THE NEW Murrayfield Stadium continues to take shape -- and a major
step towards its completion is taken today with the opening of the
centre section of the new West Stand for the Calcutta Cup match. Its two
seating decks will add 12,000 spectators to the crowd who watch Scotland
and England do battle, bringing the total of onlookers around the arena
to 49,000.
Royal visitors, guests, and officials will be seated in the middle of
the lower tier, above the players' tunnel. Also in this section are
seats for the press and media, and a balcony for 100 disabled people and
their helpers.
In the upper tier, where the topmost seats are 30 metres above the
ground, spectators will be able to lift their eyes over the roof of the
East Stand to an impressive Edinburgh skyline featuring Donaldson's
School, the Castle, and Arthur's Seat.
All spectators in the new section will have an unimpeded view. There
are no intervening pillars, as was the case in the old West Stand. Above
the spectators in the main stand is a cantilevered roof 48.5 metres
wide. A third of it comprises clear polycarbonate cladding to admit as
much sunlight as possible to the grass below.
Progress remains on schedule to make Murrayfield one of the world's
finest sports stadiums. Construction of the wings of the West Stand will
start in March. These will be linked with the new North and South
stands, providing 18,000 more seats.
These stands are already joined to the East Stand, finished in 1983.
The field will then be encircled and all spectators will be seated and
have an excellent view of the action. The whole project is scheduled to
be completed in time for Scotland's match against South Africa in
November.
In two and a half years, the SRU will have transformed Murrayfield to
provide seats for 67,500 spectators at a cost of #44m.
It is a revised project which will be better than the original
concept, because the initial aim was to provide 65,000 seats. When the
SRU was confronted with modernising Murrayfield because of the
recommendations of the Taylor report, the first plan was to build new
North and South stands and refurbish the West. Later it was decided to
demolish it and build a new one.
Bill Elwood, the head groundsman, says the stadium in its 40-acre site
is ideally placed, a stone's throw from central Edinburgh. The
environment is pleasant, with open areas and landscaping as one
approaches the stadium, and pitches at the rear for practice and club
games.
The centre of the West Stand, the main stand in the complex, will
incorporate changing rooms for the players, referees' and medical
accommodation, hospitality suites, and press and broadcasting
facilities. The SRU will have its offices on the top floor, moving back
from its temporary location in Roseburn Street, and floodlighting will
be installed.
Mr Elwood says it is not only a marvellous place but the safest
stadium in the world. ''State of the art'' and ''hi-tech'' are
descriptions that apply to Murrayfield, and its equipment includes means
of turnstile monitoring and crowd control.
The redevelopment is being carried out in two phases. The first
started in March, 1992, and involved the replacement of the north and
south terraces by two new, two-tier stands with seats for about 8925
people each.
The East Stand was extended to link with the new North and South
stands, providing around 7864 more seats. These stands were opened for
last year's Five Nations Series.
The second phase began a year ago with the demolition of the old West
Stand wings. After the Rugby World Cup Sevens at Murrayfield last April,
the centre section of the West Stand was demolished and construction of
its replacement began.
An SRU official said a rigorous safety procedure was carried out
before every match. The West Stand had been designed under strict
guidelines so as not to obstruct sight lines. In front of the stand
there is a 10-metre gap to give all spectators a good view.
The new Murrayfield will be an attraction for more than rugby. It will
offer splendid provision for hospitality. The function suites in the
North and South stands are already in operation, and there will be even
more impressive amenities in the West Stand.
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