North Street: Alfreton Town FC
Currently known as the Impact Arena because of sponsorship, North Street first opened in 1959 and has also played host to a rugby league team as well as Alfreton Town Football Club over the years. It has been the home of Alfreton Town throughout its existence, although there has been talk at numerous times about the club’s plans to move elsewhere. That has never quite come to fruition, if for no other reason than the club hasn’t been successful enough to warrant a move somewhere new. As a result, the Impact Area, to give the ground its current name, remains the club’s home for now and for the foreseeable future.
For their own part, Alfreton Town have been playing football since 1959, thanks to a merger of Alfreton Miners Welfare and Alfreton United. They club took the name of a different side that had previously played its games in the Midland League during the 1920s. The local council provided the ground for the club to play its games in, with the side playing its matches in the Central Alliance during its formative years. In the years that followed, Alfreton Town have bobbled around the lower divisions of English football, enjoying some relative successes during that time as well as some bad moments, which makes it all the more exciting.
Stats
North Street Stats | |
---|---|
Year Opened | 1959 |
Capacity | 3600 |
Average Attendance | 571 |
Record Attendance | 5023 (Alfreton Town vs Matlock Town (1960)) |
Pitch Size | 100 x 65 (6500) |
Nickname | North Street |
Sponsor | Impact |
Clubs Hosted | Alfreton Town, Mansfield Marksman RLC |
Alfreton Town Stats | |
---|---|
Year Founded | 1959 |
Nickname | The Reds |
Rivals | Matlock Town, Ilkeston Town |
Kit | Red (Home) / Yellow (Away) |
Training Ground | Somerlea Park Community Centre |
Shirt Sponsor | Impact |
Team Owner | Wayne Bradley |
Record Goalscorer | John Harrison (303) |
Record Appearances | John Harrison (561) |
North Street Photos
North Street Stadium Pitch Side
North Street Stadium Behind the Goal
North Street Seating Plan and Where to Sit
The Main Stand runs along about two-thirds of one side of the pitch. It is made up of three structures, the centre of which is a small covered seating area. The Tommy Bradley Terrace is a covered standing area to one side of it, whilst the Lottie Bradley Hospitality Area is on the other. On the opposite side is the Tom McRoy Stand, which is also covered and has seating but is much larger. The Bentley Close End is a seated area that is open to the weather, whilst a terrace known as the Tin End that is slightly covered stand opposite it.
Alfreton Town Ticket Prices
The good news for those wishing to watch an Alfreton Town match in person is that the club doesn’t charge different amounts depending on where in the ground you’re located. Instead, it is your personal circumstances that will impact the cost of your ticket. Here is how it looked for the 2023-2024 season, to give you some idea of what you’re likely to be charged:
- Adults: £15
- Concessions: £10
- Students: £10
- 16 to 21-year-olds: £10
- 12-15-year-olds: £3
- Under 16s: Free with a Full paying Adult
How To Get Alfreton Town Tickets
It is now quite common for teams lower down the pecking order to have decent websites in order to attract the attention of younger people, who tend to be more au fait with working online. Whilst that is the case for Alfreton Town, the club only sells tickets for certain matches online. The rest need to be bought at the turnstile on the day of the game.
Where to Buy
Getting To North Street
Train – If you’re planning on getting the train to see a game at the Impact Arena then you’ll be heading to Alfreton Railway Station. This is located less than a mile from the ground, so most people will be able to walk it in around 15 minutes. It is mainly uphill, though, which is worth bearing in mind. Trains from Nottingham and Chesterfield will head to the station on a regular basis.
Bus – Nottingham Road is the nearest main road to the ground and is serviced by bus services such as 9.1 the nines, 9.3 the nines, the 55, the H1 and the Rainbow One.
Car – For those making their way to the Impact Arena in the car, you’ll want to take the M1 to Junction 28 before switching onto the A38 towards Derby. You will get off that onto the B600 to Alfreton, staying on that for about a mile until you see signs for the ground that you can follow.
By Air – East Midlands Airport is about 20 miles away, so if you’re thinking of flying in in order to go to a match at Alfreton then that is where you’ll want to look towards. The likes of Manchester Airport and Birmingham Airport are much further afield at around 40 miles apiece.
Taxi – The fact that Alfreton Railway Station is less than a mile away from the ground means that you’ll be unlucky if you are asked to spend more than £5 on a taxi. Obviously it’s always traffic dependent, so bear that in mind.
Parking Near North Street
For those of you that are driving, there is a small car park on-site but it is mostly for club officials and obviously tends to fill up quite quickly. There is, though, plenty of on-street parking that you’ll be able to take advantage of; just make sure to keep your eye out for any and all road restrictions that are in place.
Useful Resources
- Parking - Just Park
Pubs and Bars Near North Street
The Dog House Pub
The Miners Arms
The Waggon & Horses
About Alfreton Town
In 1959, someone noticed that Alfreton probably wasn’t big enough for two different football clubs to ply their trade in the town. As a result, a decision was made to merge Alfreton Miners Welfare with Alfreton United in order to create Alfreton Town. Whilst another club named Alfreton Town had existed in the Midland League in the 1920s, this was not linked in any way and didn’t even take on the history of either of the sides that had been merged in order to create it. Instead the new club began life in the Central Alliance, switching to the Midland League two years later and becoming league champions by the end of the decade.
It is entirely fair to suggest that Alfreton Town’s existence has mostly been spent bobbling around the lower league of English football, enjoying some relative successes along the way. The club reached the second round of the FA Cup during the 2012-2013 season, for example, and the club managed to finish fifth in the National League North at the end of the 2022-2023 campaign, losing to Kidderminster Harriers in the quarter-finals. At the time of writing, the highest league position that Alfreton Town have managed is 11th in the Football Conference, which was in 2013-2014, whilst in the 1969-1970 campaign they set a record with a 15-0 win over Loughborough United.
North Street History
When Alfreton Town was formed out of the ashes of the two former clubs in 1959, the club needed somewhere to play its matches. It was for that reason that North Street was opened, giving the team a home and the supporters a venue to watch the games from. In 1986, a local rugby league side called Mansfield Marksman needed somewhere to play, using North Street for their matches when football games weren’t being played. They only remained there until 1988, but made a lasting impression to those that went along to watch them. At the time of writing, the ground is known as the Impact Arena because of sponsorship.
Fans of the Central Midlands League Cup will know that the final of the competition is held at North Street and has been since the 2000-2001 season. The features of the ground are best-described as basic, with two seated stands and one standing terrace. The fourth side is where a bar and the changing rooms can be found. Alfreton Town have repeatedly threatened to leave North Street for a purpose-built venue that they could play their games in, but the club’s return to the National League on a more consistent basis would be necessary in order to accommodate that, along with success in the division that seems unlikely at the moment.