Written by Max
Hospitality #1
Saturday 11th November 2023
EFL League 2
Crewe Alexandra 1-0 Notts County
Attendance: 5,663
Hospitality ticket: £78
In just over 3 years we have visited and rated 55 grounds, but we thought now was the time to up it a notch! You see, we are fancy now, and only the best will do! That’s why we decided to ditch the pukka pies and join the prawn sandwich brigade in hospitality (for one week anyway!) We thought we would talk you through our day in the posh seats and give our thoughts on the hospitality offered at the ground!
The 2 of us, alongside my Dad and Grandad turned up to the Mornflake Stadium at 12:30 and were escorted to our table in the Wrights Lounge within the main stand. There we were handed our welcome drink of prosecco while we perused the menu.
We ordered some drinks and chose our food. For starter I went for the sweetcorn fritters while Emma chose the tomato soup. These were both presented really well and Emma said the soup was very tasty.
For main course we all went for the chicken breast which was served with a fondant potato, green beans wrapped in bacon and all coated in a creamy mushroom sauce. This was definitely the highlight of the meal and we all really enjoyed it.
Finally it was onto dessert, and we both chose the Eton mess. This was a small but tasty portion that topped the meal off well. The food was all served really efficiently and we had all finished our meals by 1:30 leaving plenty of time to order another drink before the pre match entertainment began.
At 2 o clock the teams were announced by the on stage compere and teamsheets were handed round. We then got to hear an interview with BBC Radio Stoke’s Graham McGarry as well as this games special guest, former Crewe defender Adam Dugdale.
We finished our drinks and headed up the posh staircase into the directors box. We were shown to our padded seat. This had seen better days and we noticed that the seats in this area actually seemed more cramped together than the normal seats in the stand so it was a bit of a squeeze!
At half time we headed back into the Wrights Lounge and back to our table where we were greeted with plates full of biscuits and cakes as well as free tea and coffee.
With all the excitement of the hospitality we almost forgot there was a game on! The game itself was a really close contest between two sides towards the top of the division. Crewe were the better side in the first half, but in the second the visitors were pilling the pressure on. Just as it seemed the game would end in a probably deserved 0-0 draw, a Crewe breakaway against the run of play saw a 98th minute penalty given for handball. It was confidently dispatched to top our fancy day out with a huge 3 points.
So the big question a lot of you that have got this far would have is, well, is hospitality worth it?
Well the answer we have is, sort of? The ticket was £51 more than a general admission ticket, and included in that was the welcome drink, 3 course meal, half time refreshments and of course the padded seat with a great view of the game. It was a really enjoyable day and something completely different to a normal matchday. We would recommend anyone that hasn’t done it before to give it a go as it supports the club whilst also making the matchday that little bit more special. For my bank balances sake I’ll make sure Emma is paying next time though!
To see how we rated a ‘normal’ matchday at Gresty Road, CLICK HERE
Emma’s Ground Guide 