Key information about Plainmoor

Plainmoor was opened in 1921 and now houses National League’s Torquay United FC. The ground is located in the Plainmoor suburb of Torquay in Devon and was previously also the home of Truro City.

Its current maximum capacity stands at 6,500 - with 2,950 seated places - and with a pitch that measures 112 by 74 yards. The surface is covered with grass and there is no running track surrounding it.

The record attendance at Plainmoor was set on 29 January 1955 when 21,908 people watched the hosts clash with Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup fourth round.

A history of Plainmoor

Even though it was in 1921 when Torquay United FC first moved into Plainmoor, the pitch had already been in use in the 19th century and more often than not, by rugby teams. Officially, the ground was the home of Torquay Athletic Rugby Football Club and in 1904, a football side Ellacombe settled into the stadium once the rugby team was gone to, interestingly, secure a lease at Torquay United’s Recreation Ground instead, leaving them without a place to stay.

But Torquay United would then merge with Ellacombe to form Torquay Town, which then subsequently merged with Babbacombe to once again become Torquay United in 1921. That team would then become the sole residents of Plainmoor that same year. Of course, there wasn’t much of the stadium to speak of back then.

All it had were wooden structures that were not exactly impressive nor sturdy. That much was evident when the roof of the main stand was blown off in 1930, prompting the club to start the redevelopment. But even with that being said, the following years were slow in terms of improvements despite the popularity of the club being on the rise.

So much so that, for a while, it really did seem like Torquay United had outgrown their own home as they reached the peak of attendance in 1955 when 21,908 fans watched the hosts’ game with Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup fourth round. That was also the year when they installed floodlights, becoming one of the first lower division clubs to do so.

In the early 1980s, with the arrival of David Webb, Plainmoor finally got some refurbishment with some changes to the terracing. But then, disaster struck as the old grandstand was destroyed by fire in 1985. Luckily, no one was injured but that incident did decrease the ground’s capacity by 5,000. Surprisingly, not even that would prompt big changes and Plainmoor had to wait until the 1990s for that.

The all-seating Family Stand was added instead of the Mini Stand, while that same old mini-stand replaced the Cowshed and the new Sparkworld Stand was also erected for the away fans for the 2000/01 campaign.

In 2011, they also demolished the main stand, replacing it in 2012 with one that filled the complete length of the pitch and in December 2012, a big screen was also added. There was some talk of a potential relocation for the club but nothing has been officially confirmed just yet.

Tickets to watch Torquay United at Plainmoor

All tickets to watch Torquay United play at Plainmoor can be found on the club’s official website. An adult ticket can be bought for £17 and it’s important to note that Bristow’s Bench and Family Stand have designated seat numbers, meaning that you may be asked to move if you sit in another seat.

The club also offers a season ticket scheme and more information can be found on the aforementioned website.

https://torquayunited.com/ - Official website of Torquay United