Journey 7 – A journey onto the M1 followed by the M18 then took us to the greatest road name in all of Yorkshire “Great Yorkshire Way”. I must admit I do get a little excited every time I see the huge yellow Y along this road but I think this is more to do with the fact that I'm normally heading towards the airport and therefore on my holidays! The fact that the journey is predominantly on fast roads means that no matter where you are travelling from in Yorkshire you are bound to get to Rossington quicker than you think you will. This was very much welcome however as it allowed us to find roadside parking and then we had plenty of time to take in the ground before kick off. Welcome – 8 After getting parked up easily, we headed to the turnstiles and were welcomed to the ground. The turnstile was sign posted with all of the necessary QR codes which meant that checking in via eve pass was seamless. I’m really glad that all of the local clubs have opted for the same app as it has meant all turnstiles queues have been dealt with really quickly. It is really remarkable how well organised our local clubs are when you bear in mind they are heavily reliant on volunteers and the good will of the local community. The welcome we received from the bar staff in the clubhouse was brilliant and adds to the warm feeling you get from this club. Despite it being fairly obvious that there were many regulars at Rossington the club feels far from cliquey. Ground – 9 This is easily one of the most charismatic grounds we have in our local area and is therefore a must visit! The ground has two seated stands and a shelter between both dugouts. I absolutely loved the rusty floodlights as it
really made you realise just how long football has been played here for. You couldn’t help but imagine climbing
the ladders of the floodlights to see what this great ground looks like from above. The groundsman deserves a
massive pat on the back because the pitch itself is like a carpet, great for teams looking to keep it on the deck. Opposite the dugouts in the second seated stand there are two large flagpoles either side, I spent much of the half time break trying to get a picture that would do these flags justice because they really are fantastic and give the ground a tick in the “unique” box for sure. In the left corner of the ground there is also a seated area of benches that are rather modern and look brilliant plus they also have a place to put your pint during the game!
Oh and one more thing, enjoying the football but your young child is a bit restless? Behind the fence on the left (as you enter the ground) you’ll find a children’s play area! Now it’s not exactly Alton towers but there's a good little field and a couple of goals for the kids to knock a ball about in which was very much in use.
Clubhouse – 10 Now this is arguably the most deceptive clubhouse around in our local area! Like Doctors Who’s Tardis it was much larger on the inside than it appeared from the outside! Thinking about it, the clubhouse itself is blue and rectangular from the outside so that fits our description even better. There is sky tv, a neat little bar and the hot
drinks hatch is bang next to the bar so our order of a pint of bitter and a tea was quick and efficient. The clubhouse itself is decorated in a modern way and there's no wonder that plenty of the supporters chose to stay for a few jars after the game as it had a really pleasant atmosphere , ideal for watching any late kick offs or watching the pro scores come in at the end of the match. To the left of the bar is a cabinet of football memorabilia which helps hit home just how much Rosso have contributed to the game over their 101 year history. This is definitely a clubhouse that is worth a few beers in hence the perfect score of 10! Well done Rosso! Beer – 7 The clubhouse has a tidy range of beers that will suit all tastes from ciders to bitters to lagers so there is something for even the most awkward of punter. As mentioned earlier the service is friendly and efficient so you couldn’t ask for much more! But if we are to make a suggestion it would be great to see a local ale available but of course we know that’s always easier said than done with clubhouses not benefitting from the same opening hours as pubs.
Food – N/A We didn’t get a chance to sample the food but I did see a fella very much enjoying his pie and peas before the game and it looked delicious! So you know what that means...another reason to go back! Programme – N/A We were keen to get hold of a programme as it looked great from what we saw on the Rosso twitter. Having forgotten to ask for one at the turnstile, we then headed back after buying a pint but by this time the remaining programmes had been taken by the sponsors. Lesson learnt, next time we’ll ask as soon as we arrive! Match Quality – 9 A passionate affair between Rossington and Nostell led to a fantastic clash that we thoroughly enjoyed. There was plenty on the line with a sizable difference in prize money between the days winners and losers and this led to a competitive game between two teams that were up for it. Rossington squandered an opportunity to go ahead in the game with a penalty that wasn’t converted. Just before the half time break
Nostell played some very tidy football and this lead to a beautiful finish from Amir Berchil to put Nostell in the drivers seat. Rossington really huffed and puffed in the second half but didn’t quite work the goalkeeper enough for their liking. A clash between two players in the last twenty minutes lead to some handbags and on another day the referee could have been well within his right to dish out a fair few red cards but he chose not to on this occasion. The game was wrapped up in the final minute with a stunning effort from outside the area from Brett Smith which guaranteed Nostell’s place in the next round. An honourable mention has to go to the captain of Rossington Main who is a very vocal chap who really got stuck into the opponents both verbally and physically and really came across as a leader in his team. I was pleased to say that despite his words about his opponents and the referee he was very sporting at the final whistle. Admission Price – 10 A perfect 10! Why? Well you’ve read about the match and the charismatic facilities and we got to see all of that for £5! Throw a pint in and we still had change from a tenner. I’m still bemused by the fact that more football fans don’t come and visit their local club, I can only assume it’s from not knowing as these days out really do beat
watching a professional club on a garbage internet stream with piped in crowd noise and dodgy VAR decisions. If you’re looking for something to do on a Saturday then check out Rosso’s upcoming fixtures and get yourself to Oxford Road, you definitely won’t regret it. We’ll be definitely back as we now want to see Rosso “Under the lights.” Check out our pictures in the slideshow below!