Parsley calls for real vision for Maze Stadium

12.10.00pm GMT Fri 20th Jan 2006

Calling on sports fans to ensure proposals for a new stadium become reality, Young Alliance, the Alliance Party's youth wing, has backed party sports spokesperson Michael Long in describing the Irish FA's decision in principle to back the Maze stadium proposal as courageous.

Cllr Parsley, himself a qualified IFA referee, stated: "The Irish FA's decision last night took immense courage. If this is reflective of the Association's determination to move football forward in Northern Ireland on behalf of everyone, we should all be grateful.

"In an ideal world, we would put a 30,000 all-seater stadium in central Belfast. In this less than ideal world, a state-of-the-art stadium on the outskirts of the city will still be a vast improvement on what we have now.

"I would urge soccer supporters whose instinct is to oppose the IFA on this one to reflect on the cold reality of the situation. Windsor Park is about to have its capacity reduced on safety grounds to barely half the current 15,000, which is already inadequate. That stadium is simply no longer an option for international matches -- can one imagine playing England in front of a four-figure crowd?

"People must consider also that other options are not as appealing as at first sight. New proposals for stadiums within the Belfast City area are all very well, but there is no hope of completion for 2012 and, in any case, is someone trying to tell me that Ormeau Park or Tillysburn is 'central', or 'accessible'?

"Furthermore, we must stop this nonsensical notion that stadiums on the outskirts can't be successful. For a start, each of the last three World Cup finals was played at exactly such a ground, the most obvious being the Stade de France in St Denis, outside Paris.

"So instead of constantly moaning, why not develop some real vision? Just think of a site, built on land that is already government-owned, focused for entertainment and sporting excellence across many disciplines. Just think of anything from Olympic soccer matches in 2012 and Rugby World Cup matches in 2015, to world showjumping championships. Just think of a stadium that everyone in Northern Ireland can be proud of, used by teams that everyone in Northern Ireland can be proud of.

"We must stop meekly accepting that we cannot compete for world-class facilities. What the sports fans of Northern Ireland must now do is make sure this project works in a timely and cost-effective manner, and that there are no delays in ensuring we have top-grade sporting facilities in Greater Belfast by the end of the decade, fit for nothing less than the world's greatest sporting events."

ENDS