

Yep, that was probably it......

[Charlie Wayman]

Maintenance at SMS has alway been poor. For years the top of the folding players tunnel was dirty with dust and algae yet nothing was ever done about cleaning it even though the directors and visiting VIPs sat right behind the tunnel and couldn't miss the state it was in. Rank poor management.

[JustinSFC]

I have been saying about the roof for fucking ages.

It's absolutely fucking minging and you can see it from miles away.

[JustinSFC]

3 hours ago, alehouseboys said:

The Dell had two fairly new stands (albeit small and wonky!) at the time of leaving for St Mary's, the old Milton and Archers open terraces were an acquired taste.

Is it my old mind playing tricks or did the Milton toilets back in the 60s/70s have a sign asking "Gentlemen, please adjust your dress before leaving the lavatories" or something to that effect? 

All I can remember from the Dell as I was only a kid on the few times I went there, was the toilets absolutely stunk of piss!!

[Yorkshire Saint]

The fasteners and fixings used when the stadium was built had a shelf life of 25 years (warranty), I forget the name of the contractor now but I know the fasteners and fixing were very low quality. 

Aren't our new owners building a new 60000 capacity stadium anyway? 😇

[JustinSFC]

5 minutes ago, Nick75Sfc said:

The fasteners and fixings used when the stadium was built had a shelf life of 25 years (warranty), I forget the name of the contractor now but I know the fasteners and fixing were very low quality. 

Aren't our new owners building a new 60000 capacity stadium anyway? 😇

It's only a "flat pack" stadium isn't it.

Same as Leicester's.

Built by the same firm wasn't it?

Can't remember the name of it, there's a name for the type of stadium we've got. Can't remember.

[Antrimsaint]

I remember the big who ha about the ghost of st Mary’s as we couldn’t win there at the start and also all the Saxon finds there at the construction site. I was a summer guide at the Tudor house when the gold was displayed there. Ah the memories! Wasn’t there a rumour that some worker buried a Pompey top under the pitch as well?

[Daft Kerplunk]

9 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

It's only a "flat pack" stadium isn't it.

Same as Leicester's.

Built by the same firm wasn't it?

Can't remember the name of it, there's a name for the type of stadium we've got. Can't remember.

See also Derby and Middlesbrough. 

The move was needed but the stadium was never great quality and is probably in need of structural work, let alone new paint. 

[Yorkshire Saint]

9 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

It's only a "flat pack" stadium isn't it.

Same as Leicester's.

Built by the same firm wasn't it?

Can't remember the name of it, there's a name for the type of stadium we've got. Can't remember.

Yes it was the same firm. I forget the name also, there was a previous thread like this many years ago. Derbys stadium was out of the same box as well as Boro's and maybe Sunderlands IIRC

 

[Alan Sugarfree]

Barr was the name of the company who built the stadium if I remember correctly.

The girders under the roof all had paint peeling off I happened to notice when I was at the Leeds game. I thought then that the stadium was starting to look in a bit of a sorry state. 

[Charlie Wayman]

The Club will be aware of this discussion thread so;

 

SFC, what are you doing about it or will you just wait until part of the roof collapses before taking action?

[Wurzel]

20 hours ago, Kenilworthy said:

St Mary's was built down to a price and it is showing in the general deterioration. In contrast, Wolves completely rebuilt Molineux between the 80s and 90s using high quality materials and it still looks great (ok one of the stands is very new). The Dell being run down is a bit of a myth perpetuated by the media. While Saints actually looked after it very well. That's not my opinion. It's what Simon Inglis says in the Football Grounds of Britain (published 1996): "One of the unfortunate ironies of the post-Taylor period is that there are at least three grounds which have never been in such fine fettle, yet are now slated for the scrapheap. St James Park, Newcastle is the most extreme example - too small but perfectly formed. In the same category fall Blundell Patk and the Dell. ...And yet as I repeat, the Dell has never been so tidy or welcoming, as can be seen at the rear of the Milton Road Stand, which has a grey-clad upper storey with a decorative arch and glazed roundel...

One of my favourite ever football books. (His European stadiums was equally as good).  An updated version would be interesting to compare, but I'd bet he'd struggle to find such floweryt romanticised descriptions for some of the modern grounds.

[Saint_Jonny]

56 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

The Club will be aware of this discussion thread so;

 

SFC, what are you doing about it or will you just wait until part of the roof collapses before taking action?

Calm down FFS. There is a vast difference between a building looking a bit green around the edges (which is perfectly normal, btw) and a structural issue. 

[Mr X]

11 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

It's only a "flat pack" stadium isn't it.

Same as Leicester's.

Built by the same firm wasn't it?

Can't remember the name of it, there's a name for the type of stadium we've got. Can't remember.

And that name is Tesco value 😜

[Sunglasses Ron]

Birch Construction rings a bell for St. Mary's. I have the glossy brochure somewhere...

[Katalinic]

10 minutes ago, Sunglasses Ron said:

Birch Construction rings a bell for St. Mary's. I have the glossy brochure somewhere...

Thought it was Barr?

[Sunglasses Ron]

40 minutes ago, Katalinic said:

Thought it was Barr?

Well I knew it begun with a B 😃

[Roo1976]

12 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

It's only a "flat pack" stadium isn't it.

Same as Leicester's.

Built by the same firm wasn't it?

Can't remember the name of it, there's a name for the type of stadium we've got. Can't remember.

Dirty.....?

[alehouseboys]

It was certainly Barr, made a few visits during construction and was great seeing it rise from the wasteland.

Total cost was near £35m (a couple of Leminas). The club received grants to knock that down to £30m but, of course, we went pop and never paid it off in full - Markus Liebherr picked up a bargain.

[Katalinic]

https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/archive/barr-nets-24m-stadium-15-06-2000/

Sounds like Barr gave us a cheap price. As has been alluded too earlier on the thread makes you wonder about the quality of the materials!

[Charlie Wayman]

The stadium was built by Barr. During the construction a visitor centre was established somewhere under the Chapel stand and the public could walk in and see the construction under way and use an interactive program to explore the expected views from every seat. While my wife & I were in there one day a whole squad of Leicester top brass were being shown around and as we know now, their stadium was announced soon afterwards. I understood the base model for SMS was The Riverside but obviously not quite so ambitious

Edited 10 June, 2021 by Charlie Wayman

[Nordic Saint]

2 hours ago, Katalinic said:

Thought it was Barr?

You are right. Barr Construction from Ayrshire, which was later taken over by McLaughlin & Harvey.

St Mary's cost £32 million. Contrast that with the Tottenham Stadium, which cost £1 billion.

[eurosaint]

17 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

All I can remember from the Dell as I was only a kid on the few times I went there, was the toilets absolutely stunk of piss!!

This is true but it was high quality piss not like the stuff you get at Nottarf Krap 🤑

[Kingsland Codger]

3 hours ago, Nordic Saint said:

You are right. Barr Construction from Ayrshire, which was later taken over by McLaughlin & Harvey.

St Mary's cost £32 million. Contrast that with the Tottenham Stadium, which cost £1 billion.

Put another way, St Mary’s cost approx £1,000 a seat whereas the Tottenham Stadium cost approx £15,900 per seat. Are my maths correct? And talking of £1,000 a seat - where have I heard that figure recently?

[hackedoff]

18 hours ago, JustinSFC said:

I have been saying about the roof for fucking ages.

It's absolutely fucking minging and you can see it from miles away.

Salty atmosphere and seagull shit,never going to end well.

[Dark Munster]

Look on the bright side, it could be a lot worse.

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, Kingsland Codger said:

Put another way, St Mary’s cost approx £1,000 a seat whereas the Tottenham Stadium cost approx £15,900 per seat. Are my maths correct? And talking of £1,000 a seat - where have I heard that figure recently?

In other words, both could be paid off with one year of ST sales.

[djharvey]

Think i also heard they doing something with the big screens again!

[steve green]

15 minutes ago, Dark Munster said:

Look on the bright side, it could be a lot worse.

 

Is that their new speedy winger loan from Saga FC.

[djharvey]

Barr undercut Mowlem heavily (who used to work for) and the quality went downhill from there!

 

[alehouseboys]

I’ve just dug out my ‘Limited Edition Official Commemorative Book’ about moving to St Mary’s, a few facts and figures (MLG look away). The stadium design and construction only cost £21m. The final total of £34m included site preparation (£3.5m), infrastructure and other stuff.

The club raised £5m from the sale of the Dell, £3m in new shares and £3m from shirt sponsorship and naming rights for the stadium. The rest was raised by long-term and short-term loans. Cheap as chips.

FFS, 20 years ago!

[Sunglasses Ron]

12 hours ago, alehouseboys said:

FFS, 20 years ago!

Crazy isn't it! I remember clear as day, taking one last look at The Dell and then walking down to see the new ground in the summer of '01.

That first league game at home to Chelsea was memorable, walking out into the bowl and seeing 30,000 Southampton fans at a home game for the first time ever.

It's not bad ground, in fact far from it, I just wish it had a bit of unique character to it.  If nothing else, whack some striped seats in there like the old Milton Road End 🙂

[Charlie Wayman]

1 hour ago, Sunglasses Ron said:

Crazy isn't it! I remember clear as day, taking one last look at The Dell and then walking down to see the new ground in the summer of '01.

That first league game at home to Chelsea was memorable, walking out into the bowl and seeing 30,000 Southampton fans at a home game for the first time ever.

It's not bad ground, in fact far from it, I just wish it had a bit of unique character to it.  If nothing else, whack some striped seats in there like the old Milton Road End 🙂

Excuse me, the Dell record was over 31,000 - odd. I was one of them v Man U back in the sixties

Edited 11 June, 2021 by Charlie Wayman

[Saint Garrett]

14 hours ago, djharvey said:

Think i also heard they doing something with the big screens again!

Putting in new seats, doing up the concourse, cleaning and refreshing the outside too I believe, one of the suites is getting redone I think too.

[Sunglasses Ron]

12 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Excuse me, the Dell record was over 31,000 - odd. I was one of them v Man U back in the sixties

Yes it was, but I was talking about things from my perspective as my first game was in 1993 when capacity was about 17,500.

If we're being pedantic, then the attendance of the game you went to was 31,044, whereas the first league game at St. Mary's was 31,107! 😎

[bognor regis pete]

31 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Excuse me, the Dell record was over 31,000 - odd. I was one of them v Man U back in the sixties

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