The chairman of A.F.C Bournemouth told an interesting story last week. It concerned his first few days in charge at Dean Court. Until recently, Trevor Watkins was a full-time solicitor and part-time fan of the Cherries, but as the club headed towards extinction a couple of seasons ago Watkins became involved in a fan-based rescue package.
It worked. Bournemouth are now relatively stable financially, although the price for Watkins was that he give up the day job and become club chairman. It has been, he says, a revealing experience.
For instance, one of Watkins's first tasks as chairman was to walk around the ground conducting a basic audit of the premises. On that trip Watkins and the other members of the new Bournemouth board discovered that two of the turnstiles had been tampered with. This meant that supporters entering via those two turnstiles were not being registered in official figures. Watkins was unaware who had performed this little trick, or for how long it had been going on, but the potential for fraud is clear.
On hearing that, the thought occurred that a similar racket could well be going on at Bolton Wanderers's new ground, the dismally-named Reebok Stadium. That thought was neutered instantly, though, by the realisation that the Reebok, being a brand spanking new multimillion pound stadium of the future, such "technical hitches" would simply not be permitted. Modern equals good in the land of Tony Blair.
But that still left a question about Bolton and the declining attendances. In this context, fraudulent figures might actually be preferable to the cold truth, which, as Bolton's new manager Sam Allardyce said after the last home match against Ipswich Town, is that the worryingly small crowds at the Reebok are murdering the atmosphere and affecting the team.
Only just over 11,000 turned up for the Ipswich game, a drop of over 8,000 on the corresponding fixture last season. It confirmed a sad trend at Bolton, which is that a season and a half after they averaged 24,352 for home games, Bolton are averaging 13,243. Both figures are for First Division fixtures. Both figures are for the Reebok.
This is depressing, especially for those of us who gravitated towards Bolton in the recent past. Living in Manchester for a couple of years, there was a swathe of clubs to choose to watch when not having matches to report. But you would hardly go to Old Trafford to be thrilled by the occasion, while Manchester City's relentless stumbling can be tolerated for only so long.
No, the place to be for entertainment, excitement and goals was Burnden Park. Bolton Wanderers were stirring then under Bruce Rioch. Alan Stubbs, Alan Thompson, Andy Walker, Jason McAteer, little David Lee and John McGinlay were the nucleus of a team that caught the imagination with famous cup victories over Liverpool, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Everton. Bolton were brilliant and so was Burnden Park.
Disfigured the famous old ground may have been by that ridiculous supermarket stuck onto it, but there was a sense and a smell that was quite definitely proper about Burnden Park. Walking along the Manchester Road, joining the throng leaving the town centre, was to participate in the real thing, tradition and history. It was not pretty to look at, it was not luxurious, but it was Bolton Wanderers. Attendances were good.
Then something happened. It was announced the club were moving to a new, purpose-built stadium, Burnden was to be demolished. Generally this was accepted as progress, although the first notable feature of the new venue was its address: it was not in Bolton. You cannot walk to it from Bolton's centre. The second thing was its name: Bolton Wanderers were naming their new ground after a trainingshoe.
Three years on, with crowds plummeting, it feels like the future never happened to Bolton. Failure on the pitch has been a huge factor, of course, but so too is the stadium's location and the fact that it cost £17 to get in until this season. Now the cheapest seat is £13. Bolton is not a conspicuously wealthy town.
New grounds have been a success at Sunderland and Middlesbrough, but both are in their respective town centres. Derby's Pride Park, a 10-minute walk from the train station, is struggling to attract fans and atmosphere. What happens if Derby go down? The jury is out on new grounds.
The current national stadium debate in Dublin should consider Bolton. The buzz of Lansdowne Road should also be remembered. A bus to the outskirts hardly replicates strolling along Baggot Street. Anyway, there is a sports ground in Dublin city centre with the capacity and facilities to stage international football. You would also imagine the atmosphere could be tasty. It is called Croke Park.
