Goodison Park

Goodison Park

The Grand Old Lady
Former names	Mere Green
Location	Goodison Road, Liverpool
Owner	Everton F.C.
Operator	Everton F.C.
Capacity	40,569
Surface	Grass ( 112 x 78 yards, 102.4 x 71.3 metres)
Construction
Opened	August 24 1892
Construction cost	£3000
Architect	Kelly Brothers
Tenants
Everton F.C.

Goodison Park is the home ground of Everton F.C. in Liverpool. It has a total capacity of 40,569 all-seated.

History

Built in 1892, it is one of the oldest and most historic football grounds in the world and was the first major football stadium in England and is nicknamed the Grand Old Lady. It was the first British sports ground ever to have double-decker stands on all 4 sides and the first to have a 3 tier stand. It was also the first English league ground to have undersoil heating. In 1913 it became the first English football ground to be visited by a ruling monarch, King George V.

The first covered dugouts in England were constructed at Goodison, in 1931, following Everton's visit to Pittodrie to play a friendly against Aberdeen, where such dugouts had been constructed at the behest of the Dons' trainer Donald Coleman.

The ground staged 5 matches including a semi-final for the 1966 World Cup, the final for the 1894 FA Cup and the FA Cup Final replay in 1910. Everton have hosted more international matches than any other English club. It was also, in 1949, the site of England's first ever defeat to a non-Home Nations country, namely the Republic of Ireland.

The greatest match the stadium has ever held, according to voters at Everton's official website, was a European Cup Winners' Cup semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich in 1985. Munich, leading at half time, were defeated by three second half Everton goals from Andy Gray, Graeme Sharp and Trevor Steven.

The ground is situated in a tightly-packed residential district, which has made expansion of the ground extremely difficult, if not impossible. One corner of the ground is actually formed by a church, St Luke the Evangelist's.

The pitch is one of the largest in the Premiership (or the old Football League), most pitches tending towards a de facto standard of 110 x 70 yards. Goodison Park is considerably wider, and slightly longer.

Stands

The ground is made up of 4 stands:

The Park End - capacity 6,000. A single-tier, cantilever stand completed in 1994. At the South end of the ground, behind one goal, the Park Stand backs onto Walton Lane which borders Stanley Park. It was re-constructed in 1995.

Bullens Road - capacity 8,067. A two-tier stand designed by the renowned football ground architect Archibald Leitch. On the East side of the ground the stand is divided into the Upper Bullens, Lower Bullens and the Paddock. The South end of the Bullens Road stand houses away supporters. The North corner of the stand is connected to the Gwladys Street Stand.

‎Gwladys Street End - capacity 10,155. Another two-tier Archibald Leitch stand, divided into Upper Gwladys and Lower Gwladys. Behind the goal at the North end of Goodison Park, the Lower Gwladys can be said to hold the most boisterous and vociferous Evertonians. If Everton win the toss before kick-off they always elect to play towards the Gwladys Street End in the second half.

Main Stand - capacity 16,347 (upper tiers). A three-tier stand, incorporating the Main Stand, Family Enclosure and Top Balcony, as well as the (relatively few, for such a large ground) Coroporate Boxes. The current Main Stand was completed in 1971, at a cost of £1m, following the demolition of the previous 1909 incarnation (another Archibald Leitch design). The Main Stand houses the teams' changing rooms, and the teams enter the pitch from a surprisingly discreet tunnel at the halfway line in the Main Stand. Unusually (particularly considering the date of construction) the Top Balcony is accessed by escalator.

The future

Goodison Park became all-seater in 1994 with the construction of the Park end, taking the capacity to just over 40,000, but the ground's confined location made it virtually impossible for further expansion to be considered.

In 1996, chairman Peter Johnson announced the club's intention to leave Goodison Park. Although the move was met with opposition from some supporters groups, most notably Goodison4Everton, the club attempted to secure land and planning permission at King's Dock. Although Everton were eventually granted preferred bidder status, over twelve other applicants, the deal fell through in 2003 after Everton failed to secure their necessary £30m investment and an alternative bidder was chosen.

In late 2004, representatives from the club met with representatives of their local rivals Liverpool and the Sports Minister to discuss plans to build a joint stadium, Stanley Park. However, this proposal was rejected by both clubs. This leaves Everton with the decision to either build a new stadium on their own, or try and rebuild Goodison Park. As of June 2006, Everton have received at least three offers from Knowsley and Sefton to relocate a few miles outside Liverpool.

Details

Address

Goodison Road

Liverpool

L4 4EL

Phone numbers

Main Telephone: 0151-330-2200

Main Fax: 0151-286-9112

Ticket Office: 0870-442-1878

Records

Record Attendance: 78,299 v Liverpool, September 18th, 1948 (Old Division One)

Average attendances (Premier League)

• 1992-93 19,504 (Park End stand under redevelopment)
• 1993-94 22,876 (Park End stand under redevelopment)
• 1994-95 31,291
• 1995-96 35,294
• 1996-97 36,186
• 1997-98 35,355
• 1998-99 36,203
• 1999-00 34,828
• 2000-01 33,945
• 2001-02 34,004
• 2002-03: 38,491
• 2003-04: 38,837
• 2004-05: 36,834
• 2005-06: 36,860

External links

• NSNO Goodison Park
• Toffeeweb History of Goodison Park
• Pictures at Goodison Park
• Goodison Park at Google Maps
• Goodison Park at Football Ground Guides website

Footnotes

53°26′19.51″N 2°57′58.80″W