New Windmill Ground: Leamington FC

From Leamington FC

Quite how long Leamington FC will play at the New Windmill Ground remains to be seen, with the club purchasing land at Europa Way in the January of 2019 and construction expected to start in the autumn of the following year, only for nothing to take place at the time of writing. What is surprising about the plan to move to a new ground is the fact that the current one only opened in 1999, so it’s not as if there’s a desperate need for the club to find a new home. Regardless, it doesn’t appear as though much is going to happen any time soon, so this information is all about the Your Co-Op Community Stadium, as the ground is known for sponsorship.

Leamington Football Club was actually established as a works team, with Lockheed Borg & Beck starting the side in 1933. Initially playing in the Warwick & District League and given the name ‘the Brakes’ on account of the product manufacturing done by the company it was a works team for, the club joined the Coventry Works League for the 1934-1935 season. There were numerous changes of divisions in the years that followed, as well as several name changes. The club became Lockheed Leamington in 1947, for example, then becoming AP Leamington when Lockheed was re-named to Automotive Productions in 1973.

Stats

New Windmill Ground Photos

Stand Behind the Goal

Mick Brady Stand

New Windmill Ground Seating Plan and Where to Sit

Segregation is not in place for the vast majority of matches, but if it is then away supporters will find themselves in the North Bank Terrace, with some seating in the Main Stand. It is a new and modern-looking stadium, with the club house and main entrance located at the Harbury Lane End. That is found behind one of the goals and is a covered terrace. The East Side offers a small terraced area, with the same on the West Side, which is where you’ll also find the dugouts.

Leamington FC Ticket Prices

How much you’ll pay for a ticket to see Leamington play football will largely depend on your personal circumstances. To give you some sense of what you’re likely to be asked, here is a look at what the ticket prices were like in the 2023-2024 season:

• Adults – £14
• Over 60s – £10
• Students – £7
• Under-18s – £4
• Under-12s – Free

Students looking to get the price listed above need to show a valid NUS card, whilst members of the Armed Forces with a military ID get 50% off their ticket. Disabled supporters pay the price relevant to their circumstance, but carers get in for free with them.

How To Get Leamington FC Tickets

Whilst Leamington Spa might not have a top team of its own to take supporters away from Leamington FC, the fact that so many teams exist in the local towns and cities means that the club has to work hard to ensure that supporters still turn out for matches. The result of that is that Leamington have a decent website that is the first port of call when you’re looking for match tickets. You can still get them on the turnstiles or from the ticket office, of course, but the website is the place to begin your search for a ticket.

Where to Buy

• Ticket Compare

Getting To New Windmill Ground

Train – It would be untrue to say that it is easy to get to the New Windmill Ground by public transport, given its remote location. Leamington Railway Station is where you’ll want to be heading if you’re looking to get the train, but it is around three miles away. The lack of footpaths as you get closer to the ground means that walking is not advisable.

Bus – If you’re the sort of person that likes to get the bus then you’ll be able to get a free park and ride one from the train station out to the ground. There aren’t an overwhelming number of bus services that go all that close to the stadium itself, though, which can obviously be a bit of a problem. You can try to get the 78, the 501 or the 665, which will drop you off on Harbury Lane itself.

Car – For those of you hoping to drive to a Leamington FC match, the route that you’ll take will depend on where you’re coming from. Those coming in from the North will take the M42 to Junction 3A then get onto the Southbound M40, leaving at Junction 14 and taking the A452 towards Leamington. You’ll need to follow signs as you get closer to Harbury Lane. If you’re coming from the South then leave the M40 at Junction 13.

By Air – The closest airport to Leamington is Birmingham, located around 14 miles away. If it’s easier to fly into London, however, you’ll want to aim for London Luton, given the fact that that is around 60 miles.

Taxi – A taxi from the train station to the ground is the recommended route if you’re not going to take the park and ride bus. It is likely to cost about £10 in a taxi, but obviously that is dependent on the traffic at the time.

Parking Near New Windmill Ground

There are six parking spaces at the ground that are designated to Blue Badge holders, whilst the other spaces are first-come, first-served. It is obviously a ground that is not really near to anything, so a lot of people do tend to drive in to see Leamington matches.

• See Available Parking Near New Windmill Ground

Useful Resources

• Parking - Just Park

Pubs and Bars Near New Windmill Ground

About Leamington FC

Leamington Football Club began life as Lockheed Borg & Beck, a works team for a nearby company. In 1947 it became Lockheed Leamington and this remained the case until 1973, at which points Lockheed changed its name to Automative Products and so the club became AP Leamington accordingly. It has been simply Leamington since 1985, with any further name changes being extremely unlikely. It is fair to say that the club has never challenged the upper echelons of the English Football League pyramid, instead bouncing around between many of the lower levels, such as the Birmingham & District League and the West Midlands (Regional) League.

That isn’t to say that Leamington hasn’t enjoyed some relative success at various points in the past. They won the Southern League in 1982-1983 and 2012-2013, for example, as well as the Midland Alliance in 2006-2007. Leamington reached the second round proper of the FA Cup in both 1977-1978 and 1978-1979, whilst the 1983-1984 season saw them make it to the quarter-final of the FA Trophy. The same stage of the FA Vase was reached during the 2006-2007 campaign. In the 1950-1951 season, 3,500 people crammed into the Windmill Ground to watch Leamington play against Hereford United Reserves in the Birmingham Senior Cup final.

New Windmill Ground History

During the club’s formative years, Leamington played matches at Tachbrook Road, which was later re-named to become the Windmill Ground after a nearby pub called the Windmill. That place had previously been used by Leamington Town but was sold to Coventry City when Leamington Town folded in 1937. Lockheed bought it after the war, building covered terracing alongside the seating that already existed. IT was sold to AC Lloyd Property Development during the 1983-1984 season, with plans to build a new stadium unsuccessful alongside similar plans to move to the Edmonscote Athletics Stadium.

The last match at the Windmill Ground was played on the 16th of April 1988, with the club spending the next decade in abeyance. Supporters bought land on Harbury Lane and that was turned into football pitches in 1993. The new stadium, which was imaginatively named the New Windmill Ground, opened in 1999 and the club began playing again in 2000. Oxford United’s Manor Ground provided the floodlights, some seats and a PA system for the new venue when it closed in 2001. In spite of the relatively modernity of the New Windmill Ground, Leamington’s home stadium remains decidedly basic compared to stadiums of clubs higher up the pyramid.

Future Developments

Quite what the future holds for Leamington FC in terms of where it calls home remains to be seen. On the one hand, the club only moved into the New Windmill Ground at the turn of the millennium. On the other, it isn’t really close to anything and an agreement was reached to purchase land at Europa Way in 2019, with work expected to begin the following year. The £6 million ground, which was to have an artificial pitch, hospitality facilities and a gym, has set to see any work start on it. Instead, a new 198-seat stand was built at the New Windmill Ground in July 2021 and named after Life President and former Chairman Mick Brady.