#257

Also not sure they were ever ‘good’ but players you can’t believe were genuinely effective premier league footballers over a fairly long period of time:

James Beattie
Darren Huckerby

3 Likes
#258

Didn’t he play for Chelsea for one season after being Eredivisie top scorer?

2 Likes
#259

NEUTRAL STAND

#260

Generally good stadium attributes:

  • Rectangular, not bowl shaped with all stands right next to the pitch
  • Steep stands
  • As few tiers as possible (no “emotional day” jokes please)
  • Definitely no mini tier running around halfway up for corporate seats or that kind of shit that breaks up any attempt at an atmosphere
  • Ideally walking distance from half-decent pubs
5 Likes
#261

I was always pretty amazed by Huckerby, but his best season was when we won the final Division 1 title for us

#262

Whilst Champion Hill has its charm (the main stand is great), it’s not a particularly good place to watch football when there is a bumper crowd in attendance (ie anything in excess of 2000). Finding a vantage point where you can see anything more than about 20% of the pitch is particularly tricky unless you’re extremely fortunate to get near the perimeter fencing or are particularly tall.

Hopefully, if and when Dulwich get the go-ahead for the new ground, there will be lots and lots of nicely banked terracing. They could do a lot worse than going with the sort of thing (whisper it quietly)Tooting have behind the goals at Imperial Fields - particularly if their gates are going to hold up / consistently exceed the 2000 mark in the medium to long term.

#263

garage in the corner

1154×866 492 KB

6 Likes
#264

I’ve been to a lot of grounds, probably 70+

Best.

Old Trafford
Craven Cottage
Villa Park
Hillsbrough
Upton Park

Worst

Luton
QPR
Bristol City
Gillingham
The New Den

#265

is that really a neutral stand? i’ve been had then, since my housemate warned me not to celebrate or look as though I might be a chelsea fan when we went to see chelsea - fulham a few years back.

which reminds me of one of the worst/best chants I’ve ever heard at a ground. Ashkan Dejagah was playing for them at the time, and they had his chant that went ‘Ooo he’s Iranian, Ashkan is Iranian, he’s an Iranian iiiiiiin Fulham’ to the tune of An Englishman in New York.

and then there was the halftime rendition of the Clash’s London Calling, during which the fans would sing the line ‘LIVE BY THE RIVER’ in tribute to their geographical location…next to a river.

That was a fucking great day, now I think about it.

1 Like
#266

Lee Hendrie

#267

surprised at the number of Old Trafford inclusions here - its not an offensive ground by any means, but definitely has that provincial shopping centre quality to it, and is pretty poor in terms of atmosphere too.

#268

Hillsbrough is a shout, like bramhall lane too.

Ridiculous they’re not in the premier league and Bournemouth, Watford and Boro are

#269

There’s houses within 20 yards of the ground

1 Like
#270

I see your point, but its the sheer size of it.

Saturday was the first time I’d been to Chelsea since 2004. I don’t get the hate for it to be honest, I didn’t like it but it wasn’t that bad.

The away end at Spurs is horrendous.

#271

I only ever stand at either end tbh, and views are great if you’re near the back. Plus, used to be able to bring cans into the ground.

Thats all really, I am a simple man.

#272

are fans instructed to ‘keep it down’ before matches then?

#273

St Andrew’s is a fucking nightmare coming out of the away end. There’s one gate that all the away fans have to leave from which makes you easy pickings for their dickhead element. In fact, every time I’ve been there it seems to kick off all the way back up through Digbeth into the city centre.

Other shit grounds:
Lotus Road
Vicarage Road
The majority of new grounds built on an industrial estate miles from stations, pubs, etc

Grounds I like:
Molineux (obviously)
Craven Cottage - Nice little ground, there’s a decent pub (can’t think of the name now) and there’s the nice walk through the park from the tube station
The City Ground - Close enough to the city centre and the station and quite a pleasant walk over the bridge and that on a nice day.

#274

Maybe its not as bad as a visiting fan, but going there semi-regularly isn’t a nice experience to be honest. Also, tickets are impossible to get nowadays, even with ‘True Blue’ membership.

#275

Nope just spoilt and used to bigger games than what we get. Don’t even like going anymore tbh

1 Like
#276

I sit next to a Chelsea fan at work, and apparently your online booking system is terrible?