New York Stadium
Rotherham United v Doncaster Rovers
Pre Season Friendly
Tuesday July 24th 2012, 7.45pm
Paul Davis
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I was particularly looking forward
to this game not just because of the new
ground but because of the whole symmetry of
the fixture. I spent 8 years in the 80's
& 90's working for the company on
whose land the ground was built but had only
visited Rotherham a couple of times in the
intervening years. So , a chance to look at
the town again and with the added attraction
of a new ground and Donny playing.
Despite the ground being in the
town it is an easy journey by car , bus and
train sitting as it does just yards from the
main avoiding road which in turn is no more
than 3 miles from the MI " Sheffield Parkway
" junction.The railway and bus stations
are a 5 & 6 minute walk away
respectively. Car parking however is a
little more difficult, space outside the
ground is very limited so I would suggest
driving past the ground entrance and turning
right at the T junction lights and following
signs to the town car parks.
Being so centrally situated there
are plenty of pubs and eateries. The two
Wetherspoon pubs The Rhinoceros and The
Bluecoat fit the bill nicely with the
latter being the better of the two, slightly
off the beaten track and quieter.
First impression of the ground
coming from the town was disappointing. A
new buiding fronts the main road and hides
most of the stadium, on walking
further it transpires that the
original offices of my old
company are still standing in a sorry
and dilapidated state, they had
been Grade 2 listed. Having said that
and noted that there was still quite a bit
of tidying to do around the edges the view
of the stadium arriving from the opposite
side would be magnificent.
Inside, the ground thankfully has a lot of character. The Main Stand which houses all the offices and private boxes is higher than the two similar sized stands behind the goal and in turn they are higher than the basic stand covering the far side of the pitch. As the guide says though what makes this stand so interesting are the two floodlights above it which, other than a few lights attached to the roof of the main stand, light the whole ground. Overall they balance the ground perfectly. The away end had large comfy seats plus the viewing and sight lines were excellent. The stewards were finding their way too but were friendly and helpful, the only downside was one small kiosk open to serve 1400+ visitors so I did not get near it. Having said that with Pukka Pies sponsoring one of the stands and with this being Rotherham expect tasty food at reasonable prices. As for the game I am happy it was
only a friendly. The Rovers are
undergoing serious team re-building after
last seasons relegation with players only
joining after others have moved and
funds have been freed.up. Consequently our
back four was two full backs and two
midfielders. We did however
take a lead early in the second
half but Rotherham came back with two goals
to earn a deserved win and look as if
they have a good season ahead.
The only similarity to Millmoor
left is that visiting fans have to walk past
the home fans end to get to and from their
seats but there was no trouble and the
Police had closed the main road to cars so
we could disperse quickly.
Rotherham are and always will be
our main rivals, both clubs have been
through recent bad times and neither set of
fans has cared about the others predicament
.So through gritted teeth I would say that
Rotherham have finally got themselves a
modern, well designed ground to be proud of
and the basis of a team to match.
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