What makes a good/bad/great away day, no matter what division you watch your football in?
Is it about the entire day, from the distance that you have to travel and the difficulty of getting there, to the town or city itself, or the ground itself or its immediate environs, and even the cost of a pint.
From grounds that were built with the Premier League in mind to those built for non league clubs who’ve grown since, all life is here.
Darren Stobbs, our away day specialist, gives his view and the views of other travelling Gasheads and opposition fans throughout this season.
Time left Bristol and time arrived in York?
We left The Mem at 7:30am and arrived at the stadium for 12:50pm, stopping for 45 minutes at Tibshelf services. With the M42 closed for works, it made our journey a bit longer than expected.
Distance from York City Centre / Train Station?
The train station is 3.5 miles from the ground, which is now situated on the outskirts of York. The train station is near the city centre and also near the old location of Bootham Cresent. This was demolished in 2023 to make way for a housing development – now there’s a surprise! Most old ground meet the same fate!
When was the ground opened and what are the plans for the future of the ground?
The ground is a fairly new venue, opening in 2021. Speaking to a York fan before the match, he mentioned that they are looking to relocate so that York have a stadium owned by themselves, as opposed to currently being council owned. The ground is set within a leisure complex.
What options were there for pubs around the ground?
There were a couple of bars outside the ground, a bar by ‘The Lounge’ franchise and a bowling complex with a bar. However, if you took a 10 minute walk away from the ground, there was a Green King establishment selling the usual array of drinks, plus a very tempting carvery which was proving popular. Our own Peter Pearce had one and after seeing him in the ground, he made the point of letting us know how good it was!
What did I think of the food and drink available inside the ground?
This season, I have decided not to sample food inside many grounds, unless I know that it’s favourable from previous visits! As this was a new ground for Rovers fans, I gave it go. Met by the ‘Pukka’ sign, this will become a familiar sight at The Mem.
I ordered a sausage roll and a Bovril. The sausage roll was priced at £5 and came in a plastic wrapper. I probably knew what I was letting myself in for – a soggy, greasy, lukewarm snack. If this is anything to go by, then the fans at The Mem will be disappointed. It will probably take me a while to sample a Pukka product at The Mem.
It’s a shame that we couldn’t continue our partnership with ‘Proper Cornish Pasties’ or ‘Piglets Pies’ – good quality products. Anyone going to Exeter later this season, will know how good pasties are in Devon and are a good example to follow. The Bovril was priced at £3.15 which is quite steep, especially for up north. Back home hot drinks are £2.20p which is very reasonable. However, I did get told by a catering staff member at The Mem, that Bovril will no longer be available – surely a decision that will be overturned? Alcohol was also available in the away concourse.
What did I think of the away end and my view of the game?
Rovers fans were situated on the West side of the stadium for our first visit, enjoying the action from the side of the pitch. It was a decent view with no obstructing pillars. Where my seat was situated, the gangway was cut short two rows down from me, leading to full rows of seats. It seemed the natural thing for people around me to hop over the 2 rows of seats to access the gangway, rather than walk the whole row of where they were situated!
What was the atmosphere like during the match?
I expected more to be honest, but it certainly wasn’t short of atmosphere. In the Rovers end the atmosphere was pretty much up and down, as the match proved to be a bit of a roller coaster and with Rovers not producing a fantastic performance, there was a lot of frustration in the stands. The York fans created an atmosphere, albeit with the annoyance of a drummer which seems to be a bit of a theme with League 2 teams! 6/10.
How friendly were the home fans?
We met a friendly York fan in the pub before the match and when walking back to the ground I was asking for some inside information of what players we had to look out for. There was a fair bit of banter being exchanged during the match, as the scoreline swapped about. Before the match, we asked a couple of helpful fans where their club shop was, then finally finding it!, The gentleman who served us was also friendly. 9/10.
What allocation is given and can this be increased and how many Rovers fans were there?
Rovers were given an allocation of 892 which was completely sold out. I did read somewhere that part of the North Stand can be given to away fans as an overflow, but with York themselves selling nearly all their tickets, maybe this is the reason Rovers could not obtain more tickets.
The Match:
Rovers were very much under pressure from the start. We gave the ball away far too often and could not deal with the balls played down the wings over the shoulders of our wing backs. They took control of large parts of the game, but we took the lead when a low pull back was met by Clinton Mola, who put a shot in under the keepers arms. In the second half York equalised with a low effort inside the box and then followed it up with another, with a low shot into the far corner. We then got a penalty with a clear push on Shaq Forde. Tommy Leigh converted the penalty into the right corner. York then pushed for a winner and got it when a cross to the far post was headed in on the goal line.
ATTENDANCE: 8,156.
Any songs/chants that were a little bit different to the norm?
Without saying all the words!, Rovers fans sang a song relating to ‘Selling your soul for the ground they are currently in’. Taking the humour away from it, there is much truth to this. Bootham Cresent (their old ground), although it was tired and had it’s day, was certainly a place with character and atmosphere. Recreating that with a newly built stadium has become a common problem with clubs in the past – just ask West Ham fans. Although their situation is slightly different with it being a former Olympic Stadium and the fans a fair distance from the pitch. However, many clubs have struggled to create the same atmosphere as their former homes.
Man of the match:
My own opinion was Clinton Mola, not only for his goal but for his efforts off the ball to win back possession.
However, the Supporters Club coach vote went to Fabrizio Cavegn.
The Referee:
I thought the referee was quite consistent with his decisions, which may or may not have been given for both teams. However, the constant pulling of Joe Quigley’s shirt must have increased the size of it by the time he was substituted in the second half! The referee failed to pick up on this. 7/10.
Stewards/ground staff:
The atmosphere with the stewards in the away end was a very relaxed one. They seemed a chilled out bunch.
The steward between the two sets of fans got a bit excited with the banter after one of the goals were scored. Judging by his choice of sunglasses, he couldn’t decide on going for a skiing holiday or watching a solar eclipse!
How easy did we find it to get away from the stadium after the game?
Not the easiest ground to get away from, as with most of these new grounds, it seems that everyone is merged into one exit! We left at 5:05pm and we were on the main road 15 minutes later.
How much did I spend in total on this away day?/ Was it good value for money?
Taking into consideration a match ticket, coach ticket and optional other related journey costs, programme, food and drink. This match set me back approximately £106. That being said, it was one of the longest journeys of the season. Most of the costings were good value and about what I expected pay. A round of drinks was less than back home in a pub, but the stadium refreshments were not great value for money.
Time back home:
We left York at 5:05pm and got back at The Mem for 10:40pm, stopping for 20 minutes at Hopwood Services. Having navigated around the closed M42, we then encountered the problem of an accident near Gloucester, which set us back around 45 minutes.
Would I recommend this away day to other fans?
Yes, all in all, York is a decent away day. If you want to make a weekend of it, then it’s worth doing. I visited the City of York many years ago. It’s a lovely place and worth spending the weekend there and seeing all the history that it has to offer.
