Brewery Field

Last updated

Dunraven Brewery Field
Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven
Brewery Field main stand-geograph-1606369.jpg
Brewery Field
Former namesThe Brewery Field
Riverside Hardware Brewery Field (2010–2013)
Bridgend Ford Brewery Field (2013–2017)
Morganstone Brewery Field (2017–2021)
Timbuild Brewery Field (2021–2022)
Location Bridgend, Wales
Coordinates 51°30′36″N3°34′54″W / 51.51000°N 3.58167°W / 51.51000; -3.58167
Public transit National Rail logo.svg Bridgend
OwnerBrewery Field Ltd.
Type Stadium
Capacity 8,000
Opened1920
Tenants
Bridgend Ravens (1920–1929, 1935–1949, 1957–present)
Bridgend Athletic RFC (2015–present)
Bridgend Blue Bulls (2005)
Bridgend Town A.F.C. (2009–2013)
Celtic Crusaders (2005–2009)
Celtic Warriors (2003–2004)

Dunraven Brewery Field (Welsh : Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven) is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their home matches, as well as the Ospreys who sometimes play at the ground, including their age grade teams.

Contents

Sports

Rugby union

Brewery Field main stand Brewery field bridgend.jpg
Brewery Field main stand

Bridgend Ravens moved to The Brewery Field in 1920 after their former home, Quarella Ground, was acquired for building purposes. The club's first stay at the Brewery Field ended in the 1928/29 season, when the ground was purchased by a greyhound racing syndicate, who organised greyhound racing meetings from 1929 and was still active in 1932. [1]

Bridgend RFC returned in 1935, but were forced into exile once more in May 1949, after a rugby league team had signed up to take the lease of the ground. After the council acquired the ground via a compulsory purchase order, Bridgend RFC were set to return in September 1957. [2] The stadium was in a poor state of repair: most of the outside fencing was laid to the ground, essential services including water, heating, lighting and drainage were wrecked and needed to be completely re-installed. Other repairs and building work took place over several months and just in time for the 1957/58 season and the club have remained there ever since.

Celtic Warriors played most of their home matches at the ground in their only season in 2003–04. The team was formed during the advent of regional rugby at the top level of rugby union in Wales and was the partnership of Bridgend RFC and Pontypridd RFC. The ground hosted all but 3 of the club's home games. A then capacity crowd of 10,000 saw the team host London Wasps in the 2003–04 Heineken Cup. The team was culled after just one season due to financial difficulties by the Welsh Rugby Union, neither Bridgend or Pontypridd had any sort of ownership of the region at the time of closure. Following the demise of the Warriors region in June 2004, [3] the Neath-Swansea Ospreys had their borders extended to cover much of the Bridgend and Ogmore areas to the east. [4] However, for logistical reasons it was decided that no home games would be played the Brewery Field.

In 2010, the Ospreys announced that their fixture against the Leicester Tigers in the LV Cup would be played at Brewery Field. After achieving a record crowd for the team in the competition (6,632), the Ospreys continue to use the Brewery Field as a secondary venue. In January 2019, the Ospreys moved their Pro14 game against Ulster to the stadium after a fixture clash at the team's regular home of the Liberty Stadium. [5] Ospreys again used the ground for their 2024 New Year's Day game against Cardiff, [6] as well as in their Challenge Cup Round of 16 match against Sale Sharks. [1]

2010 saw the ground host all of Wales national women's rugby union team home matches in the 2010 Women's Six Nations Championship.

It was announced in August 2015 that Bridgend Athletic RFC will play the majority of their home matches at the Brewery Field. [7]

Rugby league

Rugby league team Bridgend Blue Bulls played at the ground in 2005, winning all their home games, including the RLC Welsh Grand Final 56-16 against Torfaen Tigers. The ground also hosted the final of the Harry Jepson Trophy, which the club reached and ran out 60-10 winners over Leeds Akkies. The club moved to Porthcawl RFC for the 2006 season.

Crusaders played their first four seasons of their existence at the ground, to which they had ownership of, between 2006 and 2009. The team played in the lower leagues of professional rugby league during their first few years, before they were given a franchise to operate in the Super League, the elite rugby league competition in Europe, from 2009 to 2011. They played their first Super League home game at the stadium on 21 February 2009 against Hull F.C. The Crusaders won their first Super League game at Brewery Field on 13 June 2009 with a shock win against the Wigan Warriors. They re-located to The Racecourse Ground in Wrexham at the end of 2009 and disbanded two years later. It was also the headquarters of Wales Rugby League and home of the Wales national rugby league team, but they have since re-located.

Rugby league test matches

The list of rugby league internationals played at Brewery Field. [8]

DateHomeScoreAwayCompetitionAttendance
November 2, 2003Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 4–76Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 2003 Kangaroo Tour 3,112
October 16, 2005Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 22–14Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 2005 European Nations Cup 1,176
October 29, 2006Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 14–21Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifying 2,378
October 28, 2007Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 50–10Flag of Papua New Guinea.svg  Papua New Guinea Friendly^1,456
October 17, 2009Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 12–48Flag of England.svg  England Friendly3,249
November 8, 2009Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 28–16Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 2009 European Cup Final1,608

^ not a full international, as not played to international rules (excess substitutes were used)

Football

Bridgend Town A.F.C. moved to the Brewery Field in 2009 after the consortium that the club was part of, purchased the ground. The club had been without a home since leaving Coychurch Road in 2007 to make way for a supermarket development. The club initially ground-shared with Porthcawl Town for a year, and then moved to the University of Glamorgan playing fields at the Pontypridd campus. The club played their first game at the Brewery Field in September 2009, when they beat Aberaman Athletic 1-0. In 2013, the club merged with local rivals Bryntirion Athletic to form Penybont F.C. [9] and will be based out of Bryntirion Park. The stadium hosted Penybont F.C.'s first game in European club competition on 13 July 2023, when they participated in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League first qualifying round. [10] As a result of UEFA requirements, only seated tickets were sold, and 1,400 fans saw Penybont draw 1-1 with FC Santa Coloma of Andorra. [11]

The 2010 FAW Women's Cup Final between Cardiff City Ladies and UWIC Ladies was played on the ground.

International football arrived at the ground for the first time in October 2010, with the venue hosting two games from the 2011 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship qualification, with Wales hosting their group. The first game was played on 22 October, when Turkey U19s recorded a 5-1 victory over Kazakhstan U19s. The second game at the venue was between Kazakhstan U19s and Wales U19s on 25 October which ended in a 1-1 draw and ensured Wales finished second in the group and qualified for the next stage of the qualification process.

Other uses

The stadium held a Bryan Adams concert in 2006, [12] which was organised by the Celtic Crusaders and was seen as a huge success with over 15,000 in attendance.

Ownership

The ground changed ownership in March 2009. [13] Before this change, the long-term lease was owned by the Crusaders and the Bridgend Ravens had to rent the ground from the Crusaders throughout the winter.

In July 2010, a story was published that many misunderstood to mean Bridgend Ravens had sole ownership of the famous ground. In fact the story was only reporting that Bridgend Ravens had finally purchased their half of the lease for the Brewery Field from Bridgend Town, having not been financially able to at the original transfer of ownership. The ground remained in 50/50 ownership between Bridgend Ravens and Bridgend Town Football Club. [14] August 2014 was a landmark day for the Brewery Field. Bridgend Ravens announced that under a new Management Franchise Licence they would be in full charge of the day-to-day running of the ground. [15]

Naming rights

In August 2017, Bridgend Ravens announced that the stadium would be renamed the Morganstone Brewery Field on a two-year deal. [16] Morganstone replaced the previous naming rights holders, Bridgend Ford, a local Ford car dealership. [17] A local independent builders merchant, Timbuild, replaced Morganstone in August 2021, becoming the stadium partner on a two-year deal. [18] Dunraven Windows, a home improvement company, became the club's stadium partner in August 2022 on a two-year deal. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiff Arms Park</span> Sports venue in Cardiff, Wales

Cardiff Arms Park, also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World Cup, including the third-place play-off. The Arms Park also hosted the inaugural Heineken Cup Final of 1995–96 and the following year in 1996–97.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgend</span> Town in South Wales

Bridgend is a town in the Bridgend County Borough of Wales, 20 miles (32 km) west of Cardiff and 20 miles (32 km) east of Swansea. The town is named after the medieval bridge over the River Ogmore. The River Ewenny also flows through the town. The population was 49,597 in 2021. Bridgend is within the Cardiff Capital Region which in 2019 had a population of approximately 1.54 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Celtic Warriors</span> Rugby team

The Celtic Warriors were a rugby union team from Wales, who played in the 2003–04 Celtic League and the 2003–04 Heineken Cup following the introduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales. They were effectively a temporary merger of Pontypridd RFC and Bridgend RFC. The Celtic Warriors played just one season before disbanding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ospreys (rugby union)</span> Rugby team

The Ospreys, formerly the Neath–Swansea Ospreys is one of the four professional rugby union teams from Wales. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team formed as a result of Neath RFC and Swansea RFC combining to create a new merged entity, as part of the new regional structure of Welsh rugby, that began in 2003. They are also affiliated with a number of local semi-professional and amateur clubs, including Welsh Premier Division sides Aberavon RFC, Bridgend Ravens, and original founding clubs Neath and Swansea. The regional area represented by the team has widely become known for rugby purposes as 'Ospreylia'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crusaders Rugby League</span> Defunct Welsh rugby league club

Crusaders Rugby League was a professional rugby league club based in Bridgend and later in Wrexham, Wales. They played for six seasons in the Rugby Football League competitions, including three years in the Super League from 2009 to 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Racecourse Ground</span> Welsh football stadium

The Racecourse Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as the STōK Cae Ras, is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pontypool RFC</span> Welsh rugby union club, based in Pontypool

Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool, which plays in the WRU Premiership. Since the regionalisation of Welsh rugby in 2003, Pontypool RFC is now a feeder club to the Dragons regional team. Pontypool play their home matches at Pontypool Park. Their traditional home kit is a red, white and black-hooped shirt and socks with white shorts, although they did gradually shift to wearing black shorts post-2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgend Ravens</span> Welsh rugby union football club

Bridgend Ravens are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales.

The Amateur Four Nations was a rugby league competition contested annually by Wales A, Ireland A, Scotland A and England A. The teams from the Celtic nations would pick players from their domestic competitions, while England's squad would be picked from teams in the Rugby League Conference. Players would also come from university teams and the armed forces. The competition, sometimes referred to as the Four Nations Championship, had previously been sponsored by Cheltenham Regency and Parkhouse Recruitment and Skanska. In 2014 the tournament was renamed the Celtic Nations Cup following England's withdrawal

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgend Town A.F.C.</span> Former association football club in Wales

Bridgend Town A.F.C. was a Welsh football club that played in the Welsh Football League. Historically, their local rivals were Maesteg Park who disbanded in 2009. In 2013, they merged with local rivals Bryntirion Athletic to form Pen-y-Bont.

Michael Hook is a rugby union skills coach and Head coach at the Ospreys and Welsh Premiership team the Bridgend Ravens respectively. Hook played the position of fly-half. Brother of Wales international James Hook he has represented Wales U16S up to U21s playing in two U21 world cups as well as being a part of the Grand Slam winning U21s team in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgend Blue Bulls</span> Welsh amateur rugby league club, based in Pyle, Bridgend, Wales

The Blue Bulls are a rugby league side based in Pyle, Wales. They play in the Welsh Premier of the Rugby League Conference. They are the most successful amateur rugby league team in Wales, having won the Welsh Premier a record seven times in their two incarnations, as well as winning the Harry Jepson Trophy twice against teams from England, Wales and Scotland.

Leighton Samuel is a Welsh businessman, and former owner of several sporting teams in South Wales.

Welsh regional rugby is the top tier of professional Welsh club rugby and is composed of the Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff Rugby and the Dragons which compete in the United Rugby Championship.

Jamie Murphy is a Welsh rugby league player currently for the West Wales Raiders in the RFL League 1. His position is at centre. He previously played rugby union for Bridgend Ravens & Newport RFC Aberavon Wizards, and Ospreys.

Paul Morgan was a Welsh professional rugby union and rugby league footballer, rugby union coach and cricketer, born in Pencoed. He played club level rugby union (RU) for Pencoed RFC, London Welsh RFC, Whitland RFC, Aberavon RFC, Llanharan RFC, Bridgend Ravens, Maesteg RFC, as a Centre, i.e. number 12 or 13, representative level rugby league (RL) for Wales, and at club level for Aberavon Fighting Irish, Bridgend Blue Bulls, Celtic Crusaders, as a wing, or centre, i.e. number 2 or 5, or, 3 or 4, coached club level rugby union (RU) for Neath Athletic RFC, and Aberavon Quins RFC. and played cricket for Pencoed Cricket Club (captain).

Tydfil Wildcats Rugby League is a Rugby league club based in Merthyr Tydfil. The club colours are yellow and blue. The home ground was the cage in Troedyrhiw until September 2010 but relocated for the 2011 season to Dowlais RFC. The Wildcats play in the Wales Rugby League conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Wales Crusaders</span> Welsh rugby league club

The North Wales Crusaders is a professional rugby league club based in Colwyn Bay, Wales. They are the successors to the former Super League club Crusaders Rugby League. Crusaders compete in Betfred League 1, the third tier of English rugby league. Until the end of 2016 they played their home games at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham. From 2017 to 2020 they were based at the Queensway Stadium in Wrexham, but also played several games at Hare Lane in Chester. In 2021 the club moved to the Eirias Stadium in Colwyn Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penybont F.C.</span> Association football club in Wales

Penybont Football Club is a Welsh football club that plays in the Cymru Premier. The current club was formed in 2013, following the merger of Bridgend Town and Bryntirion Athletic. Penybont play their home games at Bryntirion Park.

Llynfi Road is a rugby stadium in Maesteg in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. It is the home of Maesteg RFC.

References

  1. 1 2 Barnes, Julia (1988). Daily Mirror Greyhound Fact File. Ringpress Books. p. 410. ISBN   0-948955-15-5.
  2. ↑ "Club hasn't gone to ground after 130 years". WalesOnline. 3 January 2008. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  3. ↑ "WRU axe falls on Warriors". BBC News. 1 June 2004. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
  4. ↑ "Regions call to ex-Warriors". BBC News. 7 July 2004. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
  5. ↑ Orders, Mark (10 January 2019). "The 'critical' reason why the Brewery Field is to host Ospreys' key Guinness PRO14 clash against Ulster". WalesOnline. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
  6. ↑ "Ospreys NYD fixture against Cardiff to be held at Dunraven Brewery Field | Ospreys". www.ospreysrugby.com. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  7. ↑ "Ath to Play at Brewery Field". Bridgend Athletic RFC. 17 August 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  8. ↑ "Brewery Field - Results - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  9. ↑ Phillips, Terry (31 May 2013). "Bridgend Town and Bryntirion Athletic merge to make Pen-y-Bont FC". walesonline. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
  10. ↑ "Brewery to host Penybont in Europe". Penybont FC. 19 May 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  11. ↑ Pritchard, Dafydd (13 July 2023). "Europa Conference League: Penybont 1-1 FC Santa - spirited hosts draw on European debut". BBC Sport Wales. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "Rocker Adams makes Bridgend debut". BBC News. 2 June 2006. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  13. ↑ "Ambitious plans for Bridgend's Brewery Field". WalesOnline. 19 March 2009. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  14. ↑ "Rugby: Bridgend Ravens net online TV deal". WalesOnline. 29 July 2010. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  15. ↑ Thomas, Aled (30 August 2014). "Bridgend Ravens agree Brewery Field licence deal". Bridgend Ravens RFC. Archived from the original on 1 June 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  16. ↑ "Morganstone secure Brewery Field naming rights". Bridgend Ravens RFC. 2 June 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  17. ↑ "Bridgend Ford Partner With Bridgend Ravens". Bridgend Ford. 29 July 2019. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  18. ↑ Thomas, Aled (23 August 2021). "Introducing.. The Timbuild Brewery Field!". Bridgend Ravens RFC. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  19. ↑ "Introducing the Dunraven Brewery Field". Bridgend Ravens RFC. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
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.