Pride Park: The home of Derby County.Next up on the road for The Toon is a trip to the East Midlands. More specifically, Derby County and their ground, Pride Park. A full house will surely be guaranteed as The Rams have the 2nd highest average attendance, 2nd highest only to us, and that’s despite the fact their team has been struggling this season.
I’ve never heard of any real trouble involving Derby fans, a bit of banter and some handbags maybe but that’s about it. Just remember that they, like us, are very passionate about their team and can make a lot of noise, It’s up to you guys to match them as, unfortunately, I can’t make it due to work commitments.
It’s a Tuesday evening so you may want to leave some extra travel time as your bound to hit some rush hour traffic during the 160 mile journey. We’ll begin, as always, by leaving Newcastle down the A1 and joining the M1 at Leeds. (more…)
Destination Hawthorns!My next guide takes a look at this weeks FA Cup 4th round match against West Brom at The Hawthorns. We’ve kindly been given the entire Smethwick Road end which has an allocation of 5,500, and with tickets cheap at £20 for adults and just £5 for under-16’s, I’d expect us to fill that! Mind you, even if it was full price we would still fill it, such is the magnitude of our away following!
For the 200 hundred mile trip we’ll head again down the A1 out of the Toon, then down to Leeds where you’ll meet up with the M1. Continue south past Sheffield and Nottingham and leave at Junction 23a (A42/M42). Follow the A42 which turns into the M42 until you meet up with the M6 near to Birmingham airport. Head north on the M6 for a short while until you find the M5 (Junction 7). Join the M5 heading south briefly and leave at Junction 1. Take a left turn along the A41 towards Birmingham and you’ll find the ground is about half a mile up the road on your right hand side. Just be warned that traffic around Birmingham can be pretty sticky at times so it may be worthwile allowing some extra time for your journey. (more…)
Barnsley: Famous for coal and bottle making.So, here we are with my next instalment of Newcastle United away fan’s guides. This features our game at Oakwell, Barnsley on Saturday 12th December and is scheduled for a 3pm kick off, which has been unusual for us away from home!
At around 115 miles from Newcastle, Barnsley is not a bad jolly away for the Toon. The journey is a pretty staight-forward one, coming straight down the A1 (like it is for all our away games), meeting up with M1 at Leeds and following that south down to J37 (A628); exit there and follow the signs into Barnsley. Pretty much as soon as you leave the motorway you will pick up signs for the ground but even if you miss these you will end up at the ground anyway, so long as you stay on this road. There is another way in off the A1(M) via Pontefract and picking up the A628. Frankly, sticking to the first option is quicker and cuts out the risk of getting stuck in traffic.
The train station is no more than 10 minutes walking from the ground so anyone who comes via a train will be fine.
Right, now your around the ground you’ll need to park. On your way to the ground, the chances are you will have seen at least a sign, if not the building itself, which is the Barnsley Metrodome, a big leisure centre type thing which you can try parking at, or on any nearby streets, just watch out for tow away zones! (more…)
