Durham United - Maiden Castle

Durham United FC

Maiden Castle

Durham 

DH1 3SE

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Ground Number: 1481

Thursday 18th September 2025
Durham United 2-1 FC Hartlepool
Northern League D2

DURHAM UNITED FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

Formed in 2012 as Durham Federation FC, the club was originally affiliated with the Durham Federation school. They subsequently developed several youth teams, working across the local community. In 2015, a change in the management at the school led to a split, and the club was renamed Durham United. There was another club, later renamed Durham Corinthians, that used the Durham United name, but  I believe they are unconnected. They joined the Wearside League Division 1 in 2022, following a move to the Graham Sports Centre. A 6th-place finish in their first season was good enough for promotion to the Premier Division, which they won in 2025 and earned promotion to the Northern League Division 2.

The club made their FA Vase debut this season but were thumped 8-1 at Shildon. After initially playing at the Graham Sports Centre in Durham, they moved to the adjacent  Maiden Castle, groundsharing with Durham Women FC. Durham has had a chequered history. Durham City played in the Football League in the 1920s. A rapid rise between 2007 & 2009 saw them reach the NPL Premier, but pitch issues and a sponsor pulling out started their downfall. The decline since 2021 has been even sharper, and they currently find themselves near the bottom of the step 8 Wearside League Division 1. The Wearside League also has Durham Corinthians, a step higher. Durham Women also represent the city in the second tier of women's football.

MY VISIT

From our game at Newcastle, it was a Metro back to the city centre, where we picked up our bags and headed back to Durham. Time was tight, but I stopped for a pint of Raison D'Etre 2023 at the excellent Station House. It was then a bus to our hotel, The Shoes on the edge of Durham. I ordered food from Lebeanrat, but despite ordering it from the branch outside the hotel, they cooked it in town. They soon put it right, but it did mean a delay with Colin going ahead to the ground at my insistence, as they cooked it again at the local branch to our room. Whosever fault it was, it was sorted, and I ate it on the way to the ground. It was too much, though, and I ended up wasting some, much to my regret. I got to the ground bang on kickoff and, after paying to get in had a brief chat to Retford Terry before joining Colin on the far side.

 Durham were well on top, and they took the lead on 33 minutes, following up on the rebound. FC Hartlepool scored just before the hour, a curling shot from Mikey McGee made it all square. Just as with our afternoon game, it was a contest of two halves.. FC Hartlepool, who barely had a sniff first half, dominated the second period. However, unlike earlier, there was no quality up front. For all their second-half dominance and some good efforts, it came to nothing for Hartlepool. A swift break on 86 minutes allowed Seb Hopkins to net from the rebound after a goalkeeper save. Despite a tepid opening, the closing stages were a good contest but a draw would have been a fair result.

 

THE GROUND 

MAIDEN CASTLE has an athletics track, but is far better than it sounds. The stand is of a decent size, around 600 and as the track is not that wide, it offers decent views. Even better, there is nothing stopping you from standing against the barrier on the other side of the running track, although it's not under cover as the other three sides were open. There's a lot of parking, but i'm not sure about public transport. There are basic snacks and drinks with a bar too, all reasonably priced. No badges or merch were available on my visit.