For 97 years, Shrewsbury Town F.C. played football in one of England’s strangest and most beautiful settings: a patch of turf squeezed between a railway line and the River Severn, close enough to the water that stray shots didn’t just go out of play, they went for a swim.
Gay Meadow closed in 2007, but it remains one of the most talked-about lost grounds in English football, thanks to its riverside quirks, its chronic flooding, and the coracle man who made retrieving footballs from the Severn part of the matchday ritual. Here’s the full story, from its 1910 opening to what occupies the site today.
Quick Answer
Gay Meadow was Shrewsbury Town F.C.’s home from 1910 until 2007, a riverside ground in Abbey Forgate, Shrewsbury, on the banks of the River Severn. The club left because flooding, a single narrow access street known as ‘The Narrows,’ and post-Hillsborough safety regulations made the boxed-in ground impossible to expand, forcing a move to the purpose-built New Meadow (now The Croud Meadow); the old site is now a housing development called The Old Meadow.
Origins: Why Is It Called Gay Meadow?
Shrewsbury Town needed a new home in 1910 after losing the use of the Army-owned pitch at Copthorne Barracks. A consortium bought the riverside site — known locally as the Gay Meadow — and leased it to the club, despite objections from the nearby Salop Infirmary, whose staff worried crowd noise would disturb patients across the river. The first match was played there on 20 August 1910, and the first competitive fixture followed on 10 September 1910, a 2-1 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers Reserves.
The ‘Gay’ in the name predates the club by centuries and its exact origin is disputed; the leading theories tie it to the field’s historic use for fairs, carnivals and circuses, rather than to any club association. The meadow’s history of public spectacle stretches back further still: in 1739, stuntman Robert Cadman died attempting to cross the River Severn on a rope near the site, a story locals would later recreate as a charity zip-wire event after the ground was demolished.
The Riverside Terrace, the Coracle Man, and Life by the Severn
Gay Meadow’s defining quirk was its location: the pitch ran so close to the River Severn that balls kicked over the Riverside Terrace regularly ended up in the water. For decades, local coracle maker Fred Davies — and later his family — paddled out in a traditional Welsh coracle to fish the ball back out during play, a sight found at no other Football League ground. One of the family’s coracles ended up on display at the National Football Museum before eventually being returned to Shrewsbury, where it’s now shown at the club’s current stadium.
The riverside setting was as much a curse as a charm. Gay Meadow flooded regularly in autumn and winter, damaging pitch and facilities and forcing postponements throughout its history. Combined with a site hemmed in by the river on one side and a railway junction on the other, expansion was never realistic — a problem that only got harder to ignore as safety standards tightened through the 1980s and 1990s.
Ground Layout, Capacity, and Record Attendance
At its peak Gay Meadow held around 16,000, dropping to roughly 8,000 (3,639 seated) by its final season as the Taylor Report and subsequent safety rules bit into standing capacity. The ground had four sides, each with its own character: the Riverside Terrace along the water; the Station End, a partially covered terrace usually given to away fans; the open Wakeman End behind Wakeman School; and the East Stand, the only seated area, split into the Wakeman Stand, Centre Stand (with the directors’ box), Family Enclosure and a small Station Stand section for away supporters.
The record attendance was 18,917, set on 26 April 1961 for a Third Division match against Walsall. The ground also housed what was described as the oldest working football turnstile in the country, a relic that survived right up to closure — and was later auctioned for £3,050.
Why Shrewsbury Town Left Gay Meadow
The case for leaving built for decades. The 1985 Valley Parade fire and the 1989 Hillsborough disaster triggered the Taylor Report’s safety standards, which Gay Meadow’s cramped, hard-to-evacuate layout struggled to meet — access was funnelled through ‘The Narrows,’ a tight side street that became a genuine bottleneck for thousands of fans. A relocation plan was first floated in 1986 but shelved after relegation in 1989 put the club’s finances under pressure.
The move finally became concrete in 1999, when chairman Roland Wycherley announced plans for a new, purpose-built ground on Shrewsbury’s southern outskirts. That stadium, the New Meadow, opened in July 2007 with a 10,000 all-seater capacity — safer and easier to reach, if lacking the character of the old riverside home.
Gay Meadow’s Final Matches
The ground’s last competitive campaign ran through spring 2007. The final FA Cup tie was played on 11 November 2006, a 0-0 draw with Hereford United. The last Football League match came on 5 May 2007, a 2-2 draw with Grimsby Town in which Kelvin Langmead scored Shrewsbury’s final league goal at the ground and Nick Fenton netted the last professional goal there overall.
The very last competitive fixture was the League Two play-off first leg against Milton Keynes Dons on 14 May 2007, which finished 0-0. Gay Meadow’s story didn’t quite end there — a friendly between supporters and club backroom staff on 22 June 2007 was the final match ever played on the pitch.
Demolition and What Stands There Today
Demolition began in September 2007 and was largely complete by October, with fixtures and fittings — including that famous old turnstile — sold off at auction. On 14 October 2007, a charity zip-wire event recreated Robert Cadman’s fatal 1739 stunt, with participants ‘flying’ from St. Mary’s Church out over the Severn near the old ground.
The cleared site was redeveloped by Barratt David Wilson Homes into a gated riverside community of 62 town houses and 117 apartments, briefly marketed as Riverside Meadow before settling on its current name, The Old Meadow. Architect Andrew Arrol designed it to echo Shrewsbury’s Georgian streetscape, and its communal gardens double as flood storage — a design that kept residents dry when the Severn burst its banks again in February 2020, a fittingly practical nod to the site’s flood-prone football past.
Where Shrewsbury Town Play Now
Shrewsbury Town’s current ground, built to replace Gay Meadow, has changed names twice since opening: it launched as the New Meadow in 2007, was renamed Montgomery Waters Meadow under a 2017 sponsorship deal, and became The Croud Meadow in June 2023. Fred Davies’ coracle now has pride of place on display there, in the club’s Sovereign Suite.
For current fixtures, tickets and stadium information, the club’s official site — shrewsburytown.com — is the best source, since ticket pricing tiers and matchday arrangements are updated there each season.
Gay Meadow, Shrewsbury Town’s former ground FAQs
When did Gay Meadow open and close?
Gay Meadow opened in 1910 and closed at the end of the 2006-07 Football League season, with the final competitive match played on 14 May 2007. Demolition followed in September-October 2007.
Why is it called Gay Meadow?
The name predates Shrewsbury Town F.C.’s arrival and its exact origin is disputed, though it’s widely linked to the field’s earlier use for fairs, carnivals and circuses rather than to the football club itself.
What was the record attendance at Gay Meadow?
The record attendance was 18,917, set on 26 April 1961 for a Third Division match against Walsall F.C.
Why did Shrewsbury Town leave Gay Meadow?
The ground’s riverside site was boxed in by the River Severn and a railway junction, meaning it couldn’t be expanded, while its single narrow access road (‘The Narrows’) and repeated flooding made it increasingly hard to meet post-Hillsborough safety standards. Shrewsbury moved to the purpose-built New Meadow in 2007.
What happened to the coracle used to retrieve footballs from the river?
The coracle used by local waterman Fred Davies and his family spent time on display at the National Football Museum before being returned to Shrewsbury, where it’s now exhibited at the club’s current stadium.
What is Shrewsbury Town’s ground called now?
The replacement ground opened as the New Meadow in 2007, was renamed Montgomery Waters Meadow in 2017, and has been called The Croud Meadow since June 2023.
Is anything left of Gay Meadow today?
No trace of the stadium itself remains. The site was redeveloped into a riverside housing estate of town houses and apartments, now known as The Old Meadow, completed in the mid-2010s.
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