Post Office Road

Post Office Road
The Millennium Stadium
Location	Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England
Coordinates	53°40′43″N1°21′17″W / 53.67861°N 1.35472°W
Owner	Featherstone Rovers
Operator	Featherstone Rovers
Capacity	6,954 standing 359
Record attendance	17,000 – Featherstone vs St Helens, 1957
Surface	Grass
Construction
Broke ground	1904
Opened	1904
Tenants
	Featherstone Rovers (1904–present); Wakefield A.F.C. (2020–2023, 2024-present)

Last updated October 05, 2024

Post Office Road (currently known as the Millennium Stadium for sponsorship purposes) 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 6,954.^{[ citation needed ]}

History

The ground opened in 1904 and has been used by the club since their formation in 1908.^[3] 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. The North-East corner houses the scoreboard.

East Stand

Capacity – (seated)
The Eastern side of the ground has two covered seated stands. The main stand on the halfway line houses bars and toilets while towards the Northern end of the ground, the smaller stand was erected in 2014 after it was relocated from Scarborough's McCain Stadium. To the Southern end of the stand there is a small amount of uncovered terracing.

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 to sit on the roofs and watch games.

West Stand

Capacity – (seated)
The West Stand is the Main Stand in the ground. It contains covered seating, where the TV gantry is and a small amount of uncovered terracing towards the South end of the ground. Towards the North end of the ground is the hospitality building which is connected to the main stand and also houses the changing rooms.

Sponsorship and name changes

From 2007, it was announced that the ground would be renamed the Chris Moyles Stadium after the BBC Radio 1 presenter. 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.^[4]^[5] From 2009, the ground sponsorship was taken up by Bigfellas Nightclub following a two-year sponsorship deal. In 2017 local health food business LD Nutrition signed a deal to sponsor the stadium.

Year	Sponsor	Name	Ref.
2007–2008	Chris Moyles	Chris Moyles Stadium	^[4]
2009–2016	Bigfellas Nightclub	Bigfellas Stadium
2017–2020	LD Nutrition	LD Nutrition Stadium
2020–	Millennium Support	The Millennium Stadium

^[6]

Rugby League Test matches

List of international matches played at Post Office Road.^[7]

Test#	Date	Result	Attendance	Notes
1	16 October 1995	Cook Islands def. United States 64–6	3,133	1995 Rugby League Emerging Nations Tournament
2	16 October 1995	Scotland def. Russia 34–9	3,133	1995 Rugby League Emerging Nations Tournament
3	13 November 2000	BARLA def. Morocco 60–2		2000 Rugby League Emerging Nations Tournament

Rugby League Tour matches

Post Office Road also saw Featherstone play host to various international touring teams from 1952–1994.

Game	Date	Result	Attendance	Notes
1	1 October 1952	Australia def. Featherstone Rovers 50–15	3,700	1952–53 Kangaroo Tour
2	19 October 1955	New Zealand def. Featherstone Rovers 7–6
3	11 November 1959	Featherstone Rovers def. Australia 23–15	7,671	1959–60 Kangaroo Tour
3	2 October 1963	Featherstone Rovers def. Australia 23–17	7,898	1963–64 Kangaroo Tour
4	18 November 1973	Australia def. Featherstone Rovers 18–13	5,659	1973 Kangaroo Tour
5	24 September 1982	France def. Featherstone Rovers 13–5
6	11 October 1987	PNG def. Featherstone Rovers 22–16	3,315
7	7 November 1989	New Zealand def. Featherstone Rovers 44–20	2,733

Related Research Articles

Edgeley Park is a football stadium in Edgeley, Stockport, England. Built for Stockport RFC, a rugby league club, in 1891, by 1903 the rugby club was defunct and Stockport County Football Club moved in. Sale Sharks Rugby Union Club also played at the ground between 2003 and 2012.

Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Championship club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 13th largest football stadium in England.

Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, two miles south-west of Pontefract. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in 2011 it had a population of 15,244. Featherstone railway station is on the Pontefract Line.

The Halliwell Jones Stadium is a rugby league stadium in Warrington, England, which is the home ground of the Warrington Wolves. It has also staged Challenge Cup semi-finals, the European Nations Final, the National League Grand Finals' Day, two games of the 2013 Rugby League World Cup and four games of the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingsmeadow, Kingston upon Thames</span> Football stadium in Kingston upon Thames, UK

Kingsmeadow is a football stadium in Norbiton, Kingston upon Thames, London, which is used for home matches by Chelsea Women and Chelsea Development Squad. It was formerly the home of Kingstonian and AFC Wimbledon and has a capacity of 4,850, with 2,265 seats.

Featherstone Rovers are a professional rugby league club in Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England. The club play home games at Post Office Road and currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of British rugby league.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Jungle (Wheldon Road)</span> Rugby league stadium in Castleford, England

Wheldon Road is the home ground of Castleford Tigers Rugby league Club in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England. It is on Wheldon Road, just outside Castleford town centre. The record attendance of 25,449 was for a Challenge Cup match in 1935.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athletic Ground (Scarborough)</span> Football stadium in North Yorkshire, England

The Athletic Ground, latterly known as the McCain Stadium, was a football stadium located on Seamer Road in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. It was the home of Scarborough F.C., a defunct football club who last played in the English Conference North before they were dissolved on 20 June 2007 with debts of £2.5 million.

Craven Park is a rugby league stadium located in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Hull Kingston Rovers, one of two professional rugby league teams based in the city.

Belle Vue, also known as the DIY Kitchens Stadium for sponsorship reasons, in Wakefield, England, is the home of Rugby League club Wakefield Trinity RLFC and Association Football club Wakefield A.F.C. It is on the A638 Doncaster Road, a mile south of Wakefield city centre.

William Isaac C. Stott was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played at representative level for England and Yorkshire, and at club level for Featherstone Rovers, Broughton Rangers, Oldham, Wakefield Trinity (captain) and Belle Vue Rangers, as a goal-kicking centre or stand-off.

Thomas "Tommy" Smales was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1960s and 1970s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Castleford, Huddersfield (captain), Bradford Northern, North Sydney Bears and Wakefield Trinity as a scrum-half, and coached at club level for Castleford and Featherstone Rovers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vic Darlison</span> English rugby league footballer

Victor "Vic" Darlison was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He played at club level for Goole ARLFC, the Featherstone Rovers, Castleford, Wigan, Wakefield Trinity and Bradford Northern, as a hooker or loose forward.

Headingley Rugby Stadium is a rugby league stadium in Headingley, Leeds and shares the same site as Headingley Cricket Ground. It is the home ground of the Leeds Rhinos. Headingley is the 5th largest rugby league stadium in England.

Terence "Terry" Ramshaw was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s and 1970s. He played at representative level for Yorkshire, and at club level for Castleford Juniors, Featherstone Rovers, Halifax, Bradford Northern, Wakefield Trinity, Salford, Hull Kingston Rovers, Oldham and York as a prop, or second-row.

Paul P. Coventry is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. He played at club level for Fryston A.R.L.F.C., Featherstone Rovers, and Wakefield Trinity, as a wing, centre, or stand-off, he was previously the chairman of Featherstone Rovers, and as of 2013 is the stadium co-ordinator at Post Office Road, Featherstone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Fennell</span> English rugby league footballer (1933–2019)

Jack "Jackie" Fennell was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. He played at representative level for Yorkshire Schoolboys rugby league team, Yorkshire Schoolboys, and at club level for Bagley's Recs and Featherstone Rovers as a goal-kicking fullback, wing, centre or stand-off.

Clifford "Cliff" Lambert, also known by the nickname of "Slam", is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. He played at club level for Featherstone Rovers (vice-captain), and Hunslet, as a second-row or loose forward.

Ray Evans was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s. He played at club level for the Featherstone Rovers, the Rochdale Hornets, and the Hull Kingston Rovers, as a scrum-half, i.e. number 7.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Wrigglesworth</span> English rugby league footballer

Brian Wrigglesworth was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1970s. He played at representative level for Yorkshire, and at club level for Allerton Bywater ARLFC, Doncaster, Bramley, Hull Kingston Rovers and Featherstone Rovers, as a fullback, centre, or stand-off, and coached at Featherstone Rovers.

References

↑ "Wakefield AFC finds home in Featherstone". Wakefield AFC. 4 August 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
↑ "Wakefield bid farewell to the Millennium Stadium". Wakefield AFC. 4 April 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
↑ Featherstone Rovers Yorkshire Rugby League
1 2 Herbert, Ian (18 November 2006). "Rugby fans baffled as ground is named after DJ". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 November 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
↑ "Rooney backs Yorkshire schools". Rugby League News. Retrieved 28 January 2007.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
↑ "Featherstone Rovers make a big step to name stadium". Pontefract & Castleford Express. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
↑ Post Office Road results @ Rugby League Project

External links

The Millennium Stadium, Featherstone Rovers

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] "Wakefield AFC finds home in Featherstone". Wakefield AFC. 4 August 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2023.

[2] "Wakefield bid farewell to the Millennium Stadium". Wakefield AFC. 4 April 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.

[3] Featherstone Rovers Yorkshire Rugby League

[Indy2006-4] 1 2 Herbert, Ian (18 November 2006). "Rugby fans baffled as ground is named after DJ". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 November 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2014.

[5] "Rooney backs Yorkshire schools". Rugby League News. Retrieved 28 January 2007.^{[ permanent dead link ]}

[6] "Featherstone Rovers make a big step to name stadium". Pontefract & Castleford Express. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2010.

[7] Post Office Road results @ Rugby League Project

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

v t e Featherstone Rovers
The Club	Players Women's team
Stadium	Post Office Road
Seasons	2009 2019 2023