Catford Stadium
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| Location | Catford, London |
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| Opened | 1932 |
| Closed | 2003 |
Catford Stadium was a historic greyhound racing stadium in Catford, a suburb of London.
Charles Benstead and Frank Sutton founded the stadium on Southern Railway land between two commuter lines in 1932. The entrance was on Adenmore Road, West of Doggett Road.
The inaugural meeting was held on Saturday 30 July 1932 and consisted of a seven card race of events comprising four or five runners. Mick the Miller was paraded around the track prior to the fourth race. The first racing manager was Lt. Col. A J Vernon and there were no less than eighty bookmakers. A kennel complex was constructed at Layham’s Farm, Keston, near Biggin Hill and six trainers were appointed.
The track was described as a tight 369 yard circumference circuit and the hare was an 'Outside Breco Silent' before being switched to a more conventional 'Outside McKee'. Buses originally dropped patrons off just outside the main gates and by the entrance gates were tote facilities and the South bank enclosure. The West forecourt had a covered grandstand with tote facilities with the judges box directly opposite the winning line. Behind this was the race day kennels. The East forecourt had a larger covered grandstand on the back straight. The track could also be accessed from behind this grandstand because there were two bridges going across the Southern Railway line. To use the bridges to the track an entrance fee was paid at the turnstiles situated on the other side of the railway line to the stadium itself meaning the bridges were actually part of the stadium complex. Finally opposite the main entrance on bends 3 and 4 was the famous tote board nestled between the uncovered north bank enclosure.
Early trainers at the track were Jock Hutchinson, H Hammond, Claude Champion, Albert Bedford, Harry Woolner, Dal Hawkesley and Ernie Pratt and a major event 'The Gold Collar' was introduced in 1933 which would gain classic status. Two other events called the Catford British Breeders Produce Stakes and Cobb Marathon Bowl were introduced; the former became very popular with the event being run twice during many years and the latter was sponsored by brewer Rupert Cobb and became a significant test for the leading staying stars, this race would continue until 1975.
Tote turnover after the war was extremely healthy and the seventh best in London and Great Britain just ahead of West Ham Stadium. On September 20, 1946 an express train from Victoria to Ramsgate derailed and five of the ten coaches fell down the 20 foot embankment landing in the stadium car park. The stadium employees were first on to the scene and remarkably only one person died as a result of the crash.
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