Prenton Park: Tranmere Rovers
If you’ve ever heard the Bill Shankly phrase that there are two teams in Liverpool, Liverpool and Liverpool Reserves, then that’s only because Tranmere Rovers are from a different part of Merseyside. The club is based on the Wirral Peninsula, which is perhaps best known as the place from which the Ferry Across The Mersey starts its journey. Even those with only a vague knowledge of the area may have heard of Birkenhead, which is the closest major town to Prenton Park.
The club was formed in 1884 and during its formative years played its matches at Birkenhead’s Steeles Field. They bought a ground of their own three years later from Tranmere Rugby Club and remained there until 1912 when the area was required for a new school and a housing estate. During the early years of Tranmere’s time at Prenton Park they weren’t the only club based on the Wirral, with nearby New Brighton FC forming in in 1921 and playing until the club was dissolved in 1983.
Stats
| Prenton Park Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Opened | 1912 |
| Capacity | 16587 |
| Average Attendance | 6263 |
| Record Attendance | 24424 (Tranmere v Stoke City (1972)) |
| Pitch Size | 102 x 65 (6630) |
| Owner | Tranmere Rovers |
| Clubs Hosted | Tranmere Rovers F.C., Liverpool F.C. Reserves |
| First Fixture | Tranmere Rovers v Lancaster Town (09/03/1912) |
| Tranmere Rovers Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1884 |
| Nickname | Super White Army, Rovers |
| Club Mascot | Rover the Dog |
| Rivals | Oldham Athletic, Chester, Livepool, Everton |
| Previous Stadiums | Steeles Field, Borough Road Enclosure |
| Kit | White with Blue (Home) / Maroon & Blue (Away) |
| Training Ground | Solar Campus Circuit Training |
| Shirt Sponsor | ESSAR |
| Team Owner | Mark & Nicola Palios |
| Record Goalscorer | Ian Muir (180) |
| Record Appearances | Ray Mathias (637) |
Prenton Park Photos
Prenton Park Seating Plan and Where to Sit
Prenton Park is an old-school ground, with four sides that run alongside the pitch. Here’s a brief look at each of the different stands that makeup the stadium:
- Main Stand – The oldest part of Prenton Park was opened in December of 1968. It’s split into two sections, with the lower part of the stand being made up of the Bebington End and Town End Paddocks.The Upper section contains the VIP area and the Directors Box
- The Bebington Kop Stand – Better know as the Bebington Kop or simply just the Kop, this is a smaller version of the same sort of stand that exists at Anfield over the water. It is a single bank of seating that is used entirely by the home supporters
- The Cowshed Stand – With a capacity of 2,500, the Cowshed is used to house the away supporters. It was redeveloped in 1995 and takes its name from what it looked like before then
- Johnny King Stand – The stand on the Borough Road side of the ground was also built in 1995. It was renamed in 2002 to honour one of the club’s former managers
Tranmere Rovers Ticket Prices
How much you’ll pay for tickets to see Tranmere play their matches will depend entirely on how old you are and where in the ground you’d like to sit. It’s worth noting that tickets are £3 more expensive if you buy them on the day.
Here’s a look at the cheapest and most expensive tickets for adults and concessions, when bought in advance:
- Adults: £23 – £26
- Concessions: £18 – £21
Those prices do not include executive seats, which are about twice the price.
How To Get Tranmere Rovers Tickets
The best way to get tickets for Tranmere Rovers matches is by using the club’s website, if for no other reason than you’ll save money by doing so. Yet the club hasn’t sold out a match at Prenton Park for years, so the likelihood is that you’ll be able to walk up and buy one without too much trouble if you don’t mind the surcharge.
Where to Buy
Getting To Prenton Park
The Wirral Peninsula isn’t Liverpool, but it’s close enough to treat it as a similar part of the country in terms of your journey. Here’s a look at how to get to Prenton Park:
Train – The closest main train station is Liverpool Lime Street, should you be coming from elsewhere in the country. Once you’re there you’ll be able to get a Merseyrail train towards Chester and alight at Rock Ferry Station, which is about twenty minutes away from the ground.
Bus – If you’d rather take public transport then there are a number of buses that stop close to the stadium. 38B, 77, 77A, 83A, 164, 464, 603, 627, 659 659 and TR1 are all ones that will take you within a stone’s throw of Prenton Park.
Car – If you’re driving to the Wirral then you’ll need to make a choice: do you want to go over the Runcorn Bridge, along the M56 and M53 or would you prefer to go through Liverpool and one of the Mersey Tunnels? From the M53 you’ll want to take the A552, which runs close to the ground.
By Air – Liverpool John Lennon Airport is around twelve miles away and is likely to be your best bet, given that it’s an international airport. There’s also Manchester Airport, which is further afield at closer to forty miles away but is another option for you.
Taxi – Getting a taxi from Liverpool Lime Street to will take about fifteen minutes, depending on traffic, and will likely cost in the region of £20.
Parking Near Prenton Park
There’s a decent-sized car park at Prenton Park which costs £5 on a match day. If you’d rather park on the streets nearby then you can do, but do be aware that there are likely to be restrictions in place to favour local residents.
Useful Resources
- Parking - Just Park
Prenton Park Hotels
The Wirral doesn’t have the same pull as Liverpool, so you might want to consider staying on the other side of the water and travelling over for the match. Regardless, here are some hotels you can consider:
Campanile Liverpool - £50
Village Hotel Wirral - £80
Ropewalks Hotel - £80
Pubs and Bars Near Prenton Park
Liverpool is known for being a brilliant place to go for a night out so, much like with the hotels, you might want to head over the water for a drink or food. Yet the Wirral has plenty to offer of its own, so here’s a look at the best pubs and bars you can head to on the other side of the Mersey:
The Sportsman’s Arms
Prenton Park Hotel
The Mersey Clipper
Facilities
Prenton Park offers all of the facilities that you’d expect from a stadium in the English Football League system, including areas to grab a drink or a bite to eat. It’s not as if it’s Premier League quality, but there’s everything you could need for your match-going experience.
Prices
- Programme: £3.5
- Pie: £3.5
- Cup of tea: £1.5
- Beer: £3.5
Hospitality
There are a number of decent hospitality options available to you if you want to experience a Tranmere match in style. You might want to start at the Ian Muir Lounge, where you can enjoy a three-course meal pre-match as well as drinks and access to the lounge after the game. There are other options like the The Ray Mathias Suite, which is a little less flashy but no less special.
Private Hire
The quality of the suites and boxes at Prenton Park are excellent, having been updated in 2015, meaning that it’s a top-quality place to host meetings and conferences if you’re looking for somewhere to do that away from the brighter lights of Liverpool city centre.
Stadium Tours & Museum
At the time of writing, tours of Prenton Park are not readily available, but they do seem to happen for groups every now and again, so asking directly may bear fruit. There’ s a 20 minute tour on Youtube too if you would rather tour from home.
About Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers have, in many ways, suffered by always being under the shadow of the two major clubs on the other side of the Mersey, Liverpool and Everton. The club was formed in 1884 with the name Belmont Football Club, changing to Tranmere Rovers the following year. Having been a founding member of Division Three North when it was created in 1921, the club remained in the Football League system until it was relegated to the fifth tier in 2015. They beat Boreham Wood in the National League Play-Off final three years later, returning to the Football League. The drop out of the league system was an indirect result of years of mismanagement, including the club suffering from financial issues in the 1980’s that saw them go into administration.
They did bounce back from those financial issues and reached the second-tier Play-Offs for three consecutive years after the turn of the millennium. That period came under the management of John King, who one of the stands was later named after. Unfortunately the club’s history is littered with what might have been’s. They failed to make the top-flight and also got close to cup wins under the next manager, John Aldridge, but lost the League Cup final to Leicester City in 2000. They also reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup in 2000, 2001 and 2004, losing to Newcastle United, local rivals Liverpool and Millwall respectively.
Prenton Park History
When Tranmere Rovers bought their first stadium from Tranmere Rugby Club in 1887, it was referred to as the Borough Road Enclosure, Ravenshaw’s Field and South Road until someone wrote in to the local paper, the Football Echo, and suggested calling it Prenton Park. When the club moved to the current ground, they took the name with them. The stadium was opened by Councillor George Proudman, the Mayor of Birkenhead, on the 9th of March 1912, and the club has remained there every since, though it’s undergone numerous different alterations over the years. As with most grounds around the country, the biggest alterations came in response to the Taylor Report in the 1990’s that required all English stadiums to become all-seater venues.
Earlier changes included the installation of floodlights in 1958, which might not seem all that important but it allowed the club to play games on Friday nights. That, in turn, allowed supporters to watch the lower league side before heading to watch either Liverpool or Everton on the Saturday; a practice that continued until the 1990’s. Numerous other changes occurred during that time, though most of them were driven by alterations in the law. It was rarely cheap for the club to do, however, and that links back to those financial issues mentioned before. The two best teams in Liverpool might not be Liverpool and Liverpool Reserves, but the latter did move to Prenton Park in 2009 and continued to play their football there in the years that followed.
Future Developments
Major changes were made to the executive areas of Prenton Park in 2015, coming a year after Wirral Council’s decision to make the ground a community asset. There were plans on the table for a complete redevelopment as of 2019, which moved on to a full stadium re-build after plans went in during 2022.
The club are now involved in plans for a £100m ‘Sports City’ complex at Bidston Dock, which would also include a digital golf driving range, hotel and conference facilities and retail outlets. This would mean a brand new 15,000-capacity stadium for Tranmere, while Prenton Park would be demolished to make way for housing.
It’s still a long way off, but a new stadium seems to be the long term ambition.