Astle Tribute Plans:Have Your Say!

15 February 2002

The Shankly Gates at Anfield

Following a meeting this week between West Bromwich Albion, the WBA Supporters Club, Shareholders for Albion and Grorty Dick, agreement has been reached to move ahead with plans for the construction of a set of memorial gates to honour the legendary Jeff Astle.The gates, based loosely on the Shankly gates at Anfield (left), will be sitiated at the Birmingham Road entrance to the East Stand car park, making them visible to passers by on the busy A41 between Birmingham and West Bromwich.

A fund will be launched by the three groups involved, and the Club will match the money they raise. Plans are already being formed for various activities in support of the fund - more news will follow as soon as it becomes available. Anyone wishing to contribute to the memorial fund can send payments (cheques payable to West Bromwich Albion Supporters Club, Grorty Dick, or to Shareholders for Albion) to any of these organisations together with a covering letter.

Have Your Say!

All three organisations will be seeking the views of supporters before plans are finalised, and in conjunction with the "WBA Unofficial" web site, we're running a poll here so that fans on the 'Net can have their say too - just enter your vote on the right and click the button to have your say. And in case you're wondering, the system only counts you once however many times you vote - this ain't the Brit awards!

Further tributes to other Albion greats will be considered by the Club, who will be carrying on with plans for a memorial garden at the ground once a suitable site has been established, and will probably also name one of the many suites inside the ground after Astle as previously announced. The announcement regarding the naming of a suite angered many fans who felt it was insufficient reward, and something that the majority of fans would never see or use - but as Chairman Paul Thompson was quick to point out, the naming of suites has been a long standing Club policy and was one that would be continued; it was never intended to act as the sole means of recognising of one of Albion's greatest ever strikers.

Shareholders for Albion can be reached at 45 Denleigh Road, Kingswinford, West?Midlands DY6?8PS

Grorty Dick can be reached at 34 Vicarage Road, Wednesbury, Staffordshire WS10 9BA

Related Links:

King of The Hawthorns: A Jeff Astle tribute

Commentary of Jeff's goal in the 1968 Cup Final in the BOING Multimedia Section

Previous Stories:

  13 February 2002:  Pre-season already?

  12 February 2002:  Koumas: Agent stirs it up

  12 February 2002:  Dingles fined

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