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 Interactive map of Priory Lane | |
| Full name | Priory Lane |
|---|---|
| Location | Priory Lane, Langney,Eastbourne East Sussex, BN23 7QH |
| Owner | Langney Sports Club |
| Capacity | 4,151[1] |
| Field size | 110 × 75 yards |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1988 |
| Opened | 1988 |
| Tenants | |
| Eastbourne Borough F.C. (1983-present) Langney Wanderers F.C. (2017-2021) | |
Priory Lane is anassociation footballstadium located inLangney, an eastern suburb ofEastbourne,East Sussex, England. It is the home ofEastbourne Borough who play in theNational League South. Eastbourne Borough have used this stadium since moving from the playing fields atPrinces Park in 1983.[2]
Building commenced in 1983 when the club, which had just joined theSussex County Football League, leased a playing field and built a garage to store equipment in. The first competitive match played at Priory Lane was againstEast Preston on 15 September 1984, a match which the Sports won 1–0.[3] At this point in time, the team played on the pitch in front of the modern stadium site.[4] They have played on the current pitch since 1988.[3]
Over the years the ground has seen a lot of development. Involving piping a tunnel and installing their own pumping station for drainage. The Peter Fountain stand was first to be built in 1989, named after the man who supplied the labour.[5] This was later extended in the early 1990s as Langney Sports were working their way up in theSussex County League.
There was also a hump where spectators had excellent views of the pitch before the Mick Green stand was built in 1995 ready for the 1995–96 season and is in memory of the club captain who was killed in a building accident in 1994.[5] The Mick Green stand holds the players dressing rooms and a tea bar on the ground level and hospitality suites upstairs.
Construction of the Main stand began in the 1999–00 season[6] and following funding from theFootball Foundation in March 2001 and promotion to the National Conference in 2008 was expanded to its current capacity.[3]
Part of the stadium complex includes the Langney Sports Club, which is open to non-members on selected match days, an indoorbowls centre,archery andtennis courts.[7]
In 2007, a rent dispute with the local council created concern thatEastbourne Borough would lose its stadium after the former attempted to increase the rent from £3,000 to £17,000. The supporters club stepped in and collected over 1,000 signatures in a petition.[8]In June 2009, theFA decided that PrioryLane stadium is a Grade A Stadium but advised that the capacity to be reduced to 4,134. The criteria for a Grade A stadium is to have a capacity of 4,000 with at least 500 seats although to be expanded to 5,000 spectators with 1,000 seats by the end of their first season inLeague Two.
The record attendance is 3,770 againstOxford United in theFA Challenge Cup 1st Round on 5 October 2005.[9]
The first live televised game was on 12 October 2008 in a league game againstStevenage Borough.[10]
In March 2016, plans were finalised to switch to a3G Artificial Turf in time for the2016–17 season.[11]
Borough reached a ground-share agreement with neighboursLangney Wanderers in April 2017. Wanderers will play their home matches at Priory Lane from the2017–18 season.[12]
In August 2022, Borough reached an agreement with SO Legal Ltd to rename the stadiumThe SO Legal Stadium at Priory Lane.[13] The deal will initially run until the end of the 2022/23 season. SO Legal are a law firm from Eastbourne that have offices in Eastbourne, Brighton, Hastings, Uckfield, London, andUlverston.[14]
There is a car park for 400 vehicles, mainly behind the River End stand with a small car park in front of the clubhouse.
Borough never segregated League games before their promotion to the Conference. However, in the2008/09 season after a home game againstMansfield Town, some games with bigger clubs have been segregated, with the away fans using the River End stand.[15]
In 2006 the stadium was chosen byThe Football Association to stage all three of England's fixtures in the Non League Home Nations Tournament.[16][17] The final of theSussex Senior Challenge Cup was staged here between 2000 and 2010.[18][19]
Eastbourne Borough released plans to expand Priory Lane in December 2011. The main focus of the development will be the Peter Fountain (North) Stand, which will include installing a number of Executive Boxes, adding new Changing Rooms and a players tunnel. The River End (East) Stand is due to have 16 tiers of terracing to improve the atmosphere and the Main (South) Stand is planned to be extended to provide additional seating with youth team changing rooms built along the back of the stand facing a new pitch for the youth team.[20]
The ground is located over a mile away fromPevensey & Westham railway station, which lies on theEast Coastway Line betweenHastings andEastbourne.Eastbourne railway station is around six miles away with good transport links.[21] Both are served bySouthern Railway.There are approximately 400 parking spaces at the stadium and the residential streets near the stadium have limited parking. There is a bus service served fromEastbourne town centre.[21]
The progression of Eastbourne's attendance record at Priory Lane is as follows:
Updated 10 May 2016
| Date | Competition | Opposition | Attendance | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 May 2002 | Sussex Senior Cup | Lewes | 1,558 | [22][23] |
| 11 January 2003 | FA Trophy | Farnborough Town | 1,576 | [24][25] |
| 5 May 2003 | Sussex Senior Cup | Crawley Town | 1,705 | [26] |
| 5 October 2005 | FA Cup | Oxford United | 3,770 | [9][27] |
The five highest attendances for Eastbourne at Priory Lane are:
Updated 5 May 2025
| Date | Competition | Opposition | Attendance | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 October 2005 | FA Cup | Oxford United | 3,770 | [9][27] |
| 20 April 2025 | National League South | Worthing | 3,662 | [28] |
| 4 May 2025 | National League South Play-off semi-final | Maidstone United | 3,194 | [29] |
| 11 August 2009 | Conference National | AFC Wimbledon | 3,108 | [30] |
| 1 January 2008 | Conference South | Lewes | 3,027 | [31] |
50°48′15″N0°19′15″E / 50.80417°N 0.32083°E /50.80417; 0.32083