New Bucks Head
Last Update:
September 7, 2023
What's The New Bucks Head Stadium Like?
A comparatively new stadium that replaced the Bucks Head ground on the same site. It was built in stages beginning in 2000, with the works being completed in 2003. It is an attractive looking ground, with good facilities, including a hotel which is attached to the stadium.
On one side of the ground sits proudly the Sir Stephen Roberts Stand, named after a former Director and lifelong supporter. This single tiered, all seated stand, has a capacity of 2,200. It is smart looking and has executive boxes to its rear. On one side of the stand is a stadium control box, whilst on the other side of the stand are some offices, which gives the ground an enclosed feeling on this side. Both ends are covered terraces that are of similar design, both having semi circular roofs. On the remaining side of the ground, is an open terrace, called the Jack Bentley Terrace (after the Club’s all time record goal scorer), which is dominated behind by the Club offices and study centre. To one side of this open terrace towards the Frank Naginton Stand is a small electric scoreboard.
Away fans are mostly housed at one end of the ground in the Frank Naginton Stand. This covered terrace has space for 1,300 fans. If demand requires it then a block of seating in the Sir Stephen Roberts (West) Stand can also be allocated. The stadium is also used by Wolverhampton Wanderers for reserve team fixtures.
What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters?
Away fans are mostly housed at one end of the ground, in the covered Frank Naginton Terrace, where up to 1,300 fans can be housed. The entrance to the away area is at the top of the stand, so you descend through the concourse at the back of the stand and then onto the rear of the terrace. On the concourse are separate areas for serving alcohol and food. Bitter, Lager and Cider are available and there are TV’s around, showing SKY Sports. The bar also handily opens again at half time. If demand requires it then a block of seating in the Sir Stephen Roberts (West) Stand can also be allocated.
Generally the atmosphere inside the stadium is good, with a relative few visiting fans being able to generate some noise from the covered away stand. Unusually the Club have taken the decision not allocate as a matter of course, a seating area for away fans so only the terrace is available. However, if fans request to be seated, as they are unable to stand throughout the game, then seating will be provided in the Main Stand.
Where To Drink?
There is a small bar located within the Study Centre Facility behind the Jack Bentley Terrace, however this does not admit away fans. There is the Dugout bar, which also shows Sky Sports, which is located in the Whitehouse Hotel which is adjacent to the stadium. Otherwise the nearest pubs are the Cock Hotel and the Swan Hotel, which are around a five minute walk away from the stadium. Go around behind the Main Stand and you will see the hotel bar and then turn right along the main road and both pubs are located opposite one another at a crossroads. The Cock Hotel is a regular in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide and has eight hand pumps, one of which is normally given over to cider. The Swan Hotel opposite also features a carvery. Otherwise alcohol is served in the away end.
If you are arriving by train, then near Wellington Railway Station is a Wetherspoons pub called the William Withering, which is located on New Street.
Directions and Car Parking
Leave the M6 at Junction 10 and take the M54 towards Telford. Leave the M54 at Junction 6 and turn right at the roundabout above the slip road (SP A5223 Telford West/Whitchurch/Hospital). Go past Tescos on your left and then over two roundabouts. At the third roundabout, where there are Ford and Kia Garages on one corner, turn left. The entrance to the Club car park is a short way down this road on your right. It costs £3 per car, whilst disabled badge holders are admitted free.
By Train
Wellington (Shropshire) Railway Station is situated just under one mile from the New Bucks Head Stadium. It is served by trains from Birmingham New Street. It is around a 25 minute walk to the New Bucks Head or you can catch a number 4 or 7 bus, from the adjacent Wellington Bus Station.
At the top of the station approach turn left and then at the subway in front of you branch left along New Street. Cross over the road at the traffic lights and go up the road in front of you, which is the High Street. When you reach the mini roundabout bear left still going along High Street, which becomes Mill Bank. Continue along this road till you reach the Swan Hotel then turn left. The ground is down the road on the left next to The Telford Whitehouse Hotel. Thanks to Scot Rowland a visiting Tamworth supporter for supplying the directions.
Booking train tickets in advance will normally save you money! Find train times, prices and book tickets with Trainline. Visit the website below to see how much you can save on the price of your tickets:
Book Train Tickets With Trainline
Remember if travelling by train then you can normally save on the cost of fares by booking in advance.
Visit the the trainline website to see how much you can save on the price of train tickets.
Click on the trainline logo below:
Admission Prices
All areas of the stadium
Adults £14
Concessions £10
Under 20’s £5
Under 16’s £1
Please note that cash is not accepted at the turnstiles. Tickets either have to be bought online or from the ticket office at the ground, which is located outside the East Terrace near to the Learning Centre Building. The only exception to this is that if the match is segregated, then away fans will be allowed to pay cash to enter.
Programme
Official Programme £2.50.
Local Rivals
Shrewsbury Town.
Disabled Facilities
For details of disabled facilities and club contact at the ground please visit the relevant page on the
Level Playing Field website.
Fixtures
Telford United fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website)
Record and Average Attendance
Record Attendance
At The New Bucks Head:
5,710 v Burscough
Unibond League, April 28th 2007
At Bucks Head:
13,000 v Shrewsbury Town
Shropshire Senior Cup 1936
Average Attendance
2018-2019: 1,353Â (National League North)
2017-2018: 1,041 (National League North)
2016-2017: 1,182 (National League North)
Map showing the location of the New Bucks Head, railway station & listed pubs
Book Your Telford Hotel Accommodation And Help Support This Website
If you require hotel accommodation in Telford  then first try a hotel booking service provided by
Booking.com. They offer all types of accommodation to suit all tastes and pockets from; Budget Hotels, Traditional Bed & Breakfast establishments to Five Star Hotels and Serviced Apartments. Plus their booking system is straightforward and easy to use. Yes this site will earn a small commission if you book through them, but it will help towards the running costs of keeping this Guide going.
Club Website Links
Official Web Site: www.telfordunited.com
Unofficial Web Site: Bucks Chat Forum
New Bucks Head Telford United Feedback
If anything is incorrect or you have something to add, please e-mail me at: [email protected] and I’ll update the guide.
Acknowledgements
Special thanks to Owen Pavey for providing the photos of the Jack Bentley Terrace and David Hutchison Stand.
AFC Telford United v Leamington
National League North
Saturday 29th December 2018, 3pm
Jeremy Gold (Neutral)
AFC Telford United v Blyth Spartans
National League North
Saturday 2nd September 2017, 3pm
John Hague (Blyth Spartans fan)
AFC Telford v Bradford Park Avenue
National League North
Saturday 18th March 2017, 3pm
Brian Scott (Neutral fan)
Why were you looking forward to this game and visiting the New Bucks Head ground?
I thought that it was time for me to visit a ground in the National League North so I chose Telford.
How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking?
It doesn't look THAT far on the map from my home in Suffolk, but the two cross country trains are really slow, but they ran to time which is important. The walk to the ground was easy following this guide. I noted the bus stop for my return journey.
What you did before the game pub/chippy etc, and were the home fans friendly?
As I arrived early at the New Bucks Head ground. I had a chat with some stewards outside the stadium. They were interested in the fact that I had come so far to watch the game. They were very helpful and friendly.
What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the New Bucks Head?
I had a walk around the outside of the ground before the turnstiles opened at 1.30pm, and once inside I looked around. I was most impressed with the facilities. This is a fantastic ground for this level of football. The away end was not open and fans mingled in a friendly manner. I noted the well painted murals on the concourse walls inside the North Stand.
Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, facilities etc..
The home fans I was sitting with were rather critical of their team especially when Bradford Park Avenue scored with a heavily deflected shot in the first half. The famous Lee Hughes was up front for Telford and in the second half he was pulled down and he scored the resultant penalty. Thereafter the game was fairly even until the away team scored in the 79th minute and again in the 90th minute. Luke Hyam, on loan from my team Ipswich Town player, was playing for Telford United.
Comment on getting away from the ground after the game:
After a quick exit I caught number 7 bus to the bus/railway station in time to catch the 17.00 to Birmingham. I arrived home at 10pm.
Summary of overall thoughts of the day out:
Another good day out into the lower leagues with no pressure being a neutral.
AFC Telford v Gainsborough Trinity
National League North
Saturday 7th January 2017, 3pm
Paul Dickinson (Neutral fan)
Why were you looking forward to this game and visiting the New Bucks Head Ground?
With yet another fixture of my beloved Leeds United being moved for television purposes, I took advantage of a free Saturday to get new ground 305 ticked off.
How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking?
Easy trip from Leeds via the M62, M60, M56, M6 and M54.
What you did before the game pub/chippy etc, and were the home fans friendly?
Managed to park just round the corner and went straight into the ground for a hot drink in view of the very cold weather.
What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the New Bucks Head Stadium?
The pictures of the ground looked impressive for this level and I wasn't disappointed with the real thing – better than many football league grounds I have visited. I sat in the Main Stand right over the halfway line, which was a great view.
Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, facilities etc..
Telford were by far the better team in the first half and should have been more than one goal up, they also missed a penalty. Telford though had a player sent off at the start of the second half and it was pretty much all Gainsborough from then on. Although the visitors didn't equalise until the last five minutes. An enjoyable game to watch as a neutral….
Comment on getting away from the ground after the game:
No problems – back on the M54 wiithin 5 minutes of getting back to the car and home by 7.30pm, this time via the A5, A38, M1, M18 and A1
Summary of overall thoughts of the day out:
Great day out – I ended up sitting next to the Chairman of the Telford Supporters Trust and had an enjoyable chat with him and a couple of others about the current financial problems. Hopefully things will improve for them in the not too distant. I probably also broke the record for the number of different motorways I travelled on in one day.
AFC Telford United v Luton Town
Conference Premier League
Tuesday, January 15th, 2013, 3pm
Paul Willott (Luton Town fan)
In a similar vein to an earlier fixture at Newport this season, I had real concerns that cold weather would claim this match. Nonetheless, all the relevant websites were confirming that the game would still be going ahead, so I duly set off by car from East Kent in early afternoon and enjoyed a steady drive up to the Midlands arriving in the Telford area well ahead of schedule.
As per the directions, I left the M54 motorway at Junction 6 and headed north, and soon found the ground to be well sign-posted and easy to find. Being early also gave me the advantage of picking the very best of the on-street parking to be had so that my vehicle was facing the motorway and provided I didn't dilly-dally upon the final whistle I reasoned that I would make a prompt getaway after the match.
Despite the bitterly cold temperatures, I went for a meander around what upon first seemed to be a very tidy stadium that wouldn't look out of place in the lower reaches of the league structure. Taking a cheeky peep through an open gate my first impressions were confirmed with a fine looking all-seater stand opposite my viewpoint, 2 modern terraces behind each goal with quite eye-catching gently curved roofs and on the terrace from where I was taking my look there was a building housing club facilities.
I chanced my arm on being allowed inside the afore-mentioned facilities and found the AFC Telford staff most welcoming and ushered me into the bar where I took some liquid refreshment and enjoyed a look at some of the nostalgic pictures from Telford's past. Of particular interest I found two aerial shots of the ground in a "before & after" redevelopment theme.
After I had thawed out somewhat I ventured round to the away end, the "Frank Nagington" terrace, and enjoyed some football chat with the stewards who that night were all from neighbours Shrewsbury Town. Apparently to swell the numbers stewarding for higher-profile matches, this is an arrangement that works quite well with the Shrews loaning stewards to manage the "away" end.
Once inside the ground, I found more very chatty and friendly stewards, a couple of very friendly police officers, and a smashing little kiosk selling the most gorgeous burgers that were well worth the couple of quid being charged (so much so I returned for a second burger ). Even the matchday programme at £2-50 is one of the cheapest , although I would comment that its content was however not the most riveting I've come across.
The match itself was perhaps not the best; although the pitch held up reasonable well under the conditions, and once again full marks to the ground staff at Telford for actually keeping the pitch playable. A 0-0 draw was etched on the score-sheet long before the final whistle, and good chances were rare at either end.
As I had planned, my getaway after the match worked perfectly , although it was a good while before my feet thawed out. I would have to say that I found my visit to The New Bucks Head one of the friendliest and welcoming I have experienced. I hope they stay up in the conference come the end-of-season shakedown, and if Luton have to travel here again, I will happily contemplate another journey up to Shropshire.
AFC Telford United v Wrexham
Conference Premier League
Tuesday, January 1st, 2013, 12 noon
Matty Jones (Wrexham)
1. Why you were looking forward to going to the ground (or not as the case may be):
I was massively looking forward to this match as I knew we would take a big crowd across the border, especially on New Years Day when everybody is off work school. We took around 2,000 fans to The New Bucks Head Stadium on our last visit which was on Boxing Day 2011, so with us going well in the league again this year we knew it would be another great game. We also knew that the atmosphere would be electric.
2. How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking?
I went in the car with a family relative and with it being only around an hour away from Wrexham we knew it wouldn't be too hard to find as we knew the town well. We took a 'Sat Nav' just in case as the roads near there in the countryside all look the same! We found the ground and parked in a street which was not too congested and was only a few minutes walk away from the stadium.
3. What you did before the game pub/chippy…. home fans friendly?
We went into the Study Centre Facility behind the Jack Bentley Terrace. It was quite basic but had a nice atmosphere. It showed Sky Sports, had good beers on sale, a pool table and modern toilet facilities. It admits away fans in small numbers. This bar is definitely for the quieter kind of supporter. We didn't come across many home fans but the ones we did seemed friendly considering the distance between both clubs.
4. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the ground?
I don't think they were expecting such a big crowd from Wrexham as the queues to get to the turnstiles were really lengthy, as were the queues for the ONE food and drinks bar they had open inside the away stand. The ground is a small but modern looking stadium. I was impressed with it as most clubs at this level have have an old and cramped style to them. Home supporters and away supporters can both be heard well and create a great atmosphere. Away fans are mostly behind the goal standing where the main atmosphere was generated. There were also about 100 Wrexham fans seated next to the main away stand.
One side of the ground where the dugouts were situated is just a standing terrace with no cover, this was left empty apart from about 50 or 100 Telford fans furthest away from us. The stand directly infront of us behind the other goal is almost exactly the same as ours was as it is a covered standing terrace and that is where the Telford fans were creating the noise for their team. The Main Stand was nearly full. Good support for a team near the foot of the table.
5. Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, facilities etc..
Game was excellent! Wrexham won 2-0, one goal in each half! A goal from our striker Danny Wright within the first 25 minutes of the match meant he had scored the first goal in any professional football game anywhere in the whole of Europe as the kick off was early! Our Polish winger Adrian Cieslewicz came on after an injury to Brett Ormerod and scored a header which went in off the post. Telford gave us a few threats from free kicks and corners but we defended well and apart from that Wrexham dominated.
Atmosphere was good with just short of 3,000 in the ground, 1,160 of those being Wrexham. Both sets of fans sang all game and was a friendly vibe during the match. Stewards seemed friendly enough as they were from Wrexham FC, some were from Shrewsbury Town FC but they got on okay and had a laugh with our supporters. No incidents between any sets of fans at all all day. Didn't get the chance to grab any food at half time despite queueing for the whole of the half time break! As I mentioned before hand, only one food bar open! We were still far away from it as the second half kicked off so we left the queue and went back to our place to watch the game. Plenty of toilets and are clean and modern looking.
6. Comment on getting away from the ground after the game:
On leaving the stadium we walked back to our car and I was surprised by the amount of police, they seemed to be everywhere! Some we asking away fans travelling on trains to wait behind 10 minutes so that they could be escorted to the station. On the way back to my car I spotted at least 8 police dogs, 3 riot vans and plenty of Police on bikes, on foot, and in cars. I thought this was a bit over the top.
We got back to our car but didn't get very far as we had to wait for the Wrexham supporters coaches with police escort to make their way from the stadium first.
The journey back after that was quiet and enjoyable after a great display from our lads. I checked into Twitter to view the players thoughts and they were all over the moon with the result and support.
7. Summary of overall thoughts of the day out:
Great day out where I doubt there will ever be any trouble. Good view of the game and everything is relaxed steward wise. I advise any football fan to visit this ground. You can also clap your players into the tunnel from about a foot away! As the players tunnel is in the corner of the ground next to the away stand.
AFC Telford United v Luton Town
Conference Premier League
Tuesday, September 13th, 2011, 3pm
Steve Bailey (Luton Town fan)
Only two new grounds for me this season and this was one of them so always a highlight to go somewhere new but this trip surpassed all expectations. I drove to Wellington for this game as it was an evening match and booked in to the Cock Hotel a mere five minutes walk from the ground.
Not only was this convenient for the stadium but it also stocked an excellent range of real ales and was a very friendly pub with fans of both clubs mixing before kick off. It was also a great place to stay, highly recommended from all perspectives. The following day the landlady of the hotel commented on what a great atmosphere there was in the pub that night despite the advance negative publicity, that seems to surround surface in advance of a Luton fixture.
On the way to the ground there was an absurdly over the top Police presence. This is often the case at Luton away games. Which given there hasn’t been any serious disorder at any game away for a long long time now, this was totally unwarranted but it didn’t spoil the evening and I would have thought that it won’t be an issue of the vast majority of teams visiting the New Bucks Head.
The ground itself is one of the best modern grounds I’ve been to, unlike the usual dull shed designs this has elegant curved roofs at both ends and whilst small is perfectly adequate for what Telford need. The colour scheme of blue and white also makes the ground look very neat and all in all it is far better ground than many bigger grounds in the league, sort of like a mini Huddersfield.
The away end appeared identical to the home end and was not very deep but given it was not a huge following that night there was plenty of room. The atmosphere was good, relaxed and friendly inside and out (except the police as previously mentioned).
Getting away was easy and I was back in the Cock Hotel before 10 to have a celebratory drink for the 2-1 win I’d just seen. For drivers it is very close to the M54 so easy to get away I would think but can’t comment on parking although I did notice the club car park is located behind the opposite end to the away stand. I did overhear some Luton fans asking if it was okay to leave their car in the Cock Hotel car park to which the answer was in the affirmative so that’s handy to know if you get there early enough.
I would certainly recommend any conference fan making the effort to visit this ground to see their team away or anyone league fan wanting to experience the non-league at its best, I will certainly go again if (as seems ever more likely with every passing week) Luton are in the conference again next season!