Post Office Road

Post Office Road
Bigfellas Stadium
Location Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England
Coordinates 53°40′43″N 1°21′17″W / 53.67861°N 1.35472°W / 53.67861; -1.35472Coordinates: 53°40′43″N 1°21′17″W / 53.67861°N 1.35472°W / 53.67861; -1.35472
Owner Featherstone Rovers
Operator Featherstone Rovers
Capacity 9,850
Surface Grass
Construction
Broke ground 1904
Opened 1904
Tenants
Featherstone Rovers (1904-present)

Post Office Road, currently styled as the Bigfellas Stadium for sponsorship purposes (and previously the Chris Moyles Stadium named after the Radio 1 DJ and celebrity Chris Moyles and before that the Lionheart Stadium after sponsorship from UK Coal),[1] is a rugby league ground in Featherstone, near Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of rugby league club Featherstone Rovers. The ground's current capacity is 9,850.

History

The ground opened in 1904 and has been used by the club since their formation in 1908.[2] The record attendance is 17,000 from a 1957 game against St Helens.

In 2011 fans bought stands from the defunct Scarborough F.C.'s McCain Stadium and erected them at the railway end of the ground, replacing the terracing.

Layout

North Stand

Capacity- (seated)
The North Stand or Railway End is the newest part of the ground after originally being terracing it was replaced in 2014 with seated stands which were taken from Scarborough's McCain Stadium.

East Stand

Capacity- (seated)
The East Stand mostly contains seating, the newest part is towards the south end of the stand, The north end of the stand is terracing. Both seating areas are covered.

South Stand

Capacity- (standing)
The South Stand or Post Office Road End is located behind the goal posts and is open terracing. Terrace houses overlook behind the stand and people have been known the sit on the roofs and watch games.

West Stand

Capacity- (seated)
The West Stand is covered seating with a small amount of terracing towards the south end of the stand. The stand also houses hospitality which is in the building towards the north of the stand which also houses the player changing rooms. The TV gantry is also in the West Stand.

Sponsorship and name changes

From 2007, it was announced that ground would be renamed the Chris Moyles stadium after the Radio 1 Disc Jockey. This decision attracted criticism from some fans who felt Moyles had nothing to do with the tradition of the club or rugby league (he was born in Leeds and is famously a loyal Leeds United fan). However others saw it as a positive, good move and good publicity for the team. Moyles did not pay any money in the deal but mentioned Featherstone Rovers occasionally on his breakfast show.[1][3] From 2009, the ground sponsorship was taken up by Bigfellas Nightclub following a two-year sponsorship deal.

Year SponsorName
2007-2008Chris MoylesChris Moyles Stadium
2009-Bigfellas NightclubBigfellas Stadium

[4]

References

  1. 1 2 Herbert, Ian (18 November 2006). "Rugby fans baffled as ground is named after DJ". The Independent. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  2. ↑ Featherstone Rovers Yorkshire Rugby League
  3. ↑ "Rooney backs Yorkshire schools". Rugby League News. Retrieved 28 January 2007.
  4. ↑ "Featherstone Rovers make a big step to name stadium". Pontefract & Castleford Express. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
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