Just wondering what people think of this ground relocation meeting? Rumour has it that Moss Farm is the likely site, would that be Moss Farm itself or Burrows Hill, home of Winnington Park Rugby Club? Personally I see no real reason to move unless it is absolutelt essential to the future of the club. If the Wincham site is to be the site of 1700 houses I do hope we are going to get a substantial figure for the ground. Houses average nearly £200,000 now so by my calculations that is a total of £340,000,000, that is three hundred and forty million pounds, 1% of that is 3.4 million and I reckon we should ask for more, perhaps even 3%. 10 million is a nice round figure.
WHS.
Are witton actually moving to moss farm ??? i thought this was jst an rumour??? Anyone know if its true or not ??? :S
Think Witton are fine where they are though 2 be honest
I applaud the fact that there is a meeting taking place to discuss this, however not convinced that having this 2 days before the last game of the season was the best time to be discussing the future plans, personally I would jave liked to have seen this a week or so after the season!
It is good that this is being discussed openly rather than decisions being taken with no input. From the limited info so far I understand that at this stage it is more about the concept of a move rather than there being too many firm plans/options on the table - thus anything is a fair way off from being considered.
Commercially it may be the right move for the club, however equally it may not. It is good that the views are put into the open and the Chairman and Board want to have the opinions of all in considering if/how to persue this. Of course it is not uncommon for these decisions to be taken and acted on without the involvement of the fans and we all know where that leads!!!
The timing was made to hopefully ensure a decent audience. Had it been a week later and be in the position of being completely out of the running League-wise there would have been only a few there and those will be all full of moaners (!) so we thought, while everyone is hyped-up there would be more positive feedback.
C’mon lads, we’re men, we can concentrate on more than one thing at once!!!
GE
Of course we need to discuss it, if its on the horizon, and i dont think for one minute it will effect the players, maybe excite Jimmy a bit, and we do need to move our surroundings at WP are getting ever tattier, the club is not busy and gates whilst rising are not as good as they should be, so a ground move to a new facility in the town area -moss farm ? would be ideal coupled with a hefty bank balance that in my view should be invested long term to give an income - remember our last move gave us rich for 2 years and bust ever since !
Remember we are a family club, owned by many shareholders and we should and are being kept in the loop, how vics would love to be in our position, so dont knock the board for doing it or the timing, as ever support the team, support the board they both work there b—s of for the club so lets get behind them and if a move copmes off lets make it as succesful as it can be for our long term future, wonder if MC over the canal is inviting offers ? 
I’m not a shareholder but the future of Witton matters to me a great deal - despite the fact that I live in Birmingham and only get to a handful of matches each season. I think that, tied up in the issue of a new ground, is the issue of the ambition of the club. When we moved to Wincham we built a Football League standard ground. We were thinking in terms of Conference football and regular FA Cup round 1 ties. Are we still thinking like that? I don’t think we are. So will we build a ground fit for the Conference or for the Unibond Premier?
Hednesford’s ground is very nice, excellent terracing etc but why bother with a 6500 capacity stadium when our average gate is unlikely to get much above 500 in the forseeable future? In that case, we may as well build a ground like Eastwood’s over in Nottinghamshire - small stand no significant terracing at all. I think that if Witton are going to build a new ground they are going to build an affordable one and I think that some supporters will be disappointed by what they see when compared with Wincham Park. It may be more realistic but sadly we may have to face the fact that our future lies between Conference North and Unibond, rather than between Conference and Conference North.
I understand from a reliable source that the Council plan major changes to Moss Farm and that could mean us linking up with Northwich Rugby Club as Sale have done with Stockport County. I decent ground capable of being acceptable to the Conference has to be the target whether we like it or not, failure to show that we are ambitious will knock potential crowds down and put off players who are looking for high quality football. If we move to a small ground we are condemed to be forever like Marine who, no matter how well they do, are stuck in the lower reaches of the pyramid. If it is to be a link up with the Council then it has to be a very careful one, Councils change at every election and I for one do not want the club to be at the mercy of the whims of councillors who may have no interest in football whatsoever. All being well I will be there on the 26th with an open mind and more than willing to listen very closely to Mr. Worthington who has done such a great job for the Club since he arrived, I am sure he will know what the right decision should be.
WHS.
As we proved last time ground relocation isn’t the end to all your problems.
Any new facilities still need organising and fundraising still needs to be done. Social clubs can very quickly become a millstone around your neck.
Not convinced that we have the infrastructure to manage any of the above.
WP is becoming a little tatty, but without a re-investment programme thats bound to happen.
The social club is imo an eyesore when the lights are up, and the decision to ‘redesign it’ was definitely a strange one. It looked far better when it had the screen and the split-level.
BUT we are in a better position than virtually any other sporting organisation in the area!!!
Hi Guys,
I’m a Wittoner in exile down South but try & keep up with news & results via the web. I know this might seem like a dumb question but i was surprised by the relocation idea. Can anyone let me know why these relocation talks are being held? Are we suffering financially? :-
In answer to Northcountryboy; isn’t every football team in the world in trouble financially? We do need to move in my opinion if we are to progress, but I think we should confirm our place in the Northern Conference before making any hard and fast decisions.
WHS.
what a stupid idea switchin ground its just stupid whats wrong with where we are
wittonrobbo, there is nothing stupid about discussing the idea! The club needs to look at what can be achieved on and off the pitch based on the present location and needs consider if/how a move may financially be of benefit. Football club’s have to work commercially as a business and I believe that a review of the position, ambitions and options is always a good thing. We may be able to realise the value of our exisiting assets and use this to better effect in an alternative location. There is no hidden agenda here and no urgency in the need for a decision, however considering the future is a good thing and not stupid!
What an embarasment it would be moving from a league standard ground down to a lower standard stadium were ment to be moving upwards not downwards. >:( >:( >:(
Witton rabbit i understand where you are coming from but be realistic here. discusing the future is fine but moving downwards isnt. when we get promoted we want to move.
wittonrobbo, I don’t think anyone is talking about reduce the facilities to a level below league standard or moving downwards in any respect - this is a conversation about the future and therefore needs to be based upon forecasts, potential and ambitions.
Forget for a minute this is a football club and use an example for any other form of business…
A business in its current location is losing £50k a year (say £1,000 a week). It believes it still can thrive as a going concern however considers its current location to be part of the reason for not attracting sufficient customers through the door. At the same time the business owns its own premises that commercially are valued at £4 million and are attractive to potential buyers. If the business sells up and relocates with a new plan, they believe that they can turn the £1,000 a week loss into £1,000 profit through additional customers and other commercial facilities. At the same time the cost of doing this is less than the £4m they can get for their current asset which will leave them with money in the bank to develop their product better.
All the above is made up to illustrate an example. Managing change, being realistic regards forecasts, finding the right opportunities are all major factors. However, in the example above you have to ask how long you sustain the losses before taking action, borrowing against your asset is not the answer!
The club is in a great position and can be optimistic about its future, lets not shoot the current discussions down in flames until we know what options the board is considering!!!
As there has yet to be a discussion regarding the possible extent of future facilities, I don’t see how winchamrobbo can suggest that facilities will be far worse. If significant income can be made from selling the current ground it could well be worth it, particularly if council money is involved. As long as the new ground is able to be redeveloped should we reach a certain level.
think he got the idea about us moving backwards as i did when people keep mentioning moss farm or winnington r.c. why dont we just play on a sunday morning and have done with it. i may be jumping the gun, but if m.w. mentions sharing a ground with winnington r.c. what state is the pitch gonna be in after a rugby match? and are runcorn limpits and are reserves gonna play on it as well?
well ,thanks Jono
at first I was getting quite excited like "football is coming home".Yes, new ground in town,more bums on seats more money ,Conferance here we come.
Now I AM worried Jono.Ground share with rugby? What about the state of the pitch and player safety.Oh yeah,you can quote Sale Sharks et al but hey are big fish with more money.Ground maintainance is no problem for them.Us lot ? There will be problems in my humble opinion.Then who calls the shots, rugby or football ?
Oh boy,we do need some answers please. :-
Rugby does not cut up pitches as much as you seem to think. Sure, in wet weather a pitch will cut up, but no more than if two football teams were playing, in fact the goal area, a portion of the pitch that cuts up badly with two football teams playing would see less damage with a rugby team sharing with football. As for costs, a ground share halves your costs and makes making the pitch playable less of a financial burden. It is all still "Pie in the Sky" at the moment anyway. I believe that playing at Moss Farm or Burrows Hill would give us a better chance to increase or income, if not from the playing side then from the revenue we can accumulate from a social club situated there.
I am happy to leave the final decision to Mr. Worthington and the Board, they will have all the facts and they have done a good job so far considering we were in receivership when they arrived.
WHS.
Why don’t we all wait until this time next week and hear what the options are at the meeting?
Yes rabbit - lets wait and see at the meeting.