Stourbridge FC fans turn out in force to support club at first match following bombshell ground news
Droves of Stourbridge fans turned out for Saturday's (March 29) match against Alvechurch FC, 24 hours after news broke that the club will have to tear down part of its historic ground.
The football club are facing an "extremely costly" and "stressful" period ahead - having been told that the existing floodlights and some stands must be taken down as they are situated too closely to the banks which surround the War Memorial Ground.
The amendments must be made following the final home fixture of the current campaign against Bromsgrove Sporting on April 21 as currently, some of the stands are sitting atop unstable grounds.
Stourbridge FC confirmed the game will be the last one in which their 137-year-old home will exist in its "present guise".
Stourbridge have worked with structural engineers following a deterioration of the banks. The ground is also the base of Stourbridge Cricket Club, and the place where star midfielder Jude Bellingham played as a youngster.
A statement from the club said they are 'optimistic' that they can find a solution if 'everyone works together'.
It added: "We are considering all possible funding streams, including our fanbase and the community."
Fans at the game, which Stourbridge won 1-0, were united in their support for the club, with many of them certain that they wanted it to remain in its current location.
Glyn Rochelle from Brierley Hill was watching Saturday's game from the home stands and has been going there since he was a teenager.
He said: "Things need to be done, they've got a lot of infrastructure behind which might be affecting the stability of the ground. So we'll have new floodlights and everything.
"We wouldn't want to relocate, we want to stay here. I used to come here as a teenager and I've been coming back here recently."
Another fan said the War Memorial Ground is part of the club's "tradition".
He said: "I've supported the club since 1969, and now they're having to resolve this situation. But everything is up in the air at the moment, so we are hoping to see what they decide to do.
"Everybody likes to have tradition, everybody likes to stay in their own environment, but down here the ground is a bit awkward, so there is a lot of things to look at.
"I think everybody would rather stay traditionally in their own town, but it really depends on the groundwork that has got to go into it."
Councillor Paul Bradley, deputy leader of Dudley Council and a ward councillor for Amblecote said: “We are currently in discussions with the club and other agencies to look at what options are available to everyone involved.
"Clearly this is a club with a proud history and we will do what we can as a responsible landowner to support them.”
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