Ally McCoist says Goodison Park was one of his favourite football places but he really likes Hill Dickinson Stadium and thinks the atmosphere is great
Ally McCoist at Goodison Park prior to a match between Everton and Tottenham Hotspur on February 3, 2024
Ally McCoist at Goodison Park prior to a match between Everton and Tottenham Hotspur on February 3, 2024(Image: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
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Former Scotland international Ally McCoist has reflected upon his love of Goodison Park but has hailed the atmosphere at Everton’s new home, Hill Dickinson Stadium.
After spending the previous 133 years at Goodison Park, the first purpose-built football ground in England and venue for the most top flight matches, the Blues switched to their 52,769 capacity base on the Mersey waterfront last summer.
Everton are about to enter the final month of their inaugural season at Hill Dickinson Stadium with just two home games to go as Manchester City become the last Premier League opponent of 2025/26 to visit on Monday. Sunderland, who David Moyes’ men host in the following home fixture have already played there in the FA Cup.
Reflecting on the switch, McCoist admits that he was sorry to say goodbye to the iconic venue dubbed ‘The Grand Old Lady’ but believes it was time for the Blues to look forwards to the future.
The 63-year-old, who this week was named SJA Pundit of the Year at the British Sports Journalism Awards, told talkSPORT BET Casino: “It was never, ever going to be an overnight job for Everton in their new stadium. You don’t switch off overnight, and Everton fans will always, always, and so they should, have a soft spot for that place because I’m telling you, I was gutted at the thought of ever leaving Goodison.
“I loved Goodison, and it wasn’t my home, but it was one of my favourite places to go to as a commentator. I used to love going out of the corner, banging your head off the wee thing, and going outside to back inside, upstairs.
“There was something special about it and the atmosphere. I mean, that last derby game, James Tarkowski scored late on and all that sort of thing. I’m a football man, I miss that.
“But, time stands still for no man, and you’ve got to move on. You must move on.”
McCoist who turned out at a couple of other grounds that featured Glaswegian architect Archibald Leitch’s distinctive criss-cross balustrades – Rangers’ Ibrox and Sunderland’s Roker Park – added: “I’ve been to Hill Dickinson Stadium, and I really like it.
”I was talking to a lot of the Everton fans, and I heard the atmosphere at the Chelsea game, 3-0 and it was great.
“I’ll tell you right now, you better believe it was a sore one for them against Liverpool. But see if you had flipped the coin and if it was Everton that scored in the 94th, 95th minute, that place would have become home almost immediately, and we’d have heard a completely different noise from that stadium than we’d ever heard since the inaugural game.”