My first trip to The Hive – Barnet v Ipswich

The entrance to The Hive

My first trip to The Hive could not have come at a better time – coinciding with a pre-season friendly against Ipswich.

With the Jubilee line down, it was a mission to get to and find – arriving at Edgware on the Northern Line! Having jumped on a bus, the driver didn’t actually know where we were supposed to get off and we were dumped (with an Ipswich fan) outside a church around a mile away. Not the greatest of starts!

Met by the training pitches on arrival

The Hive observations

Finding The Hive was also difficult as it’s not signposted and it isn’t until you’re between the two houses that you’ll see it. Although when you’re on-site, it’s all very impressive – immediately in view of the training pitches, the stadium is in the background.

Main Stand seats

The kick-off was delayed, apparently due to crowd congestion at the turnstiles – we arrived dead on 3pm and there was practically no one to be seen. That said, we were directed to the wrong turnstiles by someone with “help” on their back (not much help) and I heard a lot of other people also complaining about being told wrong instructions (both Barnet and Ipswich fans). After making our way inside, we bought a drink at the kiosk (£1.50 for a bottle of water, by the way) and the service was just as slow as at Underhill – bear in mind this was only a friendly! That said, the food on offer already looks better!

View of the East Stand

I was impressed with the ground, but having already seen pictures on Twitter I knew what to expect. We sat in the Main Stand (I’d definitely choose to sit here throughout the season) which was very smart. Only three rows from the front, we were very close to the pitch but still had a very good view. I’m not a fan of the East Stand, as it looks very warehouse-esque – I don’t like the grey. However, I think terracing either end of the goal is a good idea, although I’m not sure how good the view would be. There are plenty of options though, dependent on what you’re after.

The pitch itself was also in immaculate condition and if it can be upheld like that throughout the campaign, we’ll definitely have an advantage. I suppose compared to what the Underhill pitch looked like at the end of the season (after the snow and other bad weather), anything would look good! The sprinklers are also a great touch – but expect to get sprayed at half time if you’re pitch-side or sitting towards the front.

South Terrace goal

North Terrace goal

The game observations

Ipswich played a fairly strong team, and despite being three divisions higher, I think we matched them. We played it around well, picking up from the way we played at the back end of last season.

Acheampong (from Welling) looks a decent acquisition and I’m looking forward to seeing more of him. His partnership in the centre of defence with Stephens could be deadly!

A position we seem to lack is up front. I think we need another striker. Crawford needs a partner, because despite the wingers getting forward (as well as Johnson and Yiadom at left and right back, respectively), he can’t play up front on his own. If Hyde does leave us, we will also need a replacement for him – someone who can bag 20 goals a season.

There were two trialists playing: Luisma and Roberto – sign both of them! We saw a lot more of Luisma and he looks like a Dani Lopez type player. Your architypal Spaniard really – full of pace and flair, great first touch. Watching him week in, week out would be mesmerising.

It’s going to be a season to shine for the youngsters. Johnson and Gambin looked very good, despite playing against players with more experience and at a higher level. Johnson in particular seems to get better every time I see him; I think he’ll be vital.

Back in the Main Stand where I belong!

At £10.50 a ticket (bought in the BOGOF offer), it was a good day, despite all the earlier disasters. I don’t recommend walking from Edgware station though. I’m hoping come the beginning of the season, everything’s a bit more organised or else there are going to be a lot of disgruntled fans!

My away day experience: Ipswich Town

Following on from the positive feedback I got from my last piece ‘my away day experience: Northampton Town’ I thought it only right to talk about my trip last weekend. We played on Friday night in League Two, losing to Torquay (0–1) and I was heading to my boyfriend’s for the weekend. Those of you who religiously follow my tweets (or those that secretly stalk my timeline) will know that he lives in Ipswich, and obviously supports his local team! In just over three years, this was my first visit to Portman Road – although I’d seen the stadium whilst being in the town centre before, and I’ve been dragged into the club shop on numerous occasions! Jake’s been to a number of Bees’ games and is yet to see a win, so I consider myself lucky to see Town win at the first time of asking! They beat Barnsley 1–0.

9:00 am – I woke up, despite setting my alarm for twenty five-past, but I knew I had some last-minute packing to do, although I had done most of it the night before. Even though I was only staying two nights, like usual, I seemed to pack way too much – this included three pairs of shoes when I knew I’d only be wearing one and ‘going out’ clothes when I knew we weren’t likely to properly go out!

10:00 am – I left home for Shenfield station and my poor mum who was in her dressing gown at such an hour on a Saturday morning had the privilege of taking me. Although the train wasn’t to depart until 10:25, the traffic down Shenfield is often pretty bad, and there are currently temporary traffic lights in place, in a three-way system! I also needed to buy my tickets (an open return, costing £17.45) and buy Jake a birthday card.

10:25 am – the train left the platform, and as usual would be an hour – stopping off at about seven other stations on the way. I try and get the straight train as getting off and changing with so many bags is way too much effort. There isn’t much to do at either Chelmsford or Colchester and the latter is a complete nightmare to get off at as the connecting train usually departs a minute after the initial train arrives (and as you can imagine running with two/three bags, in the pouring rain in suede Ugg boots isn’t much fun!). I had my iPod and phone to keep me occupied anyway, and the journey isn’t usually bad.

11:30 am – I arrived in Ipswich five minutes later than scheduled and got a taxi from the station to Jake’s house. His mum often meets me at the station but that morning she’d gone to get her hair done – not that I mind getting a cab anyway; he only lives about 10 minutes away. The driver was a right character as well –although slightly annoying because that 10 minute journey ended up being 25, with a two mile detour because of road works or something (I couldn’t be bothered to ask!)

11:55 am – I arrived at Jake’s and unpacked. Unpacked is a word I use loosely, as it generally means open both bags and throw a few bits here and there. We didn’t really do an awful lot, but were planning to go into town to grab something to eat and meet his friend Joe.

1:20 pm – we got a lift into town off Jake’s dad, but weren’t meeting Joe until two, which was when he finished work, so we walked through town in search of something to eat. We ended up going to the Hot Sausage Company for hot dogs. It was basically a little wooden cart with a boy grilling sausages in an old fashioned apron and straw hat – so cute! I just had a normal one with ketchup and Jake had the works: onions, cheese and ketchup! They were proper sausages as well, really yummy and fresh. We ate them whilst walking through town and towards Sainsbury’s where Joe works. We then bought drinks and waited for Joe.

2:00 pm – We met Joe and then made our way to Portman Road. We had to go and get our tickets beforehand anyway, and the boys wanted to get there early as there was loads going on pre-match (but more about that later!). As we walked through the car park at Portman Road it felt a little surreal, it had been a while since I’d seen so many cars and people outside a football stadium. There were people queuing for food, tickets and programmes and others just generally standing around waiting. When you’re used to crowds below 2,000, it’s quite overwhelming – although I have been to the likes of Old Trafford and Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, where of course there are thousands more. We got our tickets after waiting for five minutes or so and then made our way towards the turnstiles and to our seats. After tweeting about my PR debut, I had people asking me where I was sitting – “Upper tier, Sir Bobby Robson” was my answer, it meant absolutely nothing to me. We had to go up about three flights of stairs to get to where we were seated – no such luxury as that at Underhill!

2:40 pm – before kick off the south stand (opposite where we sat) was renamed and unveiled to the fans as the Sir Alf Ramsey stand. The squad of 1961/62 were there for the official unveiling and led out the celebrations. With it being the 50^th anniversary of when they won the League in the top flight of football at their first attempt. The team also showed off their trophy as they entered the pitch.

The match – it made a change for me to see the ball being played on the floor, and although Jake said it wasn’t a good game, when you’re used to watching Barnet, anything would look good. Town should have been at least three goals up before half time – like Barnet, creating plenty of chances but having the inability to finish. There was a heart-stopping moment when Arran Lee-Barrett in the Ipswich goal spilt a tame ball, only just managing to save it before it crept across the line. Chopra didn’t really do an awful lot, and was eventually subbed. Another thing: Jay Emmanuel-Thomas isn’t very good in the air, but the keeper and defence insisted on lumping it to him – it proved ineffective. Barnsley were absolutely woeful and only brought 198 fans – terrible! Most teams in League Two have better support – even on Tuesday nights!

5:20 pm – we went to Pizza Express after the game and although when we arrived we were practically the only couple in there, it soon got busier with people coming after the game as well. As Monday was Jake’s birthday they emailed him with a deal: a free bottle of wine or prosecco with a meal. Jake doesn’t drink either, but I thought it rude to decline so opted for the prosecco (it was more expensive as well, so result!). I had a good go at drinking the whole bottle, but by the time dessert came, I was full (and the bubbles had gone to my head!). As usual we shared dough balls to start; I then had my usual pizza – Pollo Ad Astra Leggera with light house dressing on the rocket. To finish, we shared the fudge glory sundae. It was a lovely evening and the atmosphere was decent, although I prefer the restaurant on the docks which is where we normally go and is a beautiful setting. From here, we went back to Jake’s and watched the football in bed, rock ‘n’ roll, I know!

And much to everyone’s disappointment, I haven’t quite converted to being a Tractor Girl yet and it was back to Underhill last night to watch the Bees play Swindon… although on reflection, I wish I’d been anywhere else!