Carlisle Grounds

Carlisle Grounds
Public transit Bray Daly railway station
Capacity 7,000 (3,185 seated)
Field size 113 x 70 yards
Construction
Built 1862
Tenants
Bray Wanderers A.F.C.

The Carlisle Grounds is a football stadium in Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland. Situated directly behind the Bray D.A.R.T. station, it is home to Bray Wanderers A.F.C. Its current capacity is roughly 7,000 with 3,185 seats.

History

The Carlisle Grounds can claim to be the Football Association of Ireland ground with the longest history as a sports venue. Opened in 1862 as the Bray Athletic Ground, it was renamed the Carlisle Cricket and Archery Ground later that year, in honour of the 7th Earl of Carlisle who performed the opening ceremony as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Later it was shortened to the Carlisle Grounds.

A new stand seating 985 was constructed in 2006 bring the seating capacity of the ground up to about 2,000. The League of Ireland side Transport F.C. played at the Carlisle Grounds from 1948-1951 before moving to Harold's Cross Stadium. In July 2009 a section of the wall around the pitch collapsed after Shamrock Rovers fans rushed down to the wall to celebrate a goal.[1] The following year another section of the wall fell as a result of fans rushing forward, this time while hosting their league promotion playoff against Monaghan United, prompting an FAI investigation.[2] The Carlisle Grounds hosted a 2011 UEFA Regions' Cup match.

References in popular culture

The Carlisle Grounds was used in the filming of the Bloody Sunday scene in the 1996 film Michael Collins.

Future redevelopment

In October 2009, details were released of a planned large scale redevelopment of the ground.[3] This would involve a new stadium being built on the site as well as a major retailer moving in. A scale model of the redevelopment was displayed on the clubs website around this time.[4]

Bibliography

References

External links

Coordinates: 53°12′20.57″N 6°6′10.40″W / 53.2057139°N 6.1028889°W