 Interior of the stadium | |
  Deepdale Stadium Location in Preston | |
| Full name | Deepdale Stadium |
|---|---|
| Location | Sir Tom Finney Way,Preston, Lancashire, PR1 6RU, England |
| Coordinates | 53°46′20″N2°41′17″W / 53.77222°N 2.68806°W /53.77222; -2.68806 |
| Owner | Preston North End F.C. |
| Operator | Preston North End F.C. |
| Capacity | 23,404[1] |
| Field size | 110 by 77 yards (101 m × 70 m)[2] |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1875 |
| Opened | 1878 (forPNE) |
| Renovated | 1995, 1998, 2001 |
| Tenants | |
| Preston North End F.C. (1878–present) Lancashire Lynx (1996–2000) | |
Deepdale is a footballstadium in theDeepdale area ofPreston, England that is thehome ground ofPreston North End. Built in 1875 and in use since 1878, Deepdale is recognised as being one of the oldest continuously used football stadiums in the world, although the club's claim that it is the oldest is contested.[3]
The land on which the stadium stands was originally Deepdale Farm. It was leased on 21 January 1875[4] by the town's North End sports club and originally used for cricket and rugby. It hosted its firstassociation football match on 5 October 1878. On 21 June 1890,Preston North End Baseball Club played the first professionalbaseball game at Deepdale, withDerby Baseball Club winning 9–6.[5]
As football grew in popularity, it became necessary to have raised areas, so the idea of football terracing was formed. In the 1890s Preston built the West Paddock, which ran along the touch line and a tent was erected to house the changing rooms. By the turn of the century, crowds were regularly over 10,000 and in 1921 they had to expand again. TheSpion Kop was built and the West Paddock was extended to meet the Kop end. The pitch was removed to allow the building of the Town End, which was completed in 1928 but was destroyed by fire only five years later and had to be rebuilt. The Pavilion Stand, a relatively small stand of two tiers holding the changing rooms and offices, was built and opened in 1934. The record league attendance for Preston North End at Deepdale is 42,684 vArsenal in the First Division, 23 April 1938.[2] The women's teamDick, Kerr Ladies also used to play at Deepdale, regularly attracting crowds of tens of thousands.[6]
An attempt was made to destroy the ground in 1913. As part of thesuffragette bombing and arson campaign,suffragettes carried out a series of bombings and arson attacks nationwide to publicise their campaign for women's suffrage.[7] In April 1913, suffragettes attempted to burn down Ewood Park's grandstand but were foiled.[8] In the same year, suffragettessucceeded in burning downArsenal's then South London stadium, and also attempted to burn downBlackburn Rovers' ground.[8] More traditionally male sports were targeted in order to protest againstmale dominance.[9]
In 1986, Preston North End decided to lay an all-weather pitch to try to generate some extra income for the club by renting the pitch to local teams to play on, to reduce the number of postponed matches as well as enabling the use of the Deepdale pitch as a training ground.[citation needed] It was one of four football stadiums in the English league to feature a plastic pitch, but this proved to be unpopular with the fans and was finally ripped up in 1994, by which time it was the last remaining plastic pitch in the English league.[10]
The original plans for the re-developed stadium were inspired by theLuigi Ferraris Stadium inGenoa,Italy.[11] The regeneration of Deepdale began in 1995 when the old West Stand was demolished to make way for the new £4.4m SirTom Finney Stand which includes press areas and restaurants. The next stand to be developed was theBill Shankly (1913–1981) Kop in 1998, followed by theAlan Kelly (1936–2009) Town End in 2001, which replaced the popular Town End terrace. In 2008, a 25-metre screen was also erected on the roof of the Bill Shankly Kop.
The old 'Pavilion' stand, was replaced by the 'Invincibles Pavilion' for the 2008–09 season, named after the Preston North End team ofthe 1888–89 season who were the first League champions, the first team to complete the League andFA CupDouble, and the only English team to complete a season unbeaten in both League and Cup.[4][12] The Invincibles Pavilion includes a row of executive boxes and a restaurant which overlooks the pitch as well as the Stadium Control Room, PA Box and Big Screen Control Room and anNHS walk-in centre has also been built into the stand.
Deepdale is now anall-seater stadium with a total capacity of 23,404, as follows:[13]
At Deepdale, the area designated for visiting supporters is in the Bill Shankly Kop, a stand located behind one of the goals at the north end of the stadium.[14] The stand has a steep incline and provides clear views of the pitch, helping create an engaging atmosphere for travelling fans.[15]
Ticket allocations for away supporters typically range around **3,000 seats**, but for matches with a larger travelling following the full stand can be assigned, offering up to **6,000** places.[16] Facilities in the away end include turnstiles dedicated to visiting fans, access to refreshments and concourse toilets, and an away ticket office open before kick‑off for collections and sales.[17]
The allocation and matchday arrangements are managed in coordination with the visiting club and local safety authorities, and away supporters are reminded of stadium regulations regarding behaviour, banners, and prohibited items.[18]
Outside the SirTom Finney Stand, is a statue of the famous player himself, sculpted by Preston-born sculptor Peter Hodgkinson.The statue, commissioned for Finney's 80th birthday and unveiled in July 2004, was inspired by a photo taken at theChelsea versus PNE game played atStamford Bridge, in 1956.[19]
The game was in 1956. There had been a big downpour just before the kick off. The match would not have been played today because there were huge pools of water on the playing surface. I was going past a defender and the ball ran in to a pool of water. It was a fantastic photograph and it won the Sports Photograph of the Year award. The sculpture is a true likeness.
Deepdale was used during the2005 UEFA Women's Championship for three group games and a semi-final,[20][21][22][23] for anEngland Under-21s game againstIceland in March 2011,[24] and twoEngland Under-19s Elite Qualifying Round matches againstSlovenia andSwitzerland in the 2011–12 season.[25]
Between 2001 and 2010 theNational Football Museum was located in the Bill Shankly Kop stand at Deepdale.[26] The project, started in 1995, was part funded by a National Lottery Heritage grant. Including items such as the match ball from the1966 World Cup Final and a cap from theworld's first ever football international, the museum attracted around 100,000 visitors a year.[27][28] A proposal to move to Wembley Stadium in 2008 was resisted,[27] but the removal of external funding lead to the museum's relocation toUrbis in Manchester in 2010.[26]
