BRAINTREE Town is seeing its stadium mark a huge milestone this week as it reaches 100 years since the first game at the ground.
Today, September 15, is the 100th anniversary of the first football game at Cressing Road Stadium.
The stadium turned 100 on August 25, when the then-known Crittall Athletic FC moved across town from their Spaldings Meadow home, off Panfield Lane.
Jon Weaver has taken a look back at the history of the ground to mark the milestone.
The grand opening of the new Crittall Sports Ground was on the day of the Fourth Annual Crittall Sports and Show and was attended by 6,000 people.
Apart from a pay hut by the main entrance, there were no other buildings on the ground at this time.
It was to be the Crittall Company’s Sports Ground but Mr FH Crittall paid for this facility out of his own pocket, as the Crittall Sports Club could not afford to.
It had a 400-yard cinder track, separate football and cricket pitches as well as a bowling green and grass tennis courts.
A constant source of confusion for first-time visitors is the address. It has continued to be known as Cressing Road despite the only access being gained via Clockhouse Way.
The answer is that the original entrance was in Cressing Road, but only until 1928.
The aerial picture accompanying this article is from nine years after the opening, but the ground is unchanged from the opening day apart from the addition of the old wooden grandstand, which wasn’t added until December 1924.
The current main stand was later built on the side at the top of the photo, and Cressing Road runs by the bottom right corner.
The old entrance in Cressing Road was by the white building in the top right corner.
The first football match there was a much quieter affair than the grand opening.
On Saturday, September 15, 1923, the reserves played a Braintree and District League Division 1 game against Great Leighs.
In the absence of dressing rooms, the players changed into their kit in the open.
The first ever goal on the ground was scored by Crittall’s Hook. Further goals were recorded by Beardwell, Messenger and Blake in a 4-0 win.
A 400-seat wooden grandstand was completed in December 1924 on the Cressing Road side of the ground, costing £400.
But on the night of February 9, 1925, a gale caused serious damage to the stand.
Most of the roof was stripped of its corrugated iron sheets and woodwork. The iron sheeting blew across Cressing Road and tore down telephone wires.
Just two years after opening, the Sports Ground was considered to be of sufficient standard to hold the annual Essex County Championships.
It also became the home of the Essex Junior Cup from 1926-1939.
The finals in 1926 and 1928 both attracted record football crowds of 6,000 to the ground, whereas crowds of 4,000 have twice seen the football club there.
The latter event was for a charity match between Crittall Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur in 1952.
Somewhat belatedly, in 1926, the pavilion was built, for use by both the football and cricket teams. It sat outside the track area, facing on to the cricket ground.
It continued to be used by the footballers until the current clubhouse opened behind the goal in 1982. The new building was later extended.
A second grandstand was built opposite the main stand and stood between 1932 and 1946.
It was then split in two, and grafted on to either end of the stand on the Cressing Road side, making the seating capacity up to 900.
Huge attendances watched games in the 1930s and 1940s, with cup ties regularly reaching 3,000.
The last season where the average attendance figure exceeded 1,000 was 1954-55, after which both the ground and team went in to decline.
This couldn’t be arrested by the arrival of floodlights in 1967, even though very few other local clubs had them at the time.
Misfortune struck the club in January 1974 when a storm destroyed the roof of the old wooden grandstand. The exposed old wooden benches remained at the ground until 1989.
Over the coming years the club went through some very lean times as the facilities were no longer up to standard. The ground was closed for a while, and alternative homes had to be found around town to play two league matches.
The team found a new lease of life following the arrival of Chris Symes as manager in 1983.
The club then purchased the ground from the council and security of tenure enabled long overdue ground improvements to commence.
A new seated stand was built in 1989, and extended when promotion was gained to the National League in 2006.
This was made possible through the generous support of supporters and sponsors who rallied around to support the club.
During the 1990s and until promotion to the National League Premier Division in 2011, there was cover on all sides of the ground.
The early 1990s covered terrace on the Cressing Road side was extended in 2001, and the previously covered Quag End, at the far end of the ground, is now a large open terrace.
The unusual name derives from when supporters would stand behind the goal in the 1983-84 season to support the team, with conditions often resembling a quagmire.
One hundred years on, the ground is showing its age but is a home that Iron’s supporters are very proud of.
The capacity is 4,222, with room for 1,308 under cover, including 553 seats. Last season the atmosphere was outstanding and the players relish playing there.
They went on a long unbeaten home run that took them to the National League South Play-Offs. As recently as 2016, the ground hosted a play-off semi-final at home to Grimsby Town, with the ultimate prize of a place in the Football League at stake.
The game was watched by 3,102 fans and was shown live on BT Sport. Iron got within 14 minutes of reaching the Wembley final in the most important game ever played on the ground.
As the ground enters its second century, Braintree Town FC look ahead with optimism of a bright future.
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