Birchfield Ladbroke Stadium
| Location | Regina Drive, Walsall Road, Birmingham |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 52°31'06.5"N 1°54'18.4"W |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1928 |
| Renovated | 1970 |
| Closed | 1984 |
| Tenants | |
| Greyhound racing | |
The Birchfield Ladbroke Stadium, also known as the old Perry Barr Greyhound Stadium was a former greyhound racing track in Birchfield in the north of Birmingham, England.
It is not to be confused with the current Perry Barr Stadium on the other side of the Walsall Road and accessed from Aldridge Road.
The third greyhound track to open in Birmingham was Perry Barr in the Birchfield area of North Birmingham. Kings Heath Stadium and Hall Green Stadium had both opened in 1927 to large audiences and Perry Barr soon followed in the spring of 1928. The track was situated west of the Walsall Road on the opposite side of the road from the Alexander Sports Ground and accessed on Regina Drive. The River Tame ran below the stadium next to the railway tracks before being diverted in the 1990s.
The opening night was on 7 April 1928 and was promoted by the Birmingham Greyhound Club Limited. The stadium had been built to the cost of £70,000. Despite the fact that the sport was experiencing a boom for some reason the promoters ran into financial difficulties and within two years were left bankrupt. The Birmingham Greyhound Club Limited had failed to capitalise on the growing interest observed all around the country. A licence to continue racing was refused in November 1928 due to evidence of funds owed and the official receiver announced that £95,000 was owed to creditors during a meeting in August 1929 (an extraordinary amount based on the fact that the stadium had only cost £75,000 to build).
Perry Barr Stadium Ltd became the new promoters of greyhound racing and the circuit was described as a good galloping track with long straights and banked bends suiting all types of dogs, especially large, wide and 'leggy-on-the-turn' varieties. The circumference was 462 yards with distances of 500, 525 & 700 yards behind an M&S cable outside hare. The Racing Manager was Mr J.Poole.
Next to the car park was the 3’6 enclosure and the main stand with dining facilities, a milk bar and tote booths. On the opposite side of the track was the 2’6 enclosure, another milk bar and the club stand. On the first bend was the race kennels and paddock featuring four ranges of kennels for forty dogs each, three of these were for home trained dogs with the fourth being for newcomers and visitors. There was also an isolation block for sick and injured dogs with a separate surgery.
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