Big Opinion Splitter (White Hart Lane (Tottenham Hotspur FC))

Member Name: GeordieNick

Product:	White Hart Lane (Tottenham Hotspur FC)
Date:	02/07/09 (32 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great atmosphere, close to the pitch, good capacity

Disadvantages: Run down, needs freshening up

I've been to White Hart Lane twice now as away fan and it is a football ground that splits my personal opinion to another level. Both times I have went the game has been on a Sunday and both times the Victoria line has been closed, the main link to the stadium. I know this isn't to do with Spurs but it is a pain nonetheless. There is about a 15 minute walk to the ground from a station down a busy street. I couldn't see the ground until it shocked me by appearing on the right out of nowhere. The first thing I noticed upon approaching the ground was how run down and out of date it looked. From looking at it from the outside I could understand why Spurs are planning to develop a new ground because it looks very weathered. However I was hoping this would lead to a great atmosphere inside the ground and I wasn't dissapointed.

The first time i went there with Newcastle we won 4-1 and were located in the lower tier and this was brilliant, but the most recent time in our 1-0 loss we were stuck in the upper tier, which is OK except if like me you are right at the back. After paying £45 for a ticket you don't expect there to be a big security box dangling down from the roof that covers half the pitch whenever you stand up! And as toon fans we allways stand up so I had to spend the whole game squatting like I was using a public toilet but not wanting to sit down because the seat was full of someones urine. In my stand I thought the ground was visibly falling apart as well but in fairness, away ends are usually not great.

That aside though, because of the style of ground and being close to the pitch it lead for a great atmosphere. It is rare nowadays to see a ground with a capacity as big as White Hart Lane's for fans at all sides, even on the upper tier to seem close to the pitch and that is what is special about this ground. I do hope with their new ground they don't opt for the modern bowl shaped ground and try find a way to keep some of the atmosphere that is possessed at a Spurs match.

Summary: A run down stadium but a good old fashioned English stadium.