New cafe, bars and mini-pitch coming to Bower Fold as Stalybridge aim to improve fan experience

The new fanzone will be placed just behind the turnstiles at the ground, and will contain two bars, a new cafe and a mini-pitch.

Three recycled shipping containers will make up the construction of the new fanzone, which replaces an old social club which was recently demolished.

On the reasoning behind this new development for the ground, club General Manager Jill Jones said: “The main thing for Stalybridge Celtic is to enhance the matchday experience.

“We’ve got a massive ground with a massive capacity but we’re just not bringing in enough fans at the moment. 

“The ideal thing behind demolishing the social club was to make an area for fans and for families and to make it a nicer environment to be in on a matchday.”

Through the first five league games this season, the Celts have an average attendance of 545. The new fanzone will help increase the number of fans through the gate, generating more revenue for the step 8 side.

“I’d love to get [attendances] into the thousands,” Jill stated.

“Every non-league club needs income and revenue and if we can get the numbers up, the revenue goes up. If the revenue goes up, we can do more on the pitch and have more chances of going up.

“There is still a lot to do though, and it will take time, but I’d love to have the new fanzone open for next season.”

Creating a welcoming atmosphere is key to what Stalybridge have been aiming to do since the arrival of Nigel Jones and Paul Bowden as the clubs new owners at the start of the 2023/24 season.

Since the new ownership, the club has been able to bring back Bower Fold events, which have since been held inside Grays.

Shaun Bishop, the Venues Operations Director at Stalybridge Celtic, told us that: “Since the new owners came in, one of their core points was to bring the community feel of the club back as we kind of lost our way for a few years.

“We want to make people feel welcome and enjoy themselves at a relatively decent cost. We’re trying to raise our standards and make the ground a lot more welcoming for friends and families.”

Ultimately, the main aim for the new fanzone is to make Saturday’s at Bower Fold more appealing to the younger generation.

The new mini-pitch will aid an already impressive partnership that the club has with the junior community in Stalybridge.

On how important attracting younger supporters to Bowe Fold, Shaun said: “The junior angle is pivotal to all football clubs.”

“On a matchday now there are so many kids running about and it’s great to see because sometimes you feel like you don’t know where the next generation is coming from.

“Now we’re doing more with the town and you can feel a buzz. People are enjoying themselves and that’s what we need to keep doing.”

Jill added: “Community is massive and our main aim is definitely to get younger people to the ground because it’s the future.

“Without the younger generation, non-league football will really struggle.”