Goodbye Goldstone Ground: Photos from Brighton 1-0 Doncaster Rovers

Photos of the Nationwide Division Three match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Doncaster Rovers at the Goldstone Ground on Saturday April 26th 1997 which ended in a 1-0 Brighton win.

The last game at the Goldstone Ground was not just an emotional occasion; it was a vital one too as Brighton knew that victory over Doncaster could lift them off the bottom of the Football League for the first time in six months.

Rain poured all day as the weather matched the mood of those in attendance at the Goldstone. Crowds gathered early to say goodbye to a ground that first opened its doors to Hove FC in 1901, becoming Brighton’s home in 1902. After 96 years, there were just 90 minutes left before the bulldozers moved in.

Those 90 minutes did not get off to the best of starts when Brighton captain Ian Baird was sent off for fighting alongside Rovers’ Darren Moore inside of 19 minutes.

It was a tense affair from that point on, settled by Stuart Storer’s goal on 67 minutes. Over came a corner, Mark Morris crashed a header against the crossbar with Storer eventually bundling in the loose ball in the ensuring melee.

The Goldstone Ground exploded with a mixture of joy and relief and Brighton held on to beat Doncaster 1-0. Supporters spilled onto the pitch at the final whistle and began dismantling the ground.

Fans took the seats that they had spent years sitting on to watch the Albion. The pitch was carved up and replanted in gardens across Sussex. Advertising hoardings were carted off. Somebody even climbed the floodlight pylon to get down the clock.

Hours after the final whistle and supporters were still in the ground. Nobody wanted to leave the Goldstone for the final time, knowing they’d never return.

It was one of the saddest days in Albion history, but also one of the most important. Storer’s winner meant that the Albion needed only a point from their final game against Hereford United, which they duly got when drawing 1-1 at Edgar Street a week later to confine the Bulls to the Conference.

If you have any photos you’d like included in our Brighton 1-0 Doncaster Rovers gallery of the last game at the Goldstone Ground, please e-mail them to wearebrighton@hotmail.co.uk or tweet them to us @wearebrighton