Archived News from April 2008
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FIELD MILL CAPACITY CUT TO 4684
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Capacity cut at Field Mill for Wrexham game
CHAD.co.uk, 1Apr2008, By Tim Morriss THE capacity at Field Mill has been cut again - to 50%, 4,684 - after problems over the club's safety certificate. The move comes ahead of Tuesday night's match with Wrexham - at which the club has offered a discounted admission to try to attract a bumper crowd. And it follows the resignation of the club's chairman and safety certificate holder James Derry on Friday and appointment of a replacement, mayor Tony Egginton yesterday. A spokesman for Nottinghamshire County Council, which issues the club's safety certificate and monitors safety at Field Mill, told Chad in a statement: "The decision reflects the council's view that there has been a interruption in the safety management culture at the club due to the resignation of the chairman and general safety certificate holder James Derry. Previously the capacity was set at 80 per cent of maximum as the club continued to work to address safety issues." Full story http://www.chad.co.uk/stags/Capacity-cut-at-Field-Mill.3933147.jp Sue Storey, the council's Emergency Planning Manager and Chair of Safety Advisory Group, explained: "Under the terms of the 1975 Safety at Sports Grounds Act, Nottinghamshire County Council has an obligation to review the capacity as a result of any new person being proposed as General Safety Certificate Holder. This is the normal procedure that is followed for any designated sports ground. "The Safety Advisory Group met yesterday. We took the view that there are people in key positions at the club that are not fully familiar with all safety management issues. "Therefore, temporarily, until the new chairman is fully up to speed and can influence ongoing safety matters, we are reducing the capacity to 50 per cent with immediate effect. This will be continually monitored and reviewed over the coming weeks." Mr Eggington is now the club's named official on the Field Mill ground's safety certificate. Sue said: "The SAG was very encouraged by the enthusiasm and commitment that Tony Egginton showed to the future development of safety matters at Mansfield Town Football Club, and we look forward to working with him. "Unfortunately, however, the reality is that he has not been involved in the day-to-day management of safety issues at the ground and therefore needs time to adjust to his new role and gain a full understanding of what needs to be done. "Our aim is to ensure that anyone who wants to watch football at Mansfield Town Football Club can do so safely, and so to ensure that we are not putting him or the club in a vulnerable position, we felt a temporary reduction was appropriate." As a result of the decision the maximum attendance at tonight's game is reduced to 4,684 - including a maximum of 995 away supporters. This figure is still higher than any attendance at any League game at Field Mill this year. |
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