The Darlington Arena
Encyclopedia
The Darlington Arena is a football stadium in England
that hosts Darlington Football Club
's home fixtures.
, located near to the town centre. The current stadium is built on a greenfield site next to Darlington's A66 bypass
.
Upon completion the arena was originally called the Reynolds Arena, after the club's then-owner, George Reynolds. However, following Reynolds' bankruptcy and arrest on charges of money laundering
, the name was changed to The New Stadium in April 2004. Since then the club have sold the naming rights for the stadium to sponsors, firstly as the Williamson Motors Stadium then as the 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena between November 2005 and September 2007, and then as the Balfour Webnet Darlington Arena between September 2007 and February 2009. The ground took its current name in February 2009 when The Northern Echo
began sponsorship. It is the largest Blue Square Premier
venue with a capacity of 25,000, although attendances are restricted to 10,000 by local planning laws.
A crowd of 11,600 watched the first game in the new stadium for a 2–0 defeat to Kidderminster Harriers
. Since then the ground has averaged a gate of around 1,500 to 2,000 supporters, although certain fixtures such as derby match against local rivals Hartlepool United
in March 2007 (10,121 spectators), have pulled in a significantly larger turnout.
The capacity of the stadium is currently capped at 10,000 for football matches due to poor access roads around the stadium, although the club are allowed to apply for an exception for certain occasions.
The Darlington Arena consists of four equally sided stands. The West Stand, which is located just behind the goal, is generally the more vocal of the two sides used by home supporters.
Attendances at the stadium were particularly low in the 2009-10, when a terrible season in League Two saw the club relegated to the Football Conference
for the second time in just over 20 years. Their average attendance for the season was the second lowest in the whole Football League at just under 2,000. Their highest crowd of the season was 2,744 and their lowest was a mere 1,296. They go into the 2010-11 season with the largest capacity ever seen in the Football Conference.http://www.emfootball.co.uk/attend.html
was the first act to play at the stadium, on 5 July 2008.
The Arena also played host to first ever professional rugby league
match in the history of County Durham
, when the Gateshead Thunder
used the ground for their fifth round 2009 Challenge Cup
game against the Oldham Roughyeds
due to a fixture clash.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
that hosts Darlington Football Club
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
's home fixtures.
History
Prior to moving to the ground in 2003, Darlington had been playing at FeethamsFeethams
Feethams is a cricket ground and the former home of Darlington F.C. for 120 years, from 1883 to 2003, until the club moved into a new stadium on the outskirts of Darlington.- History :...
, located near to the town centre. The current stadium is built on a greenfield site next to Darlington's A66 bypass
A66 road
The A66 is a major road in northern England which in part follows the course of the Roman road from Scotch Corner to Penrith. It runs from east of Middlesbrough in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire to Workington in Cumbria...
.
Upon completion the arena was originally called the Reynolds Arena, after the club's then-owner, George Reynolds. However, following Reynolds' bankruptcy and arrest on charges of money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
, the name was changed to The New Stadium in April 2004. Since then the club have sold the naming rights for the stadium to sponsors, firstly as the Williamson Motors Stadium then as the 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena between November 2005 and September 2007, and then as the Balfour Webnet Darlington Arena between September 2007 and February 2009. The ground took its current name in February 2009 when The Northern Echo
The Northern Echo
The Northern Echo is a leading daily regional morning newspaper, serving the North East of England. The paper is based in Priestgate, Darlington. Its covers national as well as regional news. It is one of the UK's most famous provincial newspaper titles....
began sponsorship. It is the largest Blue Square Premier
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
venue with a capacity of 25,000, although attendances are restricted to 10,000 by local planning laws.
A crowd of 11,600 watched the first game in the new stadium for a 2–0 defeat to Kidderminster Harriers
Kidderminster Harriers F.C.
Kidderminster Harriers F.C. are an English football club based in Kidderminster, Worcestershire formed in 1886 They currently play in the Conference National and have played at Aggborough Stadium since they were formed...
. Since then the ground has averaged a gate of around 1,500 to 2,000 supporters, although certain fixtures such as derby match against local rivals Hartlepool United
Hartlepool United F.C.
Hartlepool United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Hartlepool that currently play in League One. The team won promotion to League One in the 2006–07 season...
in March 2007 (10,121 spectators), have pulled in a significantly larger turnout.
The capacity of the stadium is currently capped at 10,000 for football matches due to poor access roads around the stadium, although the club are allowed to apply for an exception for certain occasions.
The Darlington Arena consists of four equally sided stands. The West Stand, which is located just behind the goal, is generally the more vocal of the two sides used by home supporters.
Attendances at the stadium were particularly low in the 2009-10, when a terrible season in League Two saw the club relegated to the Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
for the second time in just over 20 years. Their average attendance for the season was the second lowest in the whole Football League at just under 2,000. Their highest crowd of the season was 2,744 and their lowest was a mere 1,296. They go into the 2010-11 season with the largest capacity ever seen in the Football Conference.http://www.emfootball.co.uk/attend.html
Other uses
Darlington plan to use the stadium for musical concerts to increase club revenue. The first set of concerts, called Pitch Invasion, were due to take place in June 2007 but were cancelled by the club just three months before. However, Elton JohnElton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
was the first act to play at the stadium, on 5 July 2008.
The Arena also played host to first ever professional rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
match in the history of County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, when the Gateshead Thunder
Gateshead Thunder
Gateshead Thunder is a professional rugby league club based in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear in England. They currently play in the Championship 1 competition, the third tier of rugby league in the United Kingdom...
used the ground for their fifth round 2009 Challenge Cup
2009 Challenge Cup
The 2009 Carnegie Challenge Cup began in January 2009. The Challenge Cup is the most prestigious knock-out competition in European rugby league. Teams from England, Scotland, Wales, France and Russia are included in the tournament....
game against the Oldham Roughyeds
Oldham Roughyeds
Oldham Roughyeds is an English professional rugby league club based in Oldham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Championship One. Oldham is one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895....
due to a fixture clash.
Names
- New Stadium
- Williamson Motors Stadium
- Darlington Arena
- 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena
- Balfour Webnet Darlington Arena
- Northern Echo Darlington Arena