Planet Swans ArchivesIt was a nice early start for us for the trip to Darlington, the double-decker – Only 72 seats this week and not much leg room. The one coach left Swansea at around 6:30am for the long trip up north – estimated to be around 7 hours. I tried to get some much needed sleep, but I, like many find it very difficult to get 40 winks while on a coach.
The legend Ugo put on a few films to pass the time, but thankfully no jokes this time. We stopped in a nice little Northern pub at Bedale – Just outside Darlington – at 1:15pm for refreshments before arriving at a cold Teeside. The 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena (A bit of a mouthful for a name of a stadium!) But it’s one of the best stadiums I’ve been to.
It’s a 25,000+ seater, which looks a little smaller, height wise, to The Liberty. The facilities were good, and obviously it looked quite modern. The 301 Jacks were housed behind the goal, the pitch didn’t look in that good condition compared to the rest of the ground.
The only downside is that there are a lot of red seats, as the Quaker’s average attendance is only around 5000, there was also a big screen TV to our right. The screen was blocking some seats but I doubt they would ever be used! It’s hard to believe that Darlington are a League Two team with a Stadium like this. It’s just a shame it looked 3 quarters empty.
To be fair though there was a good atmosphere, the Darlo fans making a loud noise, although the Jackarmy – as usual – did it’s best to be just as loud. The stewards were being overly fussy, making sure every single fan was sitting down, up straight with their hands on heads and fingers on lips (Okay I made that last bit up)
The topless guy that was at Northampton and Peterborough (I really think he needs a nickname) was keeping the cold swans fans entertained when he decided to dance with the nearby steward. Much to the amusement of the stewards to our left, he’s off his head whoever he is.
The journey back was obviously a good one, the discussion being who we would want in the 3rd round draw. Many of us wanting dream ties with Man Utd, Arsenal & Liverpool etc, for me it was any Premiership club home or away.
We made good time on the way back as well, arriving back in Swansea at about 11pm. Also I would like to thank the club for the subsidised travel of just ten pounds for this trip, with 3 away games in a week it helped a lot of fans.
Ticket: £15
Coach: £10
Programme: £2.50
Total: £27.50
Current Total: £516
