News
Advice for travelling fans
Dated: 27 Oct 2012
Northumbria Police is asking for Middlesbrough fans to be patient and work with them at full time after the Sunderland game.
The location of the away fans at the Stadium of Light has changed and they are now seated in the upper tier of the North Stand.
This means to get supporters out of the ground safely officers are asking fans to wait in the stadium for a short while after full time.
The hold back will be kept to a minimum amount of time and is in place for everyone's safety.
On the day turnstiles will open at 6:30pm and fans will have access to the bars on levels one and three of the North Stand.
Level one bar – will serve alcohol before kick off, at half time and after the match has ended (while supporters are held back)
Level three bar will serve soft drinks and snacks before half time and at half time but will serve alcohol only after full time.
After full time the fans will be allowed into the bar areas on levels one and three of the north stand where they will have access to refreshments and access to toilets.
They will be asked to wait until the area outside of the ground is clear of Sunderland fans then they will be allowed to leave the ground and make their way to their transport.
Operations Command Chief Superintendent Steve Neill said: "We are asking for Middlesbrough fans to work with us and stay back in the North Stand for a short period after the game - this allows us time to clear the area at the bottom of the stand and for us to safely escort supporters from the stadium.
"We carried out a holdback of supporters at the recent derby game and it worked well - the majority of fans fully understand why we do it and are cooperative with officers and stewards.
"We've arranged with Sunderland to have the bars and toilets open on levels one and three so it's as comfortable as possible for the waiting Middlesbrough fans.
"We would ask that supporters work with police and stewards, remain patient and understand that we are doing everything we can to make sure everyone gets home safely."