Southport Travel – Saturday

Southport v Hereford United

Skrill Premier

Saturday 16^th November 2013 KO 3.00pm

Merseyrail Community Stadium

Haig Avenue

Southport

PR8 6JZ

Phone 01704 533422

The "Sandgrounders" trace their history back to 1881 as Southport Central.  They joined The Football League in 1921 and remained as members until 1978 when they fell at the re-election vote to be replaced by Wigan Athletic.  They were the last Club to leave under the AGM Cup rules as automatic promotion and relegation was introduced shortly afterwards.

Haig Avenue has a capacity of a little over 6000 with the Main Stand offering seated accommodation for 1800.  Up to 300 of these seats are normally made available to visiting supporters as an alternative to the uncovered Blowick Terrace.  Admission to the terrace is believed to be £12.50 for adults, £9 for concessions and £5 for U18's.  A seat in the Stand will cost you £14, £10 and £5.  It can be a bit bleak on the terrace if it rains!

HUISA – Depart from Radford’s at 9.00am.  Fare £21 (non-members £23). Seats can be booked through The Club office (08442 761939).

BY CAR – To Worcester then join the M5 north at J7.  Continue to join the M6 travelling north.  Leave the M6 at Junction 26 and take the M58 towards Southport.  Leave the M58 at Junction 3 and take the A570 towards Ormskirk.  Follow the A570 around Ormskirk Town Centre towards Southport.  On entering Southport you will come to a large roundabout with Tesco’s & McDonalds outlets. Take the 3rd exit onto Scarisbrick New Road (A570).  You should now be able to catch sight of the ground over on your right.  Pass the Richmond pub on your left and then turn right into Haig Avenue. The ground is down on the right. There is no car park at the ground as such. There is though plenty of street parking available in the surrounding streets, however in some streets there are some parking restrictions so check for any warning signs.  Distance is around 160 miles and should allow at least three hours.

TRAIN – Meols Cop station (1 mile from ground) is served from Manchester Piccadilly while Southport station (1.5 miles) is served from Liverpool Vine Street.

ALEHOUSES - There is a bar at the ground, which is situated behind the Grandstand, aptly called the Grandstand Bar. This shows Sky Sports matches and even serves its own real ale called "Grand Stand Gold". Otherwise there is the "Thatch & Thistle" pub, which also serves food. This is located near to the bottom of Haig Avenue, at the junction of Butts Road and Meols Cop Road.  As its name suggests the pub has a thatched roof as is part of the "Two for one" chain.  Also coming from the M58 on the Scarisbrick New Road is the Richmond pub, which is also in walking distance of the stadium.

If you have a bit more time on your hands, then just over a mile away is Southport town centre, where there are plenty of good pubs to be found. Worth mentioning are the Sir Henry Segrave, Wetherspoon outlet and the Scarisbrick Hotel. Both of which are located in Lord Street and are listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.

CHIPS – Nearest chip shop appears to be The South Garden on the junction of Forest Road and Ash Street (turn left off Scarisbrick Road as you go towards the town centre.

YOUTH AT CHESTERFIELD

HUISA are close to committing to running a coach to Chesterfield on Tuesday 19th November for The FA Youth Cup match.  Departure would be around 3.00 pm with a fare expected to be in the region of £21.  Anyone interested is asked to contact The Club office ASAP (08442 761939).

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