Why Anfield is now 'the stadium Liverpool fans deserve'

It’s a far cry from the arena Ged Poynton first walked into when he started working for the Reds back in December 1990.

Over the past 26 years the long-serving stadium manager and head of operations has been involved in the redevelopment of all four sides of Anfield. Next month - with his work complete on the Main Stand project - the loyal club servant will walk away ahead of his 65th birthday.

“On the pitch Liverpool were champions of England when I came here in 1990 but off it they were way behind the times,” he told the ECHO.

“Manchester United had been developing years before, both in terms of their stadium and commercially.

“Liverpool, like many clubs, just thought ‘we’re winning, we’re doing well, we’ll just put the cash in the bank’. When I came in post-Hillsborough with all-seater stadia coming in, they knew they had to redevelop,

“To see what we’ve got now is something else. The changes to all four stands posed different challenges but I’m proud of what’s been achieved. I’ve seen a lot of changes and I’ve driven many of them forward.

“Most of all I’m delighted for the fans who have been coming here for years. This is now the stadium they deserve.”

Poynton officially retired in May 2015 but Liverpool convinced him to return on a freelance basis. For the past 18 months he has worked with project director Tom Doyle overseeing work on the new Main Stand, which has added 8,500 extra seats to bolster Anfield’s capacity to 54,000.

“Nobody else has built a stand like that,” he said gazing at the imposing structure. “I’d say it was one of the biggest and hardest challenges in the whole of the football industry in this country.

“It was difficult, especially getting 10,500 fans in there for 49 events over two years as the new stand was built behind and above the old structure.

“But we got through it and it looks magnificent. The feedback has been very positive, especially from season ticket holders who had to put up with inferior facilities previously. We’ve still got the changing rooms and the media centre to complete which will be finished in early January.”

Born off Scotland Road in Liverpool in 1951, Poynton was orphaned at a young age and was put into the Catholic Homes before moving into foster care with a family in St Helens.

He started off as an apprentice bricklayer in 1965 and later became a clerk of works for Liverpool City Council before setting up his own business.

Poynton played rugby for Crosby-based Waterloo and it was through his love of the oval ball game that he met Tony Ensor, who was a Liverpool FC director and the club solicitor.

“I had a knock on the door from him asking if I would put my CV in to become clerk of works for the Centenary Stand development,” he said.

“I got the job, Peter Robinson employed me. When I arrived, Noel White was chairman for a year and then David Moores came on board.

“In 1992 they asked me to become the club’s first stadium manager. Within a few years I also took on the role of head of operations and also the most important job at any stadium, the matchday safety officer.

“At the start I didn’t know football, I’d only been to two matches in my life. When I looked at the state of the old Kop, it was horrendous. I cleaned the lot out and started afresh.

“Back then the club maybe had 65 staff. The board members were part-time, Jack Cross would run the Prescot markets. They had 20-odd pensioners, aged 65 to 80, who used to just brush the terracing. There was no finesse, no standards. Now it’s a massive operation with about 800 non-playing staff working for the club.”

Overseeing some major Anfield building projects over the years had to be juggled with the day to day demands of a rapidly expanding role.

“In ‘94 we did the Kop,” he said. “Demolishing it was straightforward but then we ran into problems because of contaminated land. The job was stopped on day one and got going again a fortnight later after we had spent £500,000 to sort it.

“In ‘96 we did the refurb of the lower tier of the Centenary Stand and then in ‘97 the upper Anfield Road extension. In 2001 I developed with Gerard Houllier and Rick Parry the new Melwood training ground. I was the project manager for the client’s team. working with the consultants. That was an exciting challenge.

“There were three parts to my job. Firstly, running the stadium and ensuring everything was right for matchdays - from cleaning to repairs. Secondly, head of ops, making sure the training grounds and the Chapel Street offices were maintained.

“Thirdly, as safety officer, engaging with licensing, medical, policing and stewarding. The club employs around 500 to 600 stewards on a matchday and around 80 hosts.

“I always tried to recruit from the north Liverpool area as it’s important for the community. I always find when people come to work for Liverpool, they work with passion.”

Poynton, who will continue to serve on UEFA’s stadium construction and management panel, missed just one home game at Anfield in the space of a quarter of a century and he had a decent excuse.

“It was May 1998 and we were due to play Arsenal,” he said. “I had a heart attack on the Sunday and was off for three weeks. They got rid of the blockage and then I was back at work.

“I’ve done something like 680 games at Anfield and about 170 away. I’ve also done every away European game since Vladikavkaz in ‘95. What a hellhole that was.

“Matchdays were always the most stressful. I’d be out and about before kick-off checking what it was like at the turnstiles. Then I had a seat at the back of the directors box with a landline phone and I’d speak to match control. The stadium has to be right but things can fail and break down.”

There have been some high-profile postponements down the years.

Poynton said: “There was the Everton derby game when the pitch was flooded, we never had drainage before ‘97. The ball wouldn’t roll.

“Then seven years ago we had a huge dump of snow on the Friday before playing Tottenham and it wasn’t safe around the ground. We had a live TV game on the day Princess Diana died and that had to be cancelled at short notice.

“I remember when we played Newcastle midweek about 12 years ago and we won 3-0. The teams were in the tunnel before kick-off when the power went in two stands and I had to send them back to the dressing rooms. An underground cable blew up. The generators came on so we had essential supplies. Maybe I should have called it off but I ran the game.

“That was nerve-wracking, If the generators had run out of diesel during the game we would have had a big problem, but we got through it. You have to trust your judgement and make key decisions.”

And his favourite night at Anfield?

“It would have to be the Champions League semi-final second leg against Chelsea in 2005,” he said.

“That was the best atmosphere I’ve ever experienced. We had to close Walton Breck Road three hours before the game. You could sense that something was happening.

“I’ve never known consistent noise like it. The game buzzed from start to finish. Only Liverpool fans and this stadium could generate an atmosphere like that.”

Over the past decade Poynton wondered if he would ever see further redevelopment of Anfield. He had been involved in the previous false dawns when plans to build a new stadium in Stanley Park failed to materialise.

But owners Fenway Sports Group delivered on their promise to find a solution to a long-running dilemma and the Rainford-based 64-year-old believes the time is now right to depart.

“I’ll finish at Christmas,” he added.

“When the current owners pressed the button on doing the Main Stand I was delighted. This club won’t stand still. it will carry on developing.

“It took me a long time to realise there’s something magic about this club. The fanbase is phenomenal. This is one of the very few clubs which sells out every ticket when they play away.

“Since I’ve been here Liverpool have won every cup apart from the league title. Being in Istanbul was amazing - you’ll never beat that.

“This club is in great shape. I’m a rugby man who became a Liverpool fan. I’ve got a lot of happy memories.”

Source: Liverpool Echo

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