Boundary Park
| SportsDirect.com Park | |
|---|---|
| Ice Station Zebra | |
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| The Rochdale Road stand in Boundary Park | |
| Data | |
| place |
 Oldham , Greater Manchester , United Kingdom
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| Coordinates | 53 ° 33 '19 " N , 2 ° 7' 43" W |
| opening | August 1, 1904 |
| Renovations | 1906, 1907, 1928, 1971, 1986, 1992, 1994, 2008, 2014 |
| surface | Natural grass |
| capacity | 10,818 seats |
| playing area | 100 × 68 m |
| Societies) | |
| Events | |
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The Boundary Park is a football stadium in Oldham , England . It has been the home of the Oldham Athletic football club since 1904 . In addition to the Latics , the local rugby club Oldham Roughyeds used the stadium from 1997 to 2001 and from 2003 to 2009. After that, it was decided not to share the stadium with the rugby team. The Roughyeds have been based at Oldham's Whitebank Stadium since 2010 . Boundary Park is nicknamed Ice Station Zebra . This name is due to the fact that the facility is one of the coldest and highest located (155 meters above sea level ) stadiums in the English Football League .
history
The history of Boundary Park goes back to 1896. In the first professional football club in the town called FC Oldham County was Athletic Ground built. Three years later the club went bankrupt. The FC Pine Villa took over the stadium and its name to Oldham Athletic. After a year, the club left the venue due to problems with the owner and moved a few hundred meters away to Hudson Ford Field . After the audience interest increased; they returned to the Athletic Ground in 1904.
At that time, the stadium had two grandstands, the Main Stand and the Broadway Stand. The main stand was replaced in 1906 and the Broadway stand was renewed in 1907 after the club was inducted into the Football League. After only seven years, the stadium received a new main stand; which in its basic structure still exists today. It was renovated and expanded over time and now offers 2,455 seats. In 1928, the Chadderton Road End was built behind the gate to the west .
The old Broadway booth was replaced by a modern new building in 1971. In 1986 the field was given artificial turf , which remained in the stadium until the end of the 1990/91 season and the area became a community sports center. In 1991 the Chadderton Road End was renovated, covered and furnished with seating. A year later, the Rochdale Road stand was built in the east of the stadium. According to the Taylor Report, seating was also installed on the Broadway booth in the 1994/95 season . In May 2008 the end came for the Broadway booth . The spectator tier was demolished and should be replaced by a new main stand. Today the stadium offers 10,818 seats on the three grandstands. The guest fans are at home on the Rochdale Road stand .
In early July 2014, the Boundary Park was given the sponsor name SportsDirect.com Park . The name rights contract with the sports goods mail order company has a term of five years. The company also acts as a shirt sponsor for Oldham Athletic.
Record number of visitors
The highest number of visitors came to Boundary Park on January 25, 1930 . The 5th round FA Cup game between Oldham Athletic and Sheffield Wednesday saw 47,671 spectators. After the conversion to the seated stadium, the most popular encounter is the FA Cup game of the third round against Manchester City . On January 8, 2005, 13,171 spectators were distributed in the stands.
future
As early as the late 1990s, the club had the plan to build a new stadium on a vacant, adjacent plot of land. However, this project failed. In 2006 the association presented plans to convert the Boundary Park into a modern stadium with 16,000 seats. The project was called Oldham Arena . The construction work included a. a 4-star hotel with 130 beds, conference rooms for 1,000 visitors, a fitness center with a swimming pool and it should cost around £ 80 million .
On November 14, 2007, the association received planning permission to build the new Broadway stand , the first part of the new arena. The Oldham City Council declined further work on the stadium. In a further city council meeting on December 12, 2007, this decision was overturned and the construction work was granted again. The demolition of the Broadway booth began on May 8, 2008 and was completed before the start of the 2008-09 season. Construction of the main grandstand should start in December 2008 and take around 16 months to complete. The construction project stalled due to the financial crisis . The then club chairman Simon Blitz stated in an interview that it was difficult to get a loan for the new Broadway booth or even for the entire construction. The association's turnover had fallen by 20 % .
In the summer of 2009, the club and the city of Oldham presented new plans for a stadium. To do this, the club will leave the old Boundary Park and move to Failsworth, around five kilometers away . The stadium will have a capacity of 12,000 seats and at £ 20m it will be significantly cheaper than the previous design. Residential houses are to be built on the site of the old stadium to provide housing for employees of the nearby Royal Oldham Hospital . However, some Oldham Athletic fans have concerns about the location of the stadium, as it is only a few kilometers from the Manchester United and Manchester City clubs and their stadiums, as well as residents of the property. In March 2010, Oldham Athletic got a little closer to the new stadium when the Oldham City Council announced its support for the stadium plans in Failsworth.
In February 2011 the end came for the new building plans. The Charity Commission decided that the stadium could not be built on the designated property. With investors pulling out and the club investing around £ 5m in the project, Oldham Athletic was on the verge of bankruptcy. In July 2011, Oldham Council offered the club the sum of 5.7 million pounds to renovate the 110-year-old stadium, in particular for the new construction of the Broadway stand on the north side. The aim was to keep the club with its stadium in the city and prevent a move.
After planning, Oldham Athletic submitted the building application for the new Broadway stand in mid-February 2013 . According to the plans, the new tier should have around 2,500 seats. There are also conference rooms with up to 500 seats, office rooms, a fitness studio and rooms for health care, a fan bar and a café. If it goes according to the schedule, the new building should be usable by the start of the 2014/15 season. In May 2013, the preparatory work for the construction of the grandstand began. The remains of the old Broadway stand such as the concrete steps of the standing areas and foundations had to be removed and the building site prepared. Construction has been underway since spring 2014.
Grandstands
- Main Stand - (south, main stand , 2,455 seats, covered)
- Verlin Stand (Rochdale Road Stand) - (East, back gate, 3,754 seats, covered)
- Zen Office Stand (Chadderton Road Stand) - (West, back gate, 4,609 seats, covered)
- Broadway Stand - Currently under reconstruction.
Web links
- oldhamathletic.co.uk: stadium on the association's homepage (English)
- oldhamathletic.co.uk: messages about new grandstand on the website of the association (English)
- footballgroundguide.com: Stadium description (English)
- footballgroundz.co.uk: Image gallery (English)
- groundhopping.de: Visitor report from 2005
Individual evidence
- ↑ guardian.co.uk: Highest Ground in England Article dated February 2, 2005
- ↑ ciderspace.co.uk: club history (English)
- ↑ pastscape.org.uk: History of the stadium (English)
- ↑ oldhamathletic.co.uk: Stadium capacity ( memento of the original from December 20, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English)
- ↑ dailymail.co.uk: As Oldham Athletic rebrand Boundary Park to the SportsDirect.com Park, can you tell us who plays at the Checkatrade.com and Cherry Red Records stadiums? Article from July 3, 2014
- ↑ footballgroundguide.com: record attendance ( memento of the original from November 8, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English)
- ↑ menmedia.co.uk: Rebuilding plans from 2006 (English) Article from February 15, 2006
- ↑ oldhamathletic-mad.co.uk: Will a new stadium be built? Article from February 16, 2006
- ↑ sportspromedia.com: Oldham Athletic Leaves Boundary Park for New Stadium Article dated August 4, 2009
- ↑ crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk: Presentation of plans for the new stadium in Failsworth (English) Article of July 22, 2009
- ↑ oldham-chronicle.co.uk: Fans fear moving to Failsworth (English) Article dated December 10, 2009
- ↑ oldham-chronicle.co.uk: New stadium is supported by Oldham City Council. Article from March 18, 2010
- ↑ oldham-chronicle.co.uk: Stadium project is progressing Article from June 16, 2010
- ↑ oldhamathletic.co.uk: Planning application submitted article from February 14, 2013 (English)
- ↑ oldhamathletic.co.uk: Preparation work begins article from May 16, 2013 (English)
- ↑ oldhamathletic.co.uk: Oldham Athletic are giving supporters the chance to watch the new North Stand development in rapid time Article from March 31, 2014 (English)
