FAI join IRFU on site of new stadium

THE officers of the IRFU and the FAI will today tell the minister for sport that Lansdowne Road is their preferred option as the site for the proposed new football stadium.

Substantial problems will have to be overcome if the site is to be developed into the state-of-the-art stadium that rugby and soccer need, but officers of both organisations are satisfied it can be done.

The news will come as a disappointment to Minister John O’Donoghue, because the Government are still clinging to their planned development of Abbotstown as a sports campus catering for a wide range of sports disciplines.

Central to that proposed scheme is the development of a football stadium of at least 65,000-seat capacity.

That would provide the essential focal point for an overall development that would incorporate hotels, restaurants and leisure facilities in addition to a variety of other sports facilities.

The IRFU commissioned consultants Ove Arup to conduct an enquiry into the feasibility of developing Lansdowne Road into a stadium of this size. While their report identified several major problems, the thrust of their report was that it could be done.

The particular difficulties of re-building Lansdowne Road relate to the confined nature of the site which runs to 14 acres. The existence of the railway line on one boundary and a river on another complicate matters.

To accommodate the extra seating it would be necessary to turn the pitch through 90 degrees. This in turn would mean the demolition of the east stand and would mean that portion of the second pitch at Lansdowne would have to be incorporated into the development.

In consequence the Lansdowne club, who are tenants of the IRFU there, would have to be offered compensation and an alternative base for their playing activities. In addition, of course, the problems of planning permission and residents’ objections would have to be solved.

The cost of building a stadium to the required standard at Abbotstown was estimated at €350m. The Government was looking for an input of between €100m and €150m from the two organisations.

It would cost more than this to develop a similar stadium at Lansdowne Road, but the sports officials will argue today that the extra cost involved should be offset against the cost of developing supporting infrastructure at Abbotstown.

Lansdowne Road’s great advantage is its accessibility. It is on a railway line, close to hotels, restaurants and pubs and within walking distance of the city centre. Abbotstown is remote by comparison.

There are obvious advantages in building on a green-field site and the possibility of providing generous parking space is one of the most attractive.

However, the sports officers will argue that, if you factor in the extra expense involved in providing the ancillary services and facilities at Abbotstown then developing Lansdowne Road would not be appreciably more expensive.

It remains to be seen if they succeed in persuading the government of the feasibility of their plan.

However, if that is the chosen path then both organisations will face the difficulty of finding a venue for staging major matches over a couple of years.

The FAI will be hoping that most of their involvement at international level after they play Russia at Lansdowne Road next September will be centred on the European finals in Portugal in 2004.

They will forego home friendly matches for a time and any competitive games will be played at Anfield or Old Trafford, if Lansdowne Road is undergoing development.

The IRFU’s difficulties will not be solved that easily, although the upcoming World Cup in Australia next Autumn will be their main focus of activity.

It could be that they will approach the GAA for use of Croke Park, if they need to play a game at home.