City Ground (Cambridge)
| Full name | City Ground |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 52°12′59″N 0°7′21″E / 52.21639°N 0.12250°ECoordinates: 52°12′59″N 0°7′21″E / 52.21639°N 0.12250°E |
| Capacity | 2,300 (500 Seated & 220 Covered) |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1922 |
| Opened | 1922 |
| Closed | 2013 |
| Tenants | |
| Cambridge City F.C. | |
The City Ground (also known as Milton Road) was a football stadium in Cambridge, England. It was the home of Southern League Premier Division club Cambridge City F.C.
The City Ground was Cambridge City's home ground from 29 April 1922 until 27 April 2013. It is located in the Chesterton area of the city, approximately 1km north of the city centre.
In the first game at the ground, Cambridge Town, as the club were then named, played Merton Town. The ground was one of the largest outside the Football League and was estimated to have a capacity in excess of 20,000, although the highest recorded attendance was 12,058 against Leytonstone in 1961. From the late 1960s the ground was used for greyhound racing, and crowds were often higher than for football matches. However, dwindling gates and crippling debts led to part of the site being sold for development in 1985. The ground was demolished and a much smaller but functional ground was built in its place, at 90° to the former ground, with the remainder of the site being developed for offices. The club had a bar and lounge which is open on match days, and was available for hire to the general public.
The ground itself had a capacity of 2,300. The Main Stand, together with its extension (built to house the Cambridgeshire FA) seats approximately 500 people. Opposite the Main Stand, a narrow terrace provided covered terracing for approximately 220 supporters. The middle section was popularly, though not officially, known as "The Shed" and attracted City's more vocal supporters. At each end of the ground, the School End and the Westbrook End were narrow and had no cover or formal terracing.
The ground, which was sold by a previous Board of Directors for £2.2 million despite professional estimates of the site's value being around £12 million. The landlords, Isle of Man company Ross River, which is linked to former City Director and property developer Brian York, gave City a lease to stay at Milton Road only until 31 May 2007, but the club fought this. After several months a High Court ruling stated that "the club is entitled to rescind the [sale of the land] - having been induced to make it by a fraudulent misrepresentation for which Ross River are responsible". The consequence of this is that City were able to stay at the City ground until 2013, and can share in 50% of future profits from development of the site.
...
Wikipedia