Castleford in talks about staying at a revamped Wheldon Road
The Super League club have been talking since 2014 about relocating to a new purpose-built stadium. This would be as part of a brand new commercial development at Junction 32 of the M62 near Glasshoughton. However, they are now poised to stay put at a revamped Jungle.
The move follows a proposal from Wakefield Council to give up to £2million to all three clubs in their district. In addition, this would be to invest in their current stadiums. Wakefield and Featherstone are the other clubs.
The Tigers are now considering rebuilding their main stand. They want to modernise the other three ends to create new facilities, including food and drink outlets and hospitality suites. This is in an effort to improve fans’ matchday experience and boost income.
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Castleford boss welcomes plans to improve Wheldon Road
Castleford managing director Mark Grattan said: “We welcome the council’s announcement on making a contribution towards our plans to improve our home stadium on Wheldon Road.
“There is already an urgent need to invest significant sums to keep Wheldon Road functioning as a Super League ground.
“Being realistic about the time frames to deliver the retail and leisure development with the new stadium following the Covid-19 pandemic, from the club’s perspective we believe that the time is right to explore the option of staying at our historic home.”
The ground, which opened in 1926, hosted a record crowd of 25,449 for a Cup tie against Hunslet in 1935.
The plan has the approval of developers. They would shift the focus of the new site away from retail and leisure use to a high-quality employment and commercial development.
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Pledge to support Castleford’s stadium plans
Steve McBurney, speaking on behalf of the owners of the Junction 32 site, said: “We support Castleford’s intention to stay at an improved Wheldon Road stadium. The contribution the Council would make to this through the new Rugby League Resilience Fund.
“Over time we have developed a very close relationship with Castleford and the council. It is now obvious that, working in partnership together, we need to look at an alternative option for the club.
“We want Castleford and the town to thrive. In order to secure its Super League status, the club have told us that they would prefer to stay at Wheldon Road and improve their existing stadium.
“We will continue to play our part and support the Tigers to make this happen.”
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