The Ultimate Super Ayr Thread

[Thereisalight..]

Some draw for the women in the Scottish cup, holders celtic at "home". Would be good if they played it at Somerset and let the lassies have their moment of playing at our actual stadium. Free entry for season ticket holders and a couple of quid for anyone else. I'd go along and support them but I refuse to trek to Scumnock

[Frosty]

11 hours ago, diegomarahenry said:

George Smith was the chairman who backed MacLeod when we were part time and oversaw the transition to full time football for the first time in the clubs history. He was also the chairman that allowed him to spend a fortune on some absolute dreck to replace the part time players. The 88-89 team was one of the most forgettable in the clubs history and The following chairmen had zero cash to play with. The also built the family stand, in which you can't see the pitch from half the seats. 

Bill Barr spent a fortune but hired the most dislikeable manager this side of David Hopkin. He built the hospitality suite which benefited the club for a couple of decades and backed the signings of some of the best players I have seen in an Ayr jersey. Fucked off and left us with a mountain of debt on the horizon. Debt that was a result of his management of the club. 

The Camerons. No idea how to run a football club and oversaw some of the darkest days of the club. Hired some brutal managers who signed, pound for pound, the worst players by concentration in the clubs history. His business background allowed the club to function while paying off debt and in hindsight, some of his decisions kept the club in a spiral for several years due to short term thinking. Hiring McCall when he did ultimately saved us from becoming a Clyde or Stirling Albion. He definitely saved the club in many ways. 

Smith has made some bad choices since he took over, all of them were solved by taking himself out of the firing line and installing Mathie. He came across as being very thin skinned and bullish in the early days and perhaps that was pressure. Building the hub aside, he has moved the club on from the latter part of the Cameron era, full time, professional football club operating  out of a decaying portacabin, to a far more organised business. renovating public areas like the shop and car park, the cladding on the outside of the main stand etc. The investment in infrastructure to support income and player development as well deserves a lot of credit and these things go unnoticed due to the new stand. 

You can't define his stewardship of the club as expensive cider and a 20 min wait to get it. 

My recollection was the family stand was built when Barr was chairman but I could be wrong. Might have been when he was on the board prior to be being chairman and he funded it?

The overhead shots of the ground look terrific and it’s noticeable that even the surrounding areas like the car park look better than I can ever remember them looking - certainly better than the recreation of the Somme battlefield the car park resembled until being resurfaced.

Might just be my OCD but would love to see the main stand extended to run the full length of that side of the ground although would make no sense to do it.

It’s not kissing Smith’s arse to say he’s made the most significant improvement to Somerset in anyone still drawing breath’s lifetime even if the tight arsed cider drinkers in the support are loathe to do so.

[honestly united]

To be fair I think the new stand looks better than I thought it would. For some reason when I saw the initial design I thought it was only going to be roofed for abouyt half the length of that side so to see it being the full length is way above my expectations

[Iain]

2 hours ago, Frosty said:

My recollection was the family stand was built when Barr was chairman but I could be wrong. Might have been when he was on the board prior to be being chairman and he funded it?

The overhead shots of the ground look terrific and it’s noticeable that even the surrounding areas like the car park look better than I can ever remember them looking - certainly better than the recreation of the Somme battlefield the car park resembled until being resurfaced.

Might just be my OCD but would love to see the main stand extended to run the full length of that side of the ground although would make no sense to do it.

It’s not kissing Smith’s arse to say he’s made the most significant improvement to Somerset in anyone still drawing breath’s lifetime even if the tight arsed cider drinkers in the support are loathe to do so.

I remember sitting in the family stand watching Burley's team, which I think is prior to Barr becoming chairman. No greenhouse back then though.

[diegomarahenry]

3 hours ago, Frosty said:

My recollection was the family stand was built when Barr was chairman

The stand was built in 89 and Barr took over in 94. 
After Smith left, it was Sandy Louden and then Donny McIntyre, the current vice chairman’s father. 

[Peil]

7 hours ago, diegomarahenry said:

The stand was built in 89 and Barr took over in 94. 
After Smith left, it was Sandy Louden and then Donny McIntyre, the current vice chairman’s father. 

Sure the metal stairs used were sat out the carpark for ages. 

I moved to Tarbolton in Sept 85, and can definetly remember playing on them before we moved.

[Dauntless]

13 hours ago, Frosty said:

My recollection was the family stand was built when Barr was chairman but I could be wrong. Might have been when he was on the board prior to be being chairman and he funded it?

The overhead shots of the ground look terrific and it’s noticeable that even the surrounding areas like the car park look better than I can ever remember them looking - certainly better than the recreation of the Somme battlefield the car park resembled until being resurfaced.

Might just be my OCD but would love to see the main stand extended to run the full length of that side of the ground although would make no sense to do it.

It’s not kissing Smith’s arse to say he’s made the most significant improvement to Somerset in anyone still drawing breath’s lifetime even if the tight arsed cider drinkers in the support are loathe to do so.

I think there is much more to come as well .

[Iain]

1 hour ago, Dauntless said:

I think there is much more to come as well .

Underground lair.

[AUcal]

Agree with others on how much the development improves the overall look of the place. A much needed refresh that I don't think has much of a negative impact on the charm of ground overall. In fact, I think a more enclosed feel will help with the atmosphere in the long run.

Along with the hub and new hospitality capabilities there's really strong revenue potential for the club moving forward, good to see. All 'small' clubs that make a success of themselves in Scottish football have some other revenue stream(s) to add to the coffers. Just need to make sure we're doing what we can to get more folk in the gates on match days. Credit to the club, the infrastructure is a huge improvement. 

What is the situation with the land between the away end and the rail line? Would be great to improve the footprint that we have in the future - maybe through using that area as a car park or a space for additional infrastructure, if we need any.

[Coollestersmoothe]

20 minutes ago, AuAl said:

What is the situation with the land between the away end and the rail line? Would be great to improve the footprint that we have in the future - maybe through using that area as a car park or a space for additional infrastructure, if we need any.

Wasn’t there talk of it being owned by some German company, and being vastly overpriced?

Agree though. Would be a great spot for more infrastructure for the club. 

 

[callum-ayr]

30 minutes ago, Coollestersmoothe said:

Wasn’t there talk of it being owned by some German company, and being vastly overpriced?

Agree though. Would be a great spot for more infrastructure for the club. 

 

Yeah was some German investment company that own it and vastly overpriced it, would imagine it's some tax dodging scheme like why the Malaysian bought the Station Hotel.  Would be ideal for training pitches for all age groups of the academy and both men a woman's team.  I know we use Ayr Academy, but everything being together and everyone integrating would be quite a good thing.  Even have the reserve team games take place there if the capacity to do so was there. 

ETA - Not sure if it would be big enough for a full size 11 a side pitch.  However ours is one of the bigger ones I am sure.

Edited November 9, 2023 by callum-ayr

[diegomarahenry]

29 minutes ago, Coollestersmoothe said:

Wasn’t there talk of it being owned by some German company, and being vastly overpriced?

Agree though. Would be a great spot for more infrastructure for the club. 

 

Aye, Smith said at the Q&A they had enquired but they wanted silly money for it. It’ll just be an asset on a balance sheet for them. Having said that, in Mathies video Q&A someone asked about it and he said there may be an announcement soon on further works. That may have just been the proposed gym building though.

2 minutes ago, callum-ayr said:

Would be ideal for training pitches

There is no way a training pitch would fit on it, unless it was half size. Even then it is hemmed in by a railway line so they would have to put a massive fence up. 

[callum-ayr]

2 minutes ago, diegomarahenry said:

Aye, Smith said at the Q&A they had enquired but they wanted silly money for it. It’ll just be an asset on a balance sheet for them. Having said that, in Mathies video Q&A someone asked about it and he said there may be an announcement soon on further works. That may have just been the proposed gym building though.

There is no way a training pitch would fit on it, unless it was half size. Even then it is hemmed in by a railway line so they would have to put a massive fence up. 

Aye a had another quick glance over it and edited my post.

[Dauntless]

3 hours ago, diegomarahenry said:

There is no way a training pitch would fit on it, unless it was half size. Even then it is hemmed in by a railway line so they would have to put a massive fence up. 

Think you might be incorrect there .

[diegomarahenry]

25 minutes ago, Dauntless said:

Think you might be incorrect there .

As long as it was the shape of a baseball diamond. 

 

[Thumper]

16 minutes ago, diegomarahenry said:

As long as it was the shape of a baseball diamond.

[eez-eh]

Just platform it over the railway line. Easy.

[Richey Edwards]

Build a hotel there.

[diegomarahenry]

32 minutes ago, Thumper said:

 

You still have to leave space for the railway lines and have the ability to get in and out of it. 

 

[Thumper]

18 minutes ago, diegomarahenry said:

You still have to leave space for the railway lines and have the ability to get in and out of it.

Access could be either by extending the road behind the north stand or by cutting across the back of the railway end, or both for that matter. There is very plainly enough physical land for an entire full-sized pitch in the area enclosed by the triangle between the tracks and the ground, if you assume that it's suitable for building on. The problem is not the size or location.