Ground 15: New Broomfield

New Broomfield

Game: Airdrie 0 v 0 Raith Rovers

Date: Saturday 24th November 2012

Competition: Scottish Football League Division 1

Attendance: 747

Admission: £16

Programme: £2

When I sat down to write this post I checked my phone where I keep the notes that I keep when watching games. Tellingly I didn’t write a lot about this game. There were a few reasons for this: it was very, very cold and there wasn’t a great deal to write about. I was also sitting with my friend Graeme and his family who are great company and kept us entertained.

A trip to New Broomfield meant another trip along the M8 and we made the game just in time for kick-off. Getting parked was simple as there are two car parks at the ground but I was very impressed in the recent changes to area surrounding the ground – where was once wasteland there are now several five-a-side pitches.

New Broomfield was built at the time that SPL clubs were insisting that clubs in the top division must have a ground capable of holding 10,000 seated fans. Why this rule was necessary was never quite explained but it cost clubs like Airdrie who harboured ambitions of returning to the top flight but had to divert cash away from their playing squad to finance grounds they would rarely fill. Unsurprising, Airdrie got into financial difficulties and are only in existence today because of the collapse of Clydebank.

As a sign of the times, all the fans for this match were held in the main stand meaning that three quarters of the ground were closed.

As I mentioned, Airdrie have invested in artificial surfaces outside and in the stadium too which are all available to hire, showing initiative that many other clubs could follow. If I could summarise this game it would be to say the game was played at a quick pace but sadly without a great deal of quality. Especially in the final third. The more games I watch this season, the more it becomes apparent that having a serious frontman with a bit of quality could be the difference between midtable and relegation.

Throughout the 90 minutes both teams huffed and puffed but unfortunately there was no breakthrough. Arguably Airdrie were on top for most of the match until they were reduced to ten men then Rovers were able to ratchet up the pressure. No goals sadly, my first this season, but plenty to enjoy about this visit to New Broomfield.