St James' Park, Newcastle United
v Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League 
Sunday 29th December 2002, 2pm
By Phillip Harper

St James' Park, Newcastle is one of those grounds that anyone who follows football will immediately recognise, it is steeped in tradition, and from what I had seen previously on this website and TV, was an absolutely magnificent arena.  Besides which, the Geordies are renowned for their hospitality and friendliness and these aspects as well as seeing Spurs on the road were enough to induce me to applying successfully (any Spurs fan will testify to the fact away tickets are difficult to come by) for my ticket.

Now I live in South Oxfordshire and this, combined with an early kick off time, saw me setting out at around 5am up the A34, whereupon (as you would expect at such an early time) I encountered no traffic problems for the entirety of my journey (a miracle given it's 300 miles up some of Britains most notorious roads!).  After an hours rest at Leeds, I continued up the M1 and then the A1(m) to finally sight the Angel of the North towering above the Gateshead skyline, and rounding a slight bend, Newcastle itself hove into view.

Finding St James' is not exactly difficult given that its in the city centre and is taller than anything else around it! Once I had driven over the Redheugh Bridge into the city centre, I started to look for the ground, and rounding a corner the huge Sir John Hall stand towered over the rest of Newcastle and anyone who's been to St James will agree that its an awesome structure which simply dominates the entire area.

So then I found a quiet street in which to park (a pay & display in Corporation Street, I think that's the name) which at £2 for 5 hours seemed reasonable. I had made the journey in 6 hours with an hours rest in Leeds, so it was almost bang on 5 hours driving time which I felt was good going.

Having secured my car, I started to cross the street and head for the vicinity of the ground, when an unmistakable Geordie voice rang out from behind me.  Two Newcastle fans then introduced themselves and asked how my journey was, and then they introduced me to their favourite watering hole where they insisted on buying me a couple of bottles of Newcastle Brown!! As a Southern football fan, I have never witnessed hospitality or such a relaxed attitude towards away fans such as that of the Geordies and it made for a terrific day out as much as the ground and the game itself.

 

All I can say about St James' Park is that it is simply huge.  I've been to the Millennium Stadium, which isn't exactly small, but the Sir John Hall and Milburn stands must be taller!  I feel that if Newcastle had the scope to redevelop the Gallowgate End and East stand in the same fashion then this stadium would be up there with the best club grounds in the world, if it isn't already.

The away turnstiles are in the North-West corner of the ground, in fact they are located in the car park, underneath St James' which feels rather strange.  After meeting with some Spurs fans who had flown up (the look on their faces when I said I had driven up-priceless!!), it was then up 14-16 flights of stairs to the top of the Sir John Hall Stand, i didn't realise we'd need oxygen masks!!

My ticket was in row W, right at the back!  However, you might be high up, but you get an awesome view of the pitch, and literally the whole of Newcastle!  The seats were extremely comfortable, and the legroom was the best I've certainly come across. Not bad considering they cram 52,500 odd into St James'.  The sight of a packed St James is simply awesome with the Milburn and St John Hall stands rocking to the foundations.  I have to say (even though I'm reliably informed that from the away end you are 1/4 mile away from the far goal!!) that I thought the more vociferous Newcastle fans were in the Gallowgate End. In any event, the atmosphere in the ground was tremendous, not something you always get from home supporters (trust me, I've been to Villa Park!) and with the Spurs fans in good song it weren't half noisy!

The game was completely dominated by Spurs, who then proceeded to miss chance after chance and concede 2 sloppy goals, to Speed and Shearer, but at least Dabizas gave us a laugh with an absolutely classic own goal, a header that Shearer himself would have been proud of! One strange thing i noted was the lack of Stewards (although as I was at the
back, I may have missed them) instead, there were just 8 or 10 Policemen separating each end of the Spurs fans from the Newcastle fans, and I wonder if this is due to the relaxed nature of the natives.  There was no tarpaulin or obligatory no-mans land, just 2 lines of Police which meant friendly banter was exchanged between the fans quite regularly.

As I ate on the journey up the motorway, I didn't eat inside the ground, but the toilets seemed ok, and certainly better than White Hart Lane where you daren't wash your hands in the sinks!!

My only traffic problems were in getting away from the ground because everyone was heading to the A1.  An hour later though, and I was on my way, getting wearily back home at around 10:30 in the evening, 5 1/2 hours in total and though Spurs had lost, I had thoroughly enjoyed the day.

I would definitely recommend a trip to Newcastle for any football fan (with the possible exception of Boro and Sunderland!) as you will encounter an absolutely fantastic stadium, first class atmosphere and for my money the best fans in the Premiership.  The journey might seem long if you drive, but it is very easy going barring traffic problems, and I had enquired about flying up, but they insisted I drive to Luton, so I chose to drive all the
way.

All in all a truly memorable away day.

Are you an away or general football fan who has visited St James' Park recently?
If so why not submit your own review of the ground and general day out?
Click here to find out more

Return To The Newcastle Page
Return To The Main Menu