Having lived in the town for over eight years and having served on the committee at the club in the past, the plight of Bicester Town saddens me. I am fully aware that they situation is not as simple as it may first appear but with a perfectly usable stadium in the town, it seems ludicrous that the club cannot accept promotion because they do not have a suitable venue for their games.
Bicester's former ground, Oxford Road, sits there almost unused whilst the club scratches around looking for a place to call home again.
Now that Ardley have achieved promotion, their ground, which Bicester have shared for the past couple of years, is not going to be able to withstand the extra games in the Premier league and therefore is not going to be available to Bicester next season. The only other local ground that could come up to Step 5 grading is Oxford Road.
Bicester Sports Association, who own Oxford Road, was set up in the 1930s to provide the sports teams and people of Bicester with good sports facilities. So, why does it seem to be beyond the wit of these people to work out a way of bringing football back to the town? As I said, I fully understand that it is not quite as simple as it seems on the surface, but is it really that difficult to work out some sort of agreement?
The cynic in me thinks that the location of Oxford Road, adjacent to the ever-expanding Bicester Village outlet centre, has something to do with the decision. I hope my cynicism is unfounded.
It would be great to get Bicester Town playing in the town again. Bicester is very much a town that is growing in population and stature. It needs a successful football team playing in the town.
Bicester's former ground, Oxford Road, sits there almost unused whilst the club scratches around looking for a place to call home again.
Now that Ardley have achieved promotion, their ground, which Bicester have shared for the past couple of years, is not going to be able to withstand the extra games in the Premier league and therefore is not going to be available to Bicester next season. The only other local ground that could come up to Step 5 grading is Oxford Road.
Bicester Sports Association, who own Oxford Road, was set up in the 1930s to provide the sports teams and people of Bicester with good sports facilities. So, why does it seem to be beyond the wit of these people to work out a way of bringing football back to the town? As I said, I fully understand that it is not quite as simple as it seems on the surface, but is it really that difficult to work out some sort of agreement?
The cynic in me thinks that the location of Oxford Road, adjacent to the ever-expanding Bicester Village outlet centre, has something to do with the decision. I hope my cynicism is unfounded.
It would be great to get Bicester Town playing in the town again. Bicester is very much a town that is growing in population and stature. It needs a successful football team playing in the town.
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