Nostalgic Pictures of Villa Park

[dave.woodhall]

1:31. Trinity Road with Carriage Drive and the bowling green still intact is awesome.

Your right. I put that on full screen and paused it to get a full appreciation. If you were walking down just to the left of the Trinity steps its all tree lined ! What date would it be ? I assume it was like that until the supporters club building was put there.

I think it was like that until around the early sixties.

[pooligan]

Hi Dave, I was interested to read your article mentioning the Bowling green and carriage drive. I can remember it and i don't think i have seen any other ground with such a grand entrance. I can remember a lot of outrage  among supporters when it was decided to build on it .Have you any idea who was responsible for the decision to build on it.My money would be on a certain Doug Ellis.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

I dont remember it like that and I've been going since 1966 (pre-Ellis). I'm pretty sure the supporters club buidling was already in place, as Dave said early sixties. So blame the old board, Normansell, Norman Smith etc.
Being a young lad I dont think I ever went in the supporters club properly, perhaps just at the front reception to get coach tickets to away games. I think they sold Villa bingo tickets too, a piece of card you would open up and then play costing something like 2/-. My Dad must have bought me one because I won £10 ! A man called Charles Tabberner was in charge.

[pooligan]

Charles Tabberner ,now there is a man i have never forgotten. I can well remember going to book up on the Traveller's club coaches to a match at Swindon. Although my friend and i were members he refused to let us book as we were wearing Doc Martens and when we said we would wear ordinary shoes on the day he just told us to clear off. As it was the only away game i missed all season you could say he was not exactly someone i had much time for.

I started going to Villa Park in 1963, So the supporters club probably was built mid 60s onwards. I only suggested it might have been Ellis who got rid of the bowling green because i saw what he did to the Trinity Road stand. If i remember correctly,one of the reasons given for the removal of the bowling green was the cost of it's upkeep

[dave.woodhall]

I've been looking through the Simon Inglis Villa Park book and I can't see anything about the bowling green and Carriage Drive being demolished except for a reference to the Lions Club opening on the site of the old bowling green in 1967 (although it also says 1966). The old training ground on Trinity Rd was sold in 1965 so that's when they may have gone.

We should make some allowances for what the board did then - old buildings were being demolished all over the city and in any case the club were absolutely skint.

[The Man With A Stick]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

[dave.woodhall]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

WW1. The ground was planned to hold 130,000.

[Dr Butler]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

WW1. The ground was planned to hold 130,000.

that would of been something to see.

[London Villan]

Wasn't the supporters club built for the World Cup  in 66?

[maidstonevillain]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

It was still a pretty big terrace in its own right. I think because it did not have a roof, and the replacement North stand is relatively small, people tend to underestimate how large the Witton End was.

[fordbeck]

Lovely stained glass & solid wood handrails.

[eamonn]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

WW1. The ground was planned to hold 130,000.

that would of been something to see.

Might have needed to pitch the Hereford game at a penny a ticket.

[Flamingo Lane]

Wow.  have just seen the youtube compilation of photos, and it brings tears.

My memory of the old Trinity Road stand, of going in there match after match with my dad, is that literally a few steps up off the road would take me out out to a view that would set my hard pounding.

[Dave Clark Five]

I wish we'd built the Holte-sized terrace at the Witton End, just imagine it.  Didn't WW2 get in the way?

It was still a pretty big terrace in its own right. I think because it did not have a roof, and the replacement North stand is relatively small, people tend to underestimate how large the Witton End was.

I think the Witton End held 18000 before it was finally demolished. When you consider that the Holte End now holds about 13500 it shows how big it was. The Holte held 28000 in the early 70s until they had to do some work on the steps and the crush barriers.