VENUE #107 CHELTENHAM TOWN Whaddon Road, LCI Rail Stadium

 WHADDON ROAD 

LCI RAIL STADIUM (Sponsorship name)

               Home Of:  Cheltenham Town
   Ground Opened:  1932
Previous Grounds:  Agg-Gardner's

                                  Recreation Ground &
                                  Carter's Field

         Other Uses:  None

VENUE #107

NEAREST RAILWAY STATION

     Cheltenham Spa Railway Station is over two miles from the Whaddon Road ground, so best to jump in a taxi. 

     If you don't mind a 40 minute walk then here are the directions. Turn right out of station car park and follow Queens Road for around half a mile. At end of Queens Road and turn left into Lansdown Road. At the next (Montpellier) roundabout, turn left into Montpellier Walk (which later becomes the Promenade). At the end of the Promenade, turn right into the High Street. Go along High Street for around 100 yards and then turn left into Winchcombe Street (by a branch of the Cheltenham & Gloucester Building Society). Continue straight along Winchcombe Street and into Prestbury Road. Straight across the next roundabout and then first right into Whaddon Road.

WHADDON ROAD STADIUM
     At one end of the ground is the newest addition to the stadium. The Hazlewoods Stand which was built by Barr Construction, was opened in December 2005 and has a capacity of 1,100 fans. It is particularly steep in its design, has a perspex windshield to one side and perspex panels incorporated into its roof, to allow more light to reach the pitch. The stand is unusual in the respect that it has a couple of more rows of seats on one side of it. There is also a small electric scoreboard on its roof. On one side of the ground is another relatively new stand. The Colin Farmer Stand (as it is know under corporate sponsorship) was opened in November 2001 and was built by Barr Construction. This stand sits proudly at one side of the pitch and houses 2,034 supporters. It is a covered, all seated, single tiered stand, part of which is given to away supporters. The ground is now enclosed in one corner where the two new stands meet, although it is not used for spectators. On the other side of the pitch is the Autovillage (Jelf) Main Stand, which was opened in 1963. It has seating to the rear and terracing at the front. Straddling the half way line, it does not extend the full length of the pitch, having open spaces to either side. At one end is the small covered terrace, called the Speedy Skips Stand, which is the home end of the ground.
     Away supporters are housed in the Hazlewoods Stand. The view of the playing area from the Hazlewoods Stand and the facilities inside are good, plus it has good leg room. If demand requires it, then part of the Colin Farmer Stand can also be allocated to away fans.

     In 2016 the Whaddon Road ground was renamed the LCI Stadium, in a corporate sponsorship deal.

GROUND LAYOUT

 A   AUTOVILLAGE MAIN STAND (JELF)

 B   COLIN FARMER STAND

 C   SPEEDY SKIPS STAND

 D    HAZLEWOODS STAND (AWAY)

Today's Visitors  CARLISLE UNITED  are currently 10th in the league two table on 57 points with a very slim chance of making the play-offs at the end of the season as they did last losing narrowly 6-5 on aggregate to Exeter City in the semi finals.
     Carlisle won this fixture at Brunton Park back in August 3-0, Cheltenham getting off to a bad start conceding an own goal by Harry Pell in the 5th minute.  Reggie Lambe made it 2-0 thirteen minutes later and Tom Miller completed the scoring with the third goal on the hour.
     The Cumbrians have made only 11 visits to Whaddon Road in competitive football and haven't fared too well at all on their long trips to Gloucestershire losing 7, drawing 2 with only 2 victories to their credit.
     Their last win here was on the 17th September 2005 beating the Robins by 3 goals to 2.  John Joseph Melligan, (better known as JJ), opened the scoring for the Robins on 19 minutes with Karl Hawley equalising 3 minutes later.  Hawley completed a brace 7 minutes after the break with Zigor Aranalde making it 3-1 on 79 minutes to the visitors.  A penalty from Grant McCann completed the scoring 3 minutes from normal time.  The match was a league two fixture played in front of a 3,282 crowd.   

CHELTENHAM TOWN ... 0   CARLISLE UNITED ... 1

     Jamie Devitt's second-half penalty was enough to earn in-form Carlisle a battling 1-0 win at Cheltenham.

    The result keeps the Cumbrian's play-off hopes alive as they made it eight matches without defeat.                                                                                          Cheltenham looked the more likely winners for long spells at a wet Whaddon Road, but Carlisle's backline stood firm.   

   

     And in the 73rd minute, substitute Hallam Hope was brought down in the box and Devitt sent Scott Flinders the wrong way to seal the three points. It was the midfielder's 10th goal of the campaign.                                                                                                Jack Bonham saved early efforts from Mo Eisa and Jerell Sellars and Eisa saw another effort turned around the post by the Carlisle goalkeeper.   

                                                                                                                        

    Clint Hill handled the threat of Eisa well thereafter and the closest Cheltenham were to taking the lead was a looping header from Will Boyle which cleared the bar.                                                                                                After going ahead, Richie Bennett nearly made it 2-0 with a low show which beat Flinders' dive, but bounced back off the right post.                                Flinders also saved well from Hope twice late on as Carlisle finished the game strongly.

                                MATCH DETAILS

VENUE #106 AIRDRIEONIANS Excelsior Stadium

EXCELSIOR STADIUM

              Home Of:  Ardrieonians              Ground Opened:  1998

Previous Ground:  Broomfield Park

       Other Uses:  Pop Concerts

Venue #106

NEAREST TRAIN STATION

     The closest railway station to the ground is Drumgelloch which is just over a mile away, whilst Airdrie station is around 1.5.miles away. Both stations are served by Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh.

     As you come out of the main entrance at Airdrie station, turn left along Broomknoll Street, proceeding under the railway bridge. At the roundabout turn right and go along the A89. At the next roundabout turn left, still proceeding along the A89 and then at the next roundabout turn right onto Graham Street (still the A89). After around half a mile you will reach another roundabout which is the junction with the A73, turn right onto the A73 Carlisle Road and the ground is down this road on the left.

From Drumgelloch station, proceed up to the top of the station car park and exit in the top left corner. A minor road leads to Forrest Street. Turn left and go straight along Forrest Street until you reach another roundabout which is the junction with the A73. Turn left onto the A73 Carlisle Road and the ground is down this road on the left.

EXCELSIOR STADIUM                                                                                                            The Excelsior Stadium is a smart looking all seated ground comprising four separate, single tiered, covered stands. The Jack Dalziel Stand (named after a former Airdrieonians Chairman) at one side of the pitch, is the largest of the four stands. Impressive looking, it has a row of executive boxes running across the back. The other three stands, North, East and South are of an equal height which gives the ground a balanced look. The corners of the ground are open apart from the tall floodlights. The Club plays on an artificial 3G pitch.       Away fans are normally located in the East Stand at one side of the pitch. Dependant on away numbers, you may find only the portion of the West Stand allocated (this stand is shared with home supporters) or just the East Stand, or both. In the event that the Club were to draw one of the Old Firm sides, then the Club would give their maximum allocation of away seats (6,500), comprising all the stadium apart from the West Stand.

GROUND LAYOUT

 A   JACK DALZIEL STAND

 B   EAST STAND

 C   NORTH STAND

 D   SOUTH STAND

Today's Visitors  RAITH ROVERS are currently second in the league one table 6 points adrift of leaders Ayr with a game in hand.  It's been a two horse race in this division right from the start with Ayr slightly pulling clear from their rivals from Fife but it's safe to say that either one of these two teams could get the automatic promotion spot.

     In the last 11 games here at the Excelsior Airdrieonians narrowly have the edge with 4 wins, 4 draws and 3 defeats.  The last game here before the 2-2 draw in December between these two was exactly 5 years ago yesterday, (23rd of March 2013), and the honours went the way of Rovers winning 2-1, Jamie Bain opening the scoring for the Diamonds in the 7th minute with the equaliser coming just before half time through Greg Spence, substitute Grant Anderson hit the winner for Rovers 12 minutes from time.  It was a Scottish Championship game played in front of a crowd of 554.  

AIRDRIEONIANS ... 1   RAITH ROVERS ... 2

     Just last week I was up the road from here at Cliftonhill home of Albion

Rovers a team in the same league as Airdrieonians but what a difference between the grounds.  Cliftonhill is a tumble-down wreck of a ground which hasn't seen a lick of paint in a hundred years let alone anything else but the Excelsior Stadium is a fairly new build and a fine looking ground, pity that there's only the main stand open on match days for I bet it would look even more spectacular with a descent crowd inside it.

     Airdrieonians came into this game looking for a victory but they really ought to take a look at their first half performance to see what the spectators saw which was a group of players that seemed as though they only met for the first time half a hour ago and the goalie was dragged from the crowd as a last thought.  They were a shambles and made Raith look good from the start, after a few missed chances Rovers finally capitalised on Airdrie's lack of confidence with a strike from Lewis Vaughan                                                       in the 8th minute.

     Twelve minutes later and it was 2-0 to Rovers a Willis Furtado cross was met by the head of Jason Thomson who looped the ball over Airdrie keeper William  Muir to send Raith fans into raptures.

     Although the scoreline stayed the same till half time Raith should have really buried the game in the first half, lots of chances went begging with Airdrieonians struggling to make any head way in the Rovers half of the pitch.  For a team with the nickname "The Diamonds" nothing could be further from the truth for they had no shine, no cutting edge and more like a paste stone in a copper ring than a jewel in the crown.

     Don't know what what Barry Smith did to his team at half time must have sent a few rockets up their rectums as we hadn't even settled in our seats when Airdrie reduced the deficit, a cross from Ryan Conroy was headed home from just outside the six yard box by the Diamonds man of the match Scott Stewart and so all of a sudden out of nowhere there was a game on.

     Airdrieonians did well in the second half looked as though a different team had taken to the pitch but the damage was done in the first half, they huffed and puffed but couldn't seem to blow a hole in the Raith defence or back of net.  Frustration got the better of them at the end when Luke Watt paid for his part in a string of bookings in the first half and got sent off for a second yellow card in the final minute of extra time.

     Rovers held on for a victory to keep the pressure on leaders Ayr who won 4-0 at home to Queen's Park.   

                        MATCH DETAILS

      

VENUE #105 ALBION ROVERS Cliftonhill Stadium

 CLIFTONHILL STADIUM 

              Home Of:  Albion Rovers                Ground Opened:  1919

Previous Ground:  Meadow Park

       Other Uses:  Stock Car Racing
                                Greyhound Racing
                                Speedway

Venue #105

NEAREST RAILWAY STATION

     The nearest railway station is Coatdyke, which is about a ten minute walk away from the Cliftonhill Stadium. As you come out of the station bear left and proceed up Quarry Street. Continue over the crossroads (with a shop on one corner) and after about a quarter of a mile a church on your right. At the end of Quarry Street turn left onto Muiryhall Street and then turn right onto Main Street. Pass the Fire Station on the left and then Owens Bar. Continue along the Main Street and you will reach the stadium on your right.

CLIFTONHILL STADIUM

     From the outside Cliftonhill Stadium looks interesting as from the roadside the bright colours and raised elevation of the Main Stand, certainly catch the eye. However on the inside you quickly see why the ground is is not one of the better in the League having only two sides open to spectators for matches. On one side is the small Main Stand, which is a strange looking affair, as at some point it has had an extension to its roof bolted onto the front. It has wooden seating to the rear and terracing to the front, with several supporting pillars which may impede your view. However, the terraced paddock is no longer in use. Opposite is the reasonably sized covered Albion Street Terrace. This terrace runs about half the length of the pitch. Again, this simple stand has several supporting pillars. It is a pity that this terrace has been closed for a number of years now due to safety concerns. In 2015 a small open terrace was constructed at the Airdrie End of the ground, whilst the opposite West End is unused. There is a cinder track that runs around the playing surface and at one time the ground was also used for speedway meetings as well as greyhound and stock car racing. The stadium is also overlooked by a number of residential properties located above the Albion Street side.

     Away fans share part of the Main stand, there is no segregation as it would be virtually impossible to impose separation in such a small area plus there seems to be no need, there was plenty of banter yesterday between rival supporters but all taken in good nature.  

GROUND LAYOUT

 A   MAIN STAND

 B   ALBION STREET TERRACE

 C   WEST END ( UNUSED)

 D   AIRDRIE END

Today's Visitors  ARBROATH  are currently third in the Ladbrokes league one table.  In fact, both these clubs did each other a favour last weekend, Rovers visited Stair Park and stunted Stranraer's bid for a play-off place by beating the Blues 3-2 while Arbroath took on Rover's fellow relegation candidates Forfar Athletic at Gayfield beating the Loons 2-0 leaving Rovers just one point adrift of the Angus outfit in the relegation play-off position.
     It's a well known fact that Arbroath hold the record for the biggest win in football's history beating Bon Accord of Aberdeenshire 36-0 in the first round of the Scottish cup on the 12th of September 1885.  Amazing as that sounds the Red lichties had 5 goals ruled out for offside, just imagine that Bon Accord side taking on the present day Manchester City team, the term cricket score would most definitely be more realistic.

     Arbroath have visited Cliftonhill Stadium 10 times in the last 10 years winning 3 times, losing 5 times with honours shared twice.  The last time the Lichties won here was on the 9th of February 2013 winning by one goal to nil, the scorer was Colin Hamilton in the 35th minute.  On Saturday 15th 2007 Albion Rovers beat Arbroath by 5 goals to 2 with goals from, (Albion Rovers), Patrick Walker (10, 90), Kenny Wright (25 pen), Graham Watson (53) and Rod Hunter (84) and for Arbroath, Barry Sellars (36) and a David Scott (38)  own goal. let's hope today's game is as entertaining with lots of goals.

ALBION ROVERS ... 1   ARBROATH ... 2

     It was a freezing cold wind that ruled this game from the start, Arbroath were kicking with it in the first half but couldn't seem to work it to their advantage although they dominated for the first 15 minutes.

    The Wee Rovers took the lead in the 17th minute against the wind and the run of play, a Ross Perry corner was converted virtually on the goal line by the head of Alan Trouten.

    The goal inspired confidence into Rovers who seemed more able to cope with the conditions and a strong Arbroath side, they kept the ball better and pressed the Lichties back in their own half for 15 minutes but then Arbroath regained their momentum and became one with the beastly wind from the east using it to get behind the Rovers defence and in the 37th minute a shot from the left by Danny Denholm was parried out by Albion keeper Keiran Wright straight into the path of Omar Kader who slotted the ball home from 10 yards for the equaliser. 

     Rovers had the wind advantage in the second period but suffered as Arbroath did early in the first half with a hit and hope attitude that never really troubled the Lichties to be fair except for a 30 yard shot that cannoned off the Arbroath bar early on.

     The turn around was completed in the 54th minute when Harlain Mbayo was adjudged to have brought down Ryan Wallace in the penalty area and the Arbroath centre forward stepped up himself to convert the spot kick.  

     The team from Angus held on comfortably till the end and secured another three points leaving them in third place in the table 3 points clear of Alloa with Rovers still in that relegation play off place with bottom placed Queens park closing in.

                             MATCH DETAILS