Southend United are to rename their new 'Rose West' stand after recognising their huge error in naming it after a serial killer
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Southend United are to rename their new 'Rose West' stand after recognising their huge error in naming it after a serial killer

SOUTHEND UNITED have come under fire for a huge mistake made in regards to the naming of one of their stands.  

United play in England's fifth tier, the National League and sold naming rights for the West Stand at their Roots Hall ground to estate agents Gilbert & Rose. 

Fans looking to buy tickets at the club highlighted that they are now able to buy tickets in the Gilbert & Rose West Stand. 

For people born in this generation, the name Rose West may be unfamiliar, but for older people it's a name associated with murder and death. 

Fred and Rose West are English serial killers, who collaborated in the torture and murder of at least nine young women between 1973 and 1987. Rose also murdered her eight-year-old stepdaughter Charmaine in 1971. 

Both were given life imprisonments in 1994. Fred West has since passed away, while Rose West still is in HM Prison New Hall, Flockton, West Yorkshire. 

Fans on social media pointed out the mistake 

'You couldn’t actually make this up, said one person,' whilst another said "How did the fans knew it was name included in a serial killer in the first place?" 

The football club have said that it was talking to the sponsor about a "different arrangement of words" after the gaffe.  

Gilbert & Rose. director Perry Rose has defended the renaming as a ‘complete coincidence and said that he thought it was going to be named the ‘G & R stand’. 

We’re going to have a chat with the club and see what they want to do, he said.

'It’s a name and nothing more. We just want to concentrate on getting locals into the ground and make sure Southend goes up this year, that’s the main goal.