The Memorial Stadium viewed from above |
The Memorial Stadium (previously known as The Memorial Ground) is Rovers' current stadium where they have played since 1996. The stadium was supposed to be redeveloped into an 18,500 all seater stadium from halfway through the 2007-08. This was delayed in August 2007 until the summer of 2008. On June 3rd 2008, the club announced that the stadium would be delayed by a further year after the group responsible for building the student accommodation at the stadium pulled out. This effectively meant the redevelopment of the Memorial Stadium was put on hold indefinitely.
History[]
The ground was built as a memorial to rugby union players from Bristol killed during World War I. It was opened in September 1921 as a home for Bristol Rugby Club who hadn't needed a new ground as their previous ground (The County Cricket Ground on nearby Nevil Road) was no longer available to them. Bristol Rugby Club have played there ever since.
In 1996, Bristol Rovers, who had been playing outside the city for 10 years sharing Bath City's Twerton Park, moved into the ground as the rugby club's tenants. They soon became joint owners of the ground and in 1998, as a result of the rugby club's huge financial problems stemmed from relegation for the Premiership, became sole owners of the ground with the rugby club becoming tenants.
Rovers have been behind many improvements to the stadium since moving in. These include installing roofs over the Clubhouse (Bass) Terrace and Family Terrace as well as a temporary stand at the south of the ground, which is loaned from the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon.
Stadium Capacity[]
The Stadium can officially hold 11,916 but this figure drops to 11,724 due to segregation.
Area | Capacity |
---|---|
Clubhouse (Bass) Terrace | 3,710 |
Uplands Terrace | 2,327 |
Family Terrace | 721 |
DAS Terrace | 1,100 |
Uplands Stand | 1,160 |
DAS Stand | 710 |
Becks South Stand | 1,008 |
Away Terrace | 933 |
There are also around 75 seats for wheelchair users and the disabled.
Memorable Matches[]
- 31 August 1996: Bristol Rovers 1-1 Stockport County - First competitive fixture at the Memorial Stadium.
- 30 July 1999: Bristol Rovers 2-2 Manchester United - Lee Martin testimonial game. David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer were among the United players.
- 27 February 2007: Bristol Rovers 1-0 Bristol City - Johnstone's Paint Trophy Southern Area Final Second Leg.
- 9 March 2008: Bristol Rovers 1-5 West Bromwich Albion - Only FA Cup Quarter Final at the stadium, biggest attendance for a Rovers game (12,011)