Manchester United also played a home match at Leeds Road in the 1948 FA Cup run while Old Trafford was being rebuilt following damage from German bombers in the Second World War.[1] A single international match took place at the ground, when England defeated the Netherlands 8–2 in a friendly on 27 November 1946. This was England's second home international match after World War II, the first having been held at Maine Road, Manchester two weeks earlier.
In January 1990, the Taylor Report required all clubs in the top two divisions of English football to have an all-seater stadium by the 1994–95 season. Huddersfield were in the Third Division at this stage, but were aiming for promotion - finally achieving it in 1995. The club's board decided to replace Leeds Road with a new all-seater stadium at a different location, and quickly settled on a new site opposite the original stadium.
In 1991 the ground was the venue for Emley's first appearance in the FA Cup first round proper, a crowd of 9,035 is a club record for the village team from the hills outside Huddersfield, Bolton won the game 3-0.
Huddersfield Town played their 1,554th and final League game at the Leeds Road ground on 30 April 1994, beating Blackpool 2–1, watched by a near capacity crowd of 16,195.[2] Town's oldest-surviving ex-player, Joe Walter, was guest of honour at the match.[2]
The ground was demolished soon afterwards and the site was redeveloped as a retail park. The point once occupied by the centre spot is now marked by a plaque in the car park, outside B&Q.
^Crick, Michael; Smith, David (1990). Manchester United The Betrayal of a Legend. Pan. p. 23. ISBN0-330-31440-8.
^ abGillatt, Peter (30 November 2009). Blackpool FC On This Day: History, Facts and Figures from Every Day of the Year. Pitch Publishing Ltd. ISBN978-1-905411-50-4.
References
Huddersfield Town - 75 years on - A History of Huddersfield Town by George S. Binns
Huddersfield Town - A Complete Record 1910–1990ISBN090796964X