Football
| The Saffrons | |
|---|---|
| Full name | The Saffrons Sports Ground |
| Location | Compton Place Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN21 1EA |
| Built | 1884 |
| Opened | 1884 |
| Capacity | 3,000 (200 seated) for Football |
| Tenants | |
| Eastbourne Town F.C. | |
The Saffrons is home to Eastbourne Town F.C., who play in the Isthmian League Division One South who have played football here since 1886, when the then Devonshire Park Football Club moved grounds from their former namesake (now the venue for the International Women's Open Tennis). Devonshire Park Football Club changed their name to Eastbourne in 1889 and adding town in 1971.
The ground has seen many improvements over the years with the stand behind the far goal being rebuild in 1994, now known as the Taffy Jones/Sid Myall stand. The original was a wooden structure and was destroyed by a fire in 1969. The stand was rebuilt but lost its roof in the 1987 hurricane.
Also since the late 1990s, floodlights have been installed at the ground along with a clubhouse, new dressing rooms and a tea bar have been built behind the stand. At the near end of the ground is a small terrace area for spectators with a movable fence to enclose the cricket ground opposite.
There is another covered area next to the main turnsite which currently has wooden benches. The main turnsite was originally built in 1914 and was destroyed by a fire in February 2004 but restored before the new season started.
The ground plays host to many county cup finals at youth and intermediate level. The capacity of the football ground is 3,000, with seating for 200 spectators.
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Famous quotes containing the word football:
“People stress the violence. That’s the smallest part of it. Football is brutal only from a distance. In the middle of it there’s a calm, a tranquility. The players accept pain. There’s a sense of order even at the end of a running play with bodies stewn everywhere. When the systems interlock, there’s a satisfaction to the game that can’t be duplicated. There’s a harmony.”
—Don Delillo (b. 1926)
“...I’m not money hungry.... People who are rich want to be richer, but what’s the difference? You can’t take it with you. The toys get different, that’s all. The rich guys buy a football team, the poor guys buy a football. It’s all relative.”
—Martina Navratilova (b. 1956)
“Idon’t enjoy getting knocked about on a football field for other people’s amusement. I enjoy it if I’m being paid a lot for it.”
—David Storey (b. 1933)