Crown Ground

Crown Ground
Crown Ground
Location in Hyndburn
Former names Fraser Eagle Stadium
Interlink Express Stadium
Location Livingstone Road, Accrington, Lancashire, England
Coordinates 53°45′55.28″N 2°22′15.28″W / 53.7653556°N 2.3709111°W / 53.7653556; -2.3709111Coordinates: 53°45′55.28″N 2°22′15.28″W / 53.7653556°N 2.3709111°W / 53.7653556; -2.3709111
Capacity 5,057 (2,000 seated)
Record attendance 4,753
Field size 111 by 72 yards (101 m × 66 m)
Construction
Built 1968
Opened 1968
Tenants
Accrington Stanley F.C. (1968–present)

The Crown Ground is a multi-use stadium in Accrington, Lancashire, England. It is currently called the Wham Stadium as part of a three-year £200,000 sponsorship deal with What More UK Ltd.[1] It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Accrington Stanley. The stadium holds 5,057 and was built in 1968. It is currently the smallest stadium in the Football League.

The ground's record attendance of 4,753 was set on 28 April 2018 for a match against Lincoln City, which saw Accrington win the League Two title.[2]

Previous names

The stadium was named the Fraser Eagle Stadium for sponsorship purposes until the demise of local company Fraser Eagle in 2009. Before that it was named the Interlink Express Stadium.

Stands/terraces

  • Jack Barret Memorial Stand: this stand is the newest stand. A terrace used to be in its place until it was knocked down and replaced by the current one whilst Stanley were still in the Northern Premier League. It runs half the length of the pitch. The dugouts are situated here and in the John Smiths Stand.
  • John Smith's Stand: this stand runs the other half the length of the pitch. It used to be called the Thwaites Stand. Because of the slope on the pitch it has fewer rows of seating the nearer you get to the Clayton End.
  • Clayton End: officially called the Sophia Khan Stand. This the home end. The more vocal Stanley fans known as the Stanley Ultras like to stand here. It is a covered terrace that had a roof added to it at the start of 2007–08. Seats were added to the front half of the terrace to bring the stadium up to Football League standards.
  • Whinney Hill Terrace: otherwise known as the Cowshed. It stands on the lower slopes of Whinney Hill which is home to a vast waste infill site. It was a small terrace with only 3 rows but had seating installed in the covered section to bring the stadium up to Football League standards. It has a roof running two thirds of the length of the pitch held up by pillars. The terrace continues around the corner for about a third of the Coppice End and around the corner at the other end to join with the Clayton End. The television gantry is situated in the middle of the terrace. The half nearest the Coppice End is given to away fans. This stand is currently closed and is being replaced by the 1,100 seater Eric Whalley Stand, which is due to open in late 2018/early 2019.
  • Coppice End: This is the away end and has the ability to accommodate up 1,800 supporters. If additional demand is required then part of the Whinney Hill side is used for this allocation. Conversely, if away demand is small this stand can go unused. This end is uncovered and is very exposed to the weather.

References

  1. ↑ MacPherson, Jon (4 August 2015). "Wham! Accrington Stanley renames stadium in £200,000 sponsorship deal - Accrington Observer". Accrington Observer. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  2. ↑ Accrington Stanley 1–0 Lincoln City BBC Sport, 28 April 2018
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