Burton
Pirelli Stadium
Capacity 6,912
Address Pirelli Stadium, Princess Way, Burton Upon Trent, Staffordshire, DE13 0AR
Ticket Prices £13 for visiting supporters (terracing).
www.burtonalbionfc.co.uk
I always seem to enjoy the visits to Burton, although not because of the football as I have never seen Stevenage even gain a point at the Pirelli Stadium. I’ve been 3 times and each time they have been beaten convincingly. The first time was in the 2005/06 season when we lost 3-1, with Anthony Elding heading in a consolation. The next time was in the 2007/08 season, this time Boro went down 3-0 in one of Peter Taylor’s last games in charge. I also went in the 2008/09 season, but again Stevenage failed to perform, losing 2-0.
Getting to the ground is fairly straight forward and should take you just under 2 hours from Hertfordshire. There is a car park at the ground, which charges £2 when I last visited. However, if you want to avoid paying for parking then get there a bit earlier and you will find some street parking about a 3-5 minute walk away from the ground.
The Pirelli Stadium was built in 2005 and the club moved in after many years at Eton Park, which was located just across the road. It’s a very neat and tidy stadium, but doesn’t have that wow factor, like many new stadiums at this level. The main stand is a 2,000 capacity seated stand and houses the club’s offices. Opposite that is the “Popular Side” where funnily enough most of the Burton fans congregate, hence popular.
The two other stands are identical, one being allocated to away supporters. On the 3 visits I have been to Burton, the other end is always decked out in various flags, which adds to the atmosphere a little. For a relatively small stadium, it actually manages to drum up quite a noice when it gets going. It will be interesting to see if that has improved when we play them in League 2 in the 2010/2011 season.
Getting to Burton
By car
Sat Nav reference: DE13 0AR
Burton is one of the more straight forward journey’s you will make on your travels as a Boro supporter. From Stevenage, get across onto the M1 and exit at junction 24 onto the A50. Follow the A50 for around 12 miles before coming off at junction 4, signposted Derby/Burton/A38. At the roundabout, take the 2nd exit onto the A38. Follow this road for a couple of miles before exiting for the A5121, signposted Burton (North). Follow this road for another 1.5 miles and the ground will appear on the right hand side.
By train
The town of Burton Upon Trent is served by East Midlands Trains and is on the same line as Derby and Birmingham. The best bet would be to get into London Euston and get on the direct train to Birmingham New Street. Change at Birmingham and then it is only a 30 minute journey to Burton. The ground is about 1.5 miles away from the station. Come out of the station and turn left. Go down the hill onto Derby Road and follow this road for just over a mile. The ground will be on the left hand side.
