National League South Stadiums

we've done the national league North so now it's time to head South of the Border and see how the southern stadiums compare here are the National League South grounds twerton Park Bath City this is the biggest ground in the league capacity wise and against that capacity through a wide array of different stands including an uncovered Terrace or two it does have a bit of a ramshackle look to it overall while that's not necessarily A Bad Thing I believe there have been plans to extensively renovate the stadium however oddly enough the ground is also home to Bristol City's women's side Bristol is a completely different city in a different County in case you went aware Crossing Road Braintree town I don't know why they named the town Braintree but if I had to guess I'd say it's home to the tree that dropped the apple on Isaac Newton's head which gave him the idea to invent the hard hat an invention we still use today actually that's why it's so famous the stadium for the most part is nothing out of the ordinary but there is one thing that says it apart a little bit that is the blue and orange color scheme it's rather nice that might not be everyone's cup of tea [Music] Melbourne Stadium Chelmsford City I don't care if the people of Chelmsford say Melbourne it's Melbourne m-e-l Mal b-o-u-r-n-e boon if you're gonna name your Stadium after this glorious City at least get it right it's not named after Melbourne like the national league North this league has just one stadium that features a running track thankfully it's just not that common in England this only makes for a much less intimate atmosphere than you get at a football specific grounds but other than that it seems like a solid venue and it can always sit in this stand if you want to get closer theobald's Lane chessons I think this might be the most rudimentary ground in this league and that is saying something but credit where credit is due in recent years they brought in the scaffolds and the big cranes and improved upon the stadium it's actually looking like a well-rounded and kind of prim and proper Stadium nowadays I feel like that white fence might be the reason for that cleans it off a bit [Music] hard and Huish Park Chippenham town this ground is uh well where is it it's supposed to be here I guess it's just tucked away behind those trees but yeah once inside you'll see a wide variety of different stands some of which are looking a little worse for wear and most of the roofs have pillars obstructing The Spectators View however the setting itself makes off for that Thames Road Concord ranges what the heck is going on here I think it's some sort of Holiday Park but it looks like something out of xinjiang although I don't think the people staying in these homes were forced here for the crime of growing a beard as the name suggests Thames road is situated on Thames Road and Thames road is situated on the banks of the River Thames near the mouth of the River Thames I think the laid-back Vibe of a holiday park is being carried over into the stadium itself perhaps it's just those blue walls princess Park Dartford having opened in the mid-2000s you might be a little perplexed as to why the roof looks like it's in the State of Decay it's not actually it is in fact a living roof meaning there's stuff growing up there all above board nothing illegal the roof is also held up by a Timber beam so it's a very eco-friendly Stadium and a neighbor friendly Stadium because the pitch is slightly sunken into the ground to minimize noise pollution it seems a lot more intimate than the other grounds we've seen so far perhaps it's simply because it's fully enclosed yeah this is going to be one of the more interesting modern non-league grounds crabble athletic ground Dover athletic Darva of course is known for one particular geographical feature these White Cliffs and although they pale in comparison there are actually some pseudo Cliffs here due to the setting being basically carved into the side of a hill so it's a pretty spectacular location as for the stadium itself well it's not the most technologically advanced obviously but this unique partially wooden stand is absolutely remarkable oh and in case you hadn't noticed already there's a prodigious slope to this ground but that's understandable [Music] Champion Hill dull witch Hamlet just a few years back the club was temporarily forced out of the stadium by the owner I guess they didn't pay their rent I'm sure they're glad to be back because it's a pretty cool Stadium the main stand which is basically the only proper stand at the stadium has a very interesting and unusual design you don't usually see so many stone blocks on display I really like it surprisingly this ground holds the record for the largest attendance outside of the football league a little over 16 000 back in 1931. adjusted for inflation that's a whopping attendance of 190 000 people in today's figures Priory Lane Eastbourne United or is it Eastman when this ground opened in the late 80s it would it was just a humble Sports field with only the most basic of amenities something you're likely to see in any neighborhood however in just a few decades it's grown rapidly to become a humble Sports field that you're likely to see in every other neighborhood now it's actually a proper Stadium now with the stand on all four sides which is something that not every ground in this league can boast it's still basic though Stonebridge Road Ebbs fleets United this beautiful old ground has a gray mix of charming characterful old stance and unique modern stance well just this one which was built from scratch a few years back after an old Sam was demolished in contrast to the new well-equipped stand to the West over on the Northern side of the ground there is an uncovered Terrace no prizes for guessing where the away supporters are located why do they even bother segregating fans in the sixth tier is anyone really going to throw hands for absolute United Cherrywood Road farnborough fittingly Cherrywood Road has seats of blue the color of cherry and roofs made of steel which of course is made from wood hence cherry wood but in all seriousness it did used to have a red color scheme back in the day owing to it being the former home of another club that wore red once more this ground has plenty of unusual design features however it does all come together nicely to form a pretty well-rounded Stadium West Lee Park havant and waterlooville when waterlooville FC moved into Westerly Park in the late 90s and merge with Heaven Town nobody gave them a chance to become football juggernauts as of 2023 that was the correct assumption but you never know the small main stand is the only section of seating at the ground it has some vibrant blue and yellow seeds to be specific the rest of the field is surrounded by a simple terracing shed terracing as I like to call it as of a few seconds ago it was a bit of an interesting choice to put this floodlight Tower in front of the seats kinda ironic given that floodlights are there to help people see Vauxhall Road Hammel Hempstead town much like how some countries put former dictators on their currency the people of Hamel Hempstead have decided to put Henry VII on their crest I mean he didn't kill anywhere near the amount of people has stolen or Hitler of course but I mean you didn't have to do all that beheading mate I don't care if they called you fat anyway there is one very small insignificant thing that I like about this ground and that is just the way the lawn sort of forms a bit of a lip at the edge of the field bull pit Lane Hungerford town this is a pretty straightforward ground but there is one peculiar aspect that's worth noting and that is that they actually brought over this down from the nearby Faraday Road ground I can see why they wanted it it puts the others to shame another slightly odd thing about the ground is this big uh radio or cell tower over here you'd think it would blend in because they're already light towers but no it sticks out like a sore thumb but it's no big deal [Music] bevere Stadium Hampton and Richmond borough I keep saying it but this ground has a very eclectic bunch of stands lining its perimeter these ones don't really gel together in fact it wouldn't surprise me if most of them were purchased off of Gumtree or whatever the UK equivalent is what next you'll be telling me that deliveroo is British what next you'll be telling me that the word crikey is British huh well at least we have tim tams and Vegemite that are completely unique and original creations with no pre-existing British counterparts I do like this ground though Court plays Farm Oxford City Oxford is known for its prestigious University of course and I feel that this ground is not exactly the embodiment of Oxford's reputation yes Oxford has some old buildings but most of the stands at this ground look like old sheds and they just don't have the same appeal to be fair they built this new standover in the corner a few years back and although simple it seems to be the best stand of the ground Arbor Park Slough town Slough Slough that name rings a bell wasn't there a TV show set here a few years back one that documented the mundane daily lives of some of the locals I recall an episode where somebody put their colleagues stapler in some jelly ah of course anyway Arbor Park has one of the smallest capacities in the league but it's not even close to being the worst ground it opened just six or seven years ago and features some very distinctive modern architecture I'm loving the exterior of the main stand in particular ironically Arbor Park has very few trees surrounding it which is actually a rarity in this league Clarence Park Saint Albans City just like we saw in the National League North video with the walks the stadium is located within a park that shares its name Clarence Park I wouldn't say this ground is quite as picturesque as the walks the mainstream does have a bit of an odd look to it but it's still a nice ground overall interestingly back in the 90s the club was denied promotion due to a diseased oak tree within the premises that was deemed to be a danger to spectators I guess I didn't have the heart to cut it down that seems odd Wordsworth Drive Taunton town that's quite a poetic name Taunton town which is fitting considering that they play at Wordsworth drive because of William Wordsworth the famous Victorian era rapper probably heard this hit song of his [Music] oh damn shellings in my pocket bought me a six horsepower cart you can't stop it goes like a rocket I got a tailor maze because they don't even stock it off the docket [Music] I would say that slaps hard but actually it was quite like many of the grounds we've seen this has undergone some improvements in recent years but we're talking about a new lick of paint on some of the older stands matching their Taunton Town kits rather than a multi-million pound overhaul still it's looking pretty good long made Stadium tonbridge angels after being evicted from their old ground in the late 70s to make way for a shopping center the Angels were offered this ground as compensation or at least the land and money to build a stadium now's a slightly different style of architecture the roofs of each of the three stands in particular are quite distinctive I like them what's better is that every stand as well as the additional features such as the fencing and whatnot matches one another it also seems to be in a nice leafy area surrounded by trees so it's got a lot going for it Park View Road Welling United this ground long predates the club which was formed in the 60s in fact it was bombed by the Germans in World War II and then by the Welsh in World War III whoops I've said too much don't let them know our plans yeah sorry mate uh oddly enough the most distinctive design feature here is probably this striking red fence that lines the terracing a completely irrelevant feature it's just a bloody fence but it certainly catches your eye Bob Lucas Stadium Weymouth the stadium was originally built to host both Greyhound and Speedway racing back in the day however in the mid 80s it was completely rebuilt the race cars were stripped for parts and the Greyhounds were sent to some sort of Festival in China sounds Jolly this stand elevated above the field has a peculiar name the balti house I hope thus referring to there being some chicken balti pies available Within because even though British Cuisine cops and Flack that is some fine food stuff right there Woodside Road Worthing as you can see this place does have an artificial turf field which obviously isn't ideal I usually prefer natural grass of course but I do love that red trim very striking indeed I suppose it's a bit like the fence we saw at Parkview Road in that respect first of the setting is coming from the elevated brick standover on the south side of the ground that seems like the place to be actually that is the only city in the house come to think of it so there you have it as always I'll try to pick a favorite if you enjoyed the video please consider subscribing if you haven't done so already and as always thanks for watching have a good one [Music]