Old Molineux Photos

[Newbridge Wolf]

Have you seen where it is located on the north bank car park?

It could have easily been built before any demolition work.

That's not what was reported at the time. Besides, you also had the issue with capacity. Knocking down the North Bank first meant we only lost 5000 compared to the more unsustainable 9000 of the Steve Bull.

I'm not having a go, I just genuinely don't understand it when people say it's ruined the look of the ground in the context of it should never have been built because of that. If the plans had actually been followed through with the ground would have looked much better. Whenever you see the stand in the backdrop of interviews or pictures it puts it on a far bigger scale. It looks impressive and gives the impression of a big club. If they ever built the plans from a few years ago for all four sides it would give the impression of the club being much bigger than we are now.

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

I believe SJH was quoted as saying that the old North Bank was designed to allow it to be expanded. Remove the roof and the supporting steelwork on the sides, and then extend backwards and upwards with a new roof to finish - similar to work at Anfield. The roof they built presumably required less structure and foundations at the rear than a cantilever would have, so less waste if/when the stand were to be expanded. There was certainly plenty of space behind the stand to allow an upper/extended tier to be built, and that could have incorporated a new cantilever roof if needed.

Logically the right sequence would have been to demolish and replace the Steve Bull. Such a structure could have been as tall as the current North Bank. Then rather than replace, extend the North Bank backwards and upwards to match, filling in the corner at the same time. Then extend the South Bank more or less as Morgan planned including the second corner. Finally replace BW and fill in the remaining two corners if/when needed.

I'd be loathed to take anything that came from SJH's mouth as fact. He never followed through with filling in the corners, let alone adding extra tiers.

You can remove a cantilevered roof just as easily. In fact the North Bank roof was partly cantilevered. I disagree about the sequence, as above in my previous post, logically it made sense to do the North Bank first due to the loss of capacity. The fault was not following through and rebuilding the Steve Bull. Also another reason for completely rebuilding the North Bank instead of adding behind it was because Steve Morgan (quite rightly) wanted to get the stands built closer to the pitch. Don't forget the pitch was moved much closer to the South Bank at the time of the rebuild.

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

Anyway, back to old pics

 

[sedgwolf1980]

Anyway, back to old pics

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Love that old South Bank Terrace sign. Something about the club c.87-90 just seems so magical to me now looking back. But in a way that no one who isn’t a Wolves fan would ever understand.

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

 

[Macman]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

 

[Ian]

Its actually criminal, and really sad to be honest, just how much better the stadium looked with the old Stan Cullis. Doesnt really get mentioned, but its a frankly disgraceful what Morgan did to the stadium.

It did look more complete and symmetrical with the old Cullis stand but to be fair to Morgan as others have stated if he/we had followed through with his original plans it would have been a massive improvement on the " Hayward Molineux".
Hopefully in time Fosun will finish the stadium but yes as it stands the NB sticks out like a sore thumb , just as the John Ireland did for all those years as a legacy to failed regimes.
In my mind the real Molineux will be the way it looked from the 50's to the 70's with the gables, clock and massive South bank, when we won all our trophies, if we could only incorporate the gables into a new stand i'd be in heaven....... if we could somehow get the 3 leaping Wolves back on the shirt even better

 

[Lisas Husband]

 

[Burton Wolf]

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Great memories there. Me being nosey, what was the fine for?

 

[De Wolfs Mullet]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

The photo was taken quite high up so I guess it's looking down at street lights on the main roads through Whitmore Reans.

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

Good question. My first thought is it was street lamps, but I don’t think so looking closer.

Also interested what event it was as the Waterloo Rd Stand looks quite full, with the rest empty except the North Bank. Reserve game perhaps?

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

The photo was taken quite high up so I guess it's looking down at street lights on the main roads through Whitmore Reans.

That was my first thought, but I can’t quite make out a street pattern that fits it.

 

[De Wolfs Mullet]

Could it be the New Hampton Road as it skirts past and round West Park?

 

[McSteen]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

A flock of birds, lit up by the floodlights?

 

[topcat99]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

In those days we were the best team in the world.

So the next logical step was to play against aliens. That is their team and fans coaches turning up at Molineux.
Result : Wolves 3 Darth Vader XI 0

 

[Lisas Husband]

Great memories there. Me being nosey, what was the fine for?

1971 is before my time (just) so they're not mine, they used to belong to a former player of Wolves, Paul Walker Paul Walker (footballer, born 1949) - Wikipedia

My wife was cleaning out the loft space above her office and found the tickets, fine and a P60 belonging to Paul. Maybe it was a flat in 1971 but it used to be a solicitors before wifey moved in (which probably makes more sense to me).

 

[Lisas Husband]

Sorry, it was a speeding fine for exceeding 30mph on the Wergs Road.

 

[mcwolf]

anyone seen this before ?

 

[Shergar]

Some great, memory jerking photos of the old ground.
In the mid 70's we used to spend some days of our school summer holidays hanging around the old Molineux autograph hunting or following the players down to the racecourse for training. Sometimes, we used to be able to get in the ground and we would have the run of the place exploring underneath the stands, even helped the groundsman (Mr Pilbeam. never forget a name like that) cut the grass and sweep the gravel surrounds. We even spent a day in the South Bank loosening a few screws and barbed wire so we had an access to free entry for when the season started.
At the back of the enclosure terrace was a long wooden frame/stool to allow those at the back to get a foot or so of elevation to see the game. There was a distinct smell to the old Molineux - bovril, program print, hotdogs and the worst Banks's farts imaginable - I'm sure some blokes used to follow through .

Photo showing the stools/wooden frames.

 

[Sedgers]

Photo showing the stools/wooden frames.
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That's how I remember it as a boy.

 

[Achilles Last Stand]

That still looks ace!
Paddocks should be made mandatory on football grounds again as standing areas with crush bars.
Just like Steve Bull lower stand is today, just remove the seats.

 

[GV Wolf]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

Whitmore Reans and I would say that’s Newhampton Road West in the background.

 

[mcwolf]

 

[Macman]

That last photo, i can imagine those two men looking at each other and saying… “this is a bit too ambitious isnt it.?”

 

[northnorfolkwolf]

That was my first thought, but I can’t quite make out a street pattern that fits it.

It's the image from Old Grey Whistle Test?

 

[Lupus ad Penn]

They’re a cheaper solution to support the roof compared to cantilever supports. We could have done it on all four stands, but why would you if you ever wanted to fill in the corners?

The original artwork for the rebuild showed “ Goal post” supports for the Billy Wright,and South Bank. There must have been a change to the design to use a full cantilever roof instead. I once had a conversation with the stadium’s architect, Alan Cotterill, who said the stands had been designed to remove the roof and add another tier and roof, but it has never happened.

 

[Big Saft Kid]

Photo showing the stools/wooden frames.
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That's the miracle that confronted you in mid-August, first match of the season, the gates had just opened at 2 o'clock, instead of the hard-rollered sandy mudheaps of April.... Sheer magic!!!!

 

[ricki herberts moustache]

Anyway, back to old pics

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Love these pix especially the south bank

 

[ricki herberts moustache]

Photo showing the stools/wooden frames.
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Great photo. Didn't the players come out of a door top right hand of the pic?

Where are these stools/wooden frames? I can't spot them maybe I am looking at the wrong spot

 

[ricki herberts moustache]

Just come across this video, never seen this footage before. Love those hooped socks bro's

 

[ricki herberts moustache]

 

[Shergar]

And the police used to walk around the pitch on a leisurely stroll during the match. How weird does that seem nowadays?

 

[northnorfolkwolf]

And the police used to walk around the pitch on a leisurely stroll during the match. How weird does that seem nowadays?

And about half an hour before ko 2 lovely St John's Ambulance lady volunteers would come out from the players tunnel and walk slowly, and to my teenage eye somewhat provocatively, along the front of the North Bank to cheers, whistles and cat calls. I'll never, ever forget my first visits to Molineux and being on the North Bank. I'll take those vivid memories to my grave.

 

[Shergar]

Great photo. Didn't the players come out of a door top right hand of the pic?

Where are these stools/wooden frames? I can't spot them maybe I am looking at the wrong spot

Underneath the windows, like benches.

 

[Spitfire]

And the police used to walk around the pitch on a leisurely stroll during the match. How weird does that seem nowadays?

And when it had snowed they would get snowballs thrown at them as they walked round .

 

[Darvo]

Great photo, but i guess someone needs to ask the question… what are all the lights In the sky?

The Mysterones

 

[ricki herberts moustache]

And the police used to walk around the pitch on a leisurely stroll during the match. How weird does that seem nowadays?

But then on the other hand if back then you had been told that there would be cameras all around the ground tracking your every move in the future and that everyone would be sitting nicely in a seat and not on a terrace behind a steel fence, people would have laughed you off

 

[Hot Fuss]

 

[Pagey]

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Can we edit it to transfer/generational talent fund?

 

[whitnash wolf ex.dewsbury]

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still have a pin badge with the Wolf`s head and Wolves on it