TODAY, we are looking back at Brunton Park memories throughout the years, and how the stadium has changed.
Brunton Park, opened in 1909 and home to Carlisle United, remains England's largest football stadium not all-seated. It initially had a certified capacity of 17,949, but due to areas deemed unsafe, the Cumbria County Council reduced this to 17,001 before the 2012-13 season.
The stadium's four separate stands, Warwick Road End, East Stand, Main Stand, and the Petteril End, with the Petteril End being opened only for exceptionally large crowds.
In 1953, a fire originating from an electrical fault destroyed the original wooden grandstand, now the Main Stand. It was rebuilt using funds raised by the sale of local player, Geoff Twentyman, to Liverpool for £12,500.
The Main Stand also incorporated club offices and media facilities, accommodating changing rooms and radio and television coverage, before offices and media facilities moved to the East Stand in 2017.
Both in 2005 and 2015, flooding forced Carlisle United to relocate their home games. Additionally, half the pitch and matchday car park were flooded in 2009 and 2015, with the car park experiencing at least one flood annually.
Beyond just football, the stadium has hosted a variety of events. In 1982, a rugby league match between Cumbria and Australia attracted a modest crowd of 5,748 fans.
It was transformed into a concert venue for Elton John in 2007 and featured as a location in a 2010 BBC docudrama about Manchester United. Plans to leave Brunton Park for a 12,000-seat stadium in Kingmoor were announced in 2011 but were shelved, as an agreement with a developer expired in 2016.
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