Hill Dickinson Stadium
Bramley-Moore Dock
Regent Road
Liverpool
Merseyside
L5 9SR
Ground Number: 1454
Saturday 9th August 2025
Everton 0-1 Roma
Friendly
TEN FACTS ABOUT EVERTON FC
1: Everton was founded as St. Domingo's FC in 1878 so that members of the congregation of St Domingo Methodist New Connexion Chapel in Breckfield Road North, Everton, could play sport year-round – cricket was played in summer. The club's first game was a 1–0 victory over Everton Church Club. The club was renamed Everton in November 1879 after the local area, as people outside the congregation wished to participate.
2: The club was a founding member of the Football League in 1888, and was a founding member of the Premier League in 1992, one of just three clubs to have been a founding member of both leagues, along with Aston Villa and Blackburn Rovers.
3: They are one of only six clubs to be ever-present members of the Premier League, along with Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. Their best finish in the Premier League came in 2005 when they finished 4th under David Moyes. The top division has been won nine times, the last coming in 1987 under Howard Kendall. All but four seasons have been spent in the top tier with Everton ever-present after three years in Division 2 ended in 1954.
4: Everton have won the FA Cup five times, the last time coming when they shocked Manchester United 1-0 thanks to a goal from Paul Rideout. They last reached the final in 2009 but lost 2-1 to Chelsea. They've not suffered a huge amount of giant killings, but 2003 will not be fondly remembered when they were dumped out in the 3rd Round by Shrewsbury Town thanks to a brace from former Sheffield Wednesday man Nigel Jemson.
5: Everton have had various European campaigns. The pinnacle of this was winning the Cup Winners' Cup in 1985. It started off with a hard-fought 1-0 aggregate win over University College Dublin. Inter Bratislavia were then beaten 4-0 over two legs before a 5-0 win over Fortuna Sittard in the quarter-finals. Bayern Munich were then beaten 3-1 on aggregate before Rapid Vienna were beaten 3-1 in the final in Rotterdam.
6: Everton originally played in the southeast corner of Stanley Park, as well as other occasional venues. From 1884 until 1892, they played at Anfield until a rent dispute saw them leave. Liverpool FC were then established to use the ground whilst Everton departed for their own ground. Goodison Park, the first major football stadium to be built in England, was opened in 1892. It has staged more top-flight football games than any other ground in the United Kingdom and was the only English club ground to host a semi-final at the 1966 FIFA World Cup. It was also the first English ground to have under-soil heating and the first to have two tiers on all sides. Everton would remain here until 2025, when they departed for a new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.
Talks regarding a new Everton stadium began in 1996. The original plan was for a 60,000-seat stadium, followed by a proposal for a 55,000-seat stadium at King's Dock, which was rejected due to funding issues. In 2004, Everton entered talks with Liverpool F.C. about sharing a proposed stadium on Stanley Park, but negotiations broke down as Everton could not raise 50% of the costs. Everton secured planning permission for the new Everton Stadium in July 2021. On 16 May 2025, the stadium's first title sponsor was announced as Hill Dickinson, renaming the stadium to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
7: Everton competes in the Merseyside Derby with Liverpool. It is the longest-running top-flight derby in England, with its first official match being played on 13 October 1894. The Merseyside derby was traditionally referred to as the "friendly derby" because of the large number of families in the city with both Everton and Liverpool supporters, and it was one of the few that did not enforce total fan segregation. The 1984 Football League Cup final at Wembley was nicknamed the "friendly final" due to almost all sections of the ground being mixed and supporters of both teams banding together to chant "Merseyside". The 1986 FA Cup final witnessed similar scenes of solidarity. Since the mid-1980s, the rivalry has intensified on and off the field, and has seen more red cards given than any other game since the creation of the Premier League. Out of the 246 games played, Liverpool have won 100 and Everton 68, whilst 78 games have been draws.
8: Famous Everton fans include Paul McCartney, Sylvester Stallone, Tony Bellew, Victor McGuire, John Lennon & Andy Burnham.
9: The club's current manager is David Moyes, who returned for his second spell at the club, taking over from Sean Dyche in January 2025. There have also been four caretaker managers, and before 1939, the team was selected by either the club secretary or by committee. The club's longest-serving manager has been Harry Catterick, who was in charge of the team from 1961 to 1973 for 594 first-team matches. The Everton manager to win the most domestic and international trophies is Howard Kendall, who won two First Division championships, the 1984 FA Cup, the 1985 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and three FA Charity Shields.
10: Links with Wycombe Wanderers are as follows. Defender Gary Ablett - 128 appearances between 1992 & 1996 for Everton before four appearances on loan from Birmingham City for Wycombe in 1999. Goalkeeper Iain Turner - three appearances on loan from Everton in 2005. Midfielder Dennis Adeniran, who made 21 appearances for Wycombe on loan during the 2020/21 season.
After I completed the 92 at Brentford for the second time a few years ago, I wondered when the next new ground would come along. I got my answer when Everton confined their move to Bramley Hall Dock to replace the ageing but much-loved Goodison Park. It had been fairly simple to get tickets for my visit there, even though it was against Arsenal. The fact that it was a midweek game helped greatly, but the new ground had the added complication of a large number of people wanting to attend, plus a resurgence in interest from Everton fans. Even so, I initially held off visiting for the opening game against Roma, as the Aston Villa game on 13th September worked better for me as it was my weekend off. However, I was slightly nervous that it would be expensive or difficult to get tickets for the Villa game. The thing that pushed me into acting was too many changes at Wycombe, where I was initially planning on going on 9th August. The thing that swayed it was fellow hopper Dan showing me how easy it was to get tickets for the game on the Roma website. That, coupled with a bargain £35 return on the train from Hemel, swayed it, and I was buzzing for the rest of the night. Fellow hopper Colin had already got tickets for the Wycombe game, but he gets a four-day weekend every single week thanks to semi-retirement. Therefore, he would have many more chances to get it ticked.
As it happened, a great opportunity arose on my weekend off in October, as their women's team was playing there on 12th October. This would have been perfect for a weekend and would have saved me from making a separate day trip, but what's done was done. I was going to make the most of it and enjoy a day out in one of my favourite cities. It was just a shame I couldn't have made a weekend of it. From our game at Liss, I drove home via Colin, getting in just before 10. I had time to upload my blog before going to sleep. My short day at work was followed by frustration, both with the lack of FA Cup games featuring new grounds in the next round and with the continued frustration of being unable to find a solution to my European trip in mid-September. Thursday and Friday were fairly standard, but I was glad to see my one-day weekend. A few drinks were enjoyed and I got an early night but woke up at 3.30 due to my body clock waking up for work. I stayed in bed for a few hours and got up at 6.30, leaving at 7.15. It was just over a half-hour drive to a road eight minutes walk from the station, where I parked for free.
When I went with Colin to 1874 Northwich last season, both of my trains had issues, something I was keen not to repeat. The first leg went fine, aside from my USB cable not working. A previously annoying 35-minute stop at Milton Keynes proved useful as I was able to go to Morrisons and get a replacement for £9.50. Pricey and annoying, seeing as I have several at home and didn't bring a spare like I usually do. When I returned to the station, I found out that my second train had been delayed for an unspecified period. The delay turned out to be 27 minutes, and when I did get on, the train was packed with people sitting on the floor, although I got a seat. I really could have done with a couple of cans to ease the annoyance, but I wasn't to know. The train made up time by skipping every stop bar Rugby and was only 16 minutes late in the end. I still had half an hour wait, though, disappointing for a major city. Both snack and drink were nice, and I used the journey on another crowded but far more pleasant Avanti train to top up my phone and organise bag storage for the afternoon. I'd opted to bring a bag, so I could bring my laptop as all big stadiums have a no or very small bag policy in the name of safety, but it would also cut out the hassle of searching. Another reason I prefer non-league and grassroots but it costs under a fiver to store.
I was in Liverpool just after midday. There was a decent-looking pub called the Augustus John that I wanted to visit, but due to time constraints, I would have to wait as it was in the opposite direction to the ground. My bag was dropped, and I headed to the Ship and Mitre, where a pint of Delirium Red and a Salt and Pepper Chicken burger were ordered. The best pub in Liverpool (so far), I was surprised that I had the luxury of a table, given it was rammed the last time I came. A pleasure as always, and a good pre-match. From there, it was Tesco Express for a meal deal and a can of cider before a long walk to the ground. I searched for a match scarf before buying an official one. I met up with fellow hopper Dan and also Wycombe fan Alex, and it was a nice atmosphere. Two things distinctly not scouse were witnessed. Some patriot march which required a diversion on the way to the game and £1.50 for a carrier bag, which I declined after getting a match scarf and programme. Inside the ground, I bumped into several Italians. Daniele, the Braintree fan, Pietro, the Sunderland fan and Alexis, the fellow Wycombe fan. The game was not the greatest, but Roma deserved their 1-0 win. Whilst Wycombe were losing 2-1 at home to Stockport, Braintree went top of the league, apparently. With time to kill, I headed back to the Wetherspoons near the station. A pint of Old Rosie at first to finish my drinking for the day, and then a lime cordial and chicken wings to fill the gap before the train. It was then a dejected walk to pick up my bag and head south, with the train sadly not cancelled. It was also very busy, a downside of the bargain fare.
THE GROUND
THE HILL DICKINSON STADIUM is a standard modern ground with decent views but tight legroom in places. It has a capacity of around 55,000. The standard fare at standard football prices is provided at the tea bar. A wide range of merchandise is available at the usual prices. There are also lots of stalls selling all kinds of random stuff. There are a few bars near the ground, plus a decent-looking takeaway called L3 Grill. With new developments popping up, plenty of free street parking is available halfway between the ground and the city. Overall, it's a decent if rather plain, stadium near to a fantastic city for a day out.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.