What the Supporters Say
It may not matter to the powers that be (who knows?) but here's what Joe Supporter thinks of the plans.
Stadiums in town are better
Stadiums in town - such as the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff or the City of Manchester Stadium - are much better experiences, with pubs and restaurants nearby.
Posted by Lavery @ BBC Talk Back
Maze would be a "Missed Opportunity"
The Maze only makes sense if you think all a stadium is is a venue to watch a match. Then you'd agree: put in at the Maze, where it't not in the way of anything.
Personally, I think that would be a great missed opportunity. The ancillary benefits of having the stadium in the city centre - for example, the shipyard - would be enormous. It would also breathe a little bit of atmosphere into the city on match days.
Dublin is carnivalesque for days when there's a big match on at Lansdowne or Croker. Belfast could be the same - but not if this stadium is stuck, bascially, out of sight.
Posted by Billy Pilgrim @ Slugger O'Toole
Even People Near the Maze Prefer Belfast
As a football supporter who lives only a few miles from the proposed site at the Maze, my preference for the national stadium would still be for the Titanic Quarter.
Posted by Ern @ Our Wee Country
Look At Dublin's Atmosphere
Take the example of Dublin on the day of a big match whether at Croke Park or Lansdowne Rd. The whole town becomes a hive of activity; football jerseys appear everywhere in the cafes, pubs, resturaunts, and chip-shops. The fact that there's a game in town adds a lot of energy to city life. Supporters mingle and soak up the atmosphere. They have a seemingly infinite number of places to go and eat and pass the time before the game. They have a choice of driving to Dublin or taking the train and then walking the relatively short distance to the stadium (in the case of Croke Park at least). Crowds walking to a game add to the atmosphere. There is no atmosphere in a queue of cars on a clogged-up dual-carriageway.
Posted by Eamonn @ BBC Talk Back
Let's Go Forward on the Proper Site
Sports journalists don't appear to have an opinion on the matter, all so different from the situation in the Republic where there was a Press-led debate about a rebuilt Landsdowne and the"Bertie Bowl" at an out-of-the-way Abbotstown in west Dublin - the result, a rebuild of the old ground with all the convienence for match fans.
Let's go forward with the new stadium, but only on the proper site - Titanic Quarter. The new ground could house a replacement for Maysfield as well as accommodation for the IFA, GAA. Ulster Rugby, House of Sport and everyone else who wants on board.
Letter from Irate Fan printed in Belfast Telegraph