New Everton Stadium - Hill Dickinson Stadium



Been the match, came home and watched the Sky coverage too.

Initial reaction;
Positive things - good result, good atmosphere.
Negative things - not the time after a feel good day like today. (Hint: Appalled at kopite Sky cameramen over emphasis on surrounding vistas showing the next door sewage works and other rundown brickworks that made the area around Goodison look like Windsor).
 
www.theguardian.com

Everton’s sleek new home feels like the right place to harness fans’ new optimism | Aaron Sharp

Hill Dickinson Stadium has a debut to remember with awestruck supporters hoping it can help the club step into a successful era
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

As the old song goes, Everton are a football club that know well their historynow, finally, the future is here. If Goodison Park was a temple to Everton’s rich and storied past, Hill Dickinson Stadium represents something long desired for the future, a great leap forward in their ambition to host a world-class football team. In truth, it is much needed.Proud though Evertonians are of their club’s sleeping giant status, the club have too long traded on the former glories chronicled in songs of the Glwadys Street end.Here, on a sun-drenched afternoon on the banks of the River Mersey, change and optimism was the tune of the day – and the architect Dan Meis’s 52,000-seat stadium, a sleek, stylish construction of glass and steel feels like the right place to harness that spirit.
It is a long time to spend in one place, 133 years. Perhaps it was the sheer newness of it all that had fans ambling at half speed, seemingly awestruck up Regent Road, the site of their new ground, stopping for family selfies and to take videos for social media.More likely it was the stadium itself, which seems to rise out of the river when approached from the nearby Eldonian Village estate, that gave early arrivals their moment for pause.
Its roof, a flowing arch of polished steel, glints like a swallow’s wing in the early afternoon sunlight. A successful season cannot be guaranteed by the move into their new home – as Everton’s opening defeat at Leeds showed – but there is undoubtedly a feeling of joy around this place.
Inside, families swept around the spacious concourse which flows around the stadium almost in homage to the rolling river behind. It is a marked departure from the visceral experience of navigating entry to Goodison – a weekly ritual of charting a course through a crush of people meandering out of narrow streets, dodging chip wrappers, parked cars and plastic pint glasses along the way. Although the experience on Sunday wasn’t faultless, with some fans complaining of long queues for the bar and bottlenecks in busy areas.But of course the true test of Hill Dickinson Stadium’s suitability would be what happened inside. With 10 minutes to kick-off came evidence of one thing the designers had thought about very carefully. As a booming sound system dialled up, nervous energy in the stands soon became a simmering anticipation. Acoustics is not a word which often comes up in conversations among football fans – Evertonians may rightly be more concerned with their lack of full-backs than a world-class PA system – but the way Hill Dickinson Stadium retains the thrum of fan excitement invoked a physical response here.There She Goes, the 90s indie song by the scouser band the La’s, is now a fan anthem after it became part of Goodison Park’s swan song. Here it was the first song roared in unison by the packed stadium in full voice. It is magnificent – a bittersweet goodbye turned soundtrack for the future, exactly what the occasion called for.
And then, as kick-off approached, this roomy, comfortable feat of 21st-century design felt all of a sudden very familiar – old school, even. The Evertonians went through the usual pre-match routine of songs, before the old battle cry went up. A roar for Z-Cars bolstered by the 10,000 or so extra voices all this modernity can accommodate.Those who knew Goodison will know that its silences could be as deafening as its crescendos – the clattering of wooden seats announcing an early half-time pint after a disappointing start. How those moments of disillusion play out in this new, more sanitary environment, we will have to wait to find out.The determination of the home fans to turn their European-style bowl into a bear pit meant the atmosphere buzzed throughout an at times patchy Everton performance. Their game effort was rewarded when Jack Grealish, surely a cult-hero in the making, set up the first goal of this new era – finding Iliman Ndiaye, whose finish induced the kind roar which would test the mettle of any roof.That outpouring of elation and relief, which are often the same thing where Everton are concerned, were only matched when Jordan Pickford – a cult hero firmly established – saved a penalty which all but guaranteed a victorious start to life by the river.
Here was a thoroughly Everton afternoon. Not perfect, by any means. But a step forward, willed into being by the support of a faithful blue army of fans who finally got their moment in the sun.
They may no longer reside among the terrace houses of L4 but they are, as another of those old songs says, the Goodison gang. A new postcode does not appear to have changed that.
 
tommye said:
www.theguardian.com

Everton’s sleek new home feels like the right place to harness fans’ new optimism | Aaron Sharp

Hill Dickinson Stadium has a debut to remember with awestruck supporters hoping it can help the club step into a successful era
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

As the old song goes, Everton are a football club that know well their historynow, finally, the future is here. If Goodison Park was a temple to Everton’s rich and storied past, Hill Dickinson Stadium represents something long desired for the future, a great leap forward in their ambition to host a world-class football team. In truth, it is much needed.Proud though Evertonians are of their club’s sleeping giant status, the club have too long traded on the former glories chronicled in songs of the Glwadys Street end.Here, on a sun-drenched afternoon on the banks of the River Mersey, change and optimism was the tune of the day – and the architect Dan Meis’s 52,000-seat stadium, a sleek, stylish construction of glass and steel feels like the right place to harness that spirit.
It is a long time to spend in one place, 133 years. Perhaps it was the sheer newness of it all that had fans ambling at half speed, seemingly awestruck up Regent Road, the site of their new ground, stopping for family selfies and to take videos for social media.More likely it was the stadium itself, which seems to rise out of the river when approached from the nearby Eldonian Village estate, that gave early arrivals their moment for pause.
Its roof, a flowing arch of polished steel, glints like a swallow’s wing in the early afternoon sunlight. A successful season cannot be guaranteed by the move into their new home – as Everton’s opening defeat at Leeds showed – but there is undoubtedly a feeling of joy around this place.
Inside, families swept around the spacious concourse which flows around the stadium almost in homage to the rolling river behind. It is a marked departure from the visceral experience of navigating entry to Goodison – a weekly ritual of charting a course through a crush of people meandering out of narrow streets, dodging chip wrappers, parked cars and plastic pint glasses along the way. Although the experience on Sunday wasn’t faultless, with some fans complaining of long queues for the bar and bottlenecks in busy areas.But of course the true test of Hill Dickinson Stadium’s suitability would be what happened inside. With 10 minutes to kick-off came evidence of one thing the designers had thought about very carefully. As a booming sound system dialled up, nervous energy in the stands soon became a simmering anticipation. Acoustics is not a word which often comes up in conversations among football fans – Evertonians may rightly be more concerned with their lack of full-backs than a world-class PA system – but the way Hill Dickinson Stadium retains the thrum of fan excitement invoked a physical response here.There She Goes, the 90s indie song by the scouser band the La’s, is now a fan anthem after it became part of Goodison Park’s swan song. Here it was the first song roared in unison by the packed stadium in full voice. It is magnificent – a bittersweet goodbye turned soundtrack for the future, exactly what the occasion called for.
And then, as kick-off approached, this roomy, comfortable feat of 21st-century design felt all of a sudden very familiar – old school, even. The Evertonians went through the usual pre-match routine of songs, before the old battle cry went up. A roar for Z-Cars bolstered by the 10,000 or so extra voices all this modernity can accommodate.Those who knew Goodison will know that its silences could be as deafening as its crescendos – the clattering of wooden seats announcing an early half-time pint after a disappointing start. How those moments of disillusion play out in this new, more sanitary environment, we will have to wait to find out.The determination of the home fans to turn their European-style bowl into a bear pit meant the atmosphere buzzed throughout an at times patchy Everton performance. Their game effort was rewarded when Jack Grealish, surely a cult-hero in the making, set up the first goal of this new era – finding Iliman Ndiaye, whose finish induced the kind roar which would test the mettle of any roof.That outpouring of elation and relief, which are often the same thing where Everton are concerned, were only matched when Jordan Pickford – a cult hero firmly established – saved a penalty which all but guaranteed a victorious start to life by the river.
Here was a thoroughly Everton afternoon. Not perfect, by any means. But a step forward, willed into being by the support of a faithful blue army of fans who finally got their moment in the sun.
They may no longer reside among the terrace houses of L4 but they are, as another of those old songs says, the Goodison gang. A new postcode does not appear to have changed that.
Click to expand...

I loved reading that 👍
 

tommye said:
www.theguardian.com

Everton’s sleek new home feels like the right place to harness fans’ new optimism | Aaron Sharp

Hill Dickinson Stadium has a debut to remember with awestruck supporters hoping it can help the club step into a successful era
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

As the old song goes, Everton are a football club that know well their historynow, finally, the future is here. If Goodison Park was a temple to Everton’s rich and storied past, Hill Dickinson Stadium represents something long desired for the future, a great leap forward in their ambition to host a world-class football team. In truth, it is much needed.Proud though Evertonians are of their club’s sleeping giant status, the club have too long traded on the former glories chronicled in songs of the Glwadys Street end.Here, on a sun-drenched afternoon on the banks of the River Mersey, change and optimism was the tune of the day – and the architect Dan Meis’s 52,000-seat stadium, a sleek, stylish construction of glass and steel feels like the right place to harness that spirit.
It is a long time to spend in one place, 133 years. Perhaps it was the sheer newness of it all that had fans ambling at half speed, seemingly awestruck up Regent Road, the site of their new ground, stopping for family selfies and to take videos for social media.More likely it was the stadium itself, which seems to rise out of the river when approached from the nearby Eldonian Village estate, that gave early arrivals their moment for pause.
Its roof, a flowing arch of polished steel, glints like a swallow’s wing in the early afternoon sunlight. A successful season cannot be guaranteed by the move into their new home – as Everton’s opening defeat at Leeds showed – but there is undoubtedly a feeling of joy around this place.
Inside, families swept around the spacious concourse which flows around the stadium almost in homage to the rolling river behind. It is a marked departure from the visceral experience of navigating entry to Goodison – a weekly ritual of charting a course through a crush of people meandering out of narrow streets, dodging chip wrappers, parked cars and plastic pint glasses along the way. Although the experience on Sunday wasn’t faultless, with some fans complaining of long queues for the bar and bottlenecks in busy areas.But of course the true test of Hill Dickinson Stadium’s suitability would be what happened inside. With 10 minutes to kick-off came evidence of one thing the designers had thought about very carefully. As a booming sound system dialled up, nervous energy in the stands soon became a simmering anticipation. Acoustics is not a word which often comes up in conversations among football fans – Evertonians may rightly be more concerned with their lack of full-backs than a world-class PA system – but the way Hill Dickinson Stadium retains the thrum of fan excitement invoked a physical response here.There She Goes, the 90s indie song by the scouser band the La’s, is now a fan anthem after it became part of Goodison Park’s swan song. Here it was the first song roared in unison by the packed stadium in full voice. It is magnificent – a bittersweet goodbye turned soundtrack for the future, exactly what the occasion called for.
And then, as kick-off approached, this roomy, comfortable feat of 21st-century design felt all of a sudden very familiar – old school, even. The Evertonians went through the usual pre-match routine of songs, before the old battle cry went up. A roar for Z-Cars bolstered by the 10,000 or so extra voices all this modernity can accommodate.Those who knew Goodison will know that its silences could be as deafening as its crescendos – the clattering of wooden seats announcing an early half-time pint after a disappointing start. How those moments of disillusion play out in this new, more sanitary environment, we will have to wait to find out.The determination of the home fans to turn their European-style bowl into a bear pit meant the atmosphere buzzed throughout an at times patchy Everton performance. Their game effort was rewarded when Jack Grealish, surely a cult-hero in the making, set up the first goal of this new era – finding Iliman Ndiaye, whose finish induced the kind roar which would test the mettle of any roof.That outpouring of elation and relief, which are often the same thing where Everton are concerned, were only matched when Jordan Pickford – a cult hero firmly established – saved a penalty which all but guaranteed a victorious start to life by the river.
Here was a thoroughly Everton afternoon. Not perfect, by any means. But a step forward, willed into being by the support of a faithful blue army of fans who finally got their moment in the sun.
They may no longer reside among the terrace houses of L4 but they are, as another of those old songs says, the Goodison gang. A new postcode does not appear to have changed that.
Click to expand...
53,000. Why can't people just round correctly. Nice read.
 

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