Saints line up ‘dummy run’ at their new home

Dec 5 2008 by Andrew Newport, Paisley Daily Express

EXCITED St Mirren fans will get a sneak preview of the club’s new home ahead of its official opening, Express Sports can reveal.

The Buddies are due to play their first SPL game at the new stadium in Greenhill Road on Saturday, January 31, when Kilmarnock come to town.

But bosses hope to arrange a ‘dummy run’ involving two teams from the Saints squad in the days before the grand opening to ensure that any teething problems are ironed out.

And that ‘game’ will allow fans to check out the view from the stands.

St Mirren director Gordon Scott has been tasked with overseeing the move from the club’s historic home at Love Street to the new stadium.

He said: “There will be a game staged as some kind of dummy run and it will be fully stewarded and open to our fans.

“It will be organised purely as a means to make sure we get things right, so do not expect an evening game with any major opposition.

“I have no idea what format it will take but it will probably just be a game between two teams from the squad or perhaps a reserve game.

“We will have fans in the stadium as we want to test out our stewarding arrangements.

“I haven’t got a clue at the minute how we will work out the ticketing or whether we will be charging fans to get in but season ticket holders will probably be allowed in for free.”

The dummy run is crucial to ensure that all hiccups are fixed ahead of the stadium’s official opening and it is unlikely that the ground will be full to capacity.

Other stadiums have hosted similar events before they were given the green light.

For example, England’s under-21 side lost to Italy in front of 60,000 fans at Wembley last year – a month before 90,000 supporters witnessed Chelsea claim victory in the FA Cup Final.