Hibs fans make a stand on Straiton proposal

"THERE is a bonny fitba’ team, at Easter Road they stay!" was the message that boomed out loud and clear from Saturday’s mass meeting of the Hibernian Supporters Association, where opposition to a proposed shared stadium with Hearts at Straiton was unanimous.

Around 1,000 fans responded to the association’s emergency gathering, the biggest of its kind since the Hands Off Hibs movement was mobilised against Wallace Mercer’s takeover attempt in 1990, and the outcome of a two-hour meeting was a resounding thumbs down to the idea of bulldozing Easter Road and relocating to Midlothian.

Faxes and letters received from Australia, the United States and throughout Britain were read out at the members-only meeting, all unwavering in their opposition to a move.

However, while protest T-shirts have already been printed and public demonstrations will be considered, the association will not sanction any organised boycott of Hibs matches.

Instead, a letter has been sent to the Hibs board, urging the directors to open dialogue with the association and inviting the owner of the club, Sir Tom Farmer, to attend a meeting.

"Since the Straiton proposal came to light, the club has never had the courtesy to get in touch with us, and we’re bitterly disappointed with that," said Frank Dougan of the 3,000-strong HSA. "We are asking for Sir Tom Farmer to come and meet us and will give the board a couple of weeks to respond."

A statement put together after Saturday’s meeting has also been forwarded to the club, and a response will be sought from Hibs chairman Ken Lewandowski and managing director Rod Petrie.

The statement said: "Some ten years ago, after a failed attempt to move Hibs to Straiton, a promise was made to the supporters. Sir Tom Farmer pledged that Easter Road would be home to Hibs for as long as the supporters wanted. It was an unconditional pledge that Hibs fans expect to be honoured."

As a result of the gathering, bars in and around Easter Road enjoyed brisk trade for a close-season Saturday as fans met to mull over the biggest issue facing their club since similar plans to relocate to Straiton were abandoned a decade ago.

However, Dougan insists those pubs, along with a string of other businesses in the area, would be left fearing for their future, if Hibs opt for the site which is available at Straiton.

"Football is not just about 90 minutes, it is a social activity before and after."

The HSA statement, released yesterday, added: "Leith needs Hibs. The situation of the stadium supports many local shops, pubs and community groups. The supporters feel that the football club owes loyalty to the community that has supported it for the last hundred years and more."

The association also brought attention to a letter it had received from the club, dated 1 May, launching its new community strategy, and containing the pledge: "Hibernian FC is a community club, committed to playing a full and constructive role in the communities in which it operates."

Bill Alcorn, the HSA secretary, said: "We welcomed this acknowledgement of the place that football holds in the social fabric of the local community. Within six weeks this became yet another broken promise.

"The current board of directors must listen to the views of those who fill the stands each home game. Supporters have welcomed the investment that has been made in the new stands, and believed this was a public endorsement of Sir Tom’s pledge to stay at Easter Road.

"They are confused by the figures that are now being published [the club reporting they are up to 17million in debt], when just three months ago the managing director told fans that Hibs were ‘comfortable in their ability to service the debt’.

"The supporters’ association is only one part of the Hibs family, and we invite all other interested groups who oppose the Straiton plans to join us in our determination to overturn this unthinkable proposal."

Hearts supporters, who are also digesting the prospect of vacating Tynecastle, are sure to be included among those "interested groups", with a meeting of supporters brought forward by a week to 13 August to allow chief executive Chris Robinson to attend.

The prospect of sharing a ground with Hearts was not even raised by the Hibs supporters at Saturday’s meeting, with opposition based purely against a move from Easter Road. Several fans, however, voiced suspicions that getting the two clubs under the one roof could be the first step towards an eventual merger.

Fears were also raised that Edinburgh will be left devoid of its sporting identity.

Dougan explained: "Over the years the city has lost top-class athletics events, speedway, greyhound racing, basketball and American football. There is going to be nothing left, and for a capital city that would be a disgrace."

Hibs last night insisted they would be happy to enter into "genuine dialogue" with any other supporters’ group, and promised to arrange a meeting with the HSA.

Club spokesman David Forsyth said: "We have reiterated time after time that the club has a burden of debt, and the proposed move to Straiton is just one option the club is looking at to tackle that debt. We are also looking at the option of staying at Easter Road."

Hibs will this week initiate their consultation process over the Straiton plans by holding four forums at venues throughout the city with blocks of 100 supporters, chosen at random from the club’s database.