thestaggy
Honorary Master
There were many of us at the time who said that these stadiums would become White Elephants, not because we didn't want the World Cup, we loved the World Cup, we went to the games, we enjoyed the Vibe. No, we were concerned that proper public consultuation and feasability studies had not been concluded. Other sports bodies had not been consulted.
We were called naysayers, doom and gloomers, killjoys, etc. so yes... here I am to gloat, and I am going to damn well enjoy it.
What is really sad is how some people see the exorbitant waste of public expenditure over and over again, and don't really give a damn about those poor and needy in South Africa who could really have benefited from that money.
Agreed.
The Durban, Green Point and Polokwane stadiums had longterm questions hanging over their heads from the beginning.
The Durban and Green Point stadiums should have been built with the intention of the Natal and WP rugby unions moving into them. If not, the existing rugby grounds (Newlands & Kings Park) should have been upgraded to facilitate the World Cup.
The Peter Mokaba stadium in Polokwane was always going to be a problem. They should have just upgraded the nearby Pietersburg Stadium and built it to the absolute minimum of FIFA requirements, much like the Royal Ba***eng stadium was.
Doing this would have massively trimmed the budget of hosting the tournament and ensured the regular usage of the modernised stadia.
The Lions should also turf Ellis Park in and go to Soccer City. The place may have history but it is in a horrible area and is a nightmare to get into and out of. Soccer City is a far easier ground to gain access to and its location may encourage more black folks to watch rugby. A win-win for everybody; Stadium gets paid off faster, the Lions attract larger crowds and top-flight rugby is taken to the door steps of a population demographic that rugby is accused of ignoring.