Broomfield Park
| Broomfield Park | |
|---|---|
| Broomfield | |
 The distinctive pavilion at Broomfield |
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| Location | Gartlea Road Airdrie North Lanarkshire Scotland |
| Coordinates | 55°51′48.51″N 3°58′40.97″W / 55.863475°N 3.9780472°W |
| Opened | 1892 |
| Closed | 1994 |
| Demolished | 1994 |
| Surface | Grass 112 yds by 67 yds |
| Capacity | 12,620 |
| Tenants | |
| Airdrieonians F.C. (1892-1994) | |
Broomfield Park was a football stadium in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, home of Airdrieonians F.C. from 1892 until it was closed after the 1993-94 football season.
Airdrieonians F.C. was formed in 1878 and the club opened Broomfield in 1892.[1] The Broomfield corner pavilion was built in 1907.[1] After winning the 1923–24 Scottish Cup, the club built a main stand, adjacent to the pavilion.[1] The record attendance at Broomfield Park was 24,000, in a Scottish Cup quarter-final match against Hearts on 8 March 1952.[1][2] Floodlights were installed in 1956, and a roof was built over the Enclosure (opposite the main stand) in 1959.[1] The ground was very narrow, at just 67 yards wide, and the ground was built in a hollow in the town.[1] These physical features and the proximity of the stands to the pitch meant that Broomfield had a raucous atmosphere, which visiting clubs disliked.[1]
Airdrieonians first explored the options for moving from Broomfield in 1989.[1] A planning application was rejected by a public inquiry in 1993, but that same hearing allowed Broomfield to be redeveloped as a supermarket.[1] Airdrieonians chose to sell Broomfield to supermarket chain Safeway despite not having an alternative ground ready to move into.[1] The last game at Broomfield was played on 7 May 1994 and the club then shared Broadwood Stadium, in Cumbernauld, with Clyde.[1] Monklands District backed a plan for a 10,000 seat stadium at Raebog, but the proposal was rejected by Strathclyde Region in October 1995.[1] A proposal for a site at Craigneuk was rejected by Monklands District in April 1996.[1] After four years at Broadwood, Airdrieonians moved into the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium in 1998. Airdrieonians was liquidated in 2002 and replaced by Airdrie United.
[edit] References
- Sources
- Inglis, Simon (1996). Football Grounds of Britain. Collins Willow. ISBN 0002184265.
[edit] External links
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