Another $#@%& converted baseball field

[Alberto7]

Hi all,

Check out the stadium in Syracuse :(:

http://a-league.com/Andrews/Day13-2003.shtml

I know we all discussed this to death with the Rochester stadium, but how can the league allow this?

Albert Ohayon
Montreal match reporter, a-league.com

[François]

I agree with you Albert. They should at least put turf on the bases...
This is not serious...

François
www.impactsoccer.com

[Impact supporter]

Albert and Francois, it all goes back to the fact that the A-League are not screening their franchises to ensure that they have a proper stadium. Even the CPSL is starting to screen more. Take the Laval Dynamites who cant play at Parc Vanier because it doesn't meet proper CPSL regulations.

[Alberto7]

Ok,
Time to breakdown this stadium issue, city by city:

The Good
Charleston-Blackbaud Stadium : Soccer specific but only seats 5,113. English style pub. Most A-league players agree this is the best stadium in the league.

Atlanta-Dekalb Stadium: From the pictures I've seen, it looks like a decent place to play(anyone care to comment?).Good size too, grass and 15,000 capacity.

Montreal-Claude Robillard Stadium: Nice compact stadium with reasonable field(a little short but what can you do). 8,000 capacity is ok as well.Running track does not help.

Richmond-University of Richmond: Excellent capacity (22,000 +) looks like an old fashioned stadium that still has some charm.

Virginia Beach-Sportsplex: Built in 1999. 10,000 capacity. Nice look to it.

Indiana-Kuntz Stadium: Built for the 1987 Pan Am games. Soccer specific. A bit small at 6,700 capacity.

Vancouver-Swanguard: Nice look. A bit too small at 7,100 capacity and that running track is also not great but overall not too bad.

Minnesota-National Sports Centre: Nice look to this place. Very good capacity (12,000).

The Bad

Charlotte-Waddell High Scool/Providence High School: Two small high school stadiums. Need I say more.

Pittsburgh-Bethel Park High School Stadium: Looks like one set of metal bleachers with a capacity of only 5,000. It is also a high school stadium. Ugh.

Calgary-Foothills Park: Is this play even really a stadium or is it just a bunch of bleachers and porto-potties thrown together. Only positive I can see is the playing surface is grass.

El Paso-Sun Bowl: 52,000 seat Astroturf surface. No need to go on.

Milwaukee-Ulhein Park: Astroplay surface. Looks like a neighbourhood park(go to their website and check out some of the pictures).7,000 capacity is ok.

Cincinnati-Town & Country Sportsplex: Only 5,000 seats and Astroplay surface. Looks like one crappy place. I fully understand why they are having so many problems getting people to come to games.

Seattle-Seahawks stadium: 72,000 capacity and FieldTurf surface. Wow! 2,000 people must look lost in there.

Portland-PGE park:Baseball stadium converted to soccer use with Turf surface. 20,000 capacity is only good thing I see.

The Ugly

Rochester-Frontier field: Crappy baseball field converted(?!?)for soccer use, complete with dirt infield. I really hope that Paetec park is ready for next year.

Syracuse-P&C stadium: Another crappy baseball field.....

Toronto-Centennial Stadium: Looks like a High School field, complete with running track and horrid pitch. 3,500 capacity is insuficient to say the least.


I look forward to reading your comments.

Albert



Albert Ohayon
Montreal match reporter, a-league.com

[Ryan Keay]

quote:Originally posted by Alberto7

Ok,
Time to breakdown this stadium issue, city by city:

The Bad

Charlotte-Waddell High Scool/Providence High School: Two small high school stadiums. Need I say more.

Pittsburgh-Bethel Park High School Stadium: Looks like one set of metal bleachers with a capacity of only 5,000. It is also a high school stadium. Ugh.

Calgary-Foothills Park: Is this play even really a stadium or is it just a bunch of bleachers and porto-potties thrown together. Only positive I can see is the playing surface is grass.

The Ugly

Toronto-Centennial Stadium: Looks like a High School field, complete with running track and horrid pitch. 3,500 capacity is insuficient to say the least.



Not saying that Toronto should be higher, but shouldn't those three stadiums be dragged to the bottom with it?

"Half of what I say is bull****, the other half are the most important things you will ever hear." Nicky Wire

[Jarrek]

Yeah ... I don't know why you chose to single out Centennial Stadium and put it in the "Ugly" section with the two converted baseball fields.

It has its share of problems, but is surely better then some of the other stadiums that you put in the bad section.

[Krammerhead]

quote:Originally posted by Alberto7




Okay here are my comments. You've got a few things wrong. So as always I will correct! :)

Atlanta-UGLY! Check out the pic below. The grass may be okay but there are no seats-just concrete where the seats were supposed to be:http://a-league.com/Andrews/photos/day8pano.jpg

Virginia Beach-Cheesy Stadium: Stands on one side of the field only, Nothing on the other side but open space. Doesn't look like a stadium. Nice pitch apparently.

El Paso. They are no longer playing out of the Sun Bowl. They are back at 5000 seat dudley field and back to drwing 2000 a game as opposed to 500 at the Sun Bowl. Also the Sun Bowl is FieldTurf not astrosturf. Picture of Dudley Field below:http://www.scorpionsrugby.com/photos/DudleyS.jpg

Cincinnati Town & Country Center. Don't know where you got your capacity for this stadium but it's official capacity is not 5000 but a mere 800-thats not a typo. Most of the field is surrounded by bleachers only 3 rows deep!

Uihlein Park-Milwaukee-It's grass not astroplay. In fact in June an opposing team was complaining about the choppy grass surface. Quote: "Syracuse coach Laurie Calloway said the grass was too long and his team needed at least a half to make an adjustment to the conditions." Don't know where you got your information about astroplay surface.

Also crappy about syracuse is from what I see they mark the field with yellow lines.

[Alberto7]

Ok,

I wasn't trying to pick on Centennial but you have to admit it is in the bottom half of A league stadia. My mistake about Milwaukee, it is grass. I'm very worried about Cincinnati. Our web site(A-league.com) lists the capacity at 5,000. 800 capacity is ridiculous. PDL teams have bigger stadiums. Based on the pictures I saw, we can't expect the team to stay in the A league next year. Does anyone know where they played last year and why they are not playing there again?

Albert

Albert Ohayon
Montreal match reporter, a-league.com

[Krammerhead]

quote:Originally posted by Alberto7

Ok,

I wasn't trying to pick on Centennial but you have to admit it is in the bottom half of A league stadia. My mistake about Milwaukee, it is grass. I'm very worried about Cincinnati. Our web site(A-league.com) lists the capacity at 5,000. 800 capacity is ridiculous. PDL teams have bigger stadiums. Based on the pictures I saw, we can't expect the team to stay in the A league next year. Does anyone know where they played last year and why they are not playing there again?

Albert

Albert Ohayon
Montreal match reporter, a-league.com


Hey, I'll tell you Centennial is crap, I was talking to anothersouthsider yesterday after looking at Jarreks pics and saying the same thing. (please I'm not looking for any fights from the Ultras, just pointing out the obvious).

There are quite a few errors on a-league.com in their stadium section of the site. For instance it lists Calgary as having a wider field than Vancouver. HA! Calgary's pitch is quite a few yards narrower than Vancouvers and the official USL guide reflects that. (I don't have the guide, Allison Andrews confirmed that for me). I believe that the 5000 number that is being used was the capacity of Cincinnati's last stadium, the cow pasture they used at the local fairgrounds. I believe they switched to their present stadium (which is in Kentucky) because they got a sweet deal to play there. Since they couldn't draw 800 a game last season, they had no need for a stadium larger than that. They aren't even filling half of the 800 seat stadium as it is now. I don't think Cincinnati will be back next season. As it is the A-League tried to get them to take a year off this season and their crook owner refused. Once again, already this year, he has stopped paying his players and half of the team has quit or been replaced. I'd be suprised to see them in the league next year.

[Ryan Keay]

quote:Originally posted by Krammerhead
Hey, I'll tell you Centennial is crap, I was talking to anothersouthsider yesterday after looking at Jarreks pics and saying the same thing. (please I'm not looking for any fights from the Ultras, just pointing out the obvious).


Well, the only fight we'll give you is that you didnt use strong enough language. Everyone around there is quite aware of the severe shortcomings of Centennial, all I was saying is, Centennial isnt in a class of its own in the a-league, and that there are loads of ****holes around the league, and Toronto actually isnt the worst (sadly enough). :)

"Half of what I say is bull****, the other half are the most important things you will ever hear." Nicky Wire

[Metro]

Any stadium that has astroturf should automatically be in the UGLY category. (WTF, El Paso plays out of the Sun Bowl?!?!?)

[Krammerhead]

No, El Paso was playing out of the Sun Bowl which has FieldTurf in it. Only 500 fans a game wanted to watch games there so they moved back to 5000 seat Dudley field a couple of games ago.

[Cheeta]

Little off the path here but to my flighty mind came a thought draw from a long ago memmory hidden in some dusty corner of my brain behind bails and bail of medicinal, umm, herb.

You know the A-League kinda reminds me of the WHA. Wild and wooly, run by the seat of the pants franchises making up the numbers for a few professional clubs. Never knew where or who you'd be playing next week, what kind of rink they had or if the game would turn into a "Slapshot" remake.

Damn it was fun while it lasted, though. And some of the clubs went onto bigger and better things in the end.

Hope the same thing happens here.

"Minority of one"

[Krammerhead]

It was fun while it lasted but wait!!!

The WHA plans to return for the 2004-2005 season!

http://www.worldhockeyassociation.net/

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison