SHIELDS’ STAND IS PIC-TURE OF TRUE SUCCESS
JOINT-MANAGER-cumchief executive Lee Picton says South Shields are hoping to begin their 2021-22 season with an impressive new main stand in place.
Picton, who moved up into the boardroom in November having run first-team affairs alongside Graham Fenton, this week provided a threemonth update of events at the 1st Cloud Arena with the Pitching In NPL Premier Division season all but over for 2020-21.
In it, he outlined a number of ground improvement proposals funded by the club’s 1,000 founder shareholders, notably a new 1,000-seater stand, which also hosts 15 commercial/sponsor boxes and TV gantry.
“We could not have possibly imagined such an unbelievable response,” Picton said of the share issue, of which Little Mix star Jade Thirlwell contributed.
“We now have a responsibility and duty to appropriate those funds in the most prudent way possible in order to help the club move forwards.”
He went on: “We are cautiously optimistic that all the enabling conditions for initiating the construction of the new stand will be in place in the near future, and that the stand is to be operational in time for the beginning on the 2021-22 competitive season.
“There has been a huge amount of work and planning gone into formulating these plans and we’re obviously still a long way off in terms of seeing the project come to fruition, but I’m sure you’ll join me in getting very excited about visualising the prospect of seeing our football club’s home having cover on all four sides.
“More than 1,000 seats across two stands with a fantastic view of the pitch, and with a whole host of new facilities, will make your matchday experience an even better one than it has been in the past.”