Bristol County Ground

Bristol County Ground
Ground information
Location Nevil Road, Ashley Down, Bristol
Establishment 1889
Capacity 8,000
17,500 for internationals
End names
Bristol Pavilion End
Ashley Down Road End
International information
First ODI 13 June 1983: New Zealand v Sri Lanka
Last ODI 25 August 2014: England v India
First T20I 28 Aug 2006: England v Pakistan
Last T20I 25 June 2011: England v Sri Lanka
Team information
Gloucestershire (1889 – present)
As of 14 May 2015
Source: CricInfo

The Bristol County Ground (also known as Nevil Road) is a major cricket venue in Bristol, England. It is in the district of Ashley Down. The ground is home to Gloucestershire County Cricket Club.

Initially known as Ashley Down Ground, it was bought in 1889 by W. G. Grace and has been home to Gloucestershire ever since. It was sold to local confectionery firm J. S. Fry & Sons and renamed Fry's Ground. The club bought the ground back in 1933 and it reverted to its original name. It was sold again in 1976, this time to Royal & Sun Alliance who renamed the ground the Phoenix County Ground for eight years before changing to The Royal & Sun Alliance County Ground until the ground was again bought by the club and took it up its current title.

The ground hosts One Day Internationals, usually one per year, with the addition of temporary seating to double the ground's capacity. It has been awarded the following International Match Programme for 2016-2019:

The Club has permission to install permanent floodlights for the beginning of the 2016 season. The ground has long boundaries in comparison to most county cricket clubs.

The former concrete roof over the public terraces, which has now been demolished, was formed from eight hyperbolic-paraboloid umbrellas each approximately 30 ft square, designed by T.H.B. Burrough in 1960.[1]

Redevelopment

In July 2009, Gloucestershire C.C.C. announced plans to redevelop the ground into a 20,000-capacity stadium, with an aim to retaining one day international status.[2][3] The ground now includes a world class media centre and conference facilities. To help fund the project, student accommodation is included in the development.

In March 2010, Bristol City Council gave the go-ahead for the new ground.[4] The revised scheme has raised the capacity to 17,500 seats,[5] which cements the ground as a regular venue for international matches, and one of the host grounds of the 2019 Cricket World Cup.

Due to concerns over housing on adjacent Kennington Avenue, the permanent capacity will now be raised to just 7500 (8000 including the semi-permanent Hammond Roof), but with other changes still implemented: new pavilion, new conference facilities and the construction of new stands (including the demolition of the Jessop stand and Tavern and the rebuilding of the Mound stand to a fixed capacity of 4500) and a 147 flat building. These plans were approved on 31 May 2012 and development began in October 2012. The Bristol Pavilion opened in August 2013.[6] Permanent floodlights were approved by Bristol City Council in April 2015, which will be installed ready for the start of the 2016 season and which will allow the club to host the four 2019 Cricket World Cup matches it has been allocated.[7]

Transport Connections

Montpelier railway station is under a mile from the ground. Main line stations Bristol Temple Meads railway station and Bristol Parkway railway station are 2.5 miles and 3.8 miles, respectively, from the ground. Former station Ashley Hill railway station was situated outside the ground but was closed in 1964. There are plans to reopen the station as part of the Greater Bristol Metro proposals.


See also

References

  1. ↑ Burrough, THB (1970). Bristol. London: Studio Vista. ISBN 0-289-79804-3.
  2. ↑ "Cricket ground's future unveiled". BBC Bristol Sports (BBC News). 28 July 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
  3. ↑ "Major Cricket Stadium Development for Bristol". Gloucestershire County Cricket Club. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
  4. ↑ "Go-ahead to expand cricket club". BBC News. 10 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-10.
  5. ↑ "Gloucestershire County Cricket Club alters ground plans". BBC West. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
  6. ↑ "Grounds for Celebration". Venue (Bristol). 27 August 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  7. ↑ "Floodlight planning application approved". Gloucestershire County Cricket Club. 29 April 2015.

Coordinates: 51°28′38.01″N 2°35′02.96″W / 51.4772250°N 2.5841556°W / 51.4772250; -2.5841556

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