County Cricket Ground, Bristol
Encyclopedia
The County Cricket Ground (also known as Nevil Road) is a cricket
venue in Bristol
, England
. It is in the district of Ashley Down
. The ground is home to the Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
.
Initially known as Ashley Down Ground, it was bought in 1889 by W. G. Grace
and has been home to Gloucestershire ever since. It was sold to local confectionery firm J. S. Fry & Sons
and renamed Fry's Ground. The club bought the ground back in 1933 and it reverted back to its original name. It was sold again in 1976, this time to Royal & Sun Alliance who renamed the ground the Phoenix County Ground for eight years before changing to The Royal & Sun Alliance County Ground until the ground was again bought by the club and took it up its current title.
While the ground is steeped in character, it also has the feel of an ageing ground, especially as cricket sees its popularity grow due to the continued success of Twenty20
cricket. Despite this, the ground does host One Day Internationals, usually one per year, with the addition of temporary seating to double the ground's capacity. Day–night matches are possible with the addition of temporary floodlights.
The concrete roof over the public terraces is formed from eight hyperbolic-paraboloid umbrellas each approximately 30 ft square, designed by T.H.B. Burrough in 1960.
Within the ground are tennis and squash courts as well as a gym, which is available to the public.
In March 2010, Bristol City Council gave the go-ahead for the new ground. The revised scheme will raise the permanent capacity to 17,500 seats, which the club hope will make it a regular venue for international matches, and one of the host grounds of the 2019 Cricket World Cup
.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
venue in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is in the district of Ashley Down
Ashley Down
Ashley is one of thirty-five council wards in the city of Bristol in the United Kingdom. The ward contains the areas of Ashley Down, Baptist Mills, Montpelier, St Andrew's, St Paul's and St Werburghs.-Politics:...
. The ground is home to the Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
.
Initially known as Ashley Down Ground, it was bought in 1889 by W. G. Grace
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace, MRCS, LRCP was an English amateur cricketer who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time, having a special significance in terms of his importance to the development of the sport...
and has been home to Gloucestershire ever since. It was sold to local confectionery firm J. S. Fry & Sons
J. S. Fry & Sons
J. S. Fry & Sons, Ltd. was a British chocolate company owned by Joseph Storrs Fry and his family.This business moved through several names and hands before ending up as J. S. Fry & Sons.- History :*circa 1759 — Joseph Fry starts making chocolate...
and renamed Fry's Ground. The club bought the ground back in 1933 and it reverted back to its original name. It was sold again in 1976, this time to Royal & Sun Alliance who renamed the ground the Phoenix County Ground for eight years before changing to The Royal & Sun Alliance County Ground until the ground was again bought by the club and took it up its current title.
While the ground is steeped in character, it also has the feel of an ageing ground, especially as cricket sees its popularity grow due to the continued success of Twenty20
Twenty20
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...
cricket. Despite this, the ground does host One Day Internationals, usually one per year, with the addition of temporary seating to double the ground's capacity. Day–night matches are possible with the addition of temporary floodlights.
The concrete roof over the public terraces is formed from eight hyperbolic-paraboloid umbrellas each approximately 30 ft square, designed by T.H.B. Burrough in 1960.
Within the ground are tennis and squash courts as well as a gym, which is available to the public.
Redevelopment
In July 2009, Gloucestershire C.C.C. announced plans to redevelop the ground into a 20,000 capacity stadium, with an aim to retaining one day international status. The ground will also include a "world class" media centre and conference facilities. The public gym would be upgraded with the addition of a swimming pool. The help fund the project, accommodation for 350 students will be included in the development.In March 2010, Bristol City Council gave the go-ahead for the new ground. The revised scheme will raise the permanent capacity to 17,500 seats, which the club hope will make it a regular venue for international matches, and one of the host grounds of the 2019 Cricket World Cup
2019 Cricket World Cup
The 2019 Cricket World Cup will be hosted by England and Wales. This will be the twelfth Cricket World Cup competition, and the fifth time it will be held in England, following the 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1999 World Cups....
.