Inside Luton stadium set to break Premier League record despite £10m renovation
It has been a long time coming, but Luton Town are finally playing a Premier League match in front of their own home fans.
The Hatters have been made to wait after winning promotion through the Championship play-offs last season. A home opener against Burnley was postponed, with Kenilworth Road not yet ready after required changes to bring it up to scratch for top-flight football. There was a warm-up on Tuesday night, with Gillingham visiting for a Carabao Cup second round game. On Friday, though, West Ham will be the visitors for the stadium's first taste of Premier League action.
After beating Coventry City to win promotion, Luton were told the Bobbers Stand would need renovating. It reopened for the Gillingham game, which was treated as a test event with tickets distributed for free rather than being sold. The Hatters confirmed it would open at full capacity on Friday, after a 75% capacity limit on Tuesday, with further tickets put on sale as a result. CEO Gary Sweet hailed Tuesday's game as a "significant development" and opened up on the process to get the ground ready.
"The last 13 weeks since Wembley have gone by in a flash," Sweet told club media. "The work undertaken around the ground has been nothing short of miraculous."
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Kenilworth Road will host its first Premier League game on Friday (Michael Zemanek/REX/Shutterstock)Sweet had said the club was required to "pretty much rebuild" the stand after winning promotion. This was achieved at a cost of some £10m, with the big day finally here.
“Given the huge demands and the time and space constraints placed under us, we appreciate supporters’ patience in waiting for information," Sweet said. "However further, detailed, information regarding all of the new additions and changes at Kenilworth Road that awaits them will be communicated ahead of the West Ham fixture.”
Despite the changes, though, Luton will still set a new record for the smallest Premier League home ground in the competition's history. Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium currently has that honour, with a capacity of 11,379, but Luton's home fits 10,356.
Fans will walk above residential gardens to get into the ground (Michael Zemanek/REX/Shutterstock)Anyone following Luton's progress in recent months will have been made well aware of the Oak Stand, with an entrance between houses on a residential street. Residents told The Sun of match balls "smashing windows" after wayward shots, while away fans pass over gardens as they walk up steps to their seats.
"They've only ever asked for the ball back once," one fan said. "We've kept the others." With restricted capacity on Tuesday, an official attendance of 9,468 was recorded for the Gillingham game. It was a thriller, too, with the visitors coming back into the game after Rob Edwards' side opened up an early two-goal lead.
The unique Oak Stand entrance (Getty Images)
Luton's first home game took place in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday (Getty Images)The big test, of course, is the Premier League. Both of Luton's away games have ended in comfortable defeats, against Brighton and Chelsea, but the power of a home crowd could prove crucial to their survival.
“I fully support every single player in our dressing room and our coaching staff, I know we’ll go on and get results this season,” Carlton Morris - scorer of Luton's first Premier League goal - said after the Chelsea game. “It’s been a difficult start, a bit of a reality check for us really. This is the big time now, but that’s what we play football for. I love it and can’t wait to get going for the next one already.”
Luton's home record helped them earn promotion last term. They picked up 17 points from their last seven games at Kenilworth Road, before overturning a first-leg deficit against Sunderland in their play-off semi-final.
“I want to say something about the fans,” Morris added. “Honestly, the first two away games this season they have been unbelievable, absolutely outstanding.
“It puts a smile on my face even though it’s a tough result, going over at the end there, they are absolutely bouncing and these people work hard to pay their hard earned money to come and watch us play, so we are never going to give up, no matter what.”
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West Ham travel to Luton after an unbeaten start to the season, including victories over the two teams to beat the Hatters. This away trip, however, will be a great unknown.
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