Home fans seemed okay. We ensured a top up of fuel for the long journey home and decided to visit Plymouth Hoe a few miles away after following signs for the town centre and then the Hoe. I drove down from Merseyside. I have been to 68 professional grounds in England and Wales. n Monday morning, the Plymouth dressing room will not be home to players or coaching staff gearing up for a promotion push but rather National Health Service nurses welcoming the first wave of antenatal patients. Plymouth vs Exeter rivalry: Clashes between Plymouth Argyle and Exeter are anything but peaceful events. We are optimistic we will be using it for hospitality and as a football stand by Christmas, looking at the Christmas games.. The severe weather event, one of the biggest ever to hit the county, brought severe disruption with high winds and heavy snow. I can't necessarily say I was looking forward to this game as Plymouth is it least six hours journey time away from Cambridge on a coach. The 'Green Army' are meant to be a quality vocal support too, so I was looking forward to the atmosphere. Very easy as I travelled with the Newport County Supporters Club, as I live locally. Alternatively (except for night games) then Andrew Chapman suggests a more picturesque route: Finally I would recommend turning right into Central Park Avenue, at the roundabout just downhill from the station on the A386. From providing an outstanding venue for match-day hospitality and non match-day events to acting as a temporary Mass Vaccination Centre, the Grandstand has already proven to be a vital and versatile asset for both the club and community since opening on New Year's Day 2020 - with over 50 events held in the venue, despite the challenges of COVID-19. However, the stand does look somewhat unique and is certainly very different from the other sides of the stadium, giving Home Park some character. As well as the football happening, which is the main part, we have also got Christmas events booked in and a New Years Eve party as well. There is a large pub beside the crossroads of Outland Road and New North Road, which sells a range of drinks and meals. The train back home was full of Plymouth fans wondering whether if this team scored and that team lost, could Argyle still be playing football in the Football League when the 2013-2014 season begins. The journey along the south coast to Plymouth is not the best: mainly A roads all the way, although, once you're west of the M5, the A38 is a very good road, and makes up for the time lost negotiating the 30-odd roundabouts prior to that! This didn't distract from the impressively very good view from high up in the away end though. Best day so far as a Saints fan, and not a bad first away day for my brother, Plymouth is definitely worth a visit, nice ground and the fans I would imagine would be more friendly just circumstances on this day. Work is progressing quickly at the Mayflower stand at Home Park and the football club is so confident of hitting targets for the . We parked in the city centre which was tricky and had a wander before the onemile walk from the high street to the Home Park stadium, an unpleasant uphill walk. This friendly Club which welcomes visiting fans for Saturday matches from 11am and after the game as well, shows Sky and BT Sports. The M5 was free running with no roadworks. I thought the concourse and toilets we more than adequate, we had a reasonable turn out of 990 in an area which as a capacity circa 1300. In 2018, the old Mayflower stand at Plymouth Argyle Football Club (PAFC) was demolished and works continue to create the new and improved stadium. So we are pleased with how we have been able to work with them, and I think we will be pleased with the outputs as well., NOVEMBERWednesday 27:Test Event 1 Behind closed doors, grandstand at 0 per cent capacity, DECEMBERWednesday 4:Test Event 2 Behind closed doors, grandstand at 0 per cent capacitySunday 8:Test Event 3 Argyle Ladies v Watford, grandstand at 38 per cent capacitySaturday 14:Test Event 4 Argyle v Morecambe, grandstand at 50 per cent capacitySunday 29:Test Event 5 Argyle v Stevenage, grandstand at 75 per cent capacity, JANUARYWednesday 1:Test Event 6 Argyle v Swindon Town, grandstand at 100 per cent capacity, The redeveloped Mayflower Grandstand will have 5,403 seats on two levels. I travelled on the official club supporters coach, which left Carlisle at 10.30am. In a long, hot, post-exam summer friends are seduced by a powerful app, The grime artist turned chef takes inspiration from the social media queen's Swedish and Somali roots, Eight Brits fight for survival in this adrenalin-fuelled competition, hosted by Jordan North, bought land for a new training ground near Home Park, Funding for that came after a United States-based consortium, paid 4m for a 20% share in the club last August, - money which majority shareholder Simon Hallett said. Having arrived ridiculously early, some stewards recommended that I go to the "Fan's Fest", organized in The Green Taverners' Suite. I liked Home Park. Travelling from Reading by car I wanted to take the A308/A30 for a change to make the journey a bit more interesting. The extensive new conferencing and hospitality facilities within the grandstand are seen by the club as key to increasing revenue which can then be spent on the playing squad. As my mates ticket had been sent to the home ticket office, we had to do a full lap of the ground to reach it. The other three sides of the ground are pretty uniform looking all being constructed during the 2001/02 season. There is potential and we aim to be as profitable for the club as possible. Analysis and opinion from our chief football writer. Near to the pub is normally a van selling pasties, which looked to be doing a roaring trade on my last visit. There was a heavy police and steward presence but quite friendly. Contractor GL events Ltd, which has also been involved in developments at Watford and Exeter City, only began work on the stadium in mid 2018. Despite being confident pre-match and fearing the worst at half time, we came out of it with a very creditable loss and have proven to ourselves that we can in fact give the league leaders a good scare on their own turf. The atmosphere was intense and the home fans gave fantastic support to their team, and a good amount of abuse to our side, specifically to our keeper who strived the wind them up, with taking his time over goal kicks. Plymouth City Council will retain ownership of the site, which will house Plymouth Albion and Argyle's women's team and youth sides. Whether you are just going to Home Park because at this present time, it is the furthest South West output of league football in the UK, or your team are actually due to play Argyle, it is an enjoyable place to go. Play I arrived at Plymouth Station and took a right along Saltash Road under the railway bridge and to this roundabout in a suburb intriguingly called Pennycomequick. Then I headed back and met with some Reading fans in the Britannia just across from the ground. The Pilgrims have already started their internal fit-out ahead of next month's reopening, Get Chris Errington's exclusive behind-the-scenes take on life at Argyle in his weekly Inside Home Park newsletter. The latest rumours and stories from around the world of football. It was sunny and we were happy. We had a comfortable 3-1 win with a lucky deflected first goal but two great long distant shot goals sealing the win. The downside is thelong walk from picking up your tickets at a cabin to getting to the away turnstiles. It is a nice contrast between the cold corporate face of modern day football, and the passionate fans of days gone by. The traffic was solid, but moving heading out of town. As I say, there has been sometimes healthy tension. Similarly, contact Steve if you wish to attend the Club before a midweek match. Living in the New Forest, we headed down the A35, A30, and then the M5 and A38. When this road splits into two, keep on the left hand side (again signposted Plymouth) and after about a mile you will see the ground on your left. In line with our Vision and Values, we will remain transparent throughout the process, and keep supporters informed as we make progress. It hasnt been plain sailing though because their stadium was battered by German bombers during World War 2. They cost 2 and apparently they do this for all clubs visiting Home Park. 5. Plymouth Argyle FC fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website). The old Mayflower Stand was being rebuilt and part of an old turnstile entrance was the only echo of the old-style ground. Summary of overall thoughts of the day out: Great day out, although I felt that Portsmouth didn't deserve to win really, but that is football. An excellent day out which was made even more special by the well-organised trip by Newport County Supporters Club. Plenty of youthful shouts of 'Green Army' from the home sections as it was a 'kids for a quid' game. We are looking at taking possession in the last quarter of 2019, said Jon Back, head of stadium redevelopment. Johan Cruijff ArenA. We took up conversation with a few locals who were happy to discuss football. 1. Official Programme: 3 Upon entering the away end, despite a large number of fellow away supporters there was plenty of seats which were comfortable and not cramped. The Marsh Mills stadium became Plymouths ground for the next decade. This was also the longest trip in the football league in the 2015/2016 season (A 780 mile round trip). The away end was comfortable and spacious, with a good view of the whole game. How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking? It was good for the travelling fans to gett a round of applause from the players before leaving. I'd heard good things about Argyle, and have never met a nasty Argyle fan. The fans we met were friendly and said hello but there were mostly Bristol Rovers fans in there at that time. Alternatively, there is some street parking on roads off Segrave Road (opposite Home Park), or on side roads off the main Outland Road (A386), heading away from the city centre towards the A38. The sunny weather at the start of the game justified an ice cream but by half-time with the sun behind the stands, the pasty was more welcome. How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking? Once completed the capacity of Home Park will rise to 18,600, with Grandstand having a capacity of 5,403. We then returned to the football ground and had a pre packed picnic in car whilst reading the match programme. We didn't really speak to any home fans. Away fans are housed on one side of the Barn Park End, which is all seated and covered. We had not been to this ground before, plus both teams were in good form having not lost in the last four games, so it would be an interesting contest. The League Two side have spent 6.5m knocking down the old wooden structure and replacing it with a modern new 5,403 seater stand complete with private boxes and conference facilities. boat seller and dental equipment maker are among firms going belly up, Plymouth's new Platinum Parkway explained and reviewed on its first day of opening. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the ground? It will serve a purpose to help those day-to-day services keep running, allowing the hospital to focus on emergencies.. The Grandstand has a lot of character to itand dates back to 1935. The result meant we both dropped a couple of places! We lost 2-0 and sadly although 2,200 fans turned up the team didnt. There is scope for Argyle to hand their entire stadium to the NHS, with the majority of the clubs 70 full-time staff working remotely while a skeleton team tend to the stadium. Then take the second left into Holdsworth Street, which will lead you up a steep hill into Central Park, where youll see the ground as soon as you reach the top of the hill. HydePark Social Club can be found at: 5 St Gabriels Avenue, Peverell, Plymouth, PL3 4JQ (Location map). I don't live far from Plymouth and I wanted to see my team play away from home for the first time ever! Something had stopped me from making the journey. Generally the food seemed better than average, but I did not understand why beers were all poured from cans on ordering, no wonder the queues were forming. We understand that the limited match tickets available in the upper tier of the Mayflower Grandstand may cause frustration. It means the construction element is there internally. Aside from recent Mayflower Grandstand redevelopment, very little has changed at the stadium since the initial horseshoe rebuild at the turn of the century, barring essential maintenance. 3. Only driving out of the Lakes to Carlisle comes anywhere close to this trip to a game. The Cornish pasty was lovely! The food area was interesting as Plymouth had A4 sheets of paper thanking us for making the long journey and showing how many miles from Roots Hall our fans had travelled. There is a steel structure to the outside of one stand which at first glance appears to be scaffolding but it may be modern architecture. Attendance: 9,546 (92 away fans) All a bit disappointing. The rest of the ground was obviously full and looked decent. So without doubt once the fixtures came out, this was "the one". Plymouth Argyles new 6.5millon grandstand and its huge money-spinning banqueting hall will be ready by Christmas 2019, it has been revealed. A really good away trip was a long journey down to Plymouth but good fun had and I found quality vegan food. Also, some are now non-league e.g. We equalised through a wonder 25 yarder from Johnson Clarke-Harris, they then went ahead via an own goal and we equalised through a great goal in injury time! The first of those will be when the grandstand is open at 38 per cent of its 5,403-seat capacity for an Argyle Ladies game against Watford on Sunday, December 8. Undersoil Heating: No. This enabled Plymouth Argyle to buy back the arena from the council in 2016. The parts of the stadium you can see on the TV is a very nice green bowl, but is a lot smaller than it seems. The atmosphere is generally good inside the ground and the stewarding laidback and unobtrusive. Great game, awful linesman. 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