CARROW ROAD - NORWICH CITY
What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters?
Away fans are housed on one side of the new South Stand, on one side of the ground. As you would expect from a new stand the facilities and view of the playing action are good. The normal allocation in this area is 2,500 fans although this can be increased further for cup games. If you are located at the very back of this stand then you can enjoy some fine views across the city, including Norwich Cathedral. The Club I found to be particularly friendly and relaxed. I certainly would rate it as one of the better away days, even though it seems an eternity to get there. As Delia Smith is on the board of Norwich City, the food available within the ground has been spruced up a fair bit and is very good. The Club even bake their own pies which not only include the usual array such as steak & kidney, chicken & mushroom, but also a number of 'matchday specials' (which change from game to game) such as beef in red wine gravy & cheese, mushroom and garlic.
Tom Jameson a visiting Sheffield United fan informs me; 'I recently visited Carrow Road and found it to be a pleasant, relaxing atmosphere which made for a very enjoyable day out. The stand is very modern, and offers a decent view of the action with plenty of leg room. One problem I did encounter was the tendency of the stewards to order away supporters to keep seated throughout the game. This led to our fans singing 'Sit down, if you hate Wednesday' instead of the usual 'Stand up, if you hate Wednesday' and 'Sit down, stand up, which did not go down too well with the stewards who in my mind very harshly ejected one supporter from the stadium. So it is advisable to comply with the steward requests, although I did find it all rather annoying'.
Where To Drink?
The main pub for away fans is the 'Compleat Angler', which is located opposite the railway station. It is situated on a river bank and has a nice outside terrace outside overlooking the river. The pub itself is a bit basic but offers food and is away fan friendly. It is a about a ten minute walk away from Carrow Road. Otherwise Norwich has a number of pubs located in its centre, in fact on one visit I found a number of good pubs situated in-between the train station and the ground, that were friendly. In fact I almost ended up being a pub crawl before the match had begun!
Rob Emery informs me; 'Not far away from the ground and towards the City Centre a new leisure complex called the Riverside has opened. This has a number of drinking and eating establishments, including a Wetherspoons Lloyds No.1 outlet. Whilst Nicholas Mead suggests; 'the Coach and Horses on Thorpe Road brews its own beer and is around a 10 minute walk away from the ground'.
How To Get There By Car & Where To Park
The ground is well signposted from the A11 and A47. From the southern bypass (A47) take the A146 into the city. At the traffic lights turn right towards the city centre on the A1054. At the next roundabout stay in the left hand lane and continue towards the city centre along the A147. At the next set of traffic lights, turn right into King Street. This street as it bends around to the right and crosses the river becomes Carrow Road, the ground is further down on the right.
David Clarke informs me that 'The best car park for away fans is Norfolk County Hall, which is well sign posted on the left of the A146, as you follow signs towards the ground from the Southern Bypass. It is currently £6 and can hold about 2000 cars, and does usually fill up by 2pm for games where the away team bring loads of fans'. Martyn Swan adds; 'It's advisable to get to the car park before 1pm if you want a decent spot, otherwise you may get stuck in spaces at the back, and it can then take ages at the end of the game to exit'.
After the game has ended some roads are closed to allow the crowd to disperse quickly and safely. For details of precisely which roads are closed, visit the Norwich City Council website.
Post Code for SAT NAV: NR1 1JE
By Train
The ground is walkable from Norwich train station. If you ignore all those wonderful pubs it should take you no more than 10 minutes to walk to the ground. From the station turn left and head for the Morrisons supermarket and you should see the ground behind that.
Remember if travelling by train then you can normally save on the cost of fares by booking in advance. Visit the thetrainline website to see how much you can save.