Tallaght Stadium
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Last Update:
May 16, 2024
A new stand at the South End of the stadium is set to be constructed during 2018. South Dublin Council who own the South Tallaght Stadium have given the go ahead for the seating capacity of the stadium to be increased to over 8,000. This will involve the building of a new all seated covered stand, that will have a capacity of 2,195 seats. It is expected that the new South Stand will be completed in September.
The artists impression above of how the new stand will look is supplied by the official Shamrock Rovers website, whether you can find additional images and information about the stand.
In a world where modern all seater stadiums can have an all too familiar “warehouse architecture” appearance Tallaght Stadium-which opened in 2009 and is owned by South Dublin County Council, is a breath of fresh air. The town of which the stadium is named lies around six miles South West of Dublin City Centre and could be regarded as an Irish Milton Keynes or Livingston; a small village 50 years ago now which now has a population of around 70,000. Certainly the town of Tallaght is capable of providing a good support base for a League Of Ireland Premier Division club, and with the ground being only two minute’s walk from the terminus of the Dublin Luas Red Line commuter tram it finds itself surrounded by tall angular modern structures of exposed steelwork and glass-residential flats, a hotel and two indoor shopping centres. It is facing one such Shopping Centre that we find the rear of the Main Stand, on the west side of the stadium. A large two storey building holds the club offices, players dressing rooms, Glenmalure Suite Bar & Club Shop.
The concrete base of the West Stand and the outer brick boundary walls were in fact constructed in the year 2000. It has around 3,500 seats spread over 16 rows, divided by a mid-level walkway. The plastic seat colours and pattern could be described as abstract, Shamrock Rovers playing colours of green and white are joined by squares of yellow and red on the wings. Even on a dull day the stadium is a colourful sight! One unusual aspect of the stadium is the West Stand’s roof design-the large angled concrete columns and reinforced roof beams form a series of arched bays, with light entering the ground through glazed panels at the top of the seating deck. The barrel vaulted roof panels-much like a modern version of Watford’s Stanley Rous Stand were finally put in place in 2009. Since the roof panels don’t actually expand beyond the edge of the roof beams the bottom half a dozen rows of seating are exposed to the elements, but other than that the stand offers an excellent unobstructed view of the playing action. Looking across the pitch to the East Stand, this all seated stand appears larger than the West Stand, partly due to its concrete roof beams extending to cover all the seats. In fact, as the stand doesn’t quite run to the full length of the pitch it holds around 3,000 seats over 17 rows, again mirroring the abstract seat pattern seen in the West Stand. The stand features a number of wheelchair spaces along pitch side, a tv gantry hung over the pitch centre line, supported by two slim columns. Again the leg room in front of the seats is pretty good, with all areas enjoying an excellent view of the pitch.
In 2018 a new South Stand was opened with a capacity of 2,195 seats. This covered all seated stand located at one end, is roughly the same height of the existing East and West Stand and shares the same colour and design on its seating, making it look quite smart. In the South East Corner of the stadium is a two storey stadium control centre which also features a small electronic scoreboard. The North End of the ground is currently unused for spectators, but is overlooked in the distance by a number of residential apartment blocks.
Shamrock Rovers left their much loved Glenmalure Park Stadium in 1987 after the club’s former owners struck up a deal to sell the stadium site to a property developer at the height of the late 1980s property boom. The ground, situated in the Milltown area of South Dublin had been home to the club since 1926 and was eventually demolished in 1990, despite efforts of Shamrock Rovers fans to purchase the ground. Much like Northern Ireland football club Ards the club’s supporters had to endure groundsharing at Tolka Park, Morton Athletic Stadium & The Royal Dublin Showground before finally becoming the main tenants at the new Tallaght Stadium, some 22 years later! Sadly nothing remains of the old ground today, though the site is marked by a memorial in front of the Glenmalure Square Housing Estate.
As far as we are aware away fans are allocated Block H-J in the corner of the West Stand. This is accessed through the turnstile opposite the Maldron Hotel. Every seat has an excellent unobstructed view of the pitch. One downside however is the roof does not extend over all the seats, so its probably best to avoid the bottom few rows in bad weather. With the North side of the ground empty for League games and the most vocal home supporters across the pitch in the East Stand the away section could possibly feel a little bit isolated.
There is no social club at the ground, however across the road is the Maldron Hotel which is popular with fans. On the other side of the Tallaght bypass is the town centre, including the Square Shopping Centre, where there are plenty of drinking and eating establishments to be found. They are only around a five to ten minute walk away. With the N81 Tallaght bypass being pretty busy at times you might be well advised to use the footbridge, accessed by a path to the rear of the North Stand, to get to the town centre.
From the North
Follow the M1 South of Dublin Airport, exit onto the M50 at Junction 3 and head Westbound around the North suburbs of Dublin. Exit the M50 at Junction 11and turn onto the N81Tallaght Bypass, heading towards Tallaght. You will then see The Square Shopping Centre on the right hand side, with the floodlights of Tallaght Stadium visible on the left hand side. At the traffic lights next to the ground turn left and drive past the Main Stand and turn left into the large car park.
From the Mid West
Follow the N4 from Maynooth and join the M50 at Junction 7, following the road Southbound. Exit the M50 at Junction 11and turn onto the N81Tallaght Bypass, heading towards Tallaght. You will then see The Square Shopping Centre on the right hand side, with the floodlights of Tallaght Stadium visible on the left hand side. At the traffic lights next to the ground turn left and drive past the main stand and turn left into the large car park.
From the South West
Follow the N7 North of Naas, then exit onto the N82 at Junction 3 Citywest Interchange. At the end of the Junction turn left onto the N81 towards Dublin and follow the road through the Western suburbs of Tallaght. On approaching the town centre you will then see the top of the floodlights of the ground appearing beyond the new Maldron Hotel on the right hand side. At the crossroads before The Square Shopping Centre turn right into Whitestown Way, drive past the main stand and turn left into the large car park.
From the South East
Follow the N11 North of Bray, then join the M50 at Junction 17.Stay on the M50 around the South suburbs of Dublin then exit at Junction 11.Take the first left onto the N81 Tallaght Bypass, heading towards Tallaght. You will then see The Square Shopping Centre on the right hand side, with the floodlights of Tallaght Stadium visible on the left hand side. At the traffic lights next to the ground turn left and drive past the main stand and turn left into the large car park.
There are no major Rail connections direct into Tallaght, therefore we recommend travelling into Dublin then heading West to Tallaght using the excellent Luas system tram, boarding at either Dublin Busaras (near to Dublin Connolly railway station) to the east of Dublin City Centre or Dublin Heuston Railway Station to the West.
Supporters should get onto a Red Line tram Service heading towards Belgard where the service then travels onto either Saggart or Tallaght. If the service id heading onto Saggart then change at Belgard for Tallaght. The service operates every 10-15 minutes (evenings/weekends) across Dublin from the The Point (Dublin Docklands area to the east) through the centre of Dublin (stopping off at various points) before heading off west to either Saggart or Tallaght.
Please note that although there is a tram line service between Dublin Connolly Railway Station and Tallaght it is far less frequent than The Point to Tallaght service, so you’re best bet on arriving at Dublin Connolly is to go down the escalator and walk along the right hand platform, following the signposts to the Busaras stop. Journey time from the Busaras stop to Tallaght is around 45 minutes, whilst from Heuston to Tallaght is around 30 minutes.
Red line operates between 5.30am-midnight Monday-Friday 6.30am-midnight Sat,7.00am-23.00pm Sunday and Bank Holidays. You will need to buy a ticket on the platform before boarding the tram. Use the touch screen ticket dispenser and select Red Zone 4.Cost is €4.70. For map routes and further information visit the Luas website.
On your arrival at Tallaght Red Line Stop, where the service terminates, it will take you a straightforward five minute walk to get to Tallaght Stadium. For directions see ‘By Bus’ below.
There are no major Coach connections direct into Tallaght, therefore we recommend travelling into Dublin Busaras coach station and then using the Dublin Luas Red Line tram, which has a stop directly outside Busaras. See by ‘Train/Tram’ above.
Walking directions from Tallaght Red Line Tram Stop to the stadium:
Once the Luas Red Line tram pulls away from the Hospital stop it will turn to the left and pass under a building. Look to the right and you will see the floodlights of Tallaght Stadium just before the tram pulls into the final Tallaght stop. You have two choices-either go direct to the stadium walking across the mini roundabout and the busy Tallaght Bypass-this will lead you out onto the Whitestown Road side, or follow the road to the left at the mini roundabout to take you to the front facade of “The Square” indoor shopping Centre. From here you will be able to take a footbridge over the Tallaght Bypass which will then return you to the stadium. The main club offices, club shop and west turnstiles can all be accessed from the Whitestown Road side.
Adults €15
OAP/Students €10
Under 14’s €5
Seating is unreserved for most games.
Official Programme €4
West Dublin club St Patricks Athletic are-geographically speaking-the nearest club but North Dublin club Bohemian have more of a modern day rivalry. For fans old enough to remember the club used to play in South Dublin, and were originally formed in Shamrock Avenue, close to the origins of Shelbourne FC. It is then no surprise to learn that Shelbourne have more of a historical rivalry.
Pitch side spaces along the front of the East Stand.
Record Attendance
10,900 v Real Madrid
Friendly, 20 July 2009
Average Attendance
2019: 3,445 (Premier Division)
2018: 2,758 (Premier Division)
2017: 2,815 (Premier Division)
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Official Web Sites
www.shamrockrovers.ie
www.tallaghtstadium.ie
Official Social Media
Facebook: www.facebook.com/shamrockrovers
Twitter: @shamrockrovers
Special thanks to Thomas Argue for providing the photo of the new South Stand at the Tallaght Stadium.
If anything is incorrect or you have something to add, then please e-mail me at: [email protected] and I’ll update the guide.
Special thanks to Owen Pavey for providing the information and photos of the Tallaght Stadium Shamrock Rovers.
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