Plans to host more concerts at County Ground (From This Is Wiltshire)

THE COUNTY Ground will once again host concerts under the tenure of the new owners of Swindon Town.

Director Callum Rice, whose background within the music and entertainment industry sets him up well to organise the events, has revealed to the Advertiser that the new board of the Robins will look at live music as a way of increasing the number of revenue streams at the Wiltshire club.

The Adver understands Rice and his fellow directors are looking at holding up to six concerts a year at the venue, mainly during the off-season.

“We will be having concerts here at the County Ground. I don’t know whether it’s something people found they couldn’t manage (in the past),” he said.

“As we all know it’s quite difficult to organise a concert so perhaps that was left but Swindon Town will be looking to get more revenue streams that don’t rely just on the football side.”

The most recent concerts held at the County Ground were Elton John in 2005 and Bryan Adams in 2006.

Like the rest of the incoming board, Rice, who has worked as a cruise director before getting involved in music and now owns a hotel in Lincolnshire, is keen for Town to find its community spirit under new ownership.

“I know the community statement is a glib kind of statement to make but deep down inside we do want that. We’d like to get the ladies’ team more involved. It’s quite big at the moment and we have a reasonable ladies’ side as well,” he said.

“I want people to feel Swindon. I want them to grow up Swindon and when they get older and they go out in the wider world they meet a woman and make her a Swindon Town fan and then have Swindon Town fans.”

Despite being a Leeds fan, Rice has happy memories of the County Ground from a playing perspective.

“I represented my county many years ago here,” he said.

“Wiltshire were very kind in arranging a friendly against Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire because we had a big cup tie coming up against Oxfordshire.”