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MacHale Park is a GAA stadium in Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland. It is the home of the Castlebar Mitchels GAA and Mayo GAA Gaelic football teams. Built in 1931, the ground has a capacity of 38,000 and is named after John MacHale, Archbishop of Tuam from 1831 to 1881. ==History== Discussions with the owners of the land where MacHale Park now stands commenced in 1929 and the deal was concluded on 7 March 1930. In early 1931 development of the pitch took place at a cost of £1,700. The first competitive matches took place in MacHale Park on 22 March 1931 when Castlebar minors played Balla and Ballina and Cloonacastle played a junior championship match. The first inter-county match was a National Football League match between Mayo and Sligo on 19 April 1931, Mayo winning by 0–7 to 0–2. The official opening took place on 24 May 1931 when about 4,000 spectators attended a match between Mayo and Kildare GAA which ended in a draw. A major redevelopment was undertaken between 1950 and 1952 which raised the capacity of the ground to 40,000 with seating for 18,000 costing £15,000. The ground was reopened on 15 June 1952 with a game between the reigning All-Ireland champions Mayo and Meath which also ended in a draw. In the late 1980s covered seating was provided in the Gerry McDonald Stand. In 1990 the Connacht Council decided to grant aid Dr. Hyde Park, County Roscommon with a view to making it the main venue in the province. In reaction to this a further redevelopment was embarked upon by the Castlebar Mitchels club. Over the course of the next 12 years the ground was converted into a 32,000 all-seater stadium and new dressing rooms, improved press facilities, dug-outs and a wheelchair area were constructed. In March 2005, the Mayo County Board took control of MacHale Park on a 50-year lease with a view to upgrading the stadium.〔(''Western People'' – "McHale Park future lies in County Board's hands", 16 March 2005 )〕 In 2008, construction work commenced on a detailed renovation of the ground, to include the construction of a new 10,000 seater stand as well as an extension to the seated area to the south (Albany) end of the ground. The aim was to raise the seated capacity of the stadium to 42,000, making the stadium the largest all-seater venue in Ireland, outside of Dublin. The €16 million redevelopment works included improved facilities for spectators, a museum, underground training areas, and County Board offices. As part of these works the famous façade on the MacHale Road side of the ground was demolished. Funding for the project was generated by the sale of the naming rights for the stadium as well as the sale of season tickets for matches taking place at the ground. (Images of proposed redevelopment of MacHale Park ) (Photographs of ongoing development work at venue, April 2009 ) 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「MacHale Park」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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