Prior to Our League One local derby with Bristol Rovers we take a look at Memorial Stadium, the home of The Gas.
Prior to Our League One local derby with Bristol Rovers we take a look at Memorial Stadium, the home of The Gas.
Atmosphere – 7/10
Bristol Rovers were in pretty good voice when we were at The Memorial Stadium. The 17,000 renditions of goodnight Irene get a bit tedious as do the chavvy kids to the left of the stand in the home area.
View – 4/10
The stand is a temporary stand that is shipped off to Wimbledon in the Summer. You can make a bit of noise there but we doubt it carries much as the roof is plastic. There are several supporting pillars to hold up the canopy.
Stewarding – 6/10
The stewarding is OK at the Memorial Stadium however the police are quite strict as you could imagine during a local derby. Horses wait at the corner of the pitch to prevent any trouble after the game.
Food – 6/10
Normal array of Burgers, chips etc is served to the far end of the ground near the portable toilets. No alcohol is served in the ground.
Getting In and out – 5/10
Getting in is fine, getting out is a bit of a nightmare if going by coach. This is not SAS Travel’s fault. The Police like the Bristol Rovers fans to disperse and leave the area before the coaches are escorted from the ground. Both our last visits have resulted in a 20 minute wait after the game to leave the ground.
Overall
The Memorial Stadium has a bit of character with a large terrace the opposite side of the away stand. The fans are passionate and you can get a real good derby atmosphere going. Be sure to keep an eye out though as Bristol Rovers fans have attacked Swindon fans in pubs before at Bristol when the 2 sets of fans were socialising. Be aware there will also be a big police presence at the ground.
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