Ground: Field Mill
Location: Mansfield, Nottinghamshire
My third new ground of 2018 was on Saturday 10th March at Field Mill in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The match was Mansfield Town vs. Colchester United in Football League Two.
Field Mill is in the south of Mansfield less than a mile from the town centre. The stadium complex is mostly bordered by a retail park though half of the eastern side has housing running up to it. As part of the site there is an additional full-size pitch and couple of mini pitches adjacent to the west stand. The venue is half a mile south of the town's railway station and though it has been home to the club since they 1920 it is known that football has been played at the ground since at least 1861 making it the oldest in the Football League.
Field Mill was extensively renovated in the late 1990s/early 2000s with three of the four sides up to a modern standard. The stadium is dominated by the West Stand which renamed the Ian Greaves Stand in 2010. This two-tier structure has a capacity of 5,500 and is the most popular amongst home fans. The tiers are similar in nature with the only exceptions being a media section separated off in the top tier and a couple of areas for disabled fans in the lower tier. The club's hospitality boxes are located at the back of the bottom tier while the bottom of the stand also hosts the Sandy Pate Sports Bar as well as a merchandise outlet outside the building leading into the car park.
The other two stands in use are behind the goals and look near-identical. These both have a capacity of just under 2,000 with the northern end given over to away fans. The obvious differences are that the southern end has a police box in the top-west corner and sitting next to the stand is the players tunnel which leads from a changing room building at the back of the stand. The eastern side of the ground is currently unused. The Bishop Street Stand is largely an uncovered concrete terrace with an all-seater stand built atop the terracing in the middle. This stand is boarded up with advertising hoardings and has been closed for a few years due to safety concerns. Its current use is for a TV gantry to sit atop it to film the matches. There is a very large LED screen in the northern corner displaying the score and any relevant information the club wish to broadcast.
Result: Mansfield Town 1-1 Colchester United
Division: Football League Two
Attendance: 4,050
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