Mohun Bagan Ground

Mohun Bagan Ground

Location	Kolkata, India
Coordinates	22°33′43″N 88°20′32″E / 22.562035°N 88.342223°E / 22.562035; 88.342223Coordinates: 22°33′43″N 88°20′32″E / 22.562035°N 88.342223°E / 22.562035; 88.342223
Owner	Mohun Bagan A.C.
Capacity	22,000
Field size	100 x 60 metres
Surface	Grass
Opened	1963
Tenants
Mohun Bagan A.C. (1963–present)

Mohun Bagan Ground is a football stadium located in the maidan region of central Kolkata, just opposite the Eden Gardens stadium.^[1] The stadium is owned by Mohun Bagan who currently uses the stadium as a training ground only. The stadium has a capacity of around 22,000 spectators at present. The office and club tent of Mohun Bagan are adjacent to the stadium. This ground, till date, is mainly used by Mohun Bagan for Calcutta Football League matches against smaller and local Kolkata sides.

History

The first ground of the club was inside the famous marble palace, owned by Kirti Mitra of the Mitra family and known as Mohun Bagan Villa. It was situated in Fariapukur lane of north Kolkata. As a football ground however, this ground was not sufficiently large. It is believed that Mohun Bagan played the first match on this very ground against the students of Eden Hindu hostel. In 1891, with the help of the Maharaja of Shyampukur, Durga Charan Laha, the club ground was relocated to his ground in Shyampukur. That place is now known as Shyampukur Laha Colony. Later, with the help of Mr. Harry Lee, the chairman of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, the ground was again shifted to Shyam Square. The ground was shared with the Aryan F.C. and Bagbazar Club.

In 1900, Mohun Bagan became the partner of Presidency College and shared the same ground in Kolkata maidan. Mohun Bagan continued to play here for 15 years. Then in 1915, Mohun Bagan got the ground of National AC. On this ground, Mohun Bagan played till 1963. In 1915, that ground was stretched east–west. But afterwards, it became north–south stretched like the other club grounds in Kolkata. Presently, that ground is occupied by one of the oldest clubs of Kolkata, Aryan F.C., who shares the ground with East Bengal.^[2]

About

The stadium has galleries on three sides and a rampart on the fourth side. The north side gallery is the member's gallery and is the most modern gallery of the stadium, having bucket seats installed.^[3] The east side and south side galleries are still made of a temporary wooden structure and are designated for non-member supporters. The playing pitch is about 100 x 60 in dimension. Just adjacent the stadium, the club tent and main office are located. The club tent consists of a beautiful lawn, with benches known as the Mohun Bagan lawn.

In 1977 Mohun Bagan became the first club in maidan to have floodlights installed in their stadium. The flood lights operated till the mid-90's, after which they became fully dysfunctional. The lights were later repaired and renovated and were inaugurated on 25 February 2016 with an IFA Shield match between Mohun Bagan U19s and DSK Liverpool academy.^[4]

For the 2015 ISL season, Kolkata-based franchisee Atlético de Kolkata used the ground as a training ground.^[5] From the 2016–17 season, Mohun Bagan has decided to pitch for hosting I-League matches at their home club ground, especially with modern facilities like bucket seats and properly functional floodlight towers.^[6]

Matches

The Mohun Bagan Ground hosted a lot of historic matches. It was witness to the 2–2 draw of Mohun Bagan against FC Ararat Yerevan in the 1978 IFA Shield final. The first ever match under floodlight in maidan was held in this ground when Mohun Bagan faced Pakhtakor Tashkent FK in an exhibition game on 10 February 1977.^[4] In the 1960s and 1970s majority of the matches in Kolkata football were held in the Mohun Bagan Ground. For, the club's supporters however all matches held at this ground do not bear a very cheerful memory. It was at this ground that Mohun Bagan went down 5–0 against arch rivals East Bengal in the historic 1975 IFA Shield final.^[7]

References