So much so that it makes the walk from Ipswich Station to Portman Road, look almost like a marathon! I usually get the tube to London Bridge for a drink and then to Charlton by train, but my friend suggested a different pre-match routine this time. Q:What match commentary does the clubprovide for visually impaired supporters? Thanks to Lee Tomlin for dragging us back into the game. The passage is actually quite wide, and not dangerous as hundreds of fans were walking in the same direction as me. Out of the ground and back to the Thames Barrier to pick up our car before embarking on the long journey back to Bridlington. We have and will continue to cater to fans from every corner of the globe and are content knowing that we have provided them with an experience that will become a fantastic memory. Like many 'old' grounds, the ground is within a residential area although there were a few shops and a chippy which seemed very popular. Looking for Charlton Athletic Tickets ? Wolves are the only other club I can think of in the Championship that have a Museum open at present. The Valley - Charlton Athletic - London - The Stadium Guide Club: Charlton Athletic | Opening: 1919 | Capacity: 27,111 | Description: Charlton had already played at various ground when they moved to The Valley in 1919. Fill in your personal details (no need to register). The well-stocked but slightly cramped club shop is also in this area. Toilets were in what looked like a converted mobile home and couldn't get near the small refreshment kiosk. It is accessible to coaches, although no parking is available for them at the pub. It is accessed via a great set of old turnstiles and a narrow path that winds round to the first of two outside refreshment areas. Championship football can dramatically vary in quality, and having sat through some serious football dross with the friend during previous years, I did not want to jinx the action. Then I found out that the Dartford Crossing had roadworks going on, removing the toll barriers in preparation for online toll charging a friend who lives nearby told me that the motorways had been gridlocked for days. Thank you for your support, Q:Do you have accessible catering facilities i.e. For that they deserve a good stadium, and they have one which, at League One level, is excellent indeed. Alternatively you could take the A205, the South Circular, which leads straight to Woolwich. Whether youre hoping to hold a conference in the clubs vast North Stand, with the executive boxes offering the ideal location for breakout meetings, or youre hoping to host a more intimate gathering in one of the smaller suites, Charlton Athletic have got you covered for events in South East London. 6. I travelled by train from my home in Reading. Lots of bobbing up and down, tiptoes and craning of necks going in. Cardiff took nearly 2,000 fans so there was a good atmosphere. The capacity looks quite large although there were lots of empty seats in the home section. QPR looked the better team for the first 30 minutes but after that it was all Charlton and two well taken goals in the second half made it a fully deserved home win. When I tried to explain my situation to the platform staff, the reaction was a mixture of frustration, embarrassment and distain. Popped into chippie Sea Bear by away end as remembered it from last time and had chips. 115 seat jedge24 The Valley Charlton Athletic FC vs Plymouth Argyle Nice Stadium and a great day out shame we lost 2-0 though got behind the team a lot though 3,000 was great support SsE section A1 row 36 seat anonymous The Valley Charlton Athletic FC vs Plymouth Argyle SSE section A1 row 36 seat Recent Photos Featured Photos Cities Contact Us We noticed that some stewards were just about to get a little over zealous in the policing of said area, so we jocularly asked if there were indeed box junction fines in operation at The Valley. A three minute walk to the Swan Inn pub to find a pre match drink (and toilet!) As expected out new manager was announced in the hours leading up to the game and will have been very happy to see us win 1-0. The opposite North Stand is pretty big and the corners are filled in joining the East and West sides of the ground. No problems. Although the food and beverage kiosks were well manned with staff, queues were still quite long. Left Elland Road at 8am and with a half hour services stopped in-between, we reached Charlton at roughly 12:45. I think this was the only football match I've ever been to where the programme cost the same as a match ticket! Rows with photos. It was only a shortfive minute walk from Charlton Station to the Valley. Charlton fans therefore founded a new political party, and after it had gained several successes in the 1990 elections, the local council finally approved the plans. A bit tough on Charlton I suppose, especially as their Arsenal loanee Sanogo scored a hat-trick. At the bottom of the slip road turn right at the traffic lights towards Woolwich/Charlton. I caught the 6.15am Megabus from Cardiff to London Victoria. And not forgetting the incredible 1998 Division One Play-Off Final at Wembley, too! Please visit the official website of Charlton Athletic for full information on changes due to the Coronavirus. Certainly I got the impression the whole operation inside & outside the stadium is set up for clubs bringing sub 1000 support & no alternative plans by the Police or club are put in place for the bigger teams. When I trundled in through my front door with matchday programme and gloves in hand, my eye fell on an envelope on the mantelpiece ; this envelope contained six tickets with the name Brighton and Hove Albion emblazoned across them Bring it on !!!!!!! As for our hosts, the result effectively meant wed swapped places as they now sat in the bottom three. Follow this to the end and you are now at The Valley. Same old story for us, dominated the game but couldnt take our chances. Under 21s - 16.00. After the match, the coaches were parked right outside the turnstiles. We managed to get a seat with the one and only support restricting our view. Visitlondon.com Official London city guide. We were in row J, so had a good view and were in front of the single pillar in the centre of the stand. We arrived in London in plenty of time and parked up near the Thames Barrier which isn't to far from ground, just followed the fans to the ground. All Rights Reserved. They offer all types of accommodation to suit all tastes and pockets from; Budget Hotels, Traditional Bed & Breakfast establishments to Five Star Hotels and Serviced Apartments. There were large gaps around the home end. 2. Q:Are away ambulant disabled supports able to sit anywhere in the away area at your stadium? There is a large area just outside the South Stand that is marked out with hatched yellow paint; it transpires that its the zone where you physically could stand with a drink and watch the action, hence it was marked out as what we christened the box junction and was being firmly policed as a no drinking zone. FA Cup 5th Round, 12th February 1938. Stewards were friendly and, one thing I did notice was that there was a large Police presence for a game where there wasn't a rivalry of any sort and there were only about 5,000 people in attendance. and turn right and cross over to the other side. We hurried down toward the vague rendezvous point where the Police said the coaches were being parked up. The home fans and stewards were very friendly. We much enjoyed our day. Another tip is buy your match programme when you see them before you go through the turnstiles as strangly they don't sell them inside the ground. Bus 53 is particularly useful as it can be taken from Parliament Square and other stops on the south bank, but your journey time will be much longer than by train. As away fans you do seem very distant from the other sides of the ground. A combination of tightening their belts and safety red flags at the Valley meant they spent the best part of a decade playing their games at Crystal Palaces and West Hams stadiums. What you thought on entering the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the ground? Theres also a supporting pillar roughly a third of the way up the stand in the away end which could be a problem since its level with the centre of the pitch. It was a:nice enough place for a drink before the game. Easy but as per previous visit, too many police, especially on horses. The Valley is the 27,111 capacity home ground of Championship side Charlton Athletic Football Club. Having first visited in 1978 the ground has developed thru the years, and given the fact it was almost turned into a housing development in the 80's we are lucky to still have it. This would result in the Valley becoming totally enclosed and boosting capacity to 37,000. The only trouble I saw was inside the ground on departing when a heated argument between two Leeds fans over some bizarre claim by one that something was Sam Byrams fault, resulted in a bit of pushing & shoving between them. Last tickets. Away fans who wish to watch their team take on Charlton are housed within the Jimmy Seed Stand which occupies the space behind the southernmost goal in the stadium. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); 2023 Football Ground Guide. Greenwich Station platforms swamp the small trains that travel from London Bridge towards Charlton. A formal steering group consisting of regional and local policy The home crowd had been silenced from very early on in the match, and I couldnt see Charlton getting back into the match unless there was something spectacular on their bench waiting to come on that we didnt know about. On this occasion it was more a case of the stadium being too good for the team that played there! A real traditional club, squeezed into the community. The friend had been a regular player for the university football team, and would look at the game in a much more analytical view than what I could ever offer. Directions to Nils Ericsons Plan 4 (Stockholm) with public transportation. If anything I'd say it's a very bland club that needs a bit of passion pumped into it. Stadium address: Floyd Road, Charlton, SE7 8BL. Carey for Argyle tried his luck from distance but his shot went wide whilst Ajose for Charlton brought a good save out of the Argyle keeper. London away days are a great day out and Charlton was a ground I've always wanted to visit. Hoilett missed a penalty for Cardiff as well. I was very pessimistic. The Valley (London) Charlton Athletic F.C. Get off at stop Charlton Park Road. It looks quite impressive although it was fairly sparsely filled by home fans. Getting away from the stadium seemed to take forever and obviously getting up and out of London took a while. Some Argyle fans stopped at a beer festival in Deptford. Expect to be searched on entering the ground and there are two levels to the away stand so ask which path to follow or you may end up in the wrong section/tier. Charlton had lots of players out injured, Wednesday won 3-1 but we made hard work of it. I was lucky a bus arrived almost immediately, as the football traffic was quickly building up behind us. 5. With performances stagnant on the pitch resulting another relegation in 1972, this time to the third division, local support began to dwindle and a vicious cycle began where the club lacked the required money to improve the team and facilities. Input your search keywords and press Enter. The atmosphere within the Valley wasnt the best however 3,000 away fans created an electric atmosphere. The Valley was a new ground for me and is one of the biggest stadiums in the league. Great seat close to touchline. Q:Do you have a drop off point or shuttle bus service for supporters with accessibility needs or requirements? The manager had questioned the number of supporters, along with their attitude in the mid-week game; this may have fired up the supporters for Saturday who really got behind the team, receiving warm congratulations from the players and manager afterwards. An entertaining game against the hosts who to be fair were missing several players through injury and sickness. Bus numbers 53, 54, 161, 177, 180, 422, 472 and 486 all call to near the ground, dropping off either on the A206 or in Charlton Village, both of which are a short walk away from the ground itself. Various buses connect the stadium with other parts of London. I didn't have any dealings with the stewards but they seemed fairly relaxed. I have always liked the Valley; I recall an author by the name of Simon Inglis saying in one of his books that grounds bedecked in red always feel warmer than blue, and although I wouldnt profess to understand the colour psychology behind such a sentiment, on evenings such as this, I thought of his words upon entering the ground. If you follow this road slightly further west there is the Greenwich and Angerstein Hotel with a Holiday Inn Express located back towards the O2 Arena. First time to Charlton and another personal first, first time I could just walk to a ground from an airport as its only three miles from London City via the Woolwich Tunnel!
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