MANOR GROUND

OXFORD, ENGLAND

Say what you like about the ramshackle Manor Ground – home of Oxford United for 76 years – but at least it had all four sides, which is more than can be said of the Kassam Stadium.

It wasn’t so long ago that the U’s were in the top tier, and they won the 1986 League Cup with a line-up led by John Aldridge and Ray Houghton – not that their headquarters was the most welcoming.

It was a ground of its time, originally built by the fans, and even one or two players, in 1925. U’s supporters used to swing from the beams which kept the stands upright, and if the ball smacked the roof of the Osler Road stand, falling rust was a frequent addition to the Oxford viewing experience. Much like the underground toilets with which visiting fans had to contend...

The 9,500-capacity venue also had what was intended to be the country’s first video tower – on the Cuckoo Lane terrace – in ’87. It broke after three days.

And the quirks didn’t stop there. The pitch sloped from end to end, which usually had a psychological effect on away teams.

“We had a run of matches where we were attacking downhill in the second half, so we knew that if we got to half-time at 0-0 we’d win,” says Peter Rhoades-brown, who joined the U’s from Chelsea in 1984. “The stadium was so tight, you could have a chat with the fans in the front row whenever the ball was out of play.

“When we fought back from 2-0 down to beat Leeds 5-2, their fans started throwing anything and everything on the pitch to get the game called off!”

The Taylor Report signalled the end for the dilapidated site. Oxford finally moved out in 2001 with the land sold for £12 million and later turned into a private hospital.