FOREST AWAY: Aston Villa, Europa League Semi-Final Second Leg, Thursday 7th May – Fan Guide

I can’t deny it was a little underwhelming putting this particular guide together. There isn’t much the 2,000+ Reds will need to know about a trip to Villa Park. The vast research that had gone into previous excursions isn’t really needed for this one. There isn’t any notes required on currency, the climate or any local customs. We thankfully don’t even have a ticket collection to worry about this time – thank you to NFFC for taking our points on board on this particular topic and coming to a sensible conclusion, by the way.

If it ends here, it’ll be a shame for our European quest to conclude as we shuffle off into the streets of Birmingham of all places, but we know we have given ourselves a considerable chance. And what this is – irrespective of location – is a shot at landing in a European final. As bewildering as that is for anyone like me who is still has their mental clock struggling to move on from getting stuffed at home to Millwall not too long ago.

On the other hand, some of this has started to feel comfortable. We regularly wander into the backyards of major clubs and hold our own, fairly often we deliver a bit of a trouncing as was the case at the beginning of this week. There is an ease in which Forest hold themselves as a club established in the top flight again and fighting off challengers on the continent. The banners before the first leg spoke of a European heritage rediscovered; a happy continuation of a continental melody we have all now been able to hum along to and find our own memories to keep safe.

If I asked the me of ten years ago how I’d be feeling in the days prior to a Europa League semi-final, I’d probably be fearing a lack of sleep and have legs with the structural integrity of a satsuma. I don’t doubt there will be nerves and anxiety but this ride into the later stages of the Europa League hasn’t been daunting, and it hasn’t felt undeserved or unfathomable. We have earned our shot, chiselled out a little platform to defend in the second leg and we’ll hopefully take this chance to do something historic.

While Villa are trying to whip themselves up into a frenzy for Thursday, our quiet determination, combined with some very impressive form, is a rather pleasing approach to the game. We all know this tie isn’t won, we all know it’s going to be incredibly tough against a strong Villa team but we have earned the right to be confident. We have thrived in the atmosphere of Fenerbahce, triumphed against the odds in Midtjylland and overcome the European giants of Porto on our way to this point.

Just one more step, Forest. We are all behind you.

 

AWAY DAY NO.27: Aston Villa, Europa League Semi-Final Second Leg, Thursday 7^th May, 8pm KO

While certainly not acting in any official role I’ve agreed to be the nominated fan representative in the UEFA information documents that Nottinghamshire Police submitted back in the summer. This doesn’t have any specific role attached to it but I’ve been trying to help fellow fans as much as I can across our seven games so far, and this will continue however it needs to in Birmingham. The co-operation between club, Nottinghamshire Police and ourselves has been very welcome so far and has hopefully made things easier for those travelling. Should there be any items not covered in this guide that you want to find out please let me know. I’d suggest the best option is to e-mail us at [email protected] or DM us on social media, preferably Twitter / X should you need to.

I’ve been asked quite a few times if anything has come of this role and if I’ve actually had much to do. There hasn’t been much, and a lot of the work comes before we travel in this guide and in the odd bit of liaising with authorities, but there has been the occasional moment where I have engaged with local police from the host city, or a bit of stuff around fan engagement. I was asked in Midtjylland about helping someone who had lost their passport but that wasn’t really something I could do much with. One thing I have found is that foreign police forces have sometimes been surprised I’m not going to inform them about a march from a bar to the stadium we have arranged, but I’ve usually explained that it’s not something we really got involved in.

But I will say I have thoroughly enjoyed putting these guides together for the away games. I know they have been widely read and hopefully had lots of helpful advice within them. Hopefully there is a further chapter to come but if it ends here then what a blast it has been. Honestly, it’s been an absolute privilege to go on tour across Europe with the Reds.

Onto Villa…

~ Last Visit: A really dour 3-1 defeat at the start of January. It’s hard to believe it was only a matter of months ago.

~ Famous Visit: This one. If we can progress, it’ll somehow dislodge the 5-5 from the greatest visit to Villa Park.

~ Away End: Forest fans will still be housed across both tiers down at one end of the Doug Ellis but the difference this time is our allocation being squeezed by several hundred seats in line with the minimum allocation Villa are obliged to provide.

If approaching from the Witton Station side the away end is on the first corner but expect police to divert you off the main road and round, presumably to avoid home & away supporters mixing too much outside the ground.

Forest have also noted that ticket checks will be in place at the turnstiles in lieu of a ticket collection for this fixture. I believe, but not certain, that these checks will be carried out by Forest staff and I would hope that a high level of common sense will apply as queues start to build up. But do be careful not to arrive too late and factor the possibility of extended queues into your time keeping.

TRAVEL

RAIL: As noted in a recent guide, there is unfortunately a lack of options back to Nottingham after the game. I have been provided with the following statement from Cross Country which I’ve been asked to share:

Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest

Due to the late evening kick off time, engineering works and the potential for extra time and penalties, there are no return rail services to Nottingham. Please use other modes of transport for this fixture.

In terms of before the game, there are plenty of direct services into Birmingham New Street typically leaving at 41 minutes past the hour from Nottingham, and taking around 1hr 15 mins. There are also numerous services in between with a change in Derby or Leicester.

To reach Villa Park, there is a short service from Birmingham New Street to Witton which is only a few minutes’ walk from the away end. On Thursday trains run on the hour and every half hour across the afternoon with an extra service at 18:50.

Assuming many will look to buy only a single given the lack of return journeys it may prove more cost effective to purchase these separately as it appeared to be a but cheaper to do this than buy the Nottingham – Witton journey as one. I mention this as I have said before for previous visits to Villa that if buying as one you can sometimes get your Birmingham – Witton leg for free when buying the entire journey but that doesn’t seem to be the case this time.

Finally – these trains tend to get extremely bus as kick-off draws nearer so don’t leave it too late.

For the return, the final direct service departs at 22:03 which is never going to be achievable without missing the end of the game. Beyond this the only other service is the 23:09 which runs as far as Derby and a replacement bus service runs to Nottingham. This train gets in at 23:54 and there is a 00:05 to Long Eaton which would help get some of you closer to home, but if the tie runs into extra time you aren’t going to make the 23:09 to begin with I expect. Even the services that are running back to Derby / Long Eaton are going to have a capacity that will struggle to cope and there is a real chance if too many are planning to make these services there will not be sufficient room. Hence the advice to not travel by train back to Nottingham.

ROAD: Use B23 ZRZ and park on or close to George Road. It’s about a mile from the stadium and is easily reached via Jct 6 of the M6 (Spaghetti Junction). I’d just suggesting turning your car around so it’s facing back down towards the motorway for after the game.

There is also a half decent chippy at the end of the road on the main drag down towards Villa Park.

If you need to park a bit closer to the ground then you can head down this road (Brookvale Road) and likely will find some parking (again, just make sure you are facing the right way for afterwards) but it does start to fill up early and will be busy getting away.

Given there are a couple of routes back to Nottingham I will always advise to do a quick look on the Highways Agency website on the day of the game and ensure that your intended route is free of overnight closures.

PUBS

As you may have seen, there has been some confusion regarding pubs around the stadium. NFFC published information that was then retracted and Forest supporters have now been asked to only drink around the city centre. As a result, I’m struggling to offer anything too certain beyond this but in my own communications with West Midlands Police which only took place in the last few days, they were advising of pubs that would welcome Forest supporters.

To try my best to avoid any misinformation I am going to quote the conversation and you can decide, in conjunction with the official advice from NFFC, on whether to use it or not. This is an extract from a conversation from Sunday 3^rd May with an officer from West Midlands Police:

Forza Garibaldi: I’m aware a sizeable number are planning to drink beforehand in the city centre, but for those around the stadium can you please advise on pubs that will welcome Forest fans?

West Midlands Police: There are no pubs around the stadium that will accept away fans. The advice is to drink in the city centre and travel across to the stadium.

FG: (Can you) confirm the usual (away) venues such as the Yew Tree and the Tennis Court are an option for Forest fans?

WMP: Both are an option for you.

Given the above, if heading into the city centre isn’t an option for you then I would suggest trying either the Yew Tree or the Tennis Court pubs. The Yew Tree is on the way down to the ground from the suggested parking spot above, but typically there is a charge for entry which I assume will still be in place for this game. The Tennis Court is across the other side of the ground. I’m aware this has been used by plenty of Forest fans but I’ve not been to it before.

Another option which might suit those of you driving in is to come off the M42 before joining the M6 or use the A38. On the back way in towards Villa on the A38 there is a cracking pub called the White Horse at Curdworth. We have used this as a stop a few times and you can hop back in the car for a 15/20 minute journey to the parking spot, although this will increase around rush hour / closer to kick-off.

In the city centre, there are absolutely loads of options. The Shakespeare right by New Street Station will be a popular spot. Very close by this directly opposite the main entrance to the station is a place called Bacchus; a little harder to spot as it’s down some stairs in a little shopping complex but well worth a visit. A little further into town you have the Sun on the Hill, Trocadero and, a particular favourite of mine, the Old Joint Stock.

There is also the option to head down Broad Street and find a few bars down there, plus the Brindley Place area which has plenty of bars. You won’t really go wrong.

Safe travels, enjoy your day, and I hope we all have the time of our lives.

Sing your hearts out for the lads.

One. More. Step.

Matt