Written by Emma
Ground #53
Saturday 1st July 2023
Pre-season Friendly
Nuneaton Borough (Step 3) 1-1 Burton Albion (League 1)
Attendance: 464
Entry: £12
Your favourite ground hopping duo are back for another season and we start this one with a trip to Nuneaton!
Nuneaton Borough FC were founded as Nuneaton Saint Nicholas in 1889. In 1937 the club folded but just 2 days later were reformed again under the name Nuneaton Borough. The club were successful throughout the years in local football and made it as high as the Conference North before financial irregularities once again forced the club to be reformed. They were demoted two leagues to the Southern League Division 1 but then won back to back promotions and in 2012 found themselves in their highest ever league of the Conference Premier. Since then the club has struggled once more and find themselves back down to step 3 at this current time.
The club played at a ground called Manor Park until 2007 when they relocated to their current home on Liberty Way.
Todays game was the first pre-season friendly of the 2023/24 season and saw them face League One side Burton Albion. Before kick off, the announcer enjoyed going through the visiting teams line up as trialist A to I were included in the Brewers line up.
The first chance of the game went the visitors way as new signing Rekeem Harper curled an effort over the bar from the edge of the area. Just 7 minutes in and the Burton keeper made a fatal error leaving the Nuneaton forward with the empty net at his mercy. He coolly slotted home to give the non-league side a surprise lead.
Twenty-five minutes in and after large spells of possession Burton drew level with a wonderful 25 yard shot which cannoned in off the post. Five minutes later and new signing Cole Stockton showed his quality with a wonderful turn and volley but he was denied by a wonderful fingertip save. That was it for action in the first half as the sides went in to the break level.
Into the second half and early on a late challenge from a Nuneaton midfielder sparked a 10 man brawl. Who said friendlies were tame affairs! As the half wore on the visitors were controlling possession but it was obvious that this was an early preseason game as no real chances of note were created. The game ended 1-1, a decent workout for the visitors and a solid result secured by Nuneaton to open the season.
Now to rate our day out at Liberty Way:
Location 5/10
Nuneaton is the largest town in Warwickshire, with a population of around 94,000 people. We travelled to todays game by train which left us with just over a 30 minute walk to the ground, that you can find the other side of an industrial estate on the edge of town.
There is a decent sized car park at the ground and a pub called The Crows Nest just a 10 minute walk away.
Kit 5/10
Nuneaton played in a blue and white vertical stripes kit with blue shorts and blue/white socks. The sponsor fitted in well with a white background. The kit was nice enough but pretty generic and nothing out of the ordinary.
Facilities 6/10
The bar at Liberty Way is located next door to the club shop in one of the corners of the ground. Once inside it quite dark and the floor was very sticky but the bar was a good size with quick service.
The food was served from a large hatch right behind the turnstile as soon as you enter the ground. There was plenty of space to queue and once again the service was quick and efficient. We did see a second food hatch on our walk around the ground but on this gameday it wasn’t open.
Look 8/10
Liberty Way is a really nice ground for the level with unique stands on all four sides of the pitch. Behind each goal are large standing terraces which hold 1,800 and 1,000 spectators respectively. The largest of these allows you to get a decent birds-eye view of the action from behind the goal.
On one side of the pitch is a small uncovered terrace with space for around 500 people, we stood here for the first half of the game and got a good view of the action. On the back wall of this terrace is some brilliant graffiti which you can see in the photo at the top of the blog.
On the opposite side is the only seated stand which includes 500 seats, this stand spans about half the length of the pitch with the rest of this side consisting of flat standing.
Food and Drink 7.5/10
On arrival to the ground we decided to get food straight away, we both went for a cheeseburger with onions and cheesy chips to share. The burger was good and with the onions added made for a great burger. The side of cheesy chips was a good choice however, the cheese could have done with being melted on them.
Walking into the bar after a lap around the ground we also noticed they had dark fruits on offer so was well worth the visit! The extra half point has been added for this.
Total Score 31.5/50
After two months away it was great to be back at a new ground to start the 2023/24 season! We both enjoyed our day in Nuneaton visiting a new town and ground that we definitely wouldn’t have visited without this blog – the reason we love groundhopping.
We can’t wait to continue this season and see where the blog will take us!
If you would like to see where this places Nuneaton Borough in our Non League Leader board click here: NON LEAGUE
If you’d like to see the football league grounds we have visited click here: The 92
Emma’s Ground Guide 