St Mirren Park

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For the former ground of St Mirren F.C. on Love Street, Paisley, see Love Street (stadium).

The SMISA Stadium
Greenhill Road
View of the Main Stand facade
The SMISA Stadium is located in Renfrewshire
The SMISA Stadium
The SMISA Stadium
Location in Renfrewshire
LocationGreenhill Road, Paisley
Coordinates55°51′2″N 4°26′38″W / 55.85056°N 4.44389°W / 55.85056; -4.44389
Public transitNational Rail Paisley St James
OwnerSt Mirren F.C.
OperatorSt Mirren F.C.
Capacity7,937[1]
Record attendance7,937 - St Mirren v Kilmarnock (22 April 2023)
Field size105m x 68m (115y x 74y)
Acreage12.5
SurfaceGrass
ScoreboardYes
Construction
Broke ground7 January 2008
Opened31 January 2009; 15 years ago (2009-01-31)
Construction cost£8 million
ArchitectBarr Construction
Main contractorsBarr Construction
Tenants
St Mirren F.C. (2009–)
Scotland under-21 (2011–)

St Mirren Park, also known as The SMISA Stadium for sponsorship reasons,[2] is a football stadium in Paisley, Scotland. It is the home of St Mirren F.C.. The stadium is the sixth home of the club and replaced Love Street.[3][4][5][6]

History

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View of the stadium during construction

Talks over a new stadium began on 15 January 2003, when the club met representatives from Aldi and Lidl. The club were looking to sell their ground at Love Street for retail development. Selling Love Street would secure the necessary funding to build the new stadium. Planning applications for a retail development at Love Street were passed on 24 May 2005 and the club subsequently sold the ground to Tesco on 25 April 2007 for £15 million. The new stadium site broke ground on 7 January 2008 and was officially opened on 31 January 2009 at a cost of £8 million.[4][7] Before the first game at the new stadium there was a parade from Love Street to Greenhill Road to celebrate the opening of the stadium.[8] Club chairman Stewart Gilmour and First Minister Alex Salmond were also present at the first match at the new ground. Alex Salmond unveiled a plaque before the game to commemorate the opening.[6] The game between St Mirren and Kilmarnock finished in a 1–1 draw, with the first goal at the new stadium being scored by Kilmarnock striker Kevin Kyle.[9] Dennis Wyness scored St Mirren's first goal at the new ground, in the same match.[9] The opening match set the record attendance of 7,542,[9][10] and was only surpassed in the Scottish Premiership play-off match against Dundee United, when 7,732 fans attended on 26 May 2019.[11] St Mirren Park has also become the regular home of the Scotland national under-21 football team.[12][13]

In November 2015, St Mirren agreed a two-year sponsorship deal with Renfrewshire Council to rename the stadium as the Paisley 2021 Stadium.[14] This was to promote Paisley's bid to become a UK City of Culture in 2021.[14] In June 2018, the stadium was renamed as The Simple Digital Arena as part of a four-year deal with Glasgow-based IT firm Simple Digital Solutions.[2]

In November 2020, the stadium was renamed The SMISA Stadium in reference to the St. Mirren Independent Supporters Association. The gesture is designed to mark what will be the last season before the club becomes majority fan owned in 2021.[2]

Construction

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St Mirren Park is built on a 12.5-acre site on Greenhill Road in the Ferguslie Park area of the town. The previously unused site is less than a mile from the club's former ground.[15][16] Barr Construction were responsible for the design and construction of the stadium.[17] Their design consisted of four grandstands with a total capacity of 8,023.[18] The East Stand is the Main Stand. The North Stand is used by away fans. Larger away supports can also be seated in a section of the West Stand. The West Stand has the largest capacity of all the stands. Whilst the South Stand is the Family Stand.[19][20]

  • East Stand (Greenhill Road) – capacity 2,220. (Main Stand)
  • West Stand (Craigielea Drive) – capacity 2,516. (2 sections for Away Stand Overspill or small away support)
  • North Stand (Ferguslie Park Avenue) – capacity 1,633. (Away Stand)
  • South Stand (Drums Avenue) – capacity 1,654. (Family Stand)

Since the stadium's construction, the capacity has been reduced to 7,937.[1]

Facilities

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On the outside of the stadium, promotional plaques have been constructed on the wall including fans names and loved ones. In the undercroft areas under each of the home support sections, large plaques dedicated to the members of the club's 'Hall of fame' have been erected by members of the supporters association and the website team, detailing player profiles and stats. Also, a 7-a-side pitch behind the North Stand is covered by the Airdome and can be hired by the public.

Transport

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Paisley St James Railway Station, which is served by trains on the Inverclyde Line from Glasgow Central, is adjacent to St Mirren Park.[10] Since the stadium opened, some supporters campaigned for the local transport authorities to rename the station to Paisley St Mirren.[10] Following station improvements, the signage of the station was updated to read as "Paisley St James, alight here for St Mirren Park", as a compromise between supporter groups and the local transport regulators SPT. Paisley Gilmour Street is a 15-minute walk from St Mirren Park, but has a much more frequent service from Glasgow Central.[10] The ground is very near to the M8 Motorway and is accessed via junction 29. Fans travelling from North Ayrshire can also access the ground via the A737 road.[10] There is a car park at the stadium for permit holders, and street parking is also available.[10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "St Mirren Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "St Mirren rename stadium ahead of Premiership return". STV Sport. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  3. ^ "St Mirren Park". Stmirren.info. 31 January 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  4. ^ a b "St Mirren Football Club | Stadium History". Saintmirren.net. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  5. ^ "From St Mirren Park to St Mirren Park". Stmirren.info. 24 May 2005. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Alex Salmond to unveil plaque at St Mirren's new ground". The Daily Telegraph. 15 December 2008. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  7. ^ "Scottish Football Ground Guide: New St Mirren Park, St Mirren Football Club". Footballgroundguide.com. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  8. ^ "St Mirren fans' final march from Love Street | Football". STV. 3 February 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  9. ^ a b c Campbell, Andy (31 January 2009). "St Mirren 1-1 Kilmarnock". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  10. ^ a b c d e f "St Mirren". Scottish Football Ground Guide. Duncan Adams. 1 August 2012. Archived from the original on 18 January 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  11. ^ "St Mirren 1-1 Dundee United". BBC Sport. BBC. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  12. ^ "St Mirren Park becomes home to Scotland's Under-21 side". BBC Sport. BBC. 9 August 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
  13. ^ "Scottish Football Association". Scottishfa.co.uk. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  14. ^ a b "St Mirren Park in line for temporary name change in culture city bid". BBC Sport. BBC. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  15. ^ "St Mirren Park". The Stadium Guide. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
  16. ^ "ROMA Publications Ltd, UK - Publishing, Advertising, Graphic Design". Romauk.net. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  17. ^ "Scottish Football Ground Guide: New St Mirren Park, St Mirren Football Club". Footballgroundguide.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  18. ^ "St Mirren Park –". Stadiumdb.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  19. ^ "St Mirren Football Club | Match Day Info – St Mirren v Partick Thistle". Saintmirren.net. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  20. ^ "St Mirren Park –". Stadiumdb.com. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
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