No.8 - Sat. 1st September 2007; Football Conference North                                          3pm at Liberty Way, Nuneaton, Warwickshire (Att: 909; Admn: £12; Prog: 48 pages)

View matchday images  01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Nuneaton Borough (1) 2 Stalybridge Celtic (1) 1 It's third time lucky for Borough ‘A friendly against Coventry City on July 7th watched by a crowd of 2020 marked Borough’s first game at their new Liberty Way Stadium.  Nuneaton’s new home has been purchased from Nuneaton RUFC who will share the main pitch with Borough. Demolition work at Manor Park, Borough’s former home has begun in earnest, with the site marked for housing development.’ (from Groundtastic Magazine – edition 50).   On a bright sunny autumn afternoon we attended the new ground for Borough’s third ‘official’ home league match, a Blue Square Conference North encounter against Stalybridge Celtic. The majority of a vociferous crowd of 909 cheered on their team who came from behind to beat their opponents from Manchester 2-1 in what was a pulsating encounter. Celtic netted midway through the opening half (on 20 minutes) against the run of play when Chris Hall headed home from close range. Parity was restored five minutes before the interval when Tom Curtis converted a penalty after an infringement in the box. There was a little doubt about Matty Collins’ goal on 68 minutes as he ghosted in at the far post to meet Simon Travis’ lofted cross and send a splendid header beyond the diving defender Paddy Gamble. This result made it third time lucky as Borough finally cast aside the gremlins with a deserved success!   The Liberty Way Stadium is impressive. The photos will serve as a useful ground description but it must be said that a great deal of upgrading has taken place to transform the venue into a terrific facility. A concrete walkway now separates the new terraced stands (covered at both ends) from the pitch and this helps to improve spectator viewing. Plans have been muted to add further cover alongside the ‘rugby stand’ at a future date. A well stocked tea bar near to the turnstiles was up and running well before kick off; with several helpers on hand queuing times were reduced to a minimum. The food is dispensed with a smile and represents great service! A club shop operates at the far end of this stand selling a wide range of Borough momentos, replica shirts etc.   A smart 48-page programme (priced £2) was issued for the game. Despite the large number of local adverts (as you would expect), the content printed on glossy numbered pages is excellent and covers everything you need to know about the match. Interestingly the cover picture has a sketch showing players, fans, cheerleaders wearing club shirts. The back page lists the team squads with space for notes and amendments.   It is always great to catch up with old (and not so old) ‘hopping mates. We met up with Vince Taylor (Mr Groundtastic) who was also in attendance. We caught up on the latest footy news making for a most enjoyable afternoon. Without any pressure and my arm being wrenched out of its socket I willingly bought a copy of the latest GT50 special souvenir magazine. If you haven’t got yours yet then do so as it’s absolutely brilliant. Liberty Way is easy to reach from the M6 (j3) but involves negotiating several roundabouts. Follow the A444 as far as the town taking the second exit onto Avenue Road - A4254 (sign posted Hinckley). At this roundabout take the second exit onto Garrett Street and then at the next roundabout take the first exit onto Eastboro Way. Turn onto Townsend Drive and at the end turn into Liberty Way. There is plenty of  car parking space (free) in the local industrial units and the ground (£2). A great day out and thoroughly recommended to all travellers who have yet to make a visit! FGIF Rating: 5* Nuneaton Borough website (incl.map)

edited on 09/08/07