Rugby Park

Rugby Park is a football stadium situated in the Scottish town of Kilmarnock. It was first used in 1899 and is the home of Kilmarnock FC.It underwent a major redevelopment in 1994–95, becoming an all-seater stadium with a capacity of. In addition to its main duty of hosting home matches for Kilmarnock it has been the venue for two Scottish international matches.It can also be used for concerts, with Elton John playing to 15,000 in a first for the venue. In 2002, the club constructed Park Hotel, a 4-star complex next to the ground.HistoryKilmarnock first played football matches at the present Rugby Park site in 1899. Despite that, the venue is actually Kilmarnock’s fourth home ground. The Grange, Holm Quarry and Ward's Park all hosted matches, before the club moved to Rugby Park in 1877. This was not the present stadium, but one situated close by near South Hamilton Street. This ground was shared by cricket and rugby teams – sports which Kilmarnock had played previously – and the connection with rugby gave the ground its name. This name was taken with the club when they moved to their present stadium. The ground was inaugurated with a match against then-champions Celtic on 1 August, when Kilmarnock fought back from a 2–0 deficit to secure a draw. It was their first match in the top tier of Scottish football, having won the Second Division the previous season.