Andrew Warshaw on Enfield Town’s plans to expand the fan-owned club’s home ground

The Dave Bryant Stadium was renamed in honour of Enfield Town’s co-founding chairman earlier this year

While Enfield Town FC continue to try and find some form and consistency amid a difficult start to their debut National League South season on the pitch, a massive project is underway off it.

With promotion to step two of non-league football last season came a number of challenges to ensure the The Dave Bryant Stadium in Donkey Lane is able to comply with the higher division’s stringent ground requirements.

The biggest task is the expansion of the stadium’s capacity, with a new 400-seater stand needing to be built, while additional turnstiles to cope with more fans are also essential.

While the majority of the money for the project will be provided via grants from the Football Foundation – a charity supporting grassroots football, funded by the FA, Premier League and government – there is still a considerable shortfall to be made up.

As a fan-owned club with no wealthy backers, £35,000 will have to be raised by supporters. The good news is that, at time of writing, an Enfield Town crowdfunder had raised more than £26,000. This is a remarkable response from Town’s loyal fans, as the club prepares to meet a 31^st March deadline for the necessary work to be completed.

The club is now pushing to raise the final £9,000 needed. As a sweetener, anyone who donates £150 or more will be honoured with a dedicated name plaque on the back of one of the seats in the new stand.

In addition, though not part of the essential work, there are also future plans for a new bar and function room to be constructed close to the current facilities. The stadium’s Grade 2-listed Art Deco building, while iconic, is too small to sustain the demand of regular football at step two, which is why new structures are being planned in other parts of the ground.

Compared with some of the established National League South grounds Enfield have visited since the start of the season, it’s clear how much catching up the borough’s largest non-league club have to do.

“The requirement at the level we are now is that we have to have additional seating and turnstiles,” explained Towners vice chairman Paul Millington, who is driving the expansion project. “There are a number of hoops to go through, but it is not anticipated that we would have to close the ground while construction takes place.”

Once the work is completed the hope is, of course, that the club can maintain its National League South status to reap the full benefits of the expansion.

“The ability to move up the non-league pyramid automatically gives you access to additional grants and there’s a maximum of £250,000 available at this level,” Paul explained. “You can see how much other clubs have benefitted, and now it’s our time.

“Obviously we want, and I expect, to avoid relegation. But, if it happens, then we can at least say that we’re fully prepared for the next time we go up, with far better facilities. We are also removing some of the existing seats and moving them [the old stand] behind the goals to increase the covered standing areas.”

Having jointly established the club two decades ago with the late Dave Bryant, Paul is hugely proud of how far the Towners have come, even if the task of upgrading the stadium presents considerable challenges.

“Just like on the pitch, the hard work started as soon as we got promoted. Everyone on the board gives their spare time voluntarily and, in the meantime, we still have to run a football club and everything that entails. The maintenance of the stadium is almost a full-time job in itself.”

Everyone connected with the club is buying into the exciting new stadium revamp. With no ‘sugar daddy’ to provide unlimited funds, the supporters have proved vital in coughing up the necessary top-up financial assistance.

“We couldn’t do this without the fans,” said Paul, “or the local council whose support for the project has been crucial.”

Support the Enfield Town crowdfunder:
Visit crowdfunder.co.uk/p/etfc-home-improvements

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