The Fartown Ground or just simply Fartown is a sports ground located in the
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...
suburb of
Fartown in
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
and is predominantly famous for being the home ground of
Huddersfield Rugby League Club from 1878 to 1992. The grounds consisted of a rugby ground, a cricket ground used by
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club is a professional Cricket club based in Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the County Championship, the top tier of English First-class cricket. Nicknamed "Vikings". Yorkshire also competes in T20 Blast, O ...
, Bowling greens and a running track as well as a pavilion. It was the scene of many great games, including the
Challenge Cup
The Rugby Football League Challenge Cup, commonly known just as the Challenge Cup is a Single-elimination tournament, knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, it is the world's old ...
finals of 1908 and 1910, several Challenge Cup semi finals,
John Player Cup finals and international matches.
Although the stands were all demolished, the pitch, floodlights and bankings where the terraces once stood are still there,
Huddersfield RLFC played their last game there on 23 August 1992, up until the mid 2000s the club's junior and reserves sides still played on the pitch at Fartown but the stands were already demolished by then. The ground had fallen into serious decline in the 1980s, The Main stand was closed in 1986 due to safety issues after the
Bradford City stadium fire
The Bradford City stadium fire occurred during a Football League Third Division match on Saturday 11 May 1985 at the Valley Parade stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, killing 56 spectators and injuring at least 265. The stadium was k ...
in 1985 and partly reopened in 1989, a large chunk of the terrace side was condemned and never reopened, the supporters club building was demolished in 2009 after a fire.
It also hosted an
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
semi final game between Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield Wednesday in 1882.
Huddersfield are still known as "Fartown" or "the Fartowners" by many of their older supporters. The highest attendance at the stadium to watch a Huddersfield game was 32,912 against
Wigan
Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...
on 4 March 1950, although a Challenge Cup semi-final played 19 April 1947 attracted a crowd of 35,136.
History
The ground was originally known as the St John's Ground, after Huddersfield St John's Cricket Club who became its original occupants in 1868, the ground had previously been owned by the proprietor of the
George Hotel in Huddersfield.
In 1875 St John's Cricket Club merged with Huddersfield Athletic Club to form the Huddersfield Cricket and Athletic Club. The name of the stadium was also changed to Fartown Grounds.
Although the athletic club had formed a rugby football section in 1867, Fartown was initially used for athletics festivals alterations made in the summer of 1878 meant that rugby could begin at the start of the 1878–79 season with the visit of Manchester Rangers on 2 November. The venue quickly became synonymous with
Huddersfield RLFC.
Senior
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
was played at Fartown just once, an
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
semi final in 1882, organised as part of an attempt by
the Football Association
The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...
to promote the game of association football in what was, at the time, a predominantly
rugby focused town.
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...
drew 0–0 with
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system.
Formed in 1867 as an off ...
, forcing a replay at
Fallowfield
Fallowfield is a bustling area of Manchester with a population of 14,869 at the United Kingdom Census 2021, 2021 census. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it lies south of Manchester city centre and is bisected east&n ...
in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
. Blackburn eventually won 5–1, and went on to lose 1–0 in the final to
Old Etonians.
On 10 April 1882 (Easter Monday), the North of England v South of England men's Lacrosse match was played at the Fartown ground, with the North winning 2–0, "in the presence of a large number of spectators". (see match report: 'Athletic News' 12 April 1882).
The Challenge Cup finals of 1908 and 1910 were played at Fartown with a replay at the ground required in 1910.
On 11 August 1943 an exhibition
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
game was staged between two teams of American soldiers which attracted 2,400 curious spectators.
In March 1973 the ground hosted its first
John Player Trophy final, 10,102 spectators saw
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
beat
Salford
Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...
12–7. Leeds would feature in 2 semi finals a decade later, in December 1982, Leeds beat
Widnes
Widnes ( ) is an Industrial city, industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2021–2022 United Kingdom censuses, 2021 census had a population of 62,400.
Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, ...
8–2 in front of 7,247 fans and a year later the
Loiners would beat
Leigh
Leigh may refer to:
Places In England
Pronounced :
* Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan
** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency)
* Leigh-on-Sea, Essex
Pronounced :
* Leigh, Dorset
* Leigh, Gloucestershire
* Leigh, Kent
* Leigh, Staffor ...
18–11 in front of 5,740 fans in what was the ground's last major fixture.
The ground hosted its last
Challenge Cup
The Rugby Football League Challenge Cup, commonly known just as the Challenge Cup is a Single-elimination tournament, knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, it is the world's old ...
semi final in April 1976 when
St Helens narrowly beat
Keighley
Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish
in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford.
Keighley is north-west of Bradford, n ...
5–4 in front of a crowd of 9,829.
The 1980s saw the stadium decline rapidly as Huddersfield RLFC struggled to pull in spectators. The main stand was closed due to storm damage in 1986. A new board of directors took over in 1989 when and injected some much needed financial resources into the club. As well as beginning to improve the playing staff, the new owners also carried out a considerable amount of work on the Fartown stadium and by the end of the 1989–90 season significant progress was being made.
Huddersfield RLFC moved to
Huddersfield Town F.C.'s
Leeds Road stadium in 1992, and then to the
McAlpine Stadium MacAlpine, McAlpine, MacAlpin or McAlpin is a Scottish surname. It may refer to:
People
* The Scottish House of Alpin
* Its claimed descendants, the Siol Alpin and/or Clan McAlpin(e)
* Kenneth MacAlpin, founder of said dynasty
* His brother and ...
in 1994, although they continued to use Fartown as a training base until 2004. The ground is now rather dilapidated, and is only used for staging amateur rugby league games.
Cricket
The rugby ground was adjoined by a
cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
field, once considered to be the finest
wicket
In the sport of cricket, the term wicket has several meanings:
* It is either of the two sets of three Stump (cricket), stumps and two Bail (cricket), bails at each end of the Cricket pitch, pitch. The Fielding (cricket), fielding team's playe ...
in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
. A total of 76 first-class and 9 list A one-day matches were played on the pitch, the first on 28 August 1873 when
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
played
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
, and the last on 17 August 1955, when Yorkshire defeated
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...
by 67 runs.
Yorkshire also played games against the touring
Australians
Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizenship, citizens, nationality, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural. For most Aust ...
and
South Africans
South Africans are the citizens of South Africa (officially the Republic of South Africa ''RSA.
These individuals include those residing within the borders of South Africa, as well as the South African diaspora.
History
The first modern inh ...
at Fartown and an England XI played the Australians there in 1884. The first county one day game played there was held on 1 June 1969 in the
Player's County League against
Sussex
Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
while the last came on 9 May 1982 in the
John Player League when Yorkshire played
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
.
Yorkshire's highest score at Fartown was the 579 for 6 declared they accumulated against
Glamorgan
Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...
in 1925 while
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
scored 527 in 1887.
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
were dismissed for 24 in 1903 while Yorkshire were humiliated for 31 by
Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
in 1935.
AJ Webbe scored an unbeaten 243 in Middlesex's run spree in 1887 while the prolific
Percy Holmes scored 220 not out for the Tykes against
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
in 1922.
A.W. Mold took 9 for 41 for
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
in a
Roses Match in 1890 while
CT Spencer took 9 for 63 for
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...
in 1954.
Rugby League Test Matches
The list of international rugby league matches played at Fartown is.
Rugby League Tour Matches
Fartown also saw Huddersfield, the county team
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
and a
Northern Rugby Football Union select side play host to international touring teams from
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
(sometimes playing as
Australasia
Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...
) and
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
from 1907 to 1973.
Huddersfield also faced Australia in the first game of their
1992 Rugby League World Cup final tour, losing 66–2 at the
Leeds Road
Leeds Road was a association football, football stadium in Huddersfield, England. It operated from its construction in 1908 until the Kirklees Stadium was opened nearby for the 1994–95 in English football, 1994–95 season. It was the home ...
ground on 9 October 1992.
Gallery
File:Fartown.stand.jpg, View of the site of the Fartown Stand from the scoreboard end
File:Fartownterrace.jpg, The old terracing at Fartown now long gone and overgrown
File:Fartown grounds.jpg, Fartown Cricket and Rugby grounds from 1934 courtesy of "Britain from Above"
References
External links
Fartown on cricketarchive.comHuddersfield Hawks American Football, current tenants
{{Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants
Defunct cricket grounds in England
Defunct football venues in England
Defunct rugby league venues in England
Cricket grounds in West Yorkshire
Sports venues completed in 1878
Sports venues in Huddersfield