| Central Park | |
|---|---|
| Home of Rugby League | |
| Full name | Central Park |
| Location | Wigan, England |
| Built | 1902 |
| Opened | 1902 |
| Closed | 1999 |
| Demolished | 1999 |
| Surface | Grass |
| Capacity | 18,000 |
| Record attendance | 47,747 vs St Helens 27/03/1959 |
| Tenants | |
| Wigan RLFC (1902-1999) | |
Central Park was a rugby league stadium in Wigan, England. It was the home of Wigan RLFC before the club moved to the JJB Stadium in 1999. Its final capacity was 18,000.
On 6 September 1902, Wigan played at Central Park for the first time in the opening match of the newly formed First Division. An estimated crowd of 9,000 spectators saw Wigan beat Batley 14–8.
The first rugby league international was played between England and Other Nationalities at Central Park on 5 April 1904, Other Nationalities won 9-3 in the experimental Loose forward-less 12-a-side game, with Wigan players David "Dai" Harris, and Eli Davies in the Other Nationalities team.
The visit of St. Helens on 27 March, 1959 produced Central Park's record attendance of 47,747, and set a record for a rugby league regular season league game in Britain. Wigan won the game 19–14, holding off a Saints' comeback after having led 14–0.
Floodlights were installed on 120ft high pylons in summer 1967 so that the club could play in the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy.
The final game at Central Park was on Sunday 5 September 1999. Wigan beat St Helens by 28 points to 20, 96 years and 364 days after the first game against Batley was played. The site is now a car park for a Tesco supermarket.
| Preceded by Springfield Park |
Home of the Wigan Warriors 1902 – 1999 |
Succeeded by DW Stadium |
| Preceded by Sydney Cricket Ground |
Host of the World Club Challenge 1987 |
Succeeded by Old Trafford |
| Preceded by Anfield |
Host of the World Club Challenge 1992 |
Succeeded by ANZ Stadium |
|
|||||||||||
|
|||||||||||