V is for VVV Venlo by retired Sec
Well a pre Christmas trip to Holland was needed to ease
those pre-Xmas blues caused by the meaning of life, and what’s the point the
world is being messed up by thick people anyway led me to spend 4 days in
Holland. 3 games were watched, starting
with Ajax of Amsterdam as their song goes where I watched them lose their first
league game of the season, and finishing at Rotterdam where I watched one of
those boring nil nil draws. Sandwiched in between was the highlight of my trip,
a visit to Venlo.
Now why Venlo I hear you ask? Well in 1951 there were a series of matches
played by British teams in the Festival of Britain against European teams, and
on Saturday 19 May Merthyr lost 4-1 to Venlo.
So a trip was in order.
A pleasant train journey from Amsterdam to
Venlo started off my day in style. What
a refreshing change to be able to buy a ticket which cost the same no matter
when you bought it, and you could travel on any train. What flexibility it gives paying
customers. I wonder if that will catch
on in rip-off Britain? Venlo was
decorated with Christmas lights and decorations, and looked a pretty
place. I was struck with how clean it
was, by the number of people who cycles, and as in other parts of Holland as
well I did not see any homeless people on the streets.
There was a thriving Saturday afternoon market where you
could buy an incredible array of goods.
I sampled some of the food, which was delightful. I found a pub showing the Bournemouth
Liverpool game before setting off to Stadion De Koel. Now I had problems buying a ticket for this
game through the official website. It
seems that due to fans from other clubs like Ajax buying tickets in the home
end they have introduced a system where you verify your details using your Dutch
bank account. I did email the club but
found them unhelpful, non-responsive even.
Now I knew Venlo rarely sell out so could have taken a chance and left
it to the day, but that’s not something I can do I’m afraid. So I did the think I hate, and bought a
ticket off a tout at double the price.
When I got to the club shop though a rather helpful lady who served me
updated my account to by-pass the ID check for future match purchases.
I bought some items in the shop, including a hoodie and
shirt with the full club name Venlosche Voetbal Vereniging (Venlo Football
Association), which is in some way linked with the legendary Mikan Jovanovic,
on it. Jovanovic has an interesting
background. Born in the former Yugoslavia
he played for FK Crvenka a team
based in what we now call Serbia. He
then moved to Holland and Venlo in 1973 and played for 8 years. He took the country to his heart, and his now
a Dutch citizen.
Venlo were struggling in the relegation zone, but they
replaced the coach and they got the inevitable bounce and won 2-0 against FC Emmen. Venlo’s stadium is in a bit of a bowl, with
stands on different levels. We have one
level at the top, and then a lower level pitch side. It made for an interesting atmosphere, with
the sound in bottom of the bowl and what seemed like an echo from above. Venlo also have a 3G pitch, which is not
common in the Dutch Eredivisie but there were no complaints from the pros. It was an even first half which saw Venlo
take the lead, and in the 2nd half Venlo secured a 2-0 win against a
Emmen team that finished with 10 men. It
was an enjoyable experience and one I am keen to repeat next season. Venlo is definitely worth a visit for any
fellow football geeks/nerds out there.
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