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| Contents | |
| What's The
Alexandra Stadium Like? Future Developments Main Stand (photo) What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters? Looking Towards The Wulvern Housing Stand (photo) Where To Drink? Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stand (photo) How To Get There By Car & Where To Park By Train Gresty Road End (photo) Local Rivals Admission Prices Programme Ground Layout Fixtures 2012-2013 Disabled Facilities Record & Average Attendance Fans Ground Reviews Hotel Accommodation Alexandra Stadium Location Map |
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| What's The Alexandra Like? | |
| The
opening of the £6m pound
Main Stand in 1999 changed
forever the look and feel of the ground. Before, it had always been small and
homely, but the addition of the Main Stand has
drastically changed the overall scene.
The stand, which sits proudly along one side of the
pitch, is a single tier cantilever holding just under
7,000 people. It looks huge compared to the other
stands and is probably
three times the size of the old Main Stand. It is simply designed, sits well back
from the pitch and has windshields to either side. Considering
that the overall capacity of the ground is just over
10,000, one can understand how the Main
Stand dominates Gresty Road,
accounting for 70% of the available seating. The other three stands are roughly of the same height, covered and all seated, but are rather small when compared to the Main Stand. So much so, that balls are regularly kicked out of the ground during a game. The newest of these smaller stands is the Gresty Road End, which is the home end of the ground. This replaced a former open terrace and seats around 900. Opposite is the Wulvern Homes Stand, which was previously known as the Railway End. This has some executive boxes at the rear, but the seating area is only opened for the bigger games. The Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stand at one side of the ground , has an unusual television/press gantry on its roof. It almost looks as if part of a portakabin was at some point bolted onto the roof and it looks a bit precarious. In the corner between the Wulvern Homes and Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stands is a large clock, whilst on the other side of the Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stand is a Police Control Box, keeping a close eye on the away contingent. An unusual feature is the absence of dugouts, the teams instead are given a section of seating at the front of the Main Stand. You will also notice that the pitch is slightly raised above ground level. The ground is completed with a set of modern looking floodlights. I noted that on the Main Stand side of the stadium additional lighting is present half way up the floodlight pylons. One assumes that the height of the new stand prevented enough light getting to the pitch and hence additional lighting needed to be subsequently added. |
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| Future Developments | |
| At some point in the future, the club hopes to replace the Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stand (formerly known as the Popular Side) with a new two tiered stand, which will also contain executive boxes. | |
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| What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters? | |
| Away
fans are housed in the Whitby Morrison
Ice Cream Van Stand at one side of the
ground. The whole of this stand is given to away
supporters and houses 1,680 fans, though if required
the Wulvern Homes Stand can also be
allocated to away fans. Entrance to the away stand is
by ticket only, (no cash is accepted at ironically
some of the oldest turnstiles I have ever seen at a
League Ground). Tickets need to be purchased from the
ticket booth next to the supporters club at the
entrance to this stand. Please also note that alcohol
is not available in this stand. I found Crewe to be relaxed and friendly, making for a good day out. There was a large away support on my last visit which boosted the atmosphere of the ground, however I have heard reports that it can be a bit flat at certain games, even with the efforts of a drummer in the home end. There are a couple of supporting pillars in the Whitby Morrison Ice Cream Van Stand which if you are unlucky could effect your view of the playing action. There is a popular fish and chip shop just outside of the stadium, the smell of which, early in the game, wafts across the ground. As an aside, this is the only ground when just sitting there minding my own business, during the first half, I suddenly get a big wet tongue in my ear! Now before you all starting thinking all sorts of connotations (and I should add that Mrs Adams wasn't with me), it was in actual fact a black Labrador dog, that was the culprit. This was my introduction to Pebble the trainee guide dog, who had been brought to the match to get used crowd situations. Now just when I thought I had experienced it all on my travels... |
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| Where To Drink? | |
| If
you get there reasonably early before the game, the
supporters club at the ground allows small numbers of
away fans in. There are also a number of pubs within
walking distance of the ground. The pick of these, is
probably the Royal Hotel on
Nantwich Road. As Barry Cutts a visiting
Coventry City supporter adds; 'I found
the Royal Hotel to be a
warm & welcoming drinking house.
Turn left out of the
railway station & the
pub is 50 yards down this
road on the right hand side. There is also a fantastic
chippie opposite'. Although
the pub does not look that welcoming, with a number of
bouncers on the door, once
inside you will find it okay.
There are separate bars for home and away
supporters. The away supporters bar is called
Clancys and is decked out in an Irish theme. On my
last visit it had a large screen showing Sky Sports
and had a number of filled rolls for sale. For those
who like their real ale then further down Nantwich
Road on the left hand side just past the traffic
lights is the British Lion. This comfortable small
pub has been listed previously in the CAMRA Good
Beer Guide and has regular changing guest beers. If you park on the industrial estate just off Weston Road, then on your way to the ground you will pass the Brocklebank Pub, a Brewers Fayre outlet, which is very popular with away fans. It is also has a large screen showing Sky Sports. You can also park in their own car park which costs £2.50. If you arrive early and have a bit of time on your hands then I would recommend a visit to the Borough Arms on Earl Street. The pub which, is listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide, is around a mile away from Gresty Road has a large number of real ales, plus Belgian and German beers on tap. It has an impressive stock of continental bottled beers. There is also an Indian restaurant located behind it which offers reasonably priced lunches. Map of the Borough Arms location. |
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| How To Get There By Car & Where To Park | |
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Leave the M6 at
Junction 16 and take the A5020 towards Crewe. Follow
this road right into Crewe. At the roundabout
junction with the A534, Nantwich Road, turn left.
Gresty Road is down past the Railway Station on the
left. Just before you reach this island on Weston Road, you will see
a sign pointing to the right, which displays; 'Away
Supporters On Street Parking'. This directs you to
an industrial estate on the right of the road (you
will also see the Volkswagen dealership, L C Charles
on the front of it). It takes about 15 minutes to
walk to the ground from here. Otherwise at the
ground behind the Main Stand is a pay and display
car park which costs £3.50 for
the day. Obviously this fills up quite quickly on
matchdays. |
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| By Train | |
| The ground is only a few minutes walk from the train station. As you come out of the Railway Station turn left and Gresty Road is down the road on your left. | |
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| Local Rivals | |
| Stoke City & Port Vale. | |
| Admission Prices | |
| All Areas Of The Ground*: Adults £20, O.A.P.'s £16.50, Under 16's £9.50, Under 11's £5.50 * Club members can qualify for a discount on these ticket prices. |
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| Programme | |
| Official
Programme £3 |
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| Fixtures 2012-2013 | |
| Crewe Alexandra fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website). | |
| Disabled Facilities | |
| For details of disabled facilities and club contact at the ground please visit the relevant page on the Level Playing Field website. | |
| Record & Average Attendance | |
| Record
Attendance: 20,000 v Tottenham Hotspur FA Cup 4th Round, January 6th, 1960. Modern All Seated Attendance Record: 10,103 v Manchester United Carling Cup Round 3rd Round, October 26th, 2004. Average Attendance: |
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| Fans Reviews Of The Alexandra Stadium | |
| Nathaniel
Holland-Bright (Walsall) 27/4/13 James Scott (Neutral) 24/11/12 James Spring (Notts County) 18/8/12 Alex Jones (AFC Bournemouth) 31/01/10 Matt (Morecambe) 14/11/09 |
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| Hotel Accommodation | |
| If you require hotel
accommodation in the area then first try a hotel
booking service provided by Late Rooms. They offer all
types of accommodation to suit all tastes and pockets
from; Budget Hotels, Traditional Bed & Breakfast
establishments to Five Star Hotels and Serviced
Apartments. Plus their booking system is
straightforward and easy to use. Yes this site will
earn a small commission if you book through them, but
it will go to help with the running costs of keeping
the Guide going. The Hotels listing also includes
details of how far away the accommodation is located
from the Crewe Alexandra football ground. Access their Crewe Hotels and Guest Houses page. Remember that you can use the above link or panel below to book any other hotels that you may need for business or leisure, either in the UK or abroad. |
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| Map Showing The Location of the Alexandra Stadium, Railway Station and Listed Pubs | |
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Instructions for using
the map:
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| Feedback | |
| If anything is incorrect or you have
something to add, please e-mail me duncan@footballgrounds.net
and I'll update the guide. |
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