Priestfield Stadium: Gillingham
Priestfield Stadium shares its history very closely with the club that calls it home. Gillingham Football Club was founded in 1893 as New Brompton FC and immediately moved in to the newly built ground. There remains a slight question mark over whether the stadium was named after the road it was built on or whether the road was named after the stadium, though the fact that the ground was officially called Priestfield Road until 1947 suggests it’s the former.
In order to maintain the running of the ground in its infancy, the club allowed it to be used for a whole host of other events. These included things like fetes, athletics meetings and the excitingly titled Smoking Concerts. Sheep were also permitted to graze on the pitch during the week when games were not being played, which is laughable these days. The ground was heavily redeveloped in the 1990s, though before that the only major reconstruction came when floodlights were added in 1963.
Stats
| Priestfield Stadium Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Opened | 1893 |
| Capacity | 11582 |
| Average Attendance | 6226 |
| Record Attendance | 23002 (Gillingham v QPR (1948)) |
| Pitch Size | 104 x 68 (7072) |
| Nickname | Priestfield |
| Former Name | KRBS Priestfield Stadium |
| Owner | Gillingham Football Club |
| Sponsor | MEMS |
| Clubs Hosted | Gillingham F.C., Brighton & Hove Albion F.C., London Broncos |
| First Fixture | New Brompton Reserves v Grays (02/09/1893) |
| Gillingham Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1893 |
| Nickname | The Gills |
| Club Mascot | Tommy T. Trewblu |
| Rivals | Millwall, Swindon Town, Maidstone United |
| Kit | Blue & White (Home) / Black & White (Away) / Peach (Third) |
| Training Ground | Beechings Cross Gillingham Football Club Training Ground |
| Shirt Sponsor | Bouvill |
| Team Owner | Brad Galinson |
| Record Goalscorer | Brian Yeo (149) |
| Record Appearances | Ron Hillyard (655) |
Priestfield Stadium Photos
Priestfield Stadium Seating Plan and Where to Sit
As is the case with most old grounds, Priestfield Stadium has four distinct stands. The Medway Stand has two tiers separated by boxes and contains the dugouts and players’ tunnel. The Rainham End Stand is a single-tier and is where the most passionate Gillingham fans sit. The Gordon Road Stand runs along the side of the pitch and is restricted in height because of the nearby residential area, whilst The Brian Moore Stand is the only uncovered section of the ground and normally houses the away fans.
Gillingham Ticket Prices
Gillingham have a pricing structure that is much less complex than elsewhere, How much you pay for your ticket will depend on your age and where in the ground you’d like to sit. However, booking in advance is advised as there is a £2 price hike on all tickets bought on the day.
Here we’ve listed the cheapest and most expensive tickets for adults and concessions when bought in advance:
- Adults: £22.00 – £25.00
- Concessions: £19.00 – £19.00
How To Get Gillingham Tickets
Tickets are available through the club’s website, by calling the ticket office or by dropping into the box office itself on a match day. Be warned though that there is a £1 fee to book over the phone.
Where to Buy
Getting To Priestfield Stadium
Gillingham is in Kent, which is a short commute from London. As such it’s reasonably easy to get to wherever you are in the country, though it might require you to head into London and then back out again if coming by train. Here are some of the usual methods you’ll want to consider.
Train – Gillingham Railway Station is about ten minutes walk from the ground and there are regular trains from Victoria and Charing Cross station in the nation’s capital.
Bus – Because it is such a short walk from the city centre there aren’t really any specific bus routes to take to the ground, but that’s ok as you really don’t need one.
Car – From the South leave the M2 at Junction 4 onto the A278. Get onto the A2 then the A289 before following the signs. From the North leave the A2 at Junction 1 onto the A289 then keep your eye out for signs to Gillingham and the ground.
By Air – London Southend Airport is less than twenty miles from the ground, but if you want a bigger option then Gatwick is about fifty miles away.
Taxi – A taxi from the train station to the ground will take less than five minutes and cost about £6.
Parking Near Priestfield Stadium
It’s mostly on-street parking near Priestfield Stadium, but keep your eyes peeled for parking restrictions. You can park at nearby Barnsole Primary School for £5 a car, too.
Useful Resources
- Parking - Just Park
Priestfield Stadium Hotels
London is under an hour away on the train, so that’s where to stay if you like the bright lights of the city. Gillingham is not without hotel choices, though, so here are some of our favourites:
Holiday Inn Rochester Chatham - £55+
King Charles Hotel - £78+
Ship & Trades - £85+
Pubs and Bars Near Priestfield Stadium
Gillingham has more than its fair share of fun little watering holes. Here are some of our favourites:
Fleur De Lis
The Cricketers
The Britannia
Facilities
Priestfield Stadium was re-built in the 1990s, with the away end little more than a temporary stand even now. The facilities are standard stuff but not exceptional, although there were updates to the entrance and club shop in 2023. There are the usual places to buy food and drink but don’t be expecting anything fancy.
Prices
- Programme: £4
- Pie: £3.8
- Cup of tea: £2
- Beer: £3.7
Hospitality
Aside from the executive boxes, the only hospitality option is the 1893 Lounge. It offers a 3 course meal before the game along with a private bar, host or hostess, excellent seats and tea and coffee at half time. Very reasonably priced too.
Private Hire
Priestfield Stadium advertises itself as Kent’s largest purpose-built conference centre, so it’s fair to say they feel like they can deal with anything you might throw at them. You can host exhibitions, business meetings or even weddings at the home of Kent’s only professional football club.
Stadium Tours & Museum
Right now there are neither tours you can do at Priestfield Stadium nor a museum you can visit. If that changes we’ll let you know. Meanwhile, there is a very old video tour from 2007 if you are desperate for a look.
About Gillingham
The Gills are the only professional football team in Kent and were founded in 1893. They joined the Football League in 1920 but were cruelly voted out in favour of Ipswich Town in 1938. Twelve years later and the Football League expanded from 88 to 92 clubs and Gillingham were back in. They narrowly avoided relegation to the Conference in 1993 before bouncing back, spending five years from the turn of the millennium in the second-tier of English football for the first time in their history.
In the early 1890s Chatham Excelsior, a junior football club, had a lot of success that encouraged a group of local businessmen to get together to create a professional football team. The result was the formation of New Brompton FC, the forerunner to Gillingham. The name was changed in 1912 and the club played under that banner for the following season, though it wasn’t officially ratified by the club’s shareholders until 1913.
Priestfield Stadium History
Originally called Priestfield Road before becoming Priestfield Stadium, the ground was known as KRBS Priestfield Stadium from 2007 until 2010 due to sponsorship reasons. Nowadays it is known as MEMS Priestfield Stadium for the same reason. During the 1990s Brighton & Hove Albion played their home games at the ground whilst their own stadium was being renovated.
The ground isn’t only used for football. The rugby league club London Broncos moved into the stadium in 2013 and continued to play there until 2021.
Future Developments
In September 2013 the club’s then Chairman, Paul Scally, said “There is no future for the club at the Priestfield” and confirmed that he wanted to move Gillingham to a new home. Numerous financial difficulties hit the club in the intervening years though, meaning nothing ever came of it.
When Brad Galinson took a majority shareholding in 2022 he made some improvements such as adding LED boards and building a new club shop, and also talked about improving the Brian Moore stand, which is currently temporary and without a roof. He is interested in a new stadium, something the club has been talking about since 2003, but there are no plans in place at the moment.