Friday 8 August 2008

JK Kalev; Kalevi Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia

JK Kalev are another of the Estonian First division clubs; and the Kalevi Stadium is an easy fifteen minute walk from the old town, and a great old 'communist' relic.





This is a derelict ticket booth in the car park.



Looking across the car park you see locked gates, an the back of the stand, a shell of a building, no longer in use; though the seats on the other side are.



I won't be taking you round this ground in my usual circular tour, as it was only two sided, but more imprtantly it was about ten to eight in the evening, & I had to be somewhere else at eight thirty; so time was limited for me.
There were two huges sides of mainly bench seats, with grass banking at the tunnel end, as you can see.



This was the view down the 'main side'. I only call it that because of the small concrete construction at the top.



There was an evening training session in progress, and you can see the other end from here, not banked up; and some of the benches on the far side.



Here is a fine view back down the main side, from the top of the grass bank.



This is up behind the goal at the top, Looks like this was never replaced!



Looking across, from the same spot.



And further along, a decent view of the other side.



This is the tunnel, from the track. Note the Club flag, at the top of the mast.



And this is the tunnel, from behind the ground.



Back round to the main side, here are the 'dugouts'.


And looking up to the 'VIP' area. You really imagine the high ranking Communist Party officials looking down on the masses.



At the far end of the benches the exit doesn't look too safe!



And other angle, from the far end of the track.



Ditto, along the benches.



Looking over the pitch again, from another angle.



This is the rest of that side.



A look from the top, down to the halfway line.



A close up of the 'posh seats'!



Sitting in them, looking over the benches.



And eyes to the left!




Then back to the tunnel


Beofre looking down onto the pitch.



At the top of the banking is a footpath, with young trees planted all along.



Below each one were Estonian names unkown to me, but clearly their national sporting heroes.



Behind this end is an all-weather second pitch, with the changing room complex, which I presume is used for games at the big stadium as well.



There were some open benches for spectators here too.



A view across this pitch, from the other side.



Here are the dugouts.



with this strange wooden gantry between the, presumably for filming games and training sessions on here.

1 comment:

Nick WFC said...

Hi mate, just to let you know, Alfred Neuland was a weightlifter. He won the gold in 1920 apparently.

No I did'nt know either!