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Firhill Stadium
(Partick Thistle)
Address: 80 Firhill Road,
Maryhill,
Glasgow,
Scotland,
G20 7AL
Capacity: 10,102 (All-Seater)
A ground with an intriguing layout, both inside and out.
Taking its name from the road located near to it, the stadium has been home to Partick Thistle since opening in 1909.
The Jags were formed in 1876 and played at various sites including Kelvingrove, Jordanville Park and Muir Park before moving to Meadowside in 1891. When the site was set to become a shipyard in 1908 however, the club were forced out and sound some spare Caledonian Railway land in Maryhill. The first form of Firhill Stadium was opened in September 1909 after being declared safe for public use.
A Main Stand constructed in 1927 was designed to resemble the work of Archibald Leitch but was in fact designed by a former employee of Leitch, David Mills Duncan.
Floodlights would be installed in the 1950s and Firhill Stadium became the first ground in Glasgow to host a UEFA European Cup game when Hibernian played Swedish club Djurgårdens IF Fotboll. The match was supposed to be held in Sweden, but the freezing conditions forced Djurgårdens to play in Glasgow instead.
Firhill Stadium was jointly shared between Partick Thistle and Clyde Football Club between 1986 and 1991. The latter had been evicted from their old Shawfield home and were in the process of finding a new place to play games at.
Hamilton Academical Football Club made use of Firhill Stadium over two spells, the first between 1994-1997, the second between 1999-2001.
Rugby union side Glasgow Warriors also used Firhill Stadium for games across two spells, the first between 2005-2006 and the second between 2007-2012.
Games at the 2000 Rugby League World Cup were also held here.
Location and Getting There
Firhill Stadium is located in Maryhill, around 1.5 miles north of Glasgow City Centre. The Forth and Clyde Canal runs by the stadium’s northern and eastern sides, the River Klein at its closest point is around 0.5 miles away to the southwest, and the River Clyde is around 1.7 miles away to the south.
Coming to Firhill Stadium by car is certainly possible, though parking can be tricky to find.
There are no car parks available for visitors immediately around the ground’s vicinity, so you will likely have to head into the residential estate to the southwest to find free parking, and that could end up being some distance away from the stadium.
Partick Thistle personally recommend Garscube Road (A81) and its adjacent streets. Ensure that you are legally allowed to park where you find and do not block the drives of any residents.
Getting to Firhill Stadium by train is trickier.
The two main stations in Glasgow are Glasgow Central and Glasgow Queen Street which are down towards the City Centre. Glasgow Central is served by ScotRail, Avanti West Coast, Caledonian Sleeper, CrossCountry, LNER and Transpennine Express, with the walk north to Firhill taking upwards of 30 minutes. Glasgow Queen Street is served by ScotRail and the walk from here to Firhill also takes upwards of 30 minutes along a similar route.
Most people will arrive in Glasgow from elsewhere via Glasgow Central, and from there you can head to the St Enoch Underground Station nearby and take the Outer Circle line north to either St. George’s Cross or Kelvinbridge.
The walk from St. George’s Cross to Firhill takes around 20 minutes but is almost exclusively along one road, Maryhill Road, until the stadium comes into view on your right.
The walk from Kelvinbridge to Firhill also takes around 20 minutes but is on a more winding route. First access the station and head across Great Western Road (A82) to North Woodside Road. Continue along here until you reach Maryhill Road, turning left and heading north until Firhill Stadium comes into view on your right.
My personal recommendation would be to get a train to Glasgow Central, transfer to St Enoch, take the Underground Outer Circle Line north to St. George’s Cross, and then walk north to Firhill Stadium from there. The whole route can take around 30 minutes.
Outside the Stadium
Those approaching Firhill Stadium from Maryhill Road will likely head up through either Firhill Street or Springbank Street onto Firhill Road.
Firhill Road runs alongside the stadium’s West Stand, considered the Main Stand and named after Colin Weir, the club’s first ever patron.
The oldest part of the stadium, its exterior uses a brickwork base with white concrete higher up and rows of windows across all the levels. Firhill Stadium’s Main Entrance is housed in the middle of this exterior, the Partick Thistle Store (only open on matchdays) is to the right of here, whilst the Players Entrance and Executive Offices Entrances are housed at the end next to the stadium’s southwest corner.
Turnstiles for the Colin Weir Stand itself are along the brickwork base, with a good number at the end next to the stadium’s northwest corner.
In a clockwise direction from the Colin Weir Stand is the North Stand, named after John Lambie.
Born in Whitburn on 2nd March 1941, Lambie managed Partick Thistle for four separate spells between 1988 and 2005, winning three promotions with the club including two in back-to-back seasons during his third spell between 1999 and 2003.
A manager perhaps best known for his infamous quotes, Lambie passed away on 10th April 2018 at the age of 77. The North Stand at Firhill Stadium has been named in his honour since that same month.
Immediately outside the John Lambie Stand is Firhill Court, a set of large student accommodation buildings. You are unable to walk along the edge of the stand’s corrugated iron exterior as a result and will head along the road called Firhill Court if you are going from one side of Firhill Stadium to the other.
The turnstiles for the John Lambie Stand can be found off Firhill Road next to the stadium’s northeast corner, alongside a disabled access gate.
The East Stand at Firhill Stadium is named after Jackie Husband.
Born in Dunfermline on 28th May 1918, Husband spent his entire playing career at Partick Thistle, amassing almost 400 appearances in defence between 1938 and 1950. His time associated with the club totals 52 years, being a reserve player, first team player, captain, trainer, coach, physio, kitman, and regular visitor.
Capped twice by Scotland, Husband passed away in 1992.
The Jackie Husband Stand uses a brickwork base with light grey corrugated iron higher up, dark grey corrugated iron above this and cantilever in place at the top.
You can find a Main Entrance in the centre of this exterior, with turnstiles along the base on either side. A portacabin-like building to the right of the Main Entrance houses Firhill Stadium’s Matchday Ticket Office.
The Jack Husband Stand has a metal perimeter fence in place a little away from its exterior, and the space in between holds car parking spaces. There are two gates that allow access into here, the main one being in line with the stadium’s northeast corner off Firhill Court.
Firhill Stadium currently doesn’t have a South Stand, with a grass bank and decorated brick wall taking up the unused area.
Disused turnstiles by the stadium’s southwest corner indicate that there perhaps used to be something here, but it is certainly not anymore.
There is an access road outside this southern grass bank however and it enables you to get round from the Jackie Husband Stand and back onto Firhill Road which is in line with the Colin Weir Stand. I cannot guarantee that the metal gate at the end of the brick wall will always be open, however.
Inside the Stadium
The Colin Weir Stand consists of a single tier of red seating.
This seating area is elevated above ground and accessible via small staircases down at the front. The stand’s central seating block is split into sections and for executive use, whilst Firhill Stadium’s dugouts and tunnel are based down the front with the changing rooms inside. The southern end of the stand, next to the stadium’s southwest corner, houses a tall Executive Offices Building.
Supporting pillars come down regularly in front of the elevated seating area, and these will restrict your view somewhat as a result.
The Office Building provides protection from one end of the Colin Weir Stand, and a large windshield by the northwest corner fully protects every row at the other end.
The John Lambie Stand consists of a single tier of seating.
The rows further forward are red in colour, a single row of yellow seats is in place behind these, a single row of black seats is in place behind these, and the remaining rows up towards the back are dark grey in colour.
Your view from anywhere inside the John Lambie Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.
Large windshields are in place at either end which provide protection from the sides to all but the very front rows.
The Jackie Husband Stand has an interesting seating layout.
It can essentially be split into two tiers that you can freely get between, with the upper tier blocks smaller in size to the ones below. The very front rows of the stand are coloured red, with a strip of three white seating rows above this and a strip of two black seating rows above that. One of the central blocks however uses yellow seating instead of white seating. These white and black strips are also lower down in the middle than they are at the ends, creating an interesting shape. The seats further back in these lower tier blocks alternate between dark grey and light grey in colour. The seating blocks in the upper tier are almost exclusively dark grey in colour, though there is one seating block that is fully red in colour instead and another that is partly yellow in colour. The whole interior has a colour scheme that really must be seen to be understood properly!
Firhill Stadium’s matchday camera is housed in an area up behind the back row, and there are couple of rows of windows leading to offices inside.
Your view from anywhere inside the Jackie Husband Stand is perfectly clear because of the cantilever roof above.
Windshields are in place at either end, but only provide protection to the upper tier blocks and the back rows of the lower tier blocks. The rows further forward from here are left exposed from the sides.
The southern side of Firhill Stadium has no stand in place, instead housing a few large advertising boards on the grass bank behind the goal.
Away Fans
Away fans are housed in the Colin Weir Stand on the western side of the pitch. A limited number of blocks are made available for smaller away crowds, with the whole stand opened up for use when larger attendances are expected.
The Colin Weir Stand has an elevated seating area which is accessible by staircases down at the front.
Your view from inside is hindered by supporting pillars that come down along the front, but a windshield at one end and an office building at the other provide good protection from the sides.
Turnstiles for this away stand can be found along its exterior off Firhill Road.
On occasions when very large away crowds are expected, usually when Celtic or Rangers have been in attendance, then Partick Thistle have been known to instead house away fans on the opposite side of the pitch in the Jackie Husband Stand.
Views from inside here are perfectly clear, with windshields providing cover to all the rows further back, and turnstiles can be found along its exterior that is surrounded by a perimeter fence.
Matchday Pubs
Pubs available to supporters on a matchday include:
-The Social Club inside the Colin Weir Stand (Home and Away Supporters)
-The Ark Glasgow (North Frederick Street, G1 2BS) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located near to the University of Strathclyde)
-The Arlington (130 Woodlands Road, G3 6AB) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located southwest of St. George's Cross Underground Station)
-The Horseshoe Bar (17-19 Drury Street, G2 5AE) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located near to Glasgow Central Station)
-Munn's (610 Maryhill Road, G20 7ED) (Home and Away Supporters) (Located near to Firhill Stadium itself)
-The Royalty Inn (144 Maryhill Road, G20 7QS) (Typically Home and Away Supporters)
-The Star and Garter (687 Garscube Road, G20 7JX) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located south of Firhill Stadium)
-The Strathmore (795 Maryhill Road, G20 7TL) (Home and Away Supporters)
-The Woodside Inn (239 Maryhill Road, G20 7YB) ((Away Supporters Welcome)
Overview
Firhill Stadium’s layout is an intriguing one. Completely lacking a South Stand, its Main Stand to the west shows its age in its design, whilst its North and East Stand offer clear views from anywhere inside.
It may only have three stands in total, but this stadium can still accommodate crowds of good sizes.
It’s certainly one of the lesser talked about football grounds in the Glasgow area, but I would certainly recommend checking this place out.
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