LINCOLN CITY V IPSWICH TOWN SUNDAY 29 DECEMBER 2019, KICK OFF 15:00

Information in this guide is correct as at 12 December. Any updated information on this fixture will be published on the club website (www.itfc.co.uk), twitter (@IpswichTown and @ITFC_Tickets) and facebook (www.facebook.com/officialitfc).

INFORMATION FOR TOWN FANS

We travel to Lincoln City on Sunday 29 December in League One. The following guide has been produced for Town fans making the trip to the newly named LNER Stadium. This is based on information on the Lincoln City website plus additional information specific to this game. It also helps that we were there very recently, in our FA Cup 1st Round replay.

For any further information, please contact Elizabeth Edwards, Supporter Liaison Officer on [email protected] or (+44) (0) 7968 876504 or on Twitter at @ITFC_SLO.

Lincoln City information for visiting fans

Address: Lincoln City Football Club, LNER Stadium, Lincoln, , LN5 8LD

Website: https://www.weareimps.com/

Phone number: 01522 880011

Email Addresses: [email protected] or [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lincolncityfc/

Twitter: @LincolnCity_FC

Supporter Liaison Officers: Alan Long, Heidi Langham, Kevin Morley, Paul Pyrah, Lindsay Warwick – email: [email protected]

Disability Liaison Officer: [email protected]

The Lincoln away supporters guide can be found here: https://www.weareimps.com/siteassets/club/away-supporters- guide/bp_lincolncity_visitingsupportersguide-v8-23-07-19.pdf

www.footballgroundguide.com provides some information here: https://www.footballgroundguide.com/leagues/england/league-one/sincil-bank-lincoln-city.html

We have picked out the key information for Town fans below and added other material based on our own experience of visiting the LNER Stadium and information that is specific to our fans.

Specific information for Town fans:

Ticket news

Tickets for the game are £26 for adults, £22 for seniors 60+ and U22s and £11 for U18s.

Subject to availability, tickets can be purchased from www.itfcdirect.com (under tickets/away matches) or in Planet Blue on a non-matchday or at the Ticket Office on Constantine Road on a home matchday.

Note that a designated area has been allocated to supporters who are less able to stand for prolonged periods. If you wish to be in this area you should call the ticket office on 03330 050503. Note that tickets will be subject to availability.

Disabled fans requiring tickets should contact ITFC’s Disability Liaison Officer Lee Smith on 01473 400556 or by email on [email protected].

Please note that the tickets display a kick-off time of 15:00 - 17:00. If you have a concession ticket it will appear that kick-off is at 17:00. We can confirm that the game will kick-off at 15:00.

Travelling to Lincoln

Supporters Coach

Official coach travel for this is game is sold out. There will be no further coaches added.

If you are booked on a coach these will leave Portman Road promptly at 09:40 (please be at Portman Road at least 15 minutes before this). Coaches are estimated to arrive back at Portman Road at 21:00.

Pick-ups at Stowmarket, Bury St Edmunds and Newmarket can be arranged for this game. If you want to organise a pick-up please call the Ticket Enquiries Team on 03330 050503 or email [email protected]. Your details will then be passed onto the coach company, Suffolk Norse.

Note that all official coaches are non-smoking and the consumption of alcohol on board is strictly forbidden. ITFC recommend that all supporters under 16 are accompanied by an adult.

Car

The long-term roadworks on the A14 (several miles either side of Cambridge) are resulting in evening and weekend road closures. These are not normally announced until just a day or two in advance. We recommend that you keep an eye on @A14C2H on Twitter – any closures are announced here.

The Sat Nav postcode for the stadium is LN5 8LD. From Ipswich take the A14 to the A1. We have read that an 8-mile stretch of the new road has been opened, leading up to the A1 – if you follow a satnav, please bear in mind that it is likely to get very confused, and make sure you follow the road signs instead! From the A1 take the A46 towards A17 / Sleaford / Lincoln / Newark. At the Hykeham Roundabout take the 3rd exit onto the Newark Road / A1434. After about 3 miles the road becomes St Catherines (A1434) and then St Catherines (A15). At the roundabout, take the 1st exit onto High Street / B1262. Turn right onto Scorer Street and right again onto Cross Street. The stadium is at the end of Cross Street.

This route will take you to the LNER Stadium. You may want to use a Sat Nav postcode for parking, though (see parking below).

As noted above there are major long-term roadworks on the A14 for several miles either side of Cambridge, with a 40mph limit policed by cameras.

Google maps indicates a typical travel time of around 3 hours but warns that it can take up to 4 hours depending on travel conditions. Roads maybe busy being the holiday period.

An alternative route is via the A14 / A1088 / A1066 / A134 / A10 and A17. You will join the A15 from the A17 and when you reach St Catherines follow the instructions above. This route takes around 3 hours to 3 hours 50 minutes.

The third option is the A14 / A142 / A10 /A1101 and the A17 to the A15. The route has a similar journey time to the second route.

We generally recommend allowing at least an hour beyond the AA / Google / SatNav suggested journey time.

Parking

There is no parking for away fans at the stadium.

Lincoln City suggest the South Common Car Park (LN5 8LN) which is pay on the day at a cost of £4. This car park is only a 5-10 minute walk from the stadium with parking available for 250 cars. Note that this car park is not available at all home games – we will try to advise if this is not the case for this game.

There is also a special parking deal for home and away fans at City of Lincoln Council car parks (except Lincoln Central Car Park) on match days. When parking, use the PayByPhone app and use the special code 801323 (not the one on display in the car park itself) to receive a discounted rate of just £4.25 from 8am until midnight on a match-day. You can walk from any of these car parks (Tentercroft Street is the closest) via High Street, Scorer Street, and Cross Street to reach the stadium. To find out about more car parks in Lincoln at www.visitlincoln.com/carparks. www.footballgroundguide.com comments that if you follow the signs for ‘away coaches’ this leads to the A158 South Park Avenue, where there is plenty of street parking. This is around a ten-minute walk to the ground.

Disabled Supporters Parking

Supporters with disabilities should contact the Lincoln Ticket Office by calling 01522 880011 or by emailing [email protected].

Alternatively, contact ITFC’s Disability Liaison Officer Lee Smith on 01473 400556 or by email on [email protected].

Train

Note 1: If you are intending on travelling via London, buses replace trains between Ingatestone and Newbury Park.

Note 2: Also note that, at the time of writing this guide, all train services between Ipswich and Peterborough are suspended, with no indication as to when they may be reinstated. We have produced this guide based on the normal timetable, but warn that this may not be valid. Please check that your planned services are operating, or that alternative services via Cambridge will make required connections.

Lincoln Central train station is on the East Coast, and Northern train routes.

With the game being on a Sunday there are limited options by train.

It is possible to get to Lincoln cross-country with one train indicated on www.greateranglia.co.uk getting to Lincoln in time for the game. This train leaves Ipswich at 09:55. With changes at Peterborough and , you arrive in Lincoln at 13:25. After the game there is a train from Lincoln at 18:00. With one change at Peterborough (there is a 48 minute wait for the train to Ipswich) you will arrive back in Ipswich at 21:25. There is another option leaving Lincoln at 19:22. However this journey is much longer arriving back in Ipswich at 00:10 with changes at Newark North Gate, Peterborough and Cambridge.

Note the trains that Ipswich to Peterborough trains are small – at best three carriages, and it is by no means unknown for there to be only two (or even just one) so they can be very busy.

It is possible to travel via London but the journey time is much longer than cross-country. In addition, the timings indicated by www.greateranglia.co.uk show that there is little contingency for delay. This is in addition to the rail replacement bus between Ingatestone and Newbury Park.

The 08:56 train from Ipswich will take you to Ingatestone where you pick up the bus. From Newbury Park you take the underground to Kings Cross (Central Line to Holborn, Piccadilly Line to Kings Cross or Central Line to Bank and Northern Line to Kings Cross). Here you pick up a train at 12:03 to Newark North Gate, changing here for a train to Lincoln. This is scheduled to arrive in Lincoln at 14:02. There are earlier trains from Ipswich to London starting at 07:43 but none are shown as connecting to trains at Kings Cross to Lincoln.

After the game there is an 18:00 train from Lincoln to London Kings Cross. This arrives in London at 19:48 and is shown to connect to the 22:10 train from Ingatestone to Ipswich, which arrives in Ipswich at 23:12. There are also trains from Lincoln at 18:05 (change at Newark Castle, Newark North Gate, Kings Cross, Newbury Park, Ingatestone) and 19:22 (change at Newark North Gate, Kings Cross, Newbury Park, Ingatestone) which connect to trains which arrive in Ipswich at 23:44 and 00:52 respectively.

If you are travelling from London there are a number of trains from London Kings Cross on the day of the game. Some are direct, others involve a change, either at Newark North Gate or Retford. After the game there are trains at 18:00 (direct), 18:05 ((change at Newark Castle, Newark North Gate), 18:12 (change at Retford) and 19:22 (change at Newark North Gate). There are some later options as well.

Whatever your travel plans, you should check www.greateranglia.co.uk or your usual train operator website for updated times.

Getting from the railway station to the ground

Lincoln train station is a 15 minute walk from the stadium.

The walk goes along High Street, Scorer Street, and Cross Street which is where you will find the stadium. www.footballgroundguide.com provides the following instructions if you do decide to walk:

‘Turn left out of the train station and walk up to the traffic lights next to St. Mary's church. Turn left at these traffic lights onto the High Street, walking over the railway level crossing. Walk along the High Street (passing many pubs) for approximately 10 minutes before turning left into Scorer Street. Walk along Scorer Street until you come to a bridge across the Sincil Drain river. Turn right immediately after crossing the bridge onto Sincil Bank, the ground is straight ahead.

Alternatively, there is a shorter route (which doesn’t pass the pubs): Come out of the station and turn right to go down the road. About 30 yards ahead on your right you will see some steps and a bridge over the railway. Go over the bridge and once on the other side follow the road down to the ground.’

Pubs

As mentioned below there is a Fan Zone outside the stadium which welcomes away fans. This includes a number of food outlets.

Otherwise, there are plenty of pubs on the High Street and in the Cathedral Quarter. www.footballgroundguide.com mentions the Hop and Barley micropub (417A High Street, LN5 8HX) and the Golden Eagle (21 High Street, LN5 8BD) which is a Castle Rock Brewery pub. There is a Wetherspoon’s called The Ritz (143 – 147 High Street, LN5 7PJ). Another Wetherspoon’s, the Square Sail (Brayford Wharf North, LN1 1YW) is in the Marina Area which is not far from the train station. There are a number of other eating and drinking places here as well. To find the Marina area look for the large Odeon Cinema.

Also, near to Lincoln Railway Station is the Treaty of Commerce (173 High Street, LN5 7AF). This is a Batemans pub with three Batemans on draught and two guest beers on offer.

Need cash?

Card payments are not accepted in the away kiosks inside the stadium and there are no cash points inside the stadium. The nearest cash machine is located at the convenience store on Lincoln High Street (LN5 8HX).

At the ground

Upon your arrival at the LNER Stadium the Lincoln City Supporter Liaison Officers will be located around the stadium and at the University of Lincoln Fan Zone should you have any queries.

Fan Zones

Situated outside the Travis Perkins Suite, the University of Lincoln Fan Zone is free to all and gives both home and away fans the chance to purchase refreshments. There is also a variety of entertainment on offer.

Alternatively, there is also a fan zone behind the Stacey West stand.

There are mobile catering kiosks around the stadium footprint and in the University of Lincoln Fan Zone which are all part of the Lincoln Street Food Collective, from the likes of the ever popular YellowBelly Sausage Company, Curry Jacks, Kind Kebab and The Good Grub Catering Co.

Tickets on the day

It is very unlikely that tickets will be available on the day of the game. Information will be published on the club website (www.itfc.co.uk), twitter (@Official_ITFC and @ITFC_Tickets) and facebook (www.facebook.com/officialitfc).

If you have any ticketing related queries on the day, the Lincoln City Ticket Office is located within the stadium along with the club shop.

Away end

Visiting supporters are housed in the Stacey West Stand behind the goal.

Note that block 5 has been allocated to older fans, families, those unable to stand for long periods of time and ambulant disabled fans. Please bear this in mind and respect those who want to sit at this game as we want everyone to enjoy the day safely.

Wheelchair bays available in front of the Stacey West Stand. For any other queries/accessibility requirements, please email [email protected] or contact ITFC’s Disability Liaison Officer Lee Smith on 01473 400556 or by email on [email protected].

Security

As at all grounds, expect to be searched before entering the ground.

Programmes

The official Matchday Programme ‘We Are Imps’ is full of exclusive interviews, content and much more. It is available from the official sellers located outside and within the stadium.

Food and Drink facilities

You'll find refreshment facilities near the entrance to the away end, which sell a range of pies, burgers, hot dogs, confectionary and hot and cold soft drinks. All food is cooked and served fresh so there maybe queues at peak times. We understand that alcohol is not on sale in the away end.

The products on sale around the stadium are all sourced from local companies, such as pies and sausage rolls from Curtis’ bakers of Lincoln as well as other locally sourced & made products.

Please note that card payments are not accepted in the away kiosks inside the stadium.

Smoking

Smoking of cigarettes and e-cigarettes anywhere in the stadium is not permitted. Designated smoking bubbles can be used during intervals. Note that supporters are not allowed to leave and return to the stadium.

Non-permitted items

Non-permitted items within the stadium include: Bottles, cans, video cameras, cameras (excluding mobiles), pyrotechnics and flags larger than 250 cm in size at widest/longest point. Flags smaller than this must be fire retardant and use either wood or plastic poles.

Anti Social Behaviour – Matchday Text Line

If you should hear or see any racist language and/or behaviour during a match-day, please report this to your nearest steward.

Lincoln City also advise that any supporter who persistently uses expletives could face a ban from the stadium. Supporters who become the victim of (or witness) any abuse, can report it anonymously by texting Lincoln City’s safe text number, 07384 271937.

Alternatively, you can report it through the 'Kick It Out' app.” The Kick It Out app is available to download from the App Store or Google Play, or via: Facebook /kickitoutofficial; Twitter @kickitout; email [email protected]; phone 0800 169 9414.

Planning on spending more time or staying in Lincoln?

If you are planning on spending more time in Lincoln or have a few hours to spare prior to the game, the Lincoln City visiting supporters guide includes some useful information on things to do (including if you have an hour or two hours or three hours spare before the game). The guide can be found here: https://www.weareimps.com/siteassets/club/away-supporters- guide/bp_lincolncity_visitingsupportersguide-v8-23-07-19.pdf

The guide also mentions that near to the LNER Stadium is Brayford Waterfront which is home to three hotels – The Holiday Inn, DoubleTree by Hilton, and Holiday Inn Express – this is a 30 minute walk to the stadium.

Close-by the historic area of Lincoln, known as the Cathedral Quarter, includes a number of hotels. Within this area there are the White Hart and The Lincoln.

For more information search for places to stay at www.visitlincoln.com/stay.