My great grandfather, Thomas William Rusbridge, was one of the last shepherds to tend his flock on the fields at Falmer.

The lack of animals in Falmer now is a clear indication of the changes that have taken place but, with the exception of the two universities, much of the development has taken place to support individual greed.

Some have churned up chunks of downland to provide larger houses or to create racing gallops and some allowed their land to be taken during the development of the A27.

What is of interest is that, in compensation, many of these people ended up with larger land holdings than they had before. Greed took precedence over principle.

Now a development is proposed that provides great benefit to the wider community but doesn't seem to offer any direct financial benefit to those in Falmer village.

As a result, the villagers are revolting. They fight to defend the very land they were quite happy to part with for profit.

Due to decisions taken in the past, no sane person could say the site at Village Way is untouched downland.

It is no longer the rural idyll that the villagers would have you believe.

This, together with the obvious community benefits to the Brighton, Hove and Sussex community, mean the stadium should be built and allow the land at Falmer to be used for the benefit of the many rather than the selfish interest of the few.

-Simon Rusbridge, Broadwater, Worthing