Carrow Road facts for kids
| The Nest | |
 |
|
| Full name | Carrow Road |
|---|---|
| Location | Norwich, England |
| Capacity | 27,244 |
| Field size | 114 x 74 yards |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1935 |
| Opened | 1935 |
| Tenants | |
| Norwich City F.C. | |
Carrow Road is a famous football stadium in Norwich, England. It is the home ground for the football team Norwich City F.C.. The stadium is right in the middle of the city. It is close to the Norwich railway station and the River Wensum.
The stadium is named after the street it is on, Carrow Road. Norwich City built the stadium in 1935. It was built super fast, in just 82 days! Since then, Carrow Road has been updated many times. Since 1990, every seat in the stadium has been a proper seat. Today, it can hold 27,244 fans. The most people ever to watch a game there was 27,091. Before it became an all-seater stadium, a huge crowd of 43,984 watched a game in 1963. Carrow Road now has a club shop, places to eat, and even a Holiday Inn hotel.
Contents
History of Carrow Road
From The Nest to a New Home
Before Carrow Road, Norwich City F.C. played at a ground called Newmarket Road from 1902 to 1908. The biggest crowd there was 10,366 people in 1908. After some problems with their rent, the club moved to a new place in 1908. This new home was a disused chalk pit called The Nest.
By the 1930s, The Nest was too small for all the growing number of fans. It also had some safety problems. The club had been looking for a new ground since 1926. Part of the pitch even collapsed! The Football Association (FA) told Norwich City that The Nest was not safe for big crowds anymore. They said the club had to find a new place.
With the new football season starting soon, Norwich City was worried. They found a new site about half a mile from The Nest. It was the Boulton Paul Aircraft Sports Ground on Carrow Road. On June 1, 1935, the club bought the land from its owners, Colman's.
Building the Stadium Quickly
The new stadium got its name from the street. The name "Carrow" actually comes from an old abbey that used to be by the river. Building started very fast. Just ten days after buying the land, work began.
By August 17, most of the stands and terraces were ready. Finally, after only 82 days, Carrow Road football ground opened. This was on August 31, 1935, for a match against West Ham United.
Norwich won the game 4-3. A huge crowd of 29,779 people came to watch. This was a new record for Norwich home games! Doug Lochhead scored the first goal at the new stadium for Norwich.
An old photo from 1935 shows open seating on three sides. There was also a covered stand with a Colman's Mustard ad painted on its roof. You could only see it from the air! Colman's was a mustard company right next to the stadium. The club's president, Russell Colman, officially opened the ground. The stadium could hold 38,000 people back then. Even King George VI visited in 1938. He was the first king to watch a Second Division match!
Stadium Improvements Over Time
In 1956, floodlights were put up at the stadium. This cost a lot of money. But Norwich's success in the 1959 FA Cup helped the club financially. This money also paid for a cover over the South Stand. In 1963, the biggest crowd ever at Carrow Road was 43,984. They watched an FA Cup match against Leicester City.
After some tragic events at other stadiums in the 1970s and 1980s, safety rules changed. Stadiums had to reduce how many people they could hold. A new two-tier terrace was built at the River End. Soon after, seats started to replace standing areas. By 1979, the stadium could hold 28,392 people, with 12,675 seats.
A fire in 1984 damaged one of the stands. This stand was later completely taken down. In 1987, a new City Stand was built in its place. The club chairman said that watching a game from the new City Stand was like going to the theatre!
Becoming an All-Seater Stadium
After a very sad event at Hillsborough Stadium in 1989, a report called the Taylor Report was made. This report said that all football stadiums should have only seats. So, Carrow Road was changed to an all-seater stadium. The corners of the stadium were also filled in.
Today, Carrow Road has seats for 26,034 fans. The record crowd for an all-seated game was 25,522. This was for a match against Manchester United in April 2005.
The South Stand was replaced in 2003. A new stand with 7,000 seats was built. It was later named the Jarrold Stand. In 2007, the club added new electronic scoreboards at both ends of the stadium. These big screens show full-colour images and videos.
The Stands at Carrow Road
Carrow Road has five main stands. These are the Barclay, the River End (now called the Regency Security Stand Stand), the Geoffrey Watling City Stand, the Jarrold Stand, and the newest, the Aviva Community Stand.
Regency Security Stand
The old River End stand was taken down in April 1979. A new, two-tiered stand was built in its place. It cost £1.7 million and was finished in December 1979. In the 1990s, its name changed to the Norwich & Peterborough Stand because of a sponsorship deal.
The Barclay
This stand is named after Captain Evelyn Barclay. He was a vice-president of the club and paid for the roof of the original stand. People sometimes incorrectly call it the Barclay Stand.
The first Barclay stand was built in 1937. It was taken down in 1992. A new, two-tier stand was built, similar to the River End. This cost £2.8 million. The floodlights at the stadium are on the corners of the Barclay and Norwich & Peterborough stands. These are the ends behind the goals.
Geoffrey Watling City Stand
The Geoffrey Watling City Stand has one tier. It was built after a big fire on October 25, 1984. The fire was caused by an electric heater left on overnight. The City Stand cost £1.7 million to build. It was first used on August 30, 1986, for a game against Southampton. The Duchess of Kent officially opened it in 1987. The stand was renamed to honor Geoffrey Watling, who was the president of Norwich City and passed away in 2004.
This stand is the smallest of the four main stands. But it holds important areas like the Directors' Box, the Press Area, and special hospitality rooms.
Thorpe Corner
Where The Barclay stand meets the Geoffrey Watling City Stand, there's a small filled-in area called Thorpe Corner. Fans lovingly call it 'The Snakepit'.
Jarrold Stand
The Jarrold Stand is where the old South Stand used to be. That stand was named after Sir Arthur South.
The Jarrold Stand partly opened for a game on January 31, 2004. It fully opened for the next home game on February 21, 2004. This was a big moment for the stadium. It meant that all the original stands had now been replaced.
Jarrolds, a local department store, sponsors the Jarrold Stand. This stand is a single-tiered, all-seated stand. It can hold up to 8,000 supporters. It's special because it has three separate TV camera platforms hanging under its roof.
More work was done on the stand in 2005, and it reopened in 2006. It now wraps around the corner of the Norwich and Peterborough Stand.
Visiting Supporter Area
Fans from the visiting team sit in the part of the Jarrold Stand closest to The Barclay.
Aviva Community Stand
The corner area between the Jarrold and Norwich & Peterborough stands is called the Aviva Community Stand. It was built in 2005 and named after its sponsors, Norwich Union (now Aviva). It has seats for up to 1,500 fans. It also has great facilities for disabled supporters.
Other Facilities at Carrow Road
Holiday Inn Hotel
The club decided to build a hotel in the corner between the Barclay and Jarrold Stands. They thought a hotel would bring in more money than just adding more seats. In 2005, they signed a deal with Holiday Inn. Construction started in 2006, and the hotel opened in 2007. Guests with rooms facing the pitch can even watch matches from their windows!
Food and Drink
Food at Carrow Road is provided by Delia's Canary Catering. This is part of Norwich City Football Club. They use recipes from famous chef Delia Smith. They are proud to use fresh, local ingredients.
Yellows
Yellows is a "New York-style diner" located in the Norwich & Peterborough Stand.
Delia's Restaurant and Bar
This is a restaurant and bar also found in the Norwich & Peterborough Stand.
The Gunn Club
The Gunn Club is a special dining area behind The Barclay. Only members and season-ticket holders can go there. It offers a fancier food experience. It can also be rented for events on non-match days. The club has video screens, visits from players, and serves real ale.
Club Shop
You can buy the match programme for Norwich City games. It has 68 pages and costs £3.
Future Plans for Carrow Road
The club has said they plan to make the stadium bigger if Norwich City gets promoted back to the Premier League. This would help pay for the expansion. They might add a second tier to the Jarrold Stand or the Geoffrey Watling City Stand. The Geoffrey Watling stand was built with foundations strong enough for a second tier. Its roof can be removed and put back after adding another level of seats.
Other Uses of the Stadium
International Football Matches
Carrow Road has never hosted a match for the main England football team. But the England national under-21 football team has played there three times. They won 4-1 against Denmark in 1983. In 1997, they beat Greece 4-2. Future star Michael Owen played his only Under-21 game here. In 2007, the Under-21s played Slovakia in a friendly match and won 5-0. Over 20,000 people watched that game.
Games for the England Under-19 team and the full England women's national football team have also been played at Carrow Road. The women's team played there twice. They lost 1-0 to Nigeria in 2002. Then they won 1-0 against Iceland in 2006. The Iceland game had 9,616 fans, which was the biggest crowd for a friendly women's game at the time.
Music Concerts
The stadium also hosts music concerts sometimes. Status Quo played there in 1997. Elton John performed in 2005, with Lulu as a special guest. This was the biggest concert ever in Norwich at the time. George Michael also performed there in June 2007. Both Elton John and George Michael's concerts had over 20,000 people watching. The stadium hopes to have big concerts every summer if famous stars want to play there.
Statistics
Key Records
- Highest Attendance: 43,984 people for Norwich City vs. Leicester City in the FA Cup, March 30, 1963.
- Highest All-Seater Attendance: 27,091 people for Norwich City vs. Arsenal.
Average Attendances Since 2000
Here are the average number of fans who came to games each season:
- 2014-15: 26,367 (Sky Bet Championship)
- 2013-14: 26,805 (Barclays Premier League)
- 2012-13: 26,672 (Barclays Premier League)
- 2011-12: 26,548 (Barclays Premier League)
- 2010-11: 25,386 (npower Championship)
- 2009-10: 24,756 (Coca-Cola League 1)
- 2008-09: 24,542 (Football League Championship)
- 2007-08: 24,527 (Coca-Cola Championship)
- 2006-07: 24,544 (Coca-Cola Championship)
- 2005-06: 24,833 (Coca-Cola Championship)
- 2004-05: 24,350 (Barclays Premiership)
- 2003-04: 18,866 (Football League First Division) - (Lower due to Jarrold Stand rebuilding)
- 2002-03: 20,352 (Football League First Division)
- 2001-02: 18,629 (Football League First Division)
- 2000-01: 16,525 (Football League First Division)
Images for kids
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Map, showing how the ground is surrounded by Carrow Road and the River Wensum
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View of the River End terracing (right) and the old South stand in 1979
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Schematic plan view of Carrow Road's stands
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Looking towards The Barclay from The South Stand in 2011.
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George Michael, with the Norwich & Peterborough Stand in the background, in June 2007
See also
In Spanish: Carrow Road para niños
