Wham Stadium – Accrington Stanley

The Wham Stadium (but still known to many fans as the Crown Ground) is on the smallish side, but is set in a picturesque area, with views over fields and hills behind the Coppice Terrace at one end of the ground. The ground has recently seen some new investment with the construction of a new 1,100 capacity single tiered, covered all seated stand on the Whinney Hill side. Called the Eric Whalley Stand after the former Club Chairman and Owner, this tidy looking stand, has helped improve the overall look of the stadium.

On one side of the ground is the Jack Barrett Memorial Main Stand, which at first glance looks like one stand, but in fact, it is comprised of two small stands. They sit on either side of the half way line, with an open gap between the two. Both are all seated covered stands and they have an unusual array of tubular steelwork, running across the top of them. The Main Stand was renamed the Jack Barrett Memorial Main Stand, in memory of a supporter who helped re-form the Club after due to financial problems they were forced to resign from the Football League in 1962.

Both ends are fairly new looking affairs, of which the home end, the William Dyer Electrical Stand is covered, whilst the Coppice Terrace opposite is open to the elements. Both these ends are terraces. The ground has a set of four modern looking floodlights that were installed at the start of the 2018/19 season. There is also a large video screen located in one corner of the ground in-between the Whinney Hill Side and Coppice End.

Away fans are mostly housed in the Coppice Terrace at one end of the ground, where up to 1,800 fans can be accommodated. In addition around 500 fans can be accommodated in the new Eric Whalley Stand on one side of the pitch.

The Coppice Terrace is of a reasonable height and is located quite close to the playing action, so it allows fans to get a good view of the game. However, the terrace is uncovered so it can be quite hard to really generate some noise from this area. The facilities located behind the stand are adequate.

Although having only around six rows of seats, the Eric Whalley Stand does have a roof and is free of any supporting pillars. The Club currently don’t charge fans any extra to sit in this seated stand, which also has better facilities than the Coppice Terrace.

Food on offer inside the ground includes; a range of Pukka Pies; All Steak, Chicken Balti, Meat & Potato and Cheese & Onion (all £2.80), Sausage Rolls (£2), Cheeseburgers (£3), Burgers (£2.60), Hot Dogs (£2) and Pot Noodles (£1.80).

Behind the Main Stand is the Club Sports Bar, called Redz which allows in visiting fans and enjoys views across the stadium. The nearest pub is the Crown, which is just behind the ground on the main Whalley Road and welcomes all supporters. For certain bigger games then a fan zone is put together outside the ground. It features a heated marquee, live music and has bar facilities. Away fans are welcome to use the fan zone and the beer is very reasonably priced at £2 a pint, before 2pm.

If you arrive early and have a bit of time on your hands then you may consider visiting the ‘Peel Park Hotel’ in Turkey Street. This pub serves food and is listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide. It also overlooks Peel Park, the site of Accrington Stanley’s old ground. Go along Whalley Road (A680) towards the town centre. Before reaching the town centre turn left onto the B6237 Queens Road (if you miss this turning proceed into the town centre and turn left onto the A679 Burnley Road). Continue along Queens Road into Penny House Lane. At the end of this road, you will reach a T-junction with the A679 Burnley Road. Turn left onto the Burnley Road and then go almost immediately right into Alice Street. Then after passing Peel Park School turn left into Turkey Street. The Peel Park pub is up on the right. The red brick wall opposite the Peel Park pub is the only structure that remains from the Peel Park ground.

Robert Bury informs me; ‘For those fans who like a good ale, then Grants Bar in Accrington has its own brewery on site serving its own Big Clock Brewery selection of ales as well as other guest and well-known beers. It is a brisk 20 minute walk (or slow 25 min) to the ground but is well worth a stop if you have the time.’ The pub also has a Pizzeria too. See the Grants Bar Website for more details.

The Club have announced plans to build a new stand on the Whinney Hill side of the ground. The single tiered covered stand, will have a capacity of 1,500 seats and is likely to be pre-fabricated, meaning that construction can happen relatively quickly. The Club have yet to announce time scales as to when construction will take place, however it is expected to take place during 2018. This artists impression of how the new stand will look and others can be found on the official Accrington Stanley website.

The reformed Accrington Stanley have been in their current home since back in 1968. Over the years the stadium, the four stand stadium deteriorated considerably to the point where the Accrington ground was widely considered to be amongst the worst in the professional game. In more recent times, the club have poured investment into the stadium though and, whilst small, the stadium is well received by most who visit.

Leave the M6 at Junction 29 and take the M65 towards Blackburn. Continue past Blackburn towards Accrington and leave the M65 at Junction 7. Then take the left hand exit at the roundabout onto the A6185 towards Clitheroe (this is in the opposite direction to Accrington). At the first set of traffic lights turn right onto the A678, towards Padiham, and then at the next traffic lights, turn right onto the A680 towards Accrington. After about half a mile along the A680 you will pass the Crown pub on your left. Take the next left into Livingstone Road and then an immediate left for the Club car park. The car park is on the small size and costs £5 and as you would expect it fills up pretty quickly. Otherwise street parking.

Post Code for Sat-Nav: BB5 5BX

Accrington Railway Station is about a mile away from the ground. It is served by trains from Manchester Victoria and Leeds. Leave the station and travel down the slope (signposted M65 Blackburn) towards the large viaduct roundabout in the centre of town. Take the Milnshaw Lane exit at the opposite side of the roundabout alongside the Perry’s Peugeot dealership. After approximately 100 metres this road then joins Whalley Road.  Bear left up the hill and follow Whalley Road for about a mile, passing the hospital, a set of traffic lights and then a mini roundabout.  Take the next right after the mini roundabout junction into Livingstone Road. The football club is approximately 100 metres on the left on Livingstone Road. Thanks to Rob Heys for providing the directions.

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:

All parts of the ground*
Adults £20
Concessions £15
Under 12’s £10**

Concessions apply to Over 65’s, Under 16’s and Students (with valid ID).

* Home fans who become loyalty members can gain further discounts on these ticket prices.

** When accompanied by a paying adult.

Official Programme: £3

Accrington vs Morecambe rivalry: Recent surveys show Accrington fans consider Morecambe their biggest rivals. It’s hardly surprising either with the two located under an hour from one another and having spent plenty of time in the lower leagues together over the years.

Accrington vs Rochdale rivalry: Accrington and Rochdale are actually closer together than Stanley and Morecambe at just 40 minutes drive time. The reason it doesn’t attract quite as much heat is because of Rochdale having another more fiercely competed rivalry.

Accrington vs Bury rivalry: Bury vs Rochdale is the biggest derby game they compete in but their close proximity to Accrington also sees sparks fly when they clash.

Accrington Stanley 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.

Many visiting fans wonder why the Club ended up being called Accrington Stanley. Was it after a former player? Well no. The Club were originally formed as Stanley Villa FC, so named as a number of their team lived in Stanley Street in the town. The Club was renamed Accrington Stanley in 1894.

Record Attendance

At The Crown Ground:
5,397 v Derby County
FA Cup 4th Round, 26th January 2019

Average Attendance

2019-2020: 2,862 (League One)
2018-2019: 2,827 (League One)
2017-2018: 1,979 (League Two)

Official Web Site:
www.accringtonstanley.co.uk

Unofficial Web Sites:
Vital Accrington Stanley (Vital Football Network)

Special thanks also to Mike Cleave for the sending in the photo of the new Eric Whalley Stand and looking towards the Coppice End photo at the Wham Stadium Accrington.

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