Wholly Trinity
changed in portakabin facilities next
to the North Stand and entered the
field of play through a temporary
tunnel. TV viewers were also given a
new perspective as the main cameras were moved over to the back of
the new stand’s lower tier, whilst
Fleet Street’s finest took over the
former TV gantry slung beneath the
roof of the Doug Ellis Stand. They
will eventually be given some of the
best seats in the house, between the
dugouts and the directors’ box.
Villa were lucky with the weather
until the Charlton game on October
28th, which took place in a constant
downpour and high winds. The roof’s
run-off drainage was not fully in
place, so water gushed down from
the front of the roof in waterfalls, and
fans in certain areas yet to be covered had to move to the other side of
the ground or be drenched to the
skin.
The vast majority of the new
stand’s patrons will be ordinary season ticket holders or matchday goers, but several hundred seats are
earmarked for memberships costing
up to £2,000 per season, with food
and drink extra. Cheap I say, cheap.
Floodlights
16/9/2000
MATCHDAY 3: Derby 30/09/2000
13 roof beams in place; cladding in place across four beams;
internal walls for executive boxes built; work started on bottom
tier.
30/9/2000
MATCHDAY 4: Sunderland 22/10/2000
Cladding in place over central section; most upper tier seats
fixed; main crane unit disassembled; executive boxes glazed.
MATCHDAY 5: Charlton
28/10/2000
First bottom tier seating decks in place and in use; Philips floodlighting system part-installed.
MATCHDAY 6: Spurs 11/11/2000
Roof beams complete; North screen end frame completed; roof
fascia completed along with most cladding; new players tunnel
used for first time; floodlights used for first time; water run-off in
place; Villa win again.
Groundtastic
page 17
Issue 23