1. Why were you looking forward to going to the ground (or not as the case may be):

Having visited Cambridge before I know that the Abbey Stadium is a tidy stadium and there are also a few decent boozers around the ground.

2.  How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking:

My journey was very easy getting the 10:19 train direct to Cambridge. We decided to get a taxi from the city centre to Newmarket Road which is where the ground sits so there were no problems in finding the stadium.

3. What you did before the game pub/chippy. Home fans friendly:

We made the mistake of going into the first pub we came to upon leaving the station. The Live and Let Live is a few minutes’ walk from the station and has long seen better days so one to avoid. We then headed to The Wrestlers on Newmarket Road which was a nice little pub although was quite busy approaching matchday. Before kick-off we headed into the clubhouse, which was a decent size although gets very busy. It does charge a small fee to enter but we encountered no problems with the home supporters, as with the few Cambridge fans we spoke to were on the whole a friendly bunch.

4. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of the away end and other sides of the ground:

The ground is of a decent size and is awash with bright yellow and black paint on the approach so doesn’t look bland and unwelcoming. It was a case of waiting to see where we would view the action as on our previous visits we have occupied both the South Stand and Habbin Terrace although both are annoying to get to having to walk through the common by the side of the stadium. This season we were in the new South Stand which is a nice all seater stand, which sits raised over the pitch giving you a very good view of the action. The Habbin Terrace is an old terrace with number of supporting pillars which do impede your view (I’ve found this from previous visits). The Main Stand is a two tiered all seater stand which is also quite old. The North Stand sits behind the goal and runs about half way with a small enclosure next to it.

5. Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, toilets ect..

I think this game was the definition of a smash and grab, Cambridge spent the vast majority of the game on the attack and ran the possession, and had numerous chances, but Tamworth put in a fantastic defensive performance with Hedge in goal and the back four defending resolutely. The only goal came from a deflected shot from Liam MacDonald which looped over the keeper into the net. The atmosphere was very good with both sets of fans making noise, the home fans quietened as the game wore on clearly frustrated with their team but the Tamworth fans made a decent noise despite the lowish number of fans. The stewards were fine and we encountered no problems, the food was actually very good having a cheeseburger, it was very tasty and a lot better than most of the fare at games.

6. Comment on getting away from the ground after the game:

Despite the decent crowd the roads around the stadium weren’t too bad, we decided to get a taxi from the stadium to the train station for the 17:43 train back to Ipswich where we live.

7. Summary of overall thoughts of the day out:

Cambridge is normally a relaxed and friendly away day and I’ve never encountered any problems. There are some very good boozers close to the ground and the facilities at the Abbey Stadium are good, overall a good day out and an excellent result for Tamworth against a decent Cambridge side.