Fantastic Media Welfare Ground

The Fantastic Media Welfare Ground sits in the village of Emley. It is the home of Emley Association Football Club.

The ground is not a modern build. The club has played here since 1903. The Alec Hardy Stand, which provides seating for 305 people, was gifted by Huddersfield Town after a refurbishment in the summer of 2023. The name 'Welfare Ground' remains in use because of the site's history with the Emley Moor Colliery, which closed in 1985. Such pitches were built by mining associations for the local community, and the ground is still shared with the local cricket club today.

The atmosphere is defined by the proximity of the crowd. With a capacity of 2,000, the terraces are close to the touchline. The Warburton End, a hard-standing terrace, is now dominated by an electronic scoreboard installed last season. The floodlights were also replaced in the summer of 2024, meaning the club can host evening fixtures under bright LED lights.

The ground does not have the amenities of its larger neighbours. There is no heating system and no hybrid turf; the surface is maintained by scarifying and reseeding. The playing surface is natural grass, worn by the local team and the cricket club. The club's highest attendance, 1,771, was recorded during a Northern Premier League play-off final in May 2026. It is a place where the history of the colliery is still visible in the name, and where the supporters who reformed the club in 2005 continue to maintain a tradition that dates back over a century.