Pride of Anglia - Ipswich Town Football Club
since 1878
Do You Remember ... Summer 1971
The building of the Portman Road stand (in 102 days)?
Looking at Portman Road today, with magnificent double-tiered stands at each end of the ground flanking the impressively high Britannia Stand, it is easy to see the Cobbold Stand as the poor relation of the four but when it was built it was sleek, modern and towered above the rest of the ground. What is more, it was built - from start to finish, during the 1971 close season - in just 102 days , a great achievement in itself, and one which meant that not a single minute's football had to be played in front of a building site.
Portman Road had always been famed for the quality of its pitch, even long before professional football graced the turf, but there was little remarkable about the rest of the ground. It was not until the late 1950s that there were covered stands on all four sides, and by the time plans for the new Portman Road stand were drawn up in late 1969, the old East Stand - affectionately known as the "chicken run" - was 60 years old and sporting its third roof! It was this stand which had witnessed Blues' transition from amateurism to professionalism and subsequent rise through the Football League. This was the stand from which fans had seen Blues win the First Division and take part in the European Cup. But it was a structure from another age and with a new manager and a new decade looming - and more importantly a new long-term lease from the Council - the time was ripe for modernisation.
The design was not finalised until January 1971 but once the Football League Management had given their approval there was no turning back. Only three days after the completion of the 1970/71 season the old East Stand had been demolished, and along with it so many memories. To accommodate the much larger new stand the pitch was moved Westwards and narrowed, and to allow for the 23 rows of seating the new stand was to be partially built overhanging Portman Road. In order to support the taller structure deep pilings were needed as the football ground was built on what had originally been marsh land used for grazing. The pilings were - and still are, of course - one and a half times the height of the stand!
The timing for the project was critical, and it was run to military precision. Many different contractors had to play their part, from the steel and cladding to the concrete, the seating to the electrical installation. Overseeing the whole operation were a local firm, Cubitt & Gotts. The rate the building work had to progress was equivalent to building four houses a week! The new stand was of a cantilever design which meant no unsightly stanchions to block the views of the supporters. The first such stand in the world was built in 1958 at Scunthorpe, and in an historical twist Blues were the opponents the day that stand was opened!
Following the demolition of the old stand and the sinking of the pilings, the shape of the new stand quickly appeared as the steel framework was erected, dwarfing the rest of the ground. By June the concrete on which the seats would be sited was beginning to appear, and by July the roof was taking shape. Changes were happening very quickly, but Portman road remained open to traffic during the construction, minimising the disruption to the local community.
The construction ran to schedule throughout the three months and once the 3,468 seats began to be installed the stand started to assume its final appearance.
On 14th August 1971, just over three months after the old East stand was torn down Blues hosted Everton - whose team included future Blues boss Joe Royle - in the opening fixture of the new season, and proudly unveiled the newest stand in the land which was officially opened by the England team manager, Sir Alf Ramsey. [great photo-op of present and future England managers]
The ground capacity now stood at around 37,000 and the coming season would see Portman Road host its first England Under-23 International, in November against Switzerland, and a new attendance record established for the League match against Liverpool in December - 31,362 fans seeing that game. Attendances would continue to rise for the next five seasons as the squad continually improved in keeping with their new, impressive surroundings.
With great foresight the new stand was designed with expansion and modernisation in mind, and as the Seventies progressed and success on the field improved finances off it, the stand was extended both North and South to run the full length of the pitch, executive boxes were added to provide luxurious comfort in which to watch Blues' superstars and the terraced area at the front of the stand was replaced with seating, making the Portman Road stand the first in the ground to be all-seater. Now known as the Cobbold Stand in honour of the family most synonymous with Blues, this grand old lady of Portman Road is nearing the end of her fourth decade.
Ian Hunneybell