Hillsborough Stadium
Template:Football stadium Hillsborough Stadium is the home of Sheffield Wednesday Football Club in Sheffield, England. Association Football has been played at the ground since it was opened on 2 September 1899, when Wednesday moved from their original ground at Olive Grove.
Today it is a 39,859 all-seater stadium, with the vast majority of the seats covered. Hillsborough is named after the area of Sheffield in which it stands.
Although the ground has received little investment since Template:Ec2, it is still regarded as "a beautiful ground oozing character." [1] It has two large separate two tiered stands and two large single tiered stands, all of which are covered. All four stands are of a similar size in terms of capacity, but with the South stand being the largest and the West stand (used for away fans) the smallest. Only one corner of the ground is filled, between the West and North Stands. This area, known as the North West terrace, is uncovered and is only used for visiting supporters when the West stand upper and lower tiers are full. On the other corner of the West stand is an electronic scoreboard.
History
The first ground on the site was built in 1899 on a sparsely populated area of land to the northwest of the city, known locally as Owlerton. The ground was known as the Owlerton Stadium until 1914, when it was renamed Hillsborough to coincide with a series of ground improvements. The ground took its new name from the burgeoning suburb which had effectively grown up around it.
In 1966, the stadium was selected as one of the venues for the Football World Cup, hosting first round matches involving West Germany, Argentina, Switzerland, and Spain, as well as a quarterfinal in which West Germany beat Uruguay 4-0.
In 1989, the ground was the scene of tragedy when 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death in an FA Cup semifinal in the infamous Hillsborough disaster. This prompted a series of improvements to safety at the ground; the terraced stands were converted to all seated accommodation over the following four years, and the fences around the pitch were replaced with low safety-barricades to allow incursion onto the playing surface in case of emergency.
Outside the ground, near the main entrance on Parkside Road, is a memorial to the 96 fans that lost their lives at Hillsborough in 1989, during the FA Cup Semi Final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. The memorial is often covered in flowers left by those who wish to pay their respects and is inscribed with the following words:
- In memory of the 96 men, women and children who tragically died and the countless people whose lives were changed forever.
- F.A. Cup Semi-Final. Liverpool v Nottingham Forest.
- 15th April 1989.
- You'll Never Walk Alone.
In 1996, Hillsborough was host to several fixtures at the Euro 96 competition and in particular was host to the Danish squad. The Danish fans endeared themselves to the local population with their fanatical support and exemplary behaviour, and were particularly popular amongst local landlords - a number of Sheffield public houses had to order emergency supplies of beer!
The highest ever attendance was 72,841 on February 17 1934 for an FA Cup 5th round game against Manchester City. The record attendance since the ground was made all-seated was on February 2 2000 in a Premier League game against Manchester United and was watched by 39,640 fans.
In recent years average attendances at Hillsborough have remained high despite Wednesday's relatively poor league position:
2005-06: 24,853 (Football League Championship)
2004-05: 23,100 (Football League One)
2003-04: 22,336 (Division Two)
2002-03: 20,327 (Division One)
Stands
North Stand
Capacity: 9,255 (seated)
Sponsored by Sheffield Assay Office
The original North Stand was built between 1899 and 1903. In the early sixties this was replaced by the current North Stand which runs along the long north edge of the pitch, and was the second football stand in Britain to have a cantilever roof (thus amongst some fans, it is known as "the cantilever"). It was however the first in the country to run the entire length of the pitch; the first cantilever stand in English football at Scunthorpe United's Old Show Ground only covered the centre of the pitch. Hillsborough is the only football ground to be mentioned in Nikolaus Pevsner's Buildings of England due to this stand.
At the time of opening the stand was the best new stand to be built since Arsenal's East Stand at Highbury in the thirties.
- "There is not a misplaced line in this remarkable stand. From any angle (it) is quite breathtaking. It is like an architect’s model of the dream stand of the future, a space age stand." Simon Inglis [2]
West Stand
Constructed: 1966
Capacity: 7,995 (seated)
Situated at the Leppings Lane end of the ground, the West Stand seats the away supporters on Wednesday home games.
The original stand built at the turn of the century was a covered terrace housing up to 3,000 fans. In the 1920s this was joined by the North West terrace before the Leppings Lane stand was replaced by a 12,000 capacity partially covered terrace. Before the 1966 World Cup the West Stand was demolished again and replaced by a two-tiered structure with 4,471 seats in the upper tier and retaining a terrace in front of the stand. After the infamous Hillsborough disaster in 1989 the lower tier terrace was closed for two years and replaced by 2,294 seats. The North West terrace was the last section of the stand to be made all seated, adding another 1,382 seats to the structure. The North West terrace (still referred to as a terrace despite now being all seated) is the only section of the stadium to remain uncovered and is hence only used at for visiting supporters at big games when the West Stand upper and lower tiers are full.
South Stand
Capacity: 11,354 (seated)
Sponsored by Windsor Foodservice
The first South Stand was originally constructed at Olive Grove, but moved with the club in the summer of 1899 to the new site at Owlerton where it was reconstructed brick-by-brick.
The modern stand, the oldest remaining stand at the ground, was constructed in 1913 for a fee exceeding £17,000 to a design by Archibald Leitch. The stand had 5,600 seats as well as room for 11,000 standing fans. The modern stand has seen a series of improvements, the first being a conversion to an all-seated stand in 1965 ahead of the 1966 FIFA World Cup and latest being a major £7m re-development for the Template:Ec2 international competition when an upper tier of 3,000 extra seats, a new roof, 30 executive boxes, two conference suites, a bar, a restaurant and a range of office space were added.
The South Stand is the most recognisable of the four stands and still bears the original clock face and finial from the 1913 design, although the remainder of the stand is unrecognisable from Leitch's original. It houses the main reception, media and hospitality boxes, as well as the ground's family enclosure, five modern refreshment kiosks and four bars. It also features concourse television sets relaying live coverage of the match as well as highlights at half-time.
Spion Kop
Constructed: 1914
Capacity: 11,210 (seated)
Sponsored by Hallam FM
Named after a hill that was the scene of a famous battle in the Second Boer War, the Spion Kop is built into a natural hill at the east end of the ground and houses the most vocal of Wednesday supporters. It is usually simply referred to by fans as The Kop.
The stand remained open to the elements until a roof was added in 1986 after fans raised money to contribute to the cost. The Kop's huge capacity of 22,000 made it the largest covered standing area in Europe at the time.
The Kop was the last part of the Wednesday ground to be converted to all-seater accommodation, the change finally coming in 1993 to comply with new FA Premier League regulations following the Taylor Report. The capacity was hence halved, but the Kop remains one of the largest single tier stands in Britain and is very intimidating for opposition players.
A large concourse area was added in 2004, partially funded by the Owls Trust.
External links
- Hillsborough at Google Maps
- Hillsborough at The Internet Football Ground Guide
References
- ^ Internet Football Ground Guide
- ^ Inglis, Simon. (1996). The Football Grounds of Britain. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-00-218426-5