Victoria Road (stadium)
Encyclopedia
Victoria Road, currently known as the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Stadium, for sponsorship purposes, is the home ground of Dagenham & Redbridge F.C.
of London, England. It has a capacity of 6,078.
The site on Victoria Road has been a football ground since 1917, when it was used by the Sterling Works side, whose factory was situated alongside it. It was not fully enclosed until the summer of 1955, when Briggs Sports moved out to Rush Green Road, and Dagenham F.C.
moved from the Arena. During that summer they levelled and re-seeded the pitch, removed the stones from the playing surface and extended the banking and the terracing. The only cover was a tiny wooden stand, which was steep and narrow and had a few rows of seating on the far side of the ground. The main stand was built in the autumn of 1955 and was opened on 7 January 1956 by J.W. Bowers who was the chairman of the Essex County Football Association
. During the summer of 1956 the turnstile block at the Victoria Road side of the ground and the men's toilets situated at the Victoria Road were added. In the summer of 1958 the cover over the far side was erected at a cost of £1,400. The first floodlight match at Victoria Road was Dagenham v Woodford
in the FA Youth Cup
on 26 September 1957 and the first senior match was a friendly against Rainham Town F.C.
on 19 March 1958. The attendance record was set in 1967 with the visit of Reading F.C.
in the FA Cup
when 7200 crammed into the ground.
Although the ground was regularly maintained, it changed little until the arrival of Redbridge Forest in 1990 to ground share. They paid for a new stand to be erected in the corner of the ground to increase the seating capacity
and replaced the grass banking with concrete terracing. These improvements brought the ground up to the standard required by the Football Conference
. Redbridge Forest
and Dagenham
merged in July 1992 and the ground improvements have continued right up to the present day. In 1995 they replaced the crumbling pitch perimeter wall with a new brick built one and two years later rebuilt the toilet block at the Victoria Road end of the ground. The club brought in Bill O'Neil from Atcost to design and build a new purpose built stand. The new 800-seater, which brings the seating capacity
to over a thousand, was used for the first time for the Essex Senior Cup final against Canvey Island
on 4 August 2001, twelve weeks after the old stand was last used. During summer 2001 new turnstile blocks were constructed and the eight floodlights were replaced with four corner ones.
In October 2001, Bass brewers, agreed a £150,000 sponsorship of the new stand, now named the Carling Stand. This provided the funds for the improvements to continue and a number of crush barriers were installed in 2002, which helped ease the flow of spectators around the ground along with a new walkway behind the covered terrace. Whilst the Dagenham & Redbridge
record attendance is 5,949, set against Ipswich Town
in January 2002, these improvements have enabled the ground to meet Football League
status and the capacity is now 6,078. In July 2007 a new sponsorship deal was set up with the Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council
with the stadium renamed the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Stadium.
, an FA Women's Cup
semi-final, UEFA Youth International matches involving England
, San Marino
and Cyprus
and San Marino
, various County and League Cup finals and an FAXI
against a Isthmian League
representative side. Premiership West Ham United
have in the past used the stadium to host their reserve matches.
Dagenham & Redbridge F.C.
Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club , informally known as Daggers, is an English association football club based in Dagenham, in the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, East London. It was formed in 1992 after a merger between Redbridge Forest and Dagenham...
of London, England. It has a capacity of 6,078.
The site on Victoria Road has been a football ground since 1917, when it was used by the Sterling Works side, whose factory was situated alongside it. It was not fully enclosed until the summer of 1955, when Briggs Sports moved out to Rush Green Road, and Dagenham F.C.
Dagenham F.C.
Dagenham F.C. was an English football club based in Dagenham. Established in 1949, the club played at Victoria Road from 1955 until its merger with Redbridge Forest in 1992 to form Dagenham & Redbridge.-History:...
moved from the Arena. During that summer they levelled and re-seeded the pitch, removed the stones from the playing surface and extended the banking and the terracing. The only cover was a tiny wooden stand, which was steep and narrow and had a few rows of seating on the far side of the ground. The main stand was built in the autumn of 1955 and was opened on 7 January 1956 by J.W. Bowers who was the chairman of the Essex County Football Association
Essex County Football Association
The Essex County Football Association, also simply known as the Essex FA, is the governing body of football in the county of Essex.-External links:*...
. During the summer of 1956 the turnstile block at the Victoria Road side of the ground and the men's toilets situated at the Victoria Road were added. In the summer of 1958 the cover over the far side was erected at a cost of £1,400. The first floodlight match at Victoria Road was Dagenham v Woodford
Woodford Town F.C.
Woodford Town F.C. was an English football club based in Woodford, Greater London.-History:The club was established in 1937, and were founder members of the Delphian League in 1951. In 1961 they switched to the Metropolitan League, before joining Division One of the Greater London League in 1967...
in the FA Youth Cup
FA Youth Cup
The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under–18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part...
on 26 September 1957 and the first senior match was a friendly against Rainham Town F.C.
Rainham Town F.C.
Rainham Town F.C. was an English football club based in Rainham, Greater London. Their home ground was Deri Park.-History:The club was established in 1945 and initially played at the Rainham Working Men's Club Ground before moving to Deri Park in 1948. They were founder members of the Delphian...
on 19 March 1958. The attendance record was set in 1967 with the visit of Reading F.C.
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
when 7200 crammed into the ground.
Although the ground was regularly maintained, it changed little until the arrival of Redbridge Forest in 1990 to ground share. They paid for a new stand to be erected in the corner of the ground to increase the seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
and replaced the grass banking with concrete terracing. These improvements brought the ground up to the standard required by 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...
. Redbridge Forest
Redbridge Forest F.C.
Redbridge Forest F.C. was an English football club, founded in 1989. The club came into being by a merger between Leytonstone/Ilford and Walthamstow Avenue, though the merged clubs played one season under the original name....
and Dagenham
Dagenham F.C.
Dagenham F.C. was an English football club based in Dagenham. Established in 1949, the club played at Victoria Road from 1955 until its merger with Redbridge Forest in 1992 to form Dagenham & Redbridge.-History:...
merged in July 1992 and the ground improvements have continued right up to the present day. In 1995 they replaced the crumbling pitch perimeter wall with a new brick built one and two years later rebuilt the toilet block at the Victoria Road end of the ground. The club brought in Bill O'Neil from Atcost to design and build a new purpose built stand. The new 800-seater, which brings the seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
to over a thousand, was used for the first time for the Essex Senior Cup final against Canvey Island
Canvey Island F.C.
Canvey Island F.C, known as the Gulls or Yellow Army, are an English football club founded in 1926 that play in the Isthmian League Premier Division....
on 4 August 2001, twelve weeks after the old stand was last used. During summer 2001 new turnstile blocks were constructed and the eight floodlights were replaced with four corner ones.
In October 2001, Bass brewers, agreed a £150,000 sponsorship of the new stand, now named the Carling Stand. This provided the funds for the improvements to continue and a number of crush barriers were installed in 2002, which helped ease the flow of spectators around the ground along with a new walkway behind the covered terrace. Whilst the Dagenham & Redbridge
Dagenham & Redbridge F.C.
Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club , informally known as Daggers, is an English association football club based in Dagenham, in the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, East London. It was formed in 1992 after a merger between Redbridge Forest and Dagenham...
record attendance is 5,949, set against Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town F.C.
Ipswich Town Football Club are an English professional football team based in Ipswich, Suffolk. As of 2011, they play in the Football League Championship, having last appeared in the Premier League in 2001–02....
in January 2002, these improvements have enabled the ground to meet Football League
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
status and the capacity is now 6,078. In July 2007 a new sponsorship deal was set up with the Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council
Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council
Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Barking and Dagenham is divided into 17 wards, each electing three...
with the stadium renamed the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Stadium.
Ground use
The ground has been used to host some important matches including a Women's Full international match between England and SwedenSweden women's national football team
Sweden women's national football team are a football team officially representing Sweden in women's football. They won the unofficial European Championships in 1984, a success the team has not managed to repeat, it has however won one World Cup-silver as well as three European Cup-silvers...
, an FA Women's Cup
FA Women's Cup
The Football Association Women’s Challenge Cup Competition, commonly referred to as the FA Women's Cup, is the top cup competition for women's football clubs in England – designed as an exact equivalent to the FA Cup created 99 years earlier...
semi-final, UEFA Youth International matches involving England
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...
, San Marino
San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino , is a state situated on the Italian Peninsula on the eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. It is an enclave surrounded by Italy. Its size is just over with an estimated population of over 30,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino...
and Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
and San Marino
San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino , is a state situated on the Italian Peninsula on the eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. It is an enclave surrounded by Italy. Its size is just over with an estimated population of over 30,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino...
, various County and League Cup finals and an FAXI
Faxi
The Faxi waterfall is located on the Golden Circle, a popular tourist trail east of Reykjavik. The waterfall is located on the Tungufljót river....
against a Isthmian League
Isthmian League
The Isthmian League is a regional football league covering London and South East England featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs. It is sponsored by Ryman, and therefore officially known as the Ryman League. It was founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area...
representative side. Premiership West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
have in the past used the stadium to host their reserve matches.