Independent Leyton Orient Forum

Dear oh dear... 'Been kept awake at night thinking of sites in WF for a new ground. Please help me Doctor!
Inconsequentially, last night it was Knotts Green. No, there's no room for a pitch but as I tossed and turned, I recalled a big development there in the early seventies. Am I ringing bells for anyone? A giant hoarding appeared enclosing the green. From upstairs in a passing double decker, you could just about get a glimpse of big excavations inside. After a couple of years or so, the hoardings disappeared and the ground had been reinstated and grassed over. What happened there? Your guess is as good as mine.
Now, on the forest, near the Green Man, next to the sunken Central Line, there used to be a wide cutting going down to the track. 'Must've been hundreds of yards long. It would have taken a massive volume of spoil to fill that void. And yet, in the early seventies, it was filled in with imported material. Coincidence or what - can anyone cast a light??
Dunno but anyway, eventually I did nod off and I remembered that infilled land. In my dreams, on deep golden piles, I built a gleaming new Brizzy next to the railway on the edge of the forest... Look upon my works ye mighty and despair.

Knotts Green . They demolished the flats in 1980s. Built low rise there to replace. Earlier, late 60’s put new water main deep below the green , deep access drop down a ladder . There is an access cover in the green and occasionally people disappear down there to work deep below. At the same time they were tunnelling the Victoria Line. Some say they could walk along from the green to Walthamstow. I do not know if that bit is correct though. I used to go to the green to play football with school friends and there was always a bonfire around 5 Nov.

There was a spell in the 1980s where someone fenced off a section of Knotts Green claiming ownership of the land. It was like that for about 18 months until the council won a legal case and retrieved the land.

I was thinking about possible locations this morning too.

Although an E15 postcode, Drapers Field is just within the borough. If LBWF could find a replacement site for the football pitches, kids play park and boxing this would be ideal. Close to the tube and the Dirty Harold (Leyton Star in new money) which would be convenient.

This also wouldn’t impact local businesses such as the Birky and Northcote, which a move to LBR would.

I hope the club and borough are looking at this.

Is the land close to the Douglas Eyre Centre available? Would be a romantic option.