Eastville Stadium

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eastville Stadium was a stadium in Eastville, a northern suburb of the English city of Bristol.

Constructed in 1897, it was the home of Bristol Rovers F.C. and the Bristol Bulldogs speedway team and was also a greyhound racing venue. Rovers played their home games at Eastville (nicknamed 'The Ville') until forced to leave by financial difficulties in 1986.

What remained of the stadium [[1]]was demolished in 1998 to make way for an IKEA furniture warehouse.

Built near to a Gas Holder, the constant smell of Town Gas in the air gave rise to the derogatory name used for Bristol Rovers by Bristol City fans of 'The Gas'. [2]

Another unique feature of Eastville were the flower beds behind each goal.

[edit] Important Dates

• 1897 - Bristol Rovers first make an appearance at Eastville
• 1921 - Bristol Rovers purchase the stadium.
• 1924 - The mostly wooden south stand was built.
• 1935 - The original Tote End constructed.
• 1940 - The stadium is sold to the Bristol Greyhound Company.
• 1959 - The North Stand opened, and floodlights installed.
• 1960 - Highest recorded attendance for a Rovers match. 38,472 v Preston North End in the FA Cup 4th Round, January 30th.
• 1961 - A roof and new terracing installed at the Tote End.
• 1969 - M32 motorway opened.
• 1977 - Speedway introduced to the ground.
• 1980 - South Stand fire in August.
• 1986 - Bristol Rovers play their last ever game at Eastville.
• 1998 - Eastville stadium demolished.