FOREST AWAY: Sunderland, Friday 24th April – Fan Guide
A 25th away stop of the season. We know there will be at least three more trips after this one but we will be longing for a fourth, one final glorious voyage overseas.
After the antics in Porto and a pretty decent haul of points in the following home games, we have our first Premier League away game in what seems like bloody ages. And what I suspect is a new stadium to tick off for a fair few of the 3,000 Reds making the journey up to the North-East.
If you don’t mind, a few bits to cover in this issue’s pre-guide ramble:
I have been informed that trains are a bit of a mess for the Villa semi-final. The one service currently in the schedule is the 23:09 from Birmingham New Street, but this terminates at Derby due to engineering works. There is also the risk of the game going beyond the 90 minutes and making it much dicier to get back into Birmingham in time.
There will, of course, be a full guide coming in the days prior to the away leg but worth planning your journey with the above in mind.
They better not be intending to make us take our passports to collect tickets!
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We have a few spots left on our bus to Chelsea on Monday 4th May. The price is £30 per person and we depart from the Trent Navigation at 08:30. Drop us a DM or e-mail [email protected] to book on.
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Thank you for some nice messages and comments after another display last weekend for the Burnley game. The club, harshly in our view, got tired of the paper aeroplanes hence the switch to the sheets. It seemed to work quite well and thank you to everyone who heeded our request to take them away and recycle.
Another small development is the initiative to keep flags in seats in Lower Bridgford during the game. This seemed to work okay for the Porto and Burnley games and we’ll carry it on for the remaining games. Thanks as well to those who not only waved them but also refrained from taking them home and returned them to us at the end of the game. It helps a lot.
AWAY DAY NO.25 – Sunderland, Friday 24th April 2026, 8pm KO
Last Visit: A late Daryl Murphy goal gave us a 1-0 win in September 2017. It is our only win at the Stadium of Light since our first visit there in 1997.
Famous Visit: Given the above, I suppose it’s the 2017 game, although I do have good memories of a midweek game there in January 2004 towards the end of the Paul Hart reign when the Forest end sang ‘Paul Hart’s Red & White Army’ for ages in support of the manager.
Away End: Forest fans will be situated in the upper tier of the North Stand. As you may have seen in comms from NFFC today there will be extensive searches at the turnstiles to prevent a repeat of previous incidents from Sunderland games this season where objects have been thrown from the away section. While not a good thing at all, Sunderland could always relent and give away fans their rightful position at pitchside that everyone bar the North-East clubs manages to do.
Sunglasses / Hat Requirement: For the game itself practically nil.
TRAVEL
RAIL: A quick glance at trains shows that you can get as far as York for just before midnight on the 22:12 which I’m not even sure if you’d make. So I’ll quickly move on if you don’t mind.
But just to add the main station at Sunderland isn’t too far away from the stadium, just across the bridge into town. I believe there is also a connection from here to a dedicated Stadium of Light station closer to the ground.
ROAD: Hopefully Friday traffic heading north will be kind to us. A couple of routes from Nottingham; you could get out of the city to the east / north-east perhaps using the A614 through Ollerton to reach the A1(M), or head up the M1 and use the M18 to join the A1(M). Either way, you’ll likely join in the same spot near Doncaster.
The A1(M) will cover almost all of the remaining distance. Your decision is then the best way to approach the stadium, given it’s on the other side of the River Wear from the typical way to approach Sunderland. The most direct route is to us the A690 into the city and then look for parking on the south (city) side walking over the water to the stadium. I may be wrong but from memory trying to get across the river closer to the kick off and then back again after the game could be problematic.
I’m afraid I don’t have any solid parking leads but here are a couple of ideas:
~ In 2017 I seem to remember we popped our car into a multi-storey in the city centre not too far from the river / stadium. It was easy enough but a pain to get away afterwards.
~ Consider pulling up short of the city centre and finding a spot in the residential area off the A690. I expect much of the streets closer to town will have restrictions but you should hopefully locate some free street parking a bit further out. On the way in there is a Toby Carvery next to Barnes Park. I suspect somewhere around there will be something but sadly I’m not sure. Just be warned you are well over a mile from the stadium at this point.
Towards the end of last year a new bridge across the river – the Keel Crossing – was opening which helps ease conjestion around the ground. If heading up from the suggested parking spot it might prove easier to head to this crossing just west from the main bridge across from the city centre.
PUBS
Most pubs across town, even a little closer to the stadium will be welcoming of Forest fans. There isn’t, as far as I’m aware, a dedicated away pub but there shouldn’t be any issues drinking in pubs and mixing with home supporters.
There are lots of choices across town – I can’t for the life of me recall anything of them in great details from previous visits to Sunderland stretching back almost 25 years, but I do remember the Wetherspoons – the William Jameson – having plenty of Forest in it in 2017.
One recommendation is to try the Vault Yard. It looks a bit like the Malt Cross in Nottingham, an old music hall, and I believe that is a stop for many away fans visiting Sunderland.
As an alternative option, a little closer to the Stadium of Light, I was sent a suggestion today to try Sheepfold Stables which does look rather good. I am informed that it should accept away fans. The venue is shown on the above map just south of the ground.
Safe travels.
Up the Reds.
Matt