Behind The West Stand At White Rock
JackArmy.net Behind the Scenes Of White Rock |
Click Here For More Pictures Behind The Scenes There are four floors in total behind the West Stand including the commentator area under the main West Stand roof (not advisable for anyone suffering from Vertigo!) we started off on the first floor which will house club offices and the like. Size wise it looks huge and it is easy to picture this floor being filled with plenty of office space although quite what those that have worked in the cramped area behind the East Stand will make of it is anyone's guess.
Moving up a level we hit the main conference floor of the West Stand and this is absolutely massive. I was told that it will hold 350 delegates comfortably although at a push they believed they could get more in. The conferencing area can be split into smaller sections for smaller conferences and I started working out how I would persuade my boss that he would like to hold our 2005 conference at White Rock Stadium - I soon gave that up as something that probably wouldn't happen. Walking along the length of the West Stand you find it slightly surreal that you are looking down on the area from which you have marvelled at the stadium going up in front of you. As I looked across to Rossis I am sure I saw pound signs in their eyes as they thought of matchday sales!
As we ventured up another floor you could easily suffer from Vertigo as you looked out at the stadium from it's highest (safe) vantage point. This I was told was where the commentating area would be and from here it's clear that they should not be able to miss any of the action. Whether Andy Gray and Martin Tyler get the chance to commentate there or not remains to be seen but all of a sudden this was an area where I would imagine commentators would love to make their views known on a game. Not being a great lover of heights I walked along not too close to the edge but you couldn't help but marvel not just at the view of the stadium but the surrounding area. The roof was being fitted out above us and the view of the stadium itself was breathtaking enough now - what it would be like with a capacity crowd would be something else indeed. This undoubtedly will be the best view in the stadium once it is completed but very few will get the chance to glimpse it. Doesn't it sadden you to think that Richard Shepherd will though!
Coming all the way back down to the ground floor and the hub of matchday activity. The place where thousands of Swans fans will enter the stadium on matchdays. The gaps are there for the turnstiles and the view that Swans fans will see first when they enter the stadium at the beginning of the 2005/6 season. The entrance to the stands looms large in front of you and you start to picture the Swans fans gathering in their huddles before and after the game to discuss the Swans. This is the new home and how impressive it is too.
I feel lucky to have had this chance to wander around our new home. As I said yesterday, I liked what I saw and I am sure that going back in three or six months I would not recognise what I saw it will have changed so much. When you look behind the West Stand you realise just how much is being done behind there and it is things that you cannot see from outside the stadium. When you see the guy on his scaffolding painting some of the supports in the stand it hits home just how far this stadium is progressing and the reality that we are less than twelve months away from calling it home hits you again. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I will miss the Vetch like I didn't think possible but, at the same time, I cannot wait to call White Rock Stadium home. Bring it on! Click Here For More Pictures Behind The Scenes Click Here For Views Pitch and Stand side at White Rock |