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| Contents | |
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What Is Loftus Road Stadium
Like? |
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| What Is Loftus Road Stadium Like? | |
| Loftus Road has a compact feel, as the ground is totally enclosed, with supporters being close to the pitch. An unusual aspect is that all four stands are roughly the same height, their roofs meet at all four corners with no gaps. The South Africa Road Stand on one side, has a larger upper tier, compared to the lower tier, with a row of executive boxes running across the middle. There are a couple of supporting pillars in this stand. The other side, the Ellerslie Road Stand, is single tiered, with a television gantry suspended below its roof. Both ends are similar looking two tiered stands. On one of these, the School End (where the away fans are located) there is a large video screen located on the centre of its roof. Below this and situated between the lower and upper tier is a small electric scoreboard. The ground oozes character and there is nothing similar in the league. | |
| Future
Developments |
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| Club Chairman Tony Fernandes has
indicated that the desire to move the Club to a new
larger stadium may becoming closer to reality. Like
Chelsea the main problem has been in finding a
suitable location in London. But recent press
speculation has suggested that a positive formal
announcement may be soon be forthcoming before the
start of the 2013/14 season. |
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| What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters? | |
| Away
fans are situated in the upper tier of the School End,
where around 1,800 fans can be accommodated. If demand
requires it then the lower tier can also be allocated,
increasing the number of places available to about
2,500. If the away club only takes the upper tier
allocation, then the lower tier is allocated to home
supporters. Alan Griffiths a visiting Barnsley fan
informs me; 'the entrance for away fans to the School
End upper tier is now longer in South Africa Road, but
on the opposite side of the ground in Ellerslie Road
(turnstile block 2).' I must say that on my three visits, I have found the stadium lacking a little in atmosphere. Also the leg room between rows of seats was a little tight. There is normally quite a large police and steward presence, and you should expect to be searched before you enter the away end. However on the plus side I have never experienced any problems there, as it is generally relaxed and friendly. Dan Markham a QPR fan disagrees with me; 'It is virtually impossible to have such a small compact enclosed stadium, and not have a tremendous atmosphere. You are close to the pitch, close to the visiting fans and most importantly close to the action'. Another plus point was that the food that was served within the ground was quite good and the service prompt. Entrance to the stadium is gained by inserting your ticket into a bar code reader. |
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| Where To Eat & Drink? | |
| There
are no pubs for away fans in the immediate vicinity
around the stadium. Most away fans head over to nearby
Shepherds Bush Green where the Walkabout and
O'Neills are both popular with away
supporters. The Walkabout has the benefit of Sky Sports
& ESPN, serves food and is the
Police designated away pub. To find Shepherds Bush
Green; exit Shepherds Bush Market Underground Station
(the Hammersmith & City line station), turn left out
of the station and the green is a short way down the
road on the right. Diagonally across Shepherds Bush
Green opposite the Central line entrance to Shepherds
Bush Underground Station, is a retail complex called
Vue, which upstairs includes a Wetherspoons outlet.
Otherwise alcohol is available in the away
end. On the eating front David Frodsham adds; 'On my travels to many football grounds, I have yet to find a wider selection of food available than on the Uxbridge Road. The cosmopolitan inner city nature means that you can almost eat your way around the world. From the normal range of cafes, burger bars, fried chicken outlets and chippies, there are Indian, Chinese, Thai & Jamaican outlets. There are Lebanese and Indian kebab shops, the latter selling "doner" kebabs made with Indian spices! Inside the ground the food available includes; Hot Dogs (£3.50), Pukka Pies (Beef & Onion, Chicken Balti, all £2.90), Cheese & Onion Slice (£2.90) and Sausage Rolls (£2.90). Alcohol is available in the form of Carlsberg, Blackthorn Cider (both £3.80 a pint) & Tetleys (440ml Can £3.80) plus red or white wine (187ml Bottle £3.80). |
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| South
Africa Road Stand |
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| How To Get There By Car And Where To Park | |
| From The North/West: At the end of the M40, take the A40 towards Central London. At the point where the A40 becomes the A40(M), turn off onto the A40 towards White City/Shepherds Bush and turn right into Wood Lane, turn right into South Africa Road for the ground. There is not much in the way of parking near to the ground. Matt Garside from Southampton suggests; 'It's probably easiest to just park on the road in this area as it costs £6.60 for three hours parking'. Some of these areas are free after 5pm. However, there are a number of restricted parking zones around the stadium so be careful where you park. Andreas Iona adds; 'South Africa Road running past the stadium, closes to traffic one hour before kick-off on all matchdays. The Police enforce the road closure which remains in place until approximately 15 minutes after kick-off. At the end of the game a similar closure is implemented 15 minutes before the end of the game and lasts for approximately one hour. Supporters are advised to avoid parking in the few pay and display bays available in Dorando Close as they face a long wait to get out at the end of the game due to the above closure'. Map showing the location of the Loftus Road Stadium (at the bottom of this page). |
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| How To Get There By Train/Tube | |
| The
nearest London Underground station is White
City on the Central Line, which is about a five
minute walk away. Also nearby (a little further
along Wood Lane opposite the BBC Television
Centre) is the recently opened Wood Lane Station,
which is on the Hammersmith & City line. It is
around a seven minute walk away from Loftus Road. Otherwise there are two other tube stations close by; Shepherds Bush Market on the Hammersmith & City line and Shepherds Bush on the Central Line. The former is about a ten minute walk away from the ground, whilst the other is about 15 minutes. Personally I tend to use Shepherds Bush Market tube station, simply because there seems to be more pubs around this area, especially around Shepherds Bush Green. Leaving both Shepherds Bush tube stations; turn right and the ground will come into view further down on the right. Please note that Queens Park tube station is nowhere near the ground! The nearest train station is Shepherds Bush, which is adjacent to the tube station. However, it is not directly served by any of the major London mainline stations. However trains from Watford Junction and Clapham Junction both stop there. Remember if travelling by train then you can save on the cost of fares by booking in advance. Visit the thetrainline website to see how much you can save. For travelling across
London by public transport I
recommend planning your journey ahead
with the use of the Travel
For London Plan your journey website. |
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| Admission Prices For Away Fans | |
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Like
a number of Clubs, QPR operate a match category
system (A, B & C), whereby the most popular
matches cost more to watch. Prices are shown below
with Category B & C prices shown in brackets: School End: |
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| Fixtures 2012-2013 | |
| QPR fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website). | |
| Programme & Fanzine | |
| Official
Programme £3 A Kick Up The R's Fanzine £2.50 |
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| Local Rivals | |
| Brentford, Fulham, Chelsea. | |
| 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: 35,353 v Leeds United, Division One, April 27th, 1974. Modern All Seated Attendance Record: 19,002 v Manchester City Division One, November 6th, 1999. Average Attendance: 2011-2012: 17,295 (Premier League) 2010-2011: 15,635 (Championship League) 2009-2010: 13.349 (Championship League) |
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| Fans Reviews Of Loftus Road | |
| Philip Green
(Stoke City) 20/4/13 David Drysdale (MK Dons) 26/1/13 Jack Tomlinson (West Bromwich Albion) 26/12/12 Joshua Kazim (Swansea City) 18/8/12 Tom Fry (Fulham) 25/2/12 Mark Knowles (Norwich City) 2/1/12 Ben Taylor (Aston Villa) 25/9/11 |
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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 have a huge choice
of places to stay and their booking facility is
straightforward 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.
Hotels are listed giving details of their distance from
the Loftus Road Stadium. To access their London 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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| Location Map Of Loftus Road Stadium, Underground Stations, Railway Station & 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. * The Club also played at the White City Stadium from 1931-33 & 1962-63. |
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