One Call Stadium – Mansfield Town

Field Mill is largely a modern stadium with three good sized and attractive looking stands. On the West side of the ground is the Ian Greaves Stand, named after a former manager of the club. Opened in February 2001 this cantilevered two-tiered stand, has a capacity of 5,500.  Both ends; the North Stand and the Quarry Lane End are almost identical single tiered stands, each accommodating just under 2,000 supporters.

The remaining side of the ground on the Bishop Street side is unused for spectators. This side has running its entire length a number of large advertising hoardings, which detract somewhat from the overall attractiveness of the ground. Behind the advertising hoardings, you can still see the outline of the old Bishop Street Stand, which was closed some years ago due to safety concerns. It shows though how much the stadium has come on, as at one time this was the Main Stand at Field Mill. This would account as to why the team dugouts are located in front of this stand. There is a sizeable television gantry perched on its roof. To one side of the Bishop Street Stand towards the North Stand where the away fans are housed is a large electronic scoreboard that was purchased from Wembley Stadium.

In April 2012, Field Mill was renamed the ‘One Call Stadium’ in a corporate sponsorship deal.

There are plans to redevelop the small remaining Bishop Street Stand, with a new 2,800 all seated stand, but as yet no formal time scales have been announced as to when this is likely to take place. However, with the Club owners now owning the stadium outright, after purchasing from the Club’s former owner (as of March 2019) it makes it more likely to now happen.

For a long time the redevelopment has been on the cards but with no fixed date. The latest word though suggests that the expansion will happen if and when the win promotion into League One.

Away fans are housed in the North Stand, where around 1,800 supporters can be accommodated. As you would expect from a modern stand that is free of any supporting pillars, then the views of the playing action are pretty good, as are the facilities. The stand has a low roof meaning that visiting supporters can really make some noise from this end, helping to boost the atmosphere. I had a fairly uneventful trip to Mansfield and did not encounter any problems, although there did seem to be quite a lot of Police in attendance. Stewarding was fine and amicable.

Rob Ferguson adds’ for those away fans arriving by coach, please note that buses should drop off at Portland Street and pick up at Portland Street at the end of the match.’

There is a bar at the ground called the Sandy Pate (underneath the Ian Greaves Stand). Except for high profile matches the bar welcomes away fans and shows Sky Sports. However, as you would expect it gets quite busy on matchdays. There is the Talbot pub on the Nottingham Road (A60) near to the Sainsburys Supermarket. However, this pub is for home fans only, but opposite is the ‘Il Rosso’ which does admit visiting supporters who are not showing colours as Jeff Beastall informs me; ‘The ‘Il Rosso’ is an upmarket wine bar and a little on the pricey side, albeit with a good selection of beers and lagers and Big Screen TV. It is popular with visiting fans.’ There is also the Midland Hotel, on Station Road, which is around a ten minute walk away from the stadium, near the railway station and admits visiting supporters. A similar distance from the stadium is the Railway Inn on Station Street. This basic pub has a mixture of home and away fans and offers local real ales and food. It is listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.

Chris Patrick recommends; ‘The Sir John Cockle pub is on the A38 going into Mansfield from the M1 and again serves good food’. Whilst Gordon Cleugh adds; ‘About a quarter of a mile past the John Cockle on the A38 there is The Bold Forester which has about 10 real ales and also serves good value food’ and is also listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.

Whilst Terry Gospel, advises that away fans should avoid the Victoria Hotel and Red Lion Pubs. Generally, it advised to also steer clear of pubs in the town centre. However, there is a Wetherspoons outlet called the Court House, situated in Market Place, which is also listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.

From The North

Leave the  M1 at Junction 29, take A617 to Mansfield. After six miles turn you will pass the Pheasant Inn on your left. At the next set of traffic lights, where there is a Tesco Store on one corner turn right into Rosemary Street (signposted Derby A38). Follow road for around one mile and after passing a Burger King and Retail Park on your right, turn right at the next traffic lights into Quarry Lane. The ground is up on the right hand side.

From The South

Leave the M1 at Junction 28, take A38 to Mansfield. After passing the Kings Mill Hospital on your left and then the Nell Gwyn pub on your right, turn right at the traffic lights after the pub into Sheepbridge Lane.  After passing under a railway bridge (height restriction 10′ 9″) you will reach a set of traffic lights where you turn left into Quarry Lane. You will reach the stadium along on the left.

Car Parking

There is some parking at the ground which costs £5. There is also the station car park which costs £4 for the day. This car park is located behind the adjacent Portland Retail Park (behind Burger King), which means it is handily placed for the away end. It is also signposted from the town centre ring road. Otherwise, it is a case of finding some street parking, especially on parts of the Nottingham Road and side streets off it. Please do not park in the retail park behind the away end. Parking is restricted to two hours and is camera monitored, so you will end up with an expensive parking ticket if you do park for longer than the two hours.

The One Call Stadium can be seen from Mansfield Railway Station which is no more than ten minutes walk away. The station is on a local line and is served with trains from Nottingham. To get to the ground from the station; Leave the station and turn left along the dual carriageway, (away from the town centre), you should see a retail park on the right. Go straight ahead at the first set of traffic lights, along Portland Street and then right at the next lights and into Quarry Lane. The ground is a short distance down this road on the right hand side.

Booking train tickets in advance will normally save you money! Find train times, prices and book tickets with Trainline. Visit the website below to see how much you can save on the price of your tickets:

You see a lot of new build stadiums that come in for criticism for lacking character, that’s not the case with the Mansfield ground. Field Mill is the oldest ground in English professional football dating back to 1861 although Mansfield have only been occupants since 1919. The real development of the ground came after Mansfield moved in though with a first stand being added in 1921 and further major work being completed in the late forties. A combined £60k was thrown at new stands in the fifties and sixties before things stayed fairly similar until the nineties and early 2000s.

Home Fans*
Ian Greaves Stand (Upper Tier):
Adults £23 Over 60’s £19 Under 22’s £16 Under 18’s £14 Under 7’s Free
Ian Greaves Stand (Lower Tier):
Adults £21 Over 60’s £17 Under 22’s £14 Under 18’s £12 Under 7’s Free
Quarry Lane End**
Adults £22 Over 60’s £18 Under 22’s £16 Under 18’s £12 Under 7’s Free

Away Fans*
North Stand:
Adults £22 Over 60’s £18 Under 22’s £16*** Under 18’s £12 Under 7’s Free

* The above prices are for tickets purchased prior to matchday. Tickets bought on the day of the game cost £2 more.

** If home supporters become Club Members then they can gain a 50% discount on these prices for the Quarry Lane End.

*** Please note that Young Persons under the age of 22, may be asked to produce ID to show proof of age to qualify for the concessionary price.

Official Programme: £3.

Mansfield vs Chesterfield rivalry

The rivalry between the two clubs has a number of layers but beyond being located near to one another the real source of the hatred goes back to industry; specifically mining. The main issue only dates to back to the eighties though when Mansfield miners broke a strike pact. Since then, the intensity of this rivalry has elevated massively.

Mansfield vs Notts County rivalry

Notts County and Mansfield might have bigger derby games to worry about but this Nottinghamshire rivalry still sees the sparks fly. Then again, the two sides have been stuck away from the top level of English football for a while with bragging rights at stake given there is just 16 miles between them.

Mansfield vs Lincoln rivalry

Mansfield and Lincoln are just under an hour apart, which helps fan the flames of rivalry but, actually, a few high profile clashes between the two teams in recent years has been the real reason the rivalry has developed. Lincoln have moved into League One more recently but if the sides end up facing off again soon then you can bet Mansfield’s stadium will be rocking.

Mansfield Town FC fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website)

For details of disabled facilities and club contact at the ground please visit the relevant page on the
Level Playing Field website.

Record Attendance

24,467 v Nottingham Forest
FA Cup 3rd Round, 10th January 1953.

Modern All Seated Attendance Record

9,243 v Northampton Town
Division Three Play Off, 20th May 2004.

Average Attendance

2019-2020: 4,419 (League Two)
2018-2019: 4,897 (League Two)
2017-2018: 4,309 (League Two)

Official Web Site: 
www.mansfieldtown.net 

Unofficial Web Sites: 
Ollerton Stags
StagsNet
Supporters Association

If anything is incorrect or you have something to add, please e-mail me at: [email protected] and I’ll update the guide.

Special thanks to Owen Pavey for providing the external photo of the Field Mill Football Ground and the Stadium Layout plan diagram.