Susan

My son is a HUGE fan of English soccer. We are visiting London for a week in March and I've been trying to figure out if there is a match that we could go see. Unfortunately, there will be no Premier League games that week. I did find that there will be a Division One match between between the Millwall Lions and another team at their home stadium, The Den, located at Zampa Road in London.<BR><BR>We will be staying in Chelsea (near Sloane Square tube). Is it possible to get to this stadium by public transportation? If so, how would we go about it and how long would it take?<BR><BR>Thanks for any help in making my son's dream come true!

Alec

Sure you can get to New Den (as it's called) quite easily. From Sloan Square take Circle/District Line to Westminster and change for Jubilee Line to London Bridge. From there take an overground train to South Bermondsey (next stop) and just follow the crowd (abount 5-7 minutes). It's a big ground and hardly sell out, so you should easily get in at home end.<BR>HOWEVER, Millwall supporters have the reputation of being some of the most violent in the country, and there have been numerous clashes with other fans around the ground. It's heavily policed and you are unlikely to get involved, but you'll probably find the atmosphere particularly intimidating. It's a sort of ground that makes me feel uneasy and nervous (and I've been there).<BR>Other grounds have more family atmosphere. Try Queens Park Rangers (nearest tube: White City on Central Line), Brentford, Crystal Palace and Wimbledon (both play at Selhurst Park - nearest station Selhurst or Norwood Junction from Victoria). You shouldn't have any trouble getting in on match day.

PatrickW

Well you certainly won't have trouble getting into a Wimbledon match - their fans are currently 'on strike' in protest at plans to move the club out of London altogether. What that does to the atmosphere heaven knows.

coffee

yeah i was gunna say Millwall has a really bad rep in england, strangely they seem to pride themselves on it.

Jimbo

Would definitely recommend Crystal Palace if they're playing at Selhurst Park - they're playing well in the first Division at the moment, and at least they'll have a good crowd (and as most of us football fans know, the crowd's as important as the game, particularly for your first match!)<BR><BR>Avoid Wimbledon at ALL costs, they're getting crowds of less than 1000 at all home games, so you'll get zero atmosphere. They share the ground with Crystal Palace so there's usually a game every week, just be sure it's a Palace one, not Wimbledon.<BR><BR>Not sure about other grounds, but at my local (Ipswich) the rougher elements tend to go behind the goals, so, if you can afford it and would rather see the pushing and shoving than be in the middle of it, I suggest you opt for a seat along the side of the pitch. You'll get a better view and feel more comfortable.<BR><BR>Finally, just a quickie, we NEVER refer to clubs using their nickname and their full name i.e. Millwall Lions. It's either Millwall, or Lions, but not both! Crystal Palace are just Palace, Wimledon are the Dons, Queens Park Rangers are simply QPR (or Rangers, but not to be confused with Glasgow Rangers!).<BR><BR>Which week in March will you be in London? Let us know and I'll be happy to help more if I can.

xxx

You just have to &quot;know&quot; how to refer to clubs, Jimbo. Surely Queens Park Rangers (and Tottenham Hotspurs) combine place and name, while others (like Millwall) don't. I don't think its intuitive at all.

Jimbo

Agreed, I never said anything about it being intuitive!! Just we don't ever call teams the same way you guys do, like New York Giants, LA Lakers, you know the stuff, we'd never say Arsenal Gunners or Sheffield Wednesday Owls, it'd be Arsenal, or The Gunners, or Wednesday, or The Owls. Just a semantic point, that's all, not a criticism!<BR><BR>And never say Tottenham Hotspurs - you'd be laughed out of White Hart Lane!! It's either Tottenham, or Spurs. No-one said it would be easy, and no-one said the rules made any sense, but I'm trying to help you guys out!

xxx

Thanks, Jimbo, point taken!

Keith

Susan, that weekend there's no Premiership games because of England matches on the Friday (away) and the following Wednesday (against Turkey in Sunderland.) Personally, I would avoid Millwall for the reasons outlined above, and head instead for somewhere like Crystal Palace, Leyton Orient or QPR.<BR><BR>Jimbo, since you're on the semantics, it's not Glasgow Rangers or Glasgow Celtic for that matter, just Rangers or Celtic. Those are the names registered with the SFA and UEFA, and are also the names used by the clubs on their respective stock market listings.

Jimbo

Indeed, I bow to finer knowledge of the Scottish game. I'll stick to my Tractor Boys...!

egg

&gt;I'll stick to my Tractor Boys...!<BR><BR>and like me you'll be watering your beer. It's a long time since the glory days. Remember when they won the FA Cup sigh!<BR>

Susan

Thanks for all the helpful replies. We will be arrving London on Saturday, March 15th and departing early in the morning on the following Saturday, March 22nd. I've been searching the internet to figure out if there are any soccer games during that time, but have been having difficulty finding much. Any help would be greatly appreciated.<BR><BR>By the way, thanks for the lesson on how to refer to the teams.

John

Susan - Most football matches are on a Saturday afternoon, which means your only chance will be to go to one on the day you arrive. <BR><BR>Let us know if you're still interested and we'll find you a fixture list.

Ann

One thing I've noticed as an American at English league matches is that for the most part, people stay in their seats while the match is going on. They don't get up several times a game like I've seen at NFL and NBA games. Just a half-time.<BR><BR>Your son will really enjoy the experience. Too bad he won't get to see Liverpool play.<BR><BR>I've only today comes to grips with their performance against Basle. My only hope is that Basle humiliates ManU, which given their current form isn't out of the realm of possibilities.

jason

Susan,<BR>Check the link below and you'll see that Liverpool is playing at <BR>Tottenham on March 15th. That Looks like your only chance to catch a Premiership game in London during your visit. Looks like a pretty good matchup, both teams are currently ranked in the top 10 of the table, though Liverpool is playing crappily right now.<BR>http://www.uefa.com/FootballCentral/...ate=15/03/2003

Nick

Club people have forgotten about in first division is Watford - easy trip out of London and they have a very strong rep for family club as encouraged by Elton John their former owner. Brentford is another club not mentioned- in second division (high up I think)and easy train ride to west of London. Only match I went to was Chelsea v Arsenal 4 years ago. Incredibly awful game (as every critic said)with 3 feeble shots on target. I was in a VIP row and right behind us was a rabid Chelsea supporter going &quot;f.. the referee, kill the ref, kill the c..ts at least every 5 minutes&quot; sort of funny it was so over the top, but one would not dare turn around to say anything unless you wanted to be smashed in the face. Given their rep, I cannot imagine Millwall would be any better.

david west

Right; firstly the only team in london are called Tottenham Hotspur. No S. Spurs for short. 'Hotspurs'. I ask you.<BR><BR>You simply won't be able to get a ticket for millwall as they have a watertight membership scheme to keep out the neanderthals and if you aren't a member you won't get a ticket.<BR><BR>Palace have the biggest stadium and will attract the biggest crowd.<BR><BR>Its a royal pain in the neck getting to their ground.<BR><BR>Go to Clapham Junction, get a train to Thornton Heath (about 15 mins)NOT Selhurst (this is a mistake that lots of people make). After that follow the crowds. Its a 20 minute walk through suburban streets. <BR><BR>Wimbledon are a team that is dying on its feet. The fans have all decamped to a new team AFC Wimbledon who at present play in the combined Counties league (they play at Kingstonians ground, which is in Norbiton).&quot; <BR><BR>Think a professional baseball team decamping to the little leagues. Its that bad.

Arbitro

I too am a HUGE soccer fan and would like to attend the Rangers/Motherwell game on 3/15/03 and Man U/Fulham game on 3/22/03. Since football giants - Man U and Rangers - are playing much lower standing teams, will it be possible to get tickets on game day?