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| Contents | ||||
| What's Windsor Park
Like? External View Of Windsor Park (photo) What Is It Like For Away Supporters? Looking Towards The Alex Russell Stand (photo) Where To Drink? North Stand (photo) How To Get There By Car & Where To Park South Stand (photo) By Train Alex Russell Stand (photo) Admission Prices Temporary Seated Stand (photo) Local Rivals Fixtures 2012-2013 Fans Reviews Ground Map Hotel Accommodation Video Tour Around The Ground Windsor Park Area Map |
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| What's Windsor Park Like? | ||||
| Windsor
Park, as the home of Northern Ireland is now lagging a
long way behind the National Football Stadiums of
England, Scotland, Wales & The Irish Republic in
terms of facilities and seating capacity, but what it
lacks in size and overall comfort it makes up for in
individual touches and a sense of spirit. People
arriving at the ground by foot from the nearby Adelaide
railway station will arrive at a tall and wide, dark
green painted footbridge, where a beautiful collection of murals
depicting former Northern Ireland players and famous
quotes from managers and commentators adorn the walls,
inside and outside. Sadly this bridge is also graffiti
shrewn, and has a cage of steel which blocks the
elevated view of the ground and the hills in the
distance. The ground is surrounded by a Victorian
housing estate ,industrial units and office buildings,
and unfortunately fans really need to watch their
footing as they walk up to the ground as dog mess seems
to be something of an ongoing problem. Entering the ground through the main gates to the left of the social club, we find an interesting combination of the old and new. Looking from the raised and covered multi coloured seating deck of the Archibald Leitch designed South Stand we see directly across the pitch to the North Stand with its Upper and Lower Tiers of 6,862 red seats.(When the stand was originally opened in the 1980s red seats were one of the few colours available). The stand had new roof panels fitted during 2010.To the right is the Donegal Avenue or Railway End, which currently houses a temporary seating deck of around 3,000 grey tip up plastic seats for intentional matches. This metal decked structure replaces the old wooden barrel roofed stand and paddock which was demolished in 2010. Looking to the left is the impressive Alex Russell home end, which boasts just under 4,000 royal blue seats on a steep single tier and unobstructed views across the ground. Fans of the more traditional looking stadium will be pleased to see that Windsor Park still retains its relatively low corner floodlights. The ground also retains its exposed paddock at the front of the South Stand though this has now been covered by a metal deck and a temporary row of around 2,500 exposed green seats, though this is also only used during international matches. The multi-columned South Stand, now the oldest part of the ground, has a camera gantry positioned precariously on its sloping roof, with a stadium control tower built at the far end of the paddock. The ground’s social club occupies a corner position next to the South Stand, with the view from its first floor viewing balcony partly obscured by the base to the Donegal Avenue End floodlights. |
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| Future Developments | ||||
| The IFA have announced that
they are seeking planning permission to increase the capacity of the stadium
to 18,000. The £29m project
will see the redevelopment
of two sides of the stadium, with the South Stand
being redeveloped and another new stand being constructed at the East End.
These stands will extend around the
South East corner, enclosing
Windsor Park in that
area. The existing North & Alex
Russell Stands are also to be
renovated. If things go to plan then
works will
begin in September 2013.
The
announcement puts
paid for the time being, to the hopes
for a new national stadium to be built in Northern Ireland.
Artists impressions of how the proposed Windsor Park will look, can be found on the Irish
Football Association website.
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| What Is It Like For Away Supporters? | ||||
| Visitors are housed in the upper tier of the North Stand, which is similar in design to Millwall's New Den. The seating offers an excellent unobstructed view of the pitch, however since the roof above is so high, this provides little cover for spectators on the lowest rows of seats when the rain comes down. | ||||
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| Where To Drink? | ||||
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There are no pubs in the immediate vicinity of the ground however there is a number of food and drink shops within a short distance along Lisburn Road, and plenty to choose from in the city centre. |
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| North Stand | ||||
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| How To Get There By Car & Where To Park | ||||
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From
Portadown, Dungannon & The South: |
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| South Stand |
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| By Train | ||||
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There are a number of
Railway stations to the south of Belfast, all within
20 minutes walk of the ground. These are Belfast
Central, City Hospital, Botanic and Great Victoria
Street, with Adelaide Station being 2 minutes walk
south of the ground. All slow train services from
Portadown and Bangor stop at these stations, however
the Enterprise Service from Belfast Central to Dublin
Connolly only stop at Botanic. |
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| Alex
Russell Stand |
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| Admission Prices | ||||
| Adults:
£10 OAPS/Under 18's: £6 |
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| Programme Price | ||||
| Official Programme £2 | ||||
| Temporary
Seated Stand |
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| Local Rivals | ||||
| Biggest rivalry is with East Belfast club Glentoran, But also Crusaders & Cliftonville from North Belfast. | ||||
| Fixtures 2012-2013 | ||||
| Northern Ireland Premier league fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website). | ||||
| Fans Reviews |
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| Mike
Turner (Neutral) 23/2/13 |
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| Ground Map | ||||
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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. Access their Belfast 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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| Video Tour Of Windsor Park | ||||
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The Ulster Groundhopper provides us with this excellent video about Windsor Park on YouTube, which also includes some history and background about the area. |
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| Map Showing The Location Of Windsor Park And Railway Station | ||||
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| Feedback | ||||
| If
anything is incorrect or you have something to add,
please e-mail
me and I'll update the guide. |
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