Sheffield's World Student Games £658m debt 'disaster' - BBC News BBC News Sheffield's World Student Games £658m debt 'disaster' 14 July 2011 Read more about sharing. Close share panel Image caption The official opening of the games took place at the Don Valley Stadium on 14 July 1991 The World Student Games which took place in Sheffield 20 years ago ran up an overall debt of £658m. Sheffield Council, which funded the 1991 games, has revealed it will continue to repay £25m a year until the debt is paid off in 2024 despite having to make savings of £80m this year. Lib Dem group leader Shaffaq Mohammed branded the games a financial disaster. Bryan Lodge, deputy leader of the Labour-controlled council, said the games venues are an asset. As part of the project for the World Student Games, the council built large sporting facilities in Sheffield to host events, including Don Valley Stadium, Ponds Forge, Sheffield Arena and Hillsborough Leisure Centre.

Following a request by the BBC, the council released figures stating that the cost of building the facilities totalled £147m and a further £21.4m was spent on staging the games. It said £297m has been repaid, however the final amount will not be fully repaid until April 2024. 'Spread the load' The leader of Sheffield Council during the games in 1991 was Clive Betts, now Labour MP for Sheffield South East. He told the BBC he blames past administrations at the council for "remortgaging the debt", said the total debt was "total nonsense". The chief executive at the council, John Mothersole said the debt had been "re-profiled four-times" which has lead to the outstanding debt increasing as part of the council's bid to "spread the financial load." Mr Mohammed said he was not "against developing sporting facilities" but was disappointed at the finance package and feels Labour should apologise. Mr Lodge said: "It's the nature of local government finance that debts are extended are re-profiled, also known as re-financing.

"It was a decision taken at the time to regenerate the lower Don Valley and was right at the time." A building which was commissioned for the World Student Games includes Waltheof Sports Hall, which was demolished in 2006. The council said it spent £1.25m on the build but claims it was in need of substantial investment after 15 years of heavy useage. New basketball arena planned for the Olympic Legacy Park in Sheffield - BBC News BBC News New basketball arena planned for the Olympic Legacy Park in Sheffield 15 March 2016 Close share panel Media captionThe park is on the site of the former Don Valley Stadium. A £3.5m sports arena is to be built on the former Don Valley Stadium site after plans were approved by Sheffield City Council. The 2,500-seat arena will be used by the Sheffield Sharks basketball team and other sports as part of a 35-acre Olympic Legacy Park. The Park Community Arena is expected to be built this autumn, said organisers. Don Valley Stadium was demolished in 2013 as part of cost-saving measures by the city council.

Atiba Lyons, head coach of the Sheffield Sharks, said: "This heralds a bright new future." "The Park Community Arena will provide a fantastic home for basketball from junior to senior level and will be a great boost for the city." It is hoped Sheffield Eagles, the city's rugby league team, is also to play at the park from next season said organisers. The site is to incorporate the existing English Institute of Sport and iceSheffield. The Oasis Academy, for children aged up to 16, is already open on the site and a University Technical College is due to open in September. Outline planning permission was also granted for an Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre in the park. Image copyright Ares Image caption The arena is to be part of a 35-acre Olympic Legacy Park The Olympic Legacy Park is joint venture between Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield City Council. Although the site was not involved in the 2012 Olympic Games it has retained the name since the idea for the developing the area was first mooted. Don Valley Stadium was built in 1990 at a cost of £29m to host the 1991 World Student Games.

Don Valley Stadium to be demolished due to cost cuts - Telegraph Athletics Don Valley Stadium to be demolished due to cost cuts Councillors in Sheffield have dealt a blow to Britain’s Olympic legacy by voting to demolish Don Valley Stadium, the home track of London 2012 heptathlon gold medallist Jessica Ennis, as part of a £50 million cost-cutting package. Grouds for concern: Sheffield City Council said the £700,000 spent subsidising the Don Valley Stadium in 2012-13 was unsustainable as the facility was running at a loss Photo: GETTY IMAGES Follow The 25,000-seat stadium, which was built to host the World Student Games in 1991 at a cost of £29 million and is the second largest athletics venue in Britain after the Olympic Stadium, will close in September and is set to be bulldozed to make way for medical research facilities. Sheffield’s Labour-run City Council said it had no choice but to axe the loss-making stadium due to spending cuts imposed on it by the Coalition Government.

The venue costs £700,000 a year to run and the council said it was also facing a £1.6 million repair bill. But the decision has saddened Ennis, whose talent for athletics was first spotted on the Don Valley track when she attended a summer camp at the stadium when she was 10 years old. She still trains there at least twice a week. On her Twitter page, she wrote yesterday: “So sad to lose Don Valley Stadium. Where it all started for me. Great memories.” The council has made alternative proposals to refurbish the nearby Woodbourn Road stadium – a much smaller venue which was closed 18 months ago and is now in a state of disrepair. Related Articles Olympians dismayed over Pistorius 15 Feb 2013 However, Ennis’s long-term coach, Toni Minichiello, has questioned whether enough money will be made available to redevelop the stadium to an acceptable level. "The amount of money they want to put in really doesn't bring it up to scratch or provide any lasting legacy for athletics in the city,” he said.

The decision of the council comes just seven months after it granted Ennis the Freedom of the City at a civic reception in the centre of Sheffield attended by a crowd of more than 20,000. There was also talk of renaming Don Valley the Jessica Ennis Stadium in honour of her achievement in London. Ennis, who received a CBE at Buckingham Palace on Thursday, said before yesterday’s budget meeting that she hoped the council would make the “right decision” and give the stadium a reprieve. "Having that iconic stadium in my home city is incredible,” she said. “And to lose that would be such a shame for future athletes coming through." Sports minister Hugh Robertson had also expressed his hope that the stadium would be saved, describing the venue as “extraordinarily emblematic”. Minichiello said: “If there are fewer facilities, things get crowded and when kids turn up to try it for the first time, it’s a bit rubbish so they never come back again.

The next gold medallist walks out of the door because we didn’t take the whole legacy thing seriously.” The Don Valley Stadium: Memories Of A White Elephant - Sabotage Times Sport The Don Valley Stadium: Memories Of A White Elephant With the news that the stadium in which Jessica Ennis is about to be demolished, we looked back at Sheffield's love/hate relationship with the Don Valley Stadium - South Yorkshire's white elephant. Avatar: Social count: 3 With the news that the stadium in which Jessica Ennis is about to be demolished, we looked back at Sheffield's love/hate relationship with the Don Valley Stadium - South Yorkshire's white elephant. 3 0 The Don Valley Stadium has become national news for the first time in its history. After years of being ignored, the training base of national sweetheart Jess Ennis hit the headlines when Sheffield City Council announced that it was to be demolished as part of their plan to trim £50 million from their budget. Local people, who have spent the last quarter of a century complaining that the stadium is a costly folly and a symbol of town hall hubris, have been wheeled out to bemoan its passing on camera.

This sudden emotional attachment to a previously unloved white elephant seemed a bit weird- but is oddly typical of the way South Yorkshire folk feel about the DVS. As well as athletics, a complete dud no matter what the Olympics mob tell you, everything has been tried to find a use for the arena. From gigs by the Stones and U2 to the desperate annual After Dark firework display, each idea has failed to make the venue sustainable. I share the same love/disdain relationship with the place. I like the concept and have some good memories of the Don Valley- but all of them remind me that it was doomed to failure from the start. World Student Games Opening Ceremony - Summer 1991 Unversiade 91 was Sheffield City Council’s master plan. The games would make the Steel City famous around the globe and sport would kick start the regeneration of the post-industrial wasteland. Somehow, they overlooked a possible problem; nobody gave a toss about the student games. Failure to land a TV deal and a sponsor meant that the city had to underwrite the expenditure.

In 2011, figures suggested that the cost to council taxpayers totalled £658 million and that annual repayments of £25 million would go on until 2024. The Don Valley Stadium was the centrepiece and provided the only memorable moment of the games. Helen Sharman, local girl and Britain’s first astronaut, dropped the torch on the last leg. The red carpet smouldered and the Partridge-esque commentary compared the mishap to ‘nerve wracking moments in space’. Many expected the Univesiade to be a flop, but for it to descend into laughing stock status before it even officially started was below even the most pessimistic prediction. The sad fact is, many more people remember the likes of Bobby Davro, Mr Gay UK and Tinhead out of Brookside competing at the DVS in the Channel 4 reality show The Games than in the games it was actually built for. Sheffield Eagles 6 - 46 Wigan - 28 Aug 1993 A bumper crowd turned up for first Friday night Super League game- many attracted by the promise of a firework spectacular at the final whistle.

Since being formed in the 80s, the Eagles had led a nomadic existence. They needed a home and the DVS needed a reason to be- seemingly a match made in heaven. I was among the horde of first timers who turned up that night. There is nothing more dismal than a one-sided rugby match and I was back in the pub long before the blue touch paper was lit. It became obvious that there was no demand for Rugby League in South Yorkshire. Even when the Eagles pulled off their shock Challenge Cup win in 98, it barely registered in an otherwise sports mad city. After the original club was Murdoched out of existence, they returned – but only a few hundred hardy souls turn out to watch them. Championship Boxing - 5 Dec 2007 The Coldwell Boxing show was the best event I attended at the DVS. Mo Khaled had all the moves but Josh Wale stuck his head on the Ingle fighter’s chest and pounded his way to the Central Area bantamweight title. On the same card, Curtis Woodhouse and Ryan Rhodes got rid of their opponents in brutal fashion. Top entertainment in a wholly unsuitable venue.

A long thin hall with a low roof is far from ideal for boxing. The height of the room did not leave space for a lighting rig so the ring was positioned under a convenient strip light. Coldwell moved his shows over the border to Magna. Ryan Rhodes defended his EBU title at Ponds Forge- the city centre swimming complex built for the Universiade. Sheffield’s biggest fight nights, featuring Ricky Hatton and Clinton Woods in world title fights and the rise of hometown hero Kell Brook , have taken place at the nearby Sheffield Arena- another Student Games facility that, unlike the DVS, has been embraced by the people of the city. More... Usain Bolt And The Re-Emergence Of Personality In Sport Rotherham United 0 - 0 Aldershot - 31 Oct 2009 Without the Don Valley Stadium, Rotherham United would have gone out of business. The Millers lucked out when they had to leave Millmoor- finding a 25,000 seat stadium desperate for a purpose four miles away. The location of the DVS has had a bearing on the lack of affection Sheffielders felt for it.

In Attercliffe, it was on the opposite side of the city to the affluent southern suburbs that kick in the lion’s share of the council tax. In contrast, Rotherham folk are well disposed to the state of the art amenities that sprung up on their doorstep- costing them the grand total of fuck all. In many ways, the ‘Cliffe is the ideal spot for a football ground; great transport links, plenty of budget boozers and food outlets and even a sprinkling of brothels for the more adventurous match goer. My first taste of league football there was a let-down. It takes a special level of boredom to make you think walking to Attercliffe to watch the Millers v Aldershot is an enticing option. The match was predictably dire- the setting even worse. The little things, like doors on every exit, reinforced the idea that this was not a place for football. Add in the major flaws; everyone sitting on one side, athletics track, awful pitch and less atmosphere than Pluto and you had a truly appalling match day experience. Thankfully, United were able to use the breathing space to get their house in order and moved on to the New York Stadium.

In an odd twist, their old home has escaped the wrecking ball and is virtually untouched since the day they left in 2008. The ghost football ground Millmoor, with its ancient 124 ft floodlight pylons looking down on deserted cowshed architecture, still stands and will outlive the DVS. Olympic Heptathlon - Aug 4 2012 For months, there had been posters all round town and a blitz in the local media- come and celebrate Sheffield’s golden girl in her home stadium. Enjoy a day of family fun and join the crowd in front of the big screen to cheer our Jess on to victory. It was far more enjoyable than I expected- pretty much a parent’s dream. Imagine turning up at an enclosed space where your kids can run about and take part in loads of activities. Even better, the low turnout meant that the kids didn’t have to queue up for anything and the adults didn’t have to wait at the bar. After a few hours of getting pleasantly pissed in the sunshine, it was decision time- stick around for the main event or get off.

As the numbers had dropped off to a level that it would be a stretch to call those remaining a crowd, we decided the atmosphere would probably be better in our front room. The TV coverage of the event consisted of tight close ups while a voice over unconvincingly recounted scenes of mass hysteria when the tape was broken at the climax of the 800 metres. Maybe this was the straw that broke the camel’s back. If the people of Sheffield could not be arsed to turn up at the DVS for a free event built around the triumph of a Sheffield lass at the time of peak Olympic fever- would anything ever tempt them? Tour de France Route Announcement: 17 Jan 2013 Across Yorkshire , people were anxious to see whether the 2014 race would be coming to their town. The route announcement answered all the questions- except one. Stage two would end in Sheffield, but nobody was sure exactly where. The peloton will sweep into the city via Hillsborough then pass through the city centre. After that, the exact finishing point was not clear, although it was definitely somewhere in the East End. Soon afterwards, a reporter at the launch told Radio Sheffield what everyone in South Yorkshire had already guessed.

It was his understanding that the original proposal had been for the stage to end at the Don Valley. As the council were assessing the future of the stadium and there was every chance it would be rubble by 2014- the details of the finish were under review. The final irony. Sheffield City Council built the Don Valley Stadium to showcase the city to the world through sport. Unfortunately, the event they secured was one that the world didn’t care about. Now, the city was hosting a premium sporting event that would attract millions of viewers and the concrete and steel expression of Sheffield’s hopes and dreams that was due to star in it would have been flattened and trampled underfoot before it arrived. Farewell Don Valley. A brave dream that became a monument to failure. Tags ° Guide: Attercliffe in United Kingdom (England) | Tripmondo About this place | Picture gallery | Weather forecast | Sightseeing tipps | Upcomming events | Video collection | Hotels & hostels | Near places & districts Advertising Attercliffe in England (region) is a town located in United Kingdom - about 141 mi (or 227 km) North-West of London, the country's capital place.

Time in Attercliffe is now 06:08 AM (Wednesday). The local timezone is named "Europe / London" with an UTC offset of 1 hours. Depending on your travel resources, these more prominent destinations might be interesting for you: York , Wolverhampton , Wincobank , Wales , Tinsley or Parson Cross . Being here already, consider visiting Nether Edge, Neepsend, Manor, Longley, Heeley and Attercliffe. There are 5 airports in the area of Attercliffe. The nearest airport we we have in our database is Robin Hood Doncaster Sheffield Airport (IATA: DSA) with a distance of 18 mi (or 29.7 km) East of the city centre of Attercliffe. Explore images from this region and get inspiration for your trip in advance. Look at the best 40 pictures from our Attercliffe slideshow below to get a view of what this places is like. Inform youself about this location before you begin your journey.

Looking Along Ribston The picture Looking along Ribston Road towards Staniforth Road, Darnall, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Down Lyons Street The picture Looking down Lyons Street towards Don Valley stadium, Sheffield S4/S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Towards Parkway The picture Looking towards Parkway Retail Park and Cricket Inn Road from a wild flower meadow, Wybourn, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Bailey Bridge Information The picture Bailey Bridge information sign on the Five Weirs Walk, Lower Don Valley, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Terraced Housing On The picture Terraced housing on Maxwell Way, Burngreave, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking South West From The picture Looking south west from the recreation ground off Ellesmere Road, Burngreave, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Burn

greave/pitsmoor The picture Burngreave/Pitsmoor housing in the snow from Buckenham Street, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Recreation Ground Off The picture Recreation ground off Ellesmere Road in spring, Burngreave, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Down Ellesmere The picture Looking down Ellesmere Road, Burngreave towards the city centre, Sheffield S4/S1 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Meadowhall Bound The picture Meadowhall bound Supertram at Hyde Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Sunset Over Part Of The picture Sunset over part of Sheffield city centre (taken from Derek Dooley Way) 1, Sheffield S1 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Across Hollywell The picture Looking across Hollywell Road to it's junction with Rothay Road, Grimesthorpe, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoram

io.com by: sixxsix Supertram With The City The picture Supertram with the city centre behind, Sheffield S2/S1 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Sheffield Park Academy The picture Sheffield Park Academy from Corker Bottoms Recreation Ground, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Towards Sheffield The picture Looking towards Sheffield Park Academy from Corker Bottoms Recreation Ground, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Wild Flower Meadow And The picture Wild flower meadow and Beaumont Road houses 1, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Talbot Place And The picture Talbot Place and Shrewsbury Almshouses from Manor Oaks, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Towards Wincobank The picture Looking towards Wincobank Hill from Osgathorpe Park, Fir Vale, Sheffield S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on

 panoramio.com by: sixxsix Wild Flower Meadow Near The picture Wild flower meadow near Harborough Rise, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Mather Road Houses The picture Mather Road houses, Darnall, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Wild Flower Meadow The picture Wild flower meadow looking towards Harborough Road, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Lower Don Valley Sports The picture Lower Don Valley sports venues from Skye Edge, Sheffield S2/S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Taking The Dog For A Walk The picture Taking the dog for a walk on a snowy Skye Edge, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Wild Flower Meadow The picture Wild flower meadow looking towards Beaumont Road North houses, Manor Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Greenwood Road, Darn

all The picture Greenwood Road, Darnall, looking towards Ecclesfield/Chapeltown, Sheffield S9/S35 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Early Morning Fog And The picture Early morning fog and frost, Lower Don Valley from Sky Edge, Sheffield S2/S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Greenwood Road, Darnall The picture Greenwood Road, Darnall, with Pitsmoor in the distance, Sheffield S9/S4 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Sheffield City Centre And The picture Sheffield City Centre and Crookes from Skye Edge, Sheffield S2/S1/S10 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Low Winter Sun Behind The picture Low winter sun behind cloud over Norfolk Park (taken from Skye Edge), Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Footpath At Skye Edge The picture Footpath at Skye Edge looking towards Norfolk Park, Sheffield S2 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on

 panoramio.com by: sixxsix Sculpture And Preserved The picture Sculpture and preserved arch of the former Brightside steelworks, Brightside, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Looking Towards Wincobank The picture Looking towards Wincobank Hill from near the River Don at Brightside, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Approaching Snow Shower The picture Approaching snow shower over south west Sheffield (taken from Skye Edge), Sheffield S2/S1/S11 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix The Railway At The The picture The Railway at the junction of Dearne Street/Hollywell Street, Brightside/Wincobank, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Fireworks, Lower Don The picture Fireworks, Lower Don Valley, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Misty Sunrise Over The The picture Misty sunrise over the Lower Don Valley, Sheffield S9 was uploaded and shared

 by user sixxsix on panoramio.com by: sixxsix Wincobank's Iron Age Fort The picture Wincobank's Iron Age fort (500 BC) was uploaded and shared by user tu.andy on panoramio.com by: tu.andy Prehistoric Hill Fort Tony Stewart: The man behind Rotherham United's rise - BBC Sport BBC Sport Tony Stewart: The man behind Rotherham United's rise By Joe Townsend Read more about sharing.

'Start spreading the news, I'm leaving today, I want to be a part of it, New York, New York.' Those words sung by Frank Sinatra for Martin Scorsese's classic 1970s film were ones Rotherham chairman Tony Stewart might have hoped to hear in the town's streets in July 2012 as they moved in to the New York Stadium, its name taken from that of the local area. After four years playing home games outside Rotherham, it marked a return 'home' for the Millers. But little could Stewart have realised it would result in such an upturn in fortunes on the pitch too. "I took over the club six years ago and decided to build a ground that was fit for the purpose, then start working with managers to get confidence back into the town," said the owner of Rotherham-based ASD Lighting PLC after the Millers secured Championship promotion by beating Leyton Orient on penalties in the League One play-off final. And as chants of 'there's only one Tony Stewart' rang out inside English football's national stadium, neutrals could be forgiven for wondering who the United fans were singing about.

Media playback is not supported on this device Millers chairman targets Premier League In a town perhaps more famous for providing the sport with World Cup final referee Howard Webb, than South Yorkshire's second Championship football team, he is the man that saved their club. "If you're not a Rotherham fan, you can't understand the ups and downs we've had these past few years," one supporter told the Football League Show on the steps of Wembley. We can at least try to. 'These vagabond shoes, they are longing to stray'... a little strong? It is closer to the mark than you would think. In 2008, Stewart bought a club in administration, preparing for a season in the Football League's basement division with a 17-point penalty. That was only the half of it. A factor in the Millers' dire financial situation was the rent being charged at their stadium, Millmoor. The landlords failed to strike a deal with Stewart, and with heavy heart, he laced those vagabond shoes and strayed across the M1 to nearby Sheffield.

Rotherham bedded down at the now-demolished Don Valley Stadium, with Stewart promising to fund construction of a new home in the S60 post-code range. A facility built for the hosting of athletics at the 1991 World University Games, Rotherham were welcome tenants for Sheffield City Council, which was struggling to cover the stadium's bills via the rent of Championship rugby league side Sheffield Eagles and the occasional athletics meeting. Rotherham United managers under Tony Stewart's ownership Mark Robins: 2008 to 2009 Ronnie Moore: 2009 to 2011 Andy Scott: 2011 to 12 Steve Evans: 2012 to present This lighting salesman from Rotherham could not have fathomed that six years later United would be two divisions higher. Could he? "My dream is probably to get to the top of the Championship. Talk to Hull, talk to Barnsley, these teams have done it before," Stewart told BBC Radio Sheffield two years ago. Three months later they made a brand new start of it.

The £17m New York Stadium was to be Rotherham's new home, a name coined from the fact the area previously housed the site of old steelworks firm Guest and Chrimes, a company famed for manufacturing the Big Apple's iconic red fire hydrants. After four years of League Two - including a play-off final defeat by Dagenham & Redbridge - and four managers, Stewart had made good on his pledge as the Millers returned to S60, a stone's throw from Millmoor. As their final season in exile was drawing to a close, then Crawley Town manager Steve Evans was recruited as boss. His arrival, along with the stadium move, sparked Rotherham's remarkable rise. The Glaswegian overhauled a squad Andy Scott had struggled to get the best out of, bringing in 12 and moving out seven players over that summer. And the 51-year-old's first full season started as Stewart had no doubt dreamed. "Tony Stewart saved Rotherham United. The joyous feelings of Millers fans after back-to-back promotions is in stark contrast to the anger, confusion and despondency felt in the two-year period sparked by dropping out of the second-tier in 2005.

"The club was beset with problems on and off the field. They entered administration in 2006 which caused a 10-point deduction and contributed to relegation the following season. "Ten more were docked the next year and 17 for Stewart's inaugural season at the helm. They needed someone of his ambition, candour, and business acumen to help them avoid more doom and gloom. "We can only really guess how much money his Rotherham revolution has cost to date, but the benefit to the club and the town itself is immeasurable. "Everything Stewart has said he was going to do he has done - the fact it has taken just six years is remarkable. "The club and the town now have a team and a stadium to be very proud of." A 3-0 win over Burton in the new, New York Stadium was witnessed by 11,441 people - a far cry from the 4,484 that attended the curtain-raiser at Don Valley four years earlier. In April, victory over Aldershot Town, ironically under the tutelage of his predecessor, secured Evans' seventh promotion as a manager.

"I walked out on Crawley 12 months ago to come to a club that I believe could be a Championship club," Evans proclaimed after finishing, not quite top of the heap, as League Two runners-up. "We've got a lot of hard work to do to just be a League One club, but we'll get there very quickly under a fantastic chairman and supporters that have been incredible all season." More evolution than revolution came in Evans' second close-season as he tweaked his squad for their first third-tier campaign since 2006-07. And as Stewart had hoped, people did want to 'be a part of it' in New York. His town's enthusiasm for football did not wane. An average home gate of 8,580 saw United spend the final six months of the campaign in the play-off places, ultimately securing promotion by overcoming Preston North End and then Leyton Orient. "The fans have been absolutely magnificent. I know how much it hurt them against Dagenham four years ago," Evans told BBC Radio Sheffield. "How could you ever forget what we've achieved in these last two years? If you offered me a lottery win or this, it would be this.

History repeats itself Rotherham United's last stint in the second tier of English football came on the back of successive promotions in 2000 and 2001. "I've been working for a great chairman but they're not always good days. There are days where there's a debate, days that aren't easy ones, but that's why Tony Stewart is as successful as he is. "He's a man who has everything, so for him to tell me I've given him something money couldn't buy, I'm extremely proud." His chairman is not done yet. "For me, taking over was a challenge and it's a challenge I've enjoyed," said Stewart. "I always say, whatever league you're in, you're in it to win it, to be at the pinnacle of that league. "There's only one step higher than the Championship - the adventure goes on." And £30m, six years, four managers and two promotions down the road, Stewart still wants to be top of the list, head of the heap, king of the hill. Right there in old New York. Interviews by BBC Radio Sheffield's Andy Giddings and Rob Staton, and the Football League Show's Mark Clemmit.

Share this page Commonwealth « The Anonymous Widower This report on the BBC is entitled Commonwealth Games 2026: Liverpool plans to be host city. Why not? The only major World or European event it has hosted was the 2008 European Capital of Culture . But with the Grand National and regular Open Golf just up the coast or across the water, the City has the track record to put on a spectacular. As the BBC report says, Everton need a new stadium and that could be the main stadium. After all, it worked for Manchester City. My one question would be, do we need another velodrome, or would borrowing Manchester’s be acceptable? But in some ways, Liverpool has the same big advantage that London had in the 2012 Olympics. It can use the City as a backdrop to the events. I actually, think that 2026 could be Liverpool’s year! I don’t think they were favourites in 2008 either. Liverpool is England’s only World City other than London and Cambridge. By 2026, the city’s railways will have been revamped with lots of new trains. Everton need a new ground.

If Liverpool puts on a show, people turn up in hoards. Liverpool is a day trip from Birmingham, London, York and everywhere in between. Never underestimate a Scouser when they’re considered outsiders. The End Of The Don Valley Stadium Sheffield’s Don Valley stadium was built for the World Student Games in 1991. It was never a real success and is now being demolished. If there is a lesson from this story, it is to get the planning of what you do after the Games right. Manchester after the 2002 Commonweath Games rebuilt the stadium for Manchester City and the London 2012 Olympic stadium is going to be used by West Ham. Glasgow’s excellent 2014 Commonealth Games imaginatively built an Athletics Track inside Hampden Park . The Don Valley stadium didn’t seem to interest either or both of the city’s football clubs as a venue after the Games, so became a white elephant. I do think a factor was that the stadium was designed in-house by Sheffield Council’s own architects. This policy was used extensively by British Rail and created some real monstrosities in the 1960s and 1970s.

By contrast the award-winning John Smith’s stadium in Huddersfield, which I visited in the afternoon and was built a few years later, was designed by specialist architects, as have most sports stadia around the world in recent years. I do think too, that Sheffield missed a chance here of creating a prefabicated set of stands, in steel naturally, that would have fitted the standard athletics track. After the Games most could have been taken down leaving just enough for less-grand events. As the stadium is in a bowl, surely this could have been used to create an uncovered natural amphitheatre, where most people just sat on the grass. This has been used successfully at many horse racing venues in the UK and further afield, like Ascot, Goodwood and Epsom, where these areas have a totally different atmosphere. In some ways it’s all rather sad and it has been probably a big waste of money, that could have been better spent. Athletics hasn’t drawn large crowds in the UK outside of the big set piece games and championships. The Alexander Stadium in Birmingham seems to be more than sufficient with a capacity of 12,700 for most other events, so the Don Valley stadium was probably a stadium too many for athletics.

The nearest stadia at Gateshead , Manchester and the smaller track in Leeds , seem to have successfully negotiated multi-sport partnerships and appear to be on a much sounder footing, than the Don Valley Stadium ever was. If they’d got the planning, re-use and design right, it might have been a very different story! Does Glasgow Need Its Own Rail Hub? I’ve just been talking to a friend north of the border and he had not heard of the Northern Hub , which finally is getting the treatment and publicity it deserves. He was unaware of a scheme in Glasgow called Crossrail Glasgow to link the two main stations and make journeys across the city a lot easier. Reading about it here on Wikipedia, I can’t understand, why it wasn’t implemented before the Commonwealth Games this year. Crossrail Glasgow and the Northern Hub , are just two of a whole series of projects to improve transport in our major provincial cities, like the Greater Bristol Metro , the extensions to both the Birmingham and Nottingham trams and the reopening of several important commuter railways. Could it be that the decision on this rail project would have been taken in Edinburgh?

51.545613 -0.075794 Goodbye Gambia I enjoyed a good holiday with C in Gambia the year before she died and I’m sorry to see them leave the Commonwealth, as reported in various papers today. I obviously don’t want to comment on the rights and wrongs of Gambia leaving, but I did once have a breakfast discussion with the Speaker of the Mozambiquan Parliament about the advantages of joining the Commonwealth, which his country had just done. It was very enlightening. On the other hand the Times did print this paragraph. President Jammeh of The Gambia told the United Nations’ General Assembly last month that homosexuals were one of the “biggest threats to human existence”. So perhaps, the Commonwealth is better off without President Jammeh. 51.545613 -0.075794 Diminutive Jessica rising to the mother of all challenges, Sport News & Top Stories - The Straits Times The Straits Times Copy Now that the Games are to be screened live in Singapore, might I interest you in keeping an eye open for a Brit who is attempting something pretty special?

Maybe if Jessica Ennis-Hill's event coincides with a Singaporean going for glory next weekend, the suggestion is a non-starter. Perhaps if I throw in the fact that she is attempting to retain her Olympic crown across seven different elements, and that she became a mum since her 2012 London Olympics gold, you might find the time and inspiration to watch her. Ennis-Hill runs, hurdles, jumps and throws the javelin and the shot put in the two-day heptathlon that is designed to test just about every sinew, and every facet of mind and body and stamina in women's track and field. Apart from the intriguing aspect of giving birth and then returning to the Olympics, there might be another side to Ennis-Hill that appeals to you. She is diminutive for her event. She stands 1.65m and weighs 57kg where most heptathletes are 1.8m and closer to 67kg. British heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill clearing a hurdle at last month's Diamond League Anniversary Games in London. She is bidding to become the third new mum to retain an Olympic title. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE Speed is her asset.

Speed and a steely mind behind a deceptive smile. However, if you are getting a picture of a little bird among power athletes, be aware that Ennis-Hill has a six-pack that many men spend thousands of hours in the gym trying to develop. The women's heptathlon in Rio takes place next Friday and Saturday (and to you early Sunday). The events are more time-friendly to Singaporeans than will be the case to Brits, because if her folks back in Sheffield, England want to see the final race they will be up until the early hours of both Saturday and Sunday mornings. Millions will, because, in a world hammered by suspicion around sports, "Our Jess" is seen in Britain as someone seeking through talent and tenacity simply to be the best. Here's the schedule of events, with Singapore times and Ennis-Hill's personal-best performances: •Friday, Aug 12 8.35pm: 100m hurdles (12.54 sec). 9.50pm : High jump (1.95m). •Saturday, Aug 13 7.35am: Shot put (14.67m).

9.05am: 200m run (22.83sec). 10.45pm: Long jump (6.63m). •Sunday, Aug 14 7am: Javelin (48.33m). 9.53am: 800m run (2 min 7.81 secs) Exhausted yet? Then consider this: Ennis-Hill, the daughter of a Jamaican father and a Sheffield mother, turned 30 this year. Not only are her leading competitors taller and stronger (at least outwardly) but younger too. Katarina Johnson-Thompson, aged 23, grew up in Liverpool to regard Ennis-Hill as her inspiration. The younger woman, 1.83m and 68kg, emerged as a "beast" of the bench press, and received tips, almost mentoring, from Ennis-Hill. Now, Johnson-Thompson suggests, it's a weird sensation going head to head with the woman who set the example. Almost, Johnson-Thompson says, like an inter-generational game, both of them going for gold in Rio.

There are, of course, others in the arena. Canada's Brianne Theisen-Eaton, Germany's Jennifer Oeser, Latvia's Laura Ikauniece-Admidina are tongue twisters and candidates. So is Antoinette Nana Djimou Ida, born in Cameroon and now representing France. Parenthood changes perspectives. Ennis-Hill is as rapt in Reggie as any mum could be. But then it started to become important for the boy to see what makes his mother extraordinary. And only two women athletes have given birth and retained their titles over the four-year Olympic cycle. One was the Australian, Shirley Strickland, who won the 80m hurdles gold in 1952 and 1956. The other was Francoise Mbango Etone, again born in Cameroon and winning gold for France, in the triple jump in 2004 and 2008. All three had sons. The difference is that Ennis-Hill is attempting to keep ahead of the competition in a multi-disciplined event.

Her coach, her physiotherapist, her psychological adviser (though Ennis-Hill obtained a psychology degree at the University of Sheffield) had to wait while she became accustomed to being the mother of Reggie, born in June 2014. The world moved on. In fact, her world moved on because the Don Valley athletics stadium where she trained was bulldozed while she was otherwise occupied with maternal things. That's progress, or lack of it. England's supposed Olympic legacy has disappeared now that the 2012 London Olympic Stadium has become the home of West Ham United FC (albeit with provision to hold athletics events). And Sheffield's Don Valley stadium, built for the World Student Games in 1991, was demolished as a cost-cutting exercise. The site where Ennis-Hill first discovered the joy of competing at a summer camp when she was nine, it has been redeveloped as a wellbeing research centre and a technical college. Her good fortune was that her potential was spotted when she was nine by Toni Minichiello. A burly man of Italian descent, Minichiello, once an unfulfilled decathlete, was taken at first by her sprint speed.

Over the ensuing years, Ennis-Hill and coach Minichiello developed what he describes as "a father-daughter thing. She finds me slightly embarrassing, like a dad who is dancing badly". To mould an Olympic champion is one thing. To wait for her to decide after pregnancy and birth that she wanted to go through it all again is, as Minichiello observed: "A very different kettle of fish." Parenthood changes perspectives. Ennis-Hill is as rapt in Reggie as any mum could be. But then it started to become important for the boy to see what makes his mother extraordinary. At two, he might just be aware of what she does, and of what makes the millions coming into the family home through endorsements with global brands. Minichiello talks of her phenomenal work ethic, her belief, her focus. He has talked about the changed anatomy that comes with motherhood. Blood volume increases, and can be converted into endurance and power. Tendons may never be as sharply reactive. Twisting and turning of abdominal muscles took six months to rebuild. At 30, she might anyway have lost the top end of fast responses to the gun. They sound like marginal gains and losses.

But over and above it all, is the mind and the desire. Next weekend will test that to the limits. A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on August 06, 2016, with the headline 'Diminutive Jessica rising to the mother of all challenges'. Print Edition | Subscribe Topics: Sheffield's Trams in c1960 Electric Services introduced on 6 September 1899 System Closed on 8 October 1960 [ Picture Gallery | Visitor Feedback | Links Page | ] Sadly, my slides taken of this tramway system have deteriorated considerably over the forty years of storage. Some attempt has been made to electronically restore these historically interesting pictures but they are really beyond the point of no return. Please bear this in mind when viewing the pictures. Click on any thumbnail for a larger image but wait until all thumbnails have downloaded. Pictures 3, 4 and 5 These photographs show Sheffield's trams at the Wadsley Bridge terminus. Trams departed from here to travelled, from where it will return to Woodseats [via Queen's Road according to the destination blind].

This will take it from the north side of the city to the extreme south side, on the Chesterfield Road. Today, this road is a very busy dual carriage way - there would be no tolerance of anyone waiting in the middle of the road! Picture 181 Meadowhead terminus on the Chesterfield Road [now the A61], looking towards Chesterfield Picture 182 A 'Roberts' car 502 at the Woodseats terminus. The tram has its destination blind already set for the return journey and is about to proceed over the trailing crossover (part of which can be seen in the left foreground) to gain the left hand track and return down Chesterfield Road to Heeley and then Queens Road and through the City. Picture 183 Also on Abbey Lane, approximately half way between Woodseats and Beauchief, very close to Beauchief Abbey. Here the tramway was segregated from the Road. Today, the former tramway is used as a private road to service the houses behind the tram, and the central grass verge has had its driveways grassed over. This section of line [along Abbey Lane only] was closed 1st March 1959.

The destination shows 'SPECIAL' and the number of photographers suggest that this may be tour of the system not long before closure of this route. Pictures 187, 188 and 184 Pictures 187 and 188 are at Sheffield Lane Top, the re-appearance of car 525 in the next picture 184, at the Wadsley Bridge terminus on the Halifax Road, showing 'SPECIAL' again suggests that these photographs were taken on the same day. In picture 187 car 525 is at the junction of Stubbin Lane with Barnsley Road. The tram is climbing Stubbin Lane, having come through Firth Park and joins Barnsley Road for the final short climb to the terminus. This is shown in picture 188, where car 525 is seen outside the Pheasant Inn on Barnsley Road. The tram will head down the hill past the photographer back towards the city centre.

From: Bob Wardle <RSWardle@aol.com> The first picture [187] of Roberts car 525 rounding the bend from Stubbin Lane on to Barnsley Road is very unusual in that it looks south; it is the only one I recall seeing. For me it is memorable because you can make out the upper storeys of the Firth Park Grammar School building, which I attended 1958 to 1965. A close look at the track reveals that it is brand new; I recall very clearly that it was beautifully re-laid only about sixteen months before abandonment, and that places the picture firmly between September 1958 and April 1960. The track on this severely graded and sharp curve was very badly side-cut by the flanges of the wheels prior to this relaying. Picture 189 Taken later the same day, and again shows Roberts car 525. After returning through Firth Park and down to Grimesthorpe, it is seen passing underneath the railway bridge on Upwell Street to join Brightside Lane and continue back to The Wicker and into the city centre.

This road was closed to trams on 1st March 1959, the same day as the Abbey Lane section. Picture 190 The proximity of the houses to the road suggest that this is still on the 'industrial' side of the city; probably the Neepsend or Attercliffe areas. Picture 191 Pictured on Abbeydale Road, at the junction with Abbey Lane. The stone building to the left of the tram is Beauchief Hotel, which is the only thing still recognizable. Abbey Lane comes down between the Hotel and stone building to the left of the picture [which has now been demolished and replaced with a petrol station]. Note the clock suspended on the lamppost, and the shelter at the tram stop to the right. After the Abbey Lane section to Woodseats closed on 1st March 1959 this was the terminus - the trailing points can be seen in the foreground, and the second set of tracks are covered with a crude layer of tarmac. This is now just an ordinary bus stop, and the road has been widened to take in the point where the tram is stopped.

Car 502 is seen ready to depart for Vulcan Road on the morning of the last day of operation [torrential rain began at noon and did not cease until early evening]. Vulcan Road was on the opposite side of the city, in the centre of Industrial 'Steel City'. Picture 192 This is London Road, near Heeley. The tram is descending the hill towards Heeley at the junction with Queens Road. It will be heading for Meadowhead, or [if before March 1959] will follow the Meadowhead route to Woodseats before branching off to follow Abbey Lane and Abbeydale Road until it finds itself back on London Road heading in the opposite direction! From: Joseph Tierney <jt@tierneyhome.fsnet.co.uk> I can't help being convinced that this picture is not London Road at Heeley. I am more and more certain that the picture is taken looking towards the city centre along Abbeydale Road across the traffic light controlled junction at the bottom of Sheldon Road which just out of sight, off to the left to the side of the car approaching the parked milk float.

The road off to the right with the shop on the corner is Bradfield Road, the other end of which joins London Road at the far side of the River Sheaf, I believe. In the background with the dome on top of the tower is the cinema closed forty [or more?] years ago [as a cinema] I believe, the name of which I can't swear to now but I believe it was the "Abbeydale". Further into the city on the right [and on the left for that matter] were long terraces of very tall houses - I went to a dentist practice [Bernard Pickin] for some years in one of these. Just a little further along toward town on the opposite side of Abbeydale Road is the Mother of God RC Church. Off a little way up Sheldon Road is Nether Edge Hospital, my birthplace over half a century ago - where that great father of pediatric medicine Dr Lawber operated on a scrubbed and disinfected butcher's block [all he had!] to save so many young children with his pioneering and professionally courageous work because he could not stand back and accept that they could not be saved!

I grew up in Woodseats, 7 Newlyn Road, immediately behind Woodseats police station for most of my life and remained in Woodseats until leaving Sheffield some 23 years ago to come to Peterborough for work - bad times for steelworks engineers they were! Tram stops were at the top of The Dale on Chesterfield Road [into the city] known as Chantrey Road stop which was on the other side of Chesterfield Road. The stops on Woodseats bottom got moved a bit when I was very young I believe, one being at Olivet Road, I think! I went to primary school in Millhouses and well remember the scenes of Abbeydale Road and the Beauchief terminus with the hotel and the turn into Abbey Lane. My parents are buried in Abbey Lane cemetery. I met my wife through the church on Meadowhead and her family, ex Rotherham, lived in the Earl Haig houses - towards the Norton Hotel - past the Meadowhead tram terminus - shown in another of your pictures, above the top entrance of Graves Park.

I am very pleased to have seen your pictures and hope that my observation above is correct - I can't really think that it is not, but stranger things might have happened. From: Robert Grant <Robert@grant2222.freeserve.co.uk> You are spot on with the location and the cinema in the background is indeed the old 'Abbeydale'. One small error or lapse of memory has crept in, the road to the right is Broadfield not Bradfield Road. This staggered crossroads from Broadfield Road to Sheldon Road was a horrendous junction for bus drivers on the circular bus route, numbers 8 and 9, because Broadfield Road joined Abbeydale Road at an angle which pointed away from Sheldon Road which made the crossing something like a 'Z' bend. The newsagent's shop [which used to sell magazines of a dubious nature in the 1950's!] and some of the houses at the top of Broadfield Road were eventually demolished and the junction made into a normal crossroads. From: Stewart A.

Rotherham <Stewart.Rotherham@mottmac.com> Having looked at this picture I can confirm your correspondent's opinion the picture shows Abbeydale Road at its junction with Broadfield Road [NB NOT Bradfield Road][on the right, going down past Heeley Swimming Baths] and Sheldon Road [on left, going up towards Nether Edge). The fleapit in the background was the Abbeydale Cinema. I crossed this junction twice a day from 1963 to 1970 on my way between Meersbook and King Ted's. It has been bashed about since then, with a much bigger road junction. From: Peter Dewsnap in South Carolina <pdewsnap@sccoast.net> Very familiar to me. It is Abbeydale. You can see the Abbeydale Picture Palace in the background. Broadfield Road goes off to the right. Pictures 193 and 200 These show Sheffield Road with the junction of Vulcan Road, looking towards Rotherham. The buildings in the background are those of Hadfields Steel Works, and you will not be surprised to know have been swept away!

The buildings are now the site of Meadowhall shopping centre, and this is a busy road linking the shopping centre with Junction 34 of the M1. Picture 201 Picture 201 was taken from the same place as 193 and 200 and shows standard car 97 approaching Vulcan Road. This car reappears in picture 200. Was 201 taken before 200, with the tram approaching; whereupon you swung round and took another photograph of it turning into Vulcan Road as car 183 pulled out? Pictures 196 and 198 These pictures are taken on The Wicker, which is the main street linking the city centre with Attercliffe Road and Brightside. The railway arch spanning the road was built by the Sheffield, Manchester and Lincolnshire Railway [later the Great Central], and was crossed immediately after leaving Sheffield Victoria for Manchester via the Woodhead route. Pictures 197 and 203 Taken on The Wicker, together with 196 and 198. Pictures 196 and 198 are in the direction of Attercliffe and Tinsley.

This was once the point where three tram routes converged to make there way to the city centre. I can't make out any overhead wiring climbing Spital Hill [which is the road climbing quite steeply through the left hand side of the arch], so these pictures were taken after 3rd April 1960, by which time the only route left was that along Attercliffe Road to Tinsley and Vulcan Road [surviving until 8th October 1960]. Pictures 194 and 195 On the Abbeydale Road, between Beauchief [picture 191] and Millhouses. Picture 194 shows a Roberts car heading away from the photographer, towards the city, with Ecclesall Woods on the left. Picture 195 was taken a little further towards Millhouses and is taken in the opposite direction, and again shows a Roberts car heading towards the city. Picture 202 Attercliffe Road.

I had never heard of a pub called 'The Tram Car', but a web-search uncovered a site detailing all of the pubs in Sheffield in the 1950s, giving the location of this as 851 Attercliffe Road - isn't it amazing what you can find out on the web? Car 501 is heading for the city and Beauchief. This scene is unrecognisable now - I don't think that any of the buildings visible are still standing. The area to the right now forms the entrance to Don Valley Stadium which was built in 1991 as part of the facilities provided for the World Student Games. More Information Picture 199 Shown are two Roberts cars on Vulcan Road, next to the Steel Works. The presence of several enthusiasts and the dilapidated condition of the trams [Sheffield took a well-justified pride in the smart condition of its fleet and only let this lapse in the last month or so of operation] singles the picture out as a 'last day' shot. Picture 204 Tinsley Depot.

As cars came out of service on last day, they ran out to Tinsley Depot rather than returning to Tenter Street [which by then was the last operational depot]. In the days and weeks following closure of the system, the trams were hauled across the road [via a specially-laid siding] straight into the scrap yard of T W Ward. The very last service car [#222] arrived about 4pm. David Johnson travelled on that car on its last journey and if this is a picture of #222, he is somewhere in the crowd at the back. The buildings of the tram depot survive today, and house the Sheffield Bus Museum. Pictures 6 and 7

Question: What was the name of the Sheffield sports stadium built for the 1991 World Student Games ? it was demolished in 2014?
Answer: DON VALLEY