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Newton Heath's first ground, in 1878, was at Noth Road, Monsall, which is situated in North East Manchester. Facilities at North Road were primitive and the pitch was described as a "mud heap" at one end and "hard as flint" at the other. The players changed at The Three Crowns pub on nearby Oldham Road and later at the Shears Hotel which became the Club's unofficial headquaters. The Ground is now covered by Moston Brook High School. BANK STREET After being evicted from North Road in 1893, Newton Heath moved to Bank Street in Clayton. Here the ground had better facilities but was often immersed in smoke and noxious fumes by local chemical works. After the Club was rescued from liquidation by wealthy brewer John Henry Davies in 1902, Bank Street underwent various redevelopments including the building of a covered stand in 1904. OLD TRAFFORD
After being bombed twice during the war, in 1940 and 1941, matches were played at Maine Road. League football did not resume at Old Trafford until August 1949, when Bolton Wanderers were beaten 3-0. Bolton were also the opposition for the first League game under floodlights on March 20, 1957. A cantilever stand was built on the United Road side between 1963 and 1965 for the 1966 World Cup. Private executive boxes were also introduced during the development - the first in Europe. With the financial help of the Club's Development Association constant improvements were made over the years to complete the cantilever roofing round the ground. The ambitious 10 storey
25,248 capacity North stand was completed in 1996 and cost £28 million to acquire
the land and build. Further redevelopments at both ends of the
ground have raised Old
Trafford's capacity to 68,187, the largest club ground in England.
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Manchester United
ended their search for a new ground in 1908 when John Henry Davies
purchased land
near Trafford Park to build a new stadium costing £60,000.
The first match was on February 19, 1910 when a crowd of 45,000
saw Liverpool win 4-3. In December 1920, 70504 spectators packed
into Old Trafford, Manchester United's highest ever League attendance
at the ground, to see United lose 1-3 against Aston Villa.
