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| Contents |
What's Anfield
Like?
Future Developments
Centenary And Anfield
Road Stands (photo)
What
Is It Like For Away Supporters?
The Kop (photo)
Where To Drink?
Main And Anfield Road Stands
(photo)
How
To Get There By Car And Where To Park
A Closer Look At
The Anfield Road Stand (photo)
By Train
Local Rivals
Admission Prices
Ground
Layout
Fixtures 2011-2012
Programme & Fanzines
Disabled Facilities
Stadium Tours
Record
& Average Attendance
Fans Ground
Reviews
Hotel Accommodation
Anfield Location Map
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| What's Anfield Like? |
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Walking
up to the ground alongside Stanley Park, I have to
say, that from a distance, Anfield is not
particularly impressive. Inside though, the ground
is wonderful and only the most critical of visitors
would find fault with it.
The famous Kop Terrace at one end of the ground, has
been replaced by a huge stand designed to emulate
the old Kop, hence it's odd shape (kind of semi
circular) and single large tier. The other end, the
Anfield Road Stand, part of which is given to away
supporters, is the most recent addition to the
ground. It has boosted not only the overall capacity
of the stadium, but has
given Anfield a more
balanced and enclosed feel as all corners are now
filled. On one side of the stadium is the large, two
tiered, Centenary Stand, where the front tier leg
room is the tightest I have ever known. Opposite is
the Main Stand, the oldest in the ground and looking
its age with a number of supporting pillars. This
stand has a TV gantry suspended beneath its roof. In the corner between the Kop &
Centenary stands is an electric scoreboard, which
surprise, surprise, shows the match score in
bright red letters.
Around the outside of the
ground, there are the Bill Shankly
Gates on Anfield Road. These wrought iron gates
have the legendary Liverpool phrase 'You'll Never Walk
Alone' displayed above them. There is also a statue of
the great man, Bill Shankly
near the Club shop. Also along Anfield Road, there is
the moving memorial
to the victims of the Hillsborough disaster, which
always has flowers adorning it.
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Future Developments
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The Club
have received planning permission to build a new
60,000 all seated stadium, to be located in nearby
Stanley Park. It is intended that the stadium will
feature an 18,000 capacity, single tier kop stand.
It was hoped that preliminary work would commence on
building the new stadium during 2008, but this has
now been postponed by the Club. It is now unclear
whether the scheme will in fact go ahead. Images of
its futuristic design can be found on the BBC Liverpool website.
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Centenary And
Anfield Road Stands
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| What
Is It Like For Away Supporters? |
Away fans are located in the
Anfield Road Stand at one end of the ground, where
just under 2,000 seats are available, although this
can be increased for cup games. This stand is also
shared with home supporters, some of whom will be
sitting in the small seated tier above the away fans.
Malcolm Dawson a travelling Sunderland supporter adds;
'Try to avoid getting tickets sold
as restricted view, for the rear rows of the
Anfield Road Stand as it can be difficult to see the
goals with people standing up in front of you'.
Kimberly Hill adds; 'Restricted
view doesn't even begin to describe what it
was like. The Wolves fans insisted on standing so
it was like trying to watch the game through a
letterbox!' The facilities
within the stand are not bad. There is a Ladbrokes
betting outlet and the refreshment kiosks sell a wide
variety of burgers, hot dogs and pies, including a
'Scouse Pie'.
I have always found it to be a good day out at
Anfield, getting the feeling that you are visiting one
of the legendary venues in world football. This is
enhanced with the teams coming out to 'You'll Never
Walk Alone' reverberating around the ground, with the
red and white scarves and flags of the fans displayed
across the Kop, at the beginning of the match. The
atmosphere is normally great, so sit back and enjoy
the experience.
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The
Kop
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| Where To Drink |
The Arkles pub near to the ground (see
directions by car), is
known as the away fans pub, but
as can be expected it can
get extremely crowded. Mark
Parsons a visiting Aston Villa fan adds; 'We
arrived at the Arkles at
about 1.15pm and already found it packed out, with fans
queuing outside to get in.
We asked a very helpful WPC for any other away
friendly pubs and were told to go to the Flat Iron
which was a five minute
walk away. Although the pub was
mostly full of Liverpool fans, the bars were mixed and all were very friendly. There is also a good chippy located on the other side of the road.
To find this pub, turn
left at the junction where Arkles is (with the ground over to your right down Anfield
Road). Head away from the
ground and the pub is down on
the right hand side'.
Otherwise alcohol is available inside the stadium.
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Main And
Anfield Road Stands
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| How
To Get There By Car And Where To Park |
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Follow the
M62 until you reach the end of the motorway (beware of a 50mph speed camera
about a 1/4 of a mile from the end of the
motorway). Then follow the A5058 towards
Liverpool. After three miles turn left at the
traffic lights into Utting Avenue (there is a
McDonalds on the corner of this junction). Proceed
for one mile and then turn right at the Arkles pub
for the ground. If you arrive early (around 1pm)
then there is street parking to be found. However
recently a residents only parking scheme has been
introduced in some streets around the ground,
so check any signs first. Otherwise it as
an idea to park in the streets around Goodison and
walk across Stanley Park to Anfield, or you can park in a secure parking
area at Goodison itself which costs £10.
Rob Campion informs me; 'I parked at The Dockers
Club, home of Liverpool County Premier League side
Waterloo Dock on Townsend Lane (A580) at a cost
of £5. It is then a 15 minute walk
to Anfield. I even watched Waterloo Dock v Old
Xaverians first, before going to the Liverpool
game'.
Map showing the location of the
Anfield Football Ground (at the bottom of this
page).
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A
Closer Look At The Anfield Road Stand
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By Train
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Kirkdale
station is the closest to the ground (just under a
mile away). However, it may be more advisable to
go to Sandhills Station as this has the benefit of
a bus service to the ground, which runs for a couple of hours before and a couple
of hours after a game and drops you within easy walking distance of the
ground. Gary Beaumont adds;
'The best route for away fans from the city
centre if they want to use public transport is
definitely the Merseyrail Northern Line to Sandhills
where they alight and catch the special Soccerbuses;
trains can be caught from Liverpool Central and
Moorfields. If fans are buying their train
tickets in Liverpool, ask for a return to Anfield as
opposed to Sandhills even though that's where you're
getting off. The advantage of doing this
is that the train ticket is valid also for the Soccerbus and the additional
fare is only £1 return as opposed to £1
each way that you'd have to pay on the bus if you
only bought your ticket to Sandhills. If fans
want to get a taxi from Lime
Street, they're about £7'. Both
Sandhills & Kirkdale stations and can be reached by
first getting a train from Liverpool Lime Street to
Liverpool Central and then changing there for
Kirkdale.
The main railway station in
Liverpool is Lime Street which is over three miles
from the ground and is really too far to walk
(although it is mostly downhill on the way back to
the station), so either head for Sandhills
or Kirkdale stations
or jump in a taxi. Craig Hochkins adds; 'you can catch various buses from the bus
station which is seven minutes walk away from the
train station and is well signposted. Either
the 17a 17b 17c or the 26 will drop you right
outside the ground at a cost of about a £1.
The buses are run by Arriva and the journey takes
about 15 to 25 minutes dependant on traffic'. Paul Denman a visiting
Hull City fan informs me; 'Although the No 17 Bus
took only 15 minutes to reach Anfield from the
station, after the game it took almost 50 minutes,
as the roads were clogged with fans walking home.
However, everyone was friendly. I wore my City shirt
with pride, never felt threatened even on the bus
and had great conversations with the Liverpool
supporters.'
Walking Directions From
Kirkdale Station:
On exiting from Kirkdale Station turn right and
then cross the railway bridge, you will see a pub
opposite called the 'Melrose Abbey',
(which has been recommended). Walk up
Westminster Road, alongside the pub and
continue along it, passing the Elm Tree
pub. Follow the road around the right hand bend
and then turn left into Bradwell Street. At the
end of Bradwell Street you will come to the busy
County Road (A59). Cross over this road at
the traffic lights and then go down the road to
the left of the Aldi superstore. At the end
of this road you will reach the A580
Walton Lane. You should be able to see
Goodison Park over on your left and Stanley Park
in front of you. Cross Walton Lane and either
enter Stanley Park following the footpath through
the park (keeping to the right), which will exit
into Anfield Road and the away end. Or bear
right down Walton Lane and then turn
left down the road at the end of Stanley Park for
the ground. Thanks to Jon Roche for providing
these directions.
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| Local Rivals |
| Everton
and Manchester United.
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| Admission Prices |
The Club operate a category
system, so that ticket prices vary with the opposition
being played. Category A prices are shown
below with B & C shown in brackets:
Home Fans:
The Kop: Adults £45, (B) £42, (C) £39 Over
65's £34, (B) £31.50, (C)
£29.50
All other areas of the stadium:
Adults £48, (B) £44, (C) £42, Over 65's £36,
(B) £33 (C) £31.50
Anfield Road Family Section: 1 Adult + 1
Child £63, (B) £59
(C) £57.
Away Fans:
Anfield Road Stand:
Adults £48, (B) £44 (C) £42
Over 65's £36
(B) £33, (C) £31.50
Under 16's £20, (B)
£15 (C) £15
Category A Matches for the 2011/12 league season are:
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Manchester
City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
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| Stadium
Layout |
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For a
stadium plan showing the individual block numbers
Then visit the official Liverpool website.
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| Fixtures 2011-2012 |
| Liverpool
FC fixture list (takes you to the BBC
Sports Website).
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| Programme and Fanzines |
Official
Programme: £3
The Liverpool Way Fanzine:
£2
Red All Over The Land Fanzine: £2
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| Disabled
Facilities |
| For details of disabled
facilities and club contact at the ground please
visit the relevant page on the Level
Playing Field website.
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Tours Of Anfield
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The Club offer tours of the
ground, which operate on a daily basis, except Bank Holidays and matchdays.
There is also a museum at the ground and the club
offer combined tour & museum
tickets as well as individual museum entrance. The costs are:
Ground Tour & Museum*:
Adults: £15, Children, Students & OAP's
£9, Family Ticket (2 Adults + 2 Concessions)
£41
Museum Only:
Adults: £6, Children,
Students & OAP's £4, Family Ticket (2 Adults + 2
Concessions) £18
For details of family tickets and
for making tour bookings
call: 0151 260 6677 or Book
Online.
* The Club also
offer an 'off peak' ticket (generally early mornings)
for Adults: £11, Children,
Students & OAP's £8.
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| Record
& Average Attendance |
Record Attendance:
61,905 v Wolverhampton Wanderers
FA Cup 4th Round, February 2nd, 1952.
Modern All Seated Attendance
Record:
45,071 v Manchester City
Premier League, November 27th, 2011.
Average Attendance:
2010-2011: 42,820 (Premier League)
2009-2010: 42,864 (Premier League)
2008-2009: 43,511 (Premier League)
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| Fans Reviews
Of Anfield |
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Daniel Boucher
(Wolverhampton Wanderers) 24/9/11
James Baxter
(Neutral) 5/8/10
Bobby Rooney (Everton)
30/3/08
James Roddis
(Derby County) 1/9/07
Chris Ackrill (West
Ham United) 26/8/06
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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 includes details of how far they are away
from the ground.
Access their Liverpool
Hotels and Guest Houses page.
Remember that you
can also use the above link or the 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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Of Page
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| Map showing the location of
Anfield, Railway Stations and Listed Pub |
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Instructions
for using the map:
- Use the bar on the left of the map to zoom in /
out using the + / - keys.
- Click and drag an area of the map to move around
or use the up/down, left/right arrows
- Click the Satellite button to see aerial view
photograph.
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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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