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Messages - 100groundsproject

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The B-Ark / Re: Information on York Street and BUFC's other grounds.
« on: February 08, 2017, 02:23:33 PM »
It was a brand new stand. All the stands apart from the York Street stand were rebuilt. Pretty much unchanged since then apart from the President's Lounge, a few extra seats, the control room and refurbished changing rooms being added to the York Street stand. There are some photos of the old stands on Andy Butler's "Boston United FC Photo Archive" on Facebook - well worth a look. Ian Butler added an excellent set on 26th September 2016.

Excellent, thank you for the information. I will take a look at Andy's photo archive.

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The B-Ark / Re: Information on York Street and BUFC's other grounds.
« on: February 07, 2017, 05:59:03 PM »
    Don't think there's anything detailed out there, but not a lot has happened since the club formed in 1933. They've played at York Street from the start. It was called Shodfriars Lane back then but basically it was the same ground as now. Had a stand burn down and rebuilt a couple of times before the war. The stand at the York Street end was built in the mid fifties and floodlights were added. After failing to get elected into the football league on numerous occasions the club decided to undergo a major rebuilding in 1977 after being turned down yet again - this time as the ground wasn't up to the required standard (some other lesser club got the nod that season instead - whatever happened to Wigan Athletic?). A few cosmetic changes since then - a few extra seats added to the York Street end to meet League requirements, along with an observation/control room in the corner. Name changes with sponsors. Has been called the Jakemans Stadium since 2009.

    There's a Wikipedia entry here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Street

    Does anyone know when the current main stand was built? I've read it was overhauled in 1981, but did it simply have new fixtures and fittings, or was it a brand new stand? So far I’ve established:

    Fire destroyed main stands in 1926 and again in 1934.
    Fire destroyed separate dressing room block and supporters' club offices in November 1937, possibly due to a faulty coke stove. Some of the players had to train in international shirts borrowed from Freddy Tunstall, as kit was lost in the blaze. Greyhound kennels were converted as makeshift replacements.[/li][/list]


    Apparently a replacement stand was in place prior to the dressing room fire of 1937 but I can’t find a record of when it was built or if the shell is the same one in existence today. I’d value any thoughts on this.

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    The B-Ark / Re: Information on York Street and BUFC's other grounds.
    « on: January 31, 2017, 09:07:09 AM »
    Thanks, Ken.

    The chapter will also touch on Boston United’s new stadium.

    What are supporters’ views on the move? Is it necessary to push the club forward?  Is the current ground past its sell by date or could it have been refurbished? Personally, I thought York Street was wonderful, but I’m viewing this as a football tourist and not a supporter of the club.

    From reading various sources, York Street was often referred to as the finest non-League ground in the country. It will be a sad day when the demolition crew move in.

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    The B-Ark / Re: Information on York Street and BUFC's other grounds.
    « on: January 30, 2017, 08:18:01 PM »
    Good luck with the book. There is some info on this website about York Road ...

    http://www.footballgroundguide.com/leagues/conference/conference-south/maidenhead-united-york-road.html

    As it happens, York Road features in the book too!

    Thanks for the spot though. I've edited the original post.

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    The B-Ark / Information on York Street and BUFC's other grounds.
    « on: January 30, 2017, 07:52:04 PM »
    York Street features in a book I’m writing on Britain’s favourite football grounds. More information on the project can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/100GroundsProject/

    Can anyone point me to a book or other comprehensive works that offer a detailed history of York Street and Boston United’s former homes? There is a section in The History of Non-League Football Grounds and snippets in a couple of other non-League anthologies, but I was looking for something a bit more in depth.

    Thanks in advance.

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