<P> Pickering laid the foundation stone in November 1995 and, after decontamination, the first of the more than 1,000 pre-cast concrete piles was sunk in September 1996 . This was followed by 6,500 tonnes of concrete and more than 2,100 tonnes of steelwork as the ground began to take shape . Tapping into the excitement amongst supporters, the club set up a visitors centre which included a computer - generated tour of the stadium taking shape and attracted more than 75,000 fans . The opportunity was also made available for supporters to buy special bricks--on to which they could engrave a message of their choosing--which would be set around the outside of the completed stadium . </P> <P> The weather of the 1996 winter was not kind to the contractors but extra urgency was provided by the news that the stadium was to be opened by the Queen . This news--the first time the Queen had opened a new football stadium--ensured that the workers, at one point behind schedule, had to pull out all of the stops to get the stadium completed in time . The pitch stood at 105 metres long and 68 metres wide, meeting the requirements for an international venue, and measured five yards longer and four yards wider than the pitch at the Baseball Ground . It also came with a three - metre grass margin . </P> <P> The Queen opened the stadium on 18 July 1997 in front of 30,000 spectators . By this time the south west corner, which stood between the main stand and the horseshoe, had been completed . The interest from potential corporate clients had been so high that Pickering pressed the board to go the full distance with the stadium, raising the final initial costs of completing the stadium to £ 22 million . Work was still in progress on the remaining corner on the opening day, leaving Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh to jokingly ask Taylor Woodrow contract manager Ross Walters, "Haven't you been paid yet?" An overture to the opening ceremony came two weeks later, on 4 August 1997, with the first ever game at Pride Park Stadium being played against Italian side Sampdoria, the match ending in a 1--0 defeat with Vincenzo Montella scoring the only goal of the game . The attendance of 29,041 was the highest for a Derby County home game in 20 years . The fixture kicked off a tradition of pre-season friendlies being held against European teams at the ground, with Barcelona (twice), CSKA Moscow, Athletic Bilbao, Lazio, Ajax and Mallorca all visiting the stadium over the next six years . </P> <P> The first competitive fixture to be completed at the new stadium came on 30 August 1997 and ended in a 1--0 win against Barnsley in front of 27,232, with Stefano Eranio scoring the only goal from the penalty spot . The stadium's inaugural competitive fixture against Wimbledon was called off with the score at 2--1 after the floodlights went out in the 11th minute of the second half . Referee Uriah Rennie abandoned the match following a delay of more than half - an - hour while engineers tried unsuccessfully to restart two failed generators . Gadsby said, "We had 11 maintenance people on duty including six electricians but nobody has yet worked out why both generators failed . There was a bang of such strength that it fused them both ." This proved to be the only major problem with the new stadium, which delivered everything which had been promised of it and went on to gain international recognition . Later additions to the ground raised the capacity to 33,597 and a final cost of £ 28 million . </P>

Who scored the first ever goal at pride park