Stadium upgrade kicks in at Ross County
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THREE weeks after hosting a huge First Division championship party, the transformation of Ross County’s home into a stadium fit for the Scottish Premier League is well under way.
With the builders hard at work at Victoria Park, the Dingwall club has repeated its appeal to fans to back its drive to raise £400,000 towards the £1.4million cost of the upgrade.
The steel framework is already in place and the new stand for away supporters at the ground’s northern end is rapidly taking shape.
Work is also being carried out at the home supporter’s traditional stronghold, the Jail End, to prepare for the installation of seating as part of the move to an all-seater stadium capable of holding 6,000 people.
The pitch has been completely stripped of its turf for an undersoil heating system to be installed.
Ranald Gilbert, Ross County’s general manager, said: "The 4,737 people who were here for the final home game of the season at the end of April might get a bit of shock to see the place now. It’s definitely more building site than football ground at the moment, but the work is well under way and we are very pleased with the progress.
"It may be the close season, but the club is currently very active on every front - from the office team selling season tickets and preparing for operating in a new league to the manager building a squad capable of competing in the top division. These are very busy and exciting times for Ross County."
A number of other alterations in addition to the new stands and undersoil heating are needed to bring the ground up to SPL standards, including the upgrading of floodlights, changing rooms and media facilities.
In all the work will cost the club an estimated £1.4million. Ross County’s board of directors hopes to raise some of the necessary finance from additional borrowing and support from some backers in the business world.
They have also appealed to fans to help build for the future by contributing £20 each to the cause. Based on the 20,000 fans that travelled from far and wide to Glasgow to watch County’s historic Scottish Cup final appearance two seasons ago, the campaign aims to raise around £400,000.
There has already been a good response to the appeal from supporters, who have been joined by fans of other teams, including English clubs Charlton Athletic and Milton Keynes Dons in making £20 donations.
Ranald added: "The work going on at the ground underlines the fact that this new chapter in the club’s history is now well underway and the countdown to our debut in the SPL has begun.
"Behind the scenes the club is working very hard to bring in the kind of funds we need to operate at this level. The more we can raise through donations the less we will have to borrow, allowing us to free up money for Derek for his playing squad. We hope the donations will keep flowing in from followers of Ross County – wherever they may be – as we prepare for our greatest footballing challenge yet."
