Ground #279 - Farum Park

Date: 1st October 2018
Ground: Farum Park
Location: Farum, Hovedstaden, Denmark

My twenty-seventh new ground of 2018 was on Monday 1st October at Farum Park in Farum, Hovedstaden, Denmark. The match was Nordsjælland vs. SønderjyskE in the Danish Superliga.

Farum Park is located in a sporting complex on the west side of the town. To the north of the football stadium are two full-size football pitches, two mini pitches and a swimming pool centre. To the east are a couple more mini pitches and an orienteering club while to the south there is a tennis club, a squash club and a karate school. The western side is the only side not bordered by activity centres with a housing estate beyond the access road and trees. The ground is one mile west of Farum railway station which is part of the A-Line and H-Line on the Copenhagen S-Train network. The venue has been home to Nordsjælland and their predecessors Farum BK since it opened in 1999.

Farum Park is a compact bowl-shaped venue with uniform stand height the whole way round. The seating in each stand is split into two separate zones with the section of yellow plastic seats towards the front and the larger back section of maroon cushioned seats with the latter having the luxury of cup holders. The South Stand has corporate facilities all along the back of it as well as a media section to the right of the halfway line. There is a gap in seating in the middle of the stand and above this is the main TV gantry with room for commentators. There are a couple more smaller TV gantry spots towards either end which were also in use with this game having been selected for broadcast.

The North Stand has a lounge hospitality area for most of the area behind the main seating while the two dugouts are located at pitch level in front of the seating along with the tunnel back to the player dressing rooms. The West Stand is mainly seating though directly behind the goal there is a terrace section for fans wishing to stand during the game. The western end has a lot of the stadium infrastructure in it namely a hotel, a gym, a restaurant and the club shop. It also has hospitality viewing areas for just under half the length of the stand at the back of the seating and there are gaps in the spectator areas to allow access to this. Next to this in the north-west corner is the Sky Bar which looks out over the pitch. There is a similar structure at south-west corner though it was not in use during my visit. At the opposite end of the pitch there is a comparable set-up with the seating split by a terraced standing section directly behind the goal. This end is given over to away fans. It is the only stand without corporate facilities at the back of it though there is a large screen in the south-east corner which replays the game. With this and the two Sky Bars encroaching on the seating areas the only quadrant with a full area of seating to the back of the stand is the north-east quadrant. The two standing areas provide space for 250 fans at each end with the overall stadium capacity of 10,300 (9,800 of which are seated).

The teams went into the game with an identical win/draw/loss record with Nordsjælland having a pretty poor start to the season off the back of the previous season's top 3 finish in the Superliga. The hosts took the first step to putting that right when they took the lead in the 8th minute - a cross into the area was cleared as far as Karlo Bartolec who rode a challenge before curling a superb 20 yard effort into the top corner. The lead was doubled in the 17th minute when a swift counter attack saw Jonathan Amon play a great pass through to Andreas Skov Olsen in the area. Olsen rounded the keeper and though his effort hit the post it bounced straight back to the feet of Godsway Donyoh who tapped into an empty net from two yards out. The home side continued to press and looked likely to get a third but in the 37th minute they gifted SønderjyskE a way back into the game. A hanging cross from Eggert Jónsson made its way into the area but despite the long time for the ball to come back down Nordsjælland keeper Nicolai Larsen completely missed it his punch resulting in the ball bouncing off the head of defender Victor Nelsson and trickling over the line for an own goal. Nordsjælland reacted well and began to churn out more chances with a nice passing move in the 40th minute culminating in Jonathan Amon being slipped clean through. Amon shot straight at keeper Sebastian Mielitz from a few yards out though leaving the game at 2-1 at the break. Into the second half and in the 52nd minute a away corner was cleared as far cleared as Victor Ekani who chested the ball down before half volleying it from 25 yards. Nicolai Larsen did well to get down and palm the ball away to safety. This was Ekani's last meaningful contribution as four minutes later he received his marching orders for a second yellow. It came as he took two attempts to hack down Mohammed Kudus as Nordsjælland countered from a SønderjyskE free-kick. For some reason Ekani protested his innocence but replays showed he was nowhere near the ball and was rightfully dismissed. The man advantage was just what the hosts were looking for to get a grip back on the game and they re-established a two-goal lead in the 68th minute. Quick as a flash the ball was lofted over the right wing and a good first time cross into the six yard box from Andreas Skov Olsen was met by Godsway Donyoh who steered the ball in off the far post. In the 81st minute the home side rounded off the win with a near-identical goal to the last one. Again the ball was lofted to the right wing to Andreas Skov Olsen, again he squared into the six yard box and again Godsway Donyoh was on the end of it to stroke home. This was Donyoh's third of the evening securing him the match ball at the end of an impressive attacking display from Nordsjælland.

Result: Nordsjælland 4-1 SønderjyskE
Division: Danish Superliga
Attendance: 2,207

Ground #277 - Espelundens Idrætsanlæg

Date: 30th September 2018
Ground: Espelundens Idrætsanlæg
Location: Rødovre, Hovedstaden, Denmark

My twenty-fifth new ground of 2018 was on Sunday 30th September at Espelundens Idrætsanlæg in Rødovre, Hovedstaden, Denmark. The match was Avarta vs. Frem in the Danish 2. Division.

Located just to the west of the Copenhagen city boundary the ground is in an area of green space in between a motorway to the west and an industrial estate to the east. There are a couple of artificial pitches to the north and a camp site to the south. The ground is three-quarters of a mile north of Brøndbyøster railway station which is part of the B-Line on the Copenhagen S-Train network. The club were formed in 1953 and initially played at the Rødovre Stadium before moving to their current home at Espelundens Idrætsanlæg in 1960.

The entrance to the ground is from the east. This end behind the goal has a wide area of uncovered concrete with a building in the north-east corner holding a food outlet and the toilets. To the left of the entrance is the start of a steep grass bank which continues round the western and southern ends of the ground creating a natural bowl which finishes in the north-west corner. A good number of spectators use this banking to watch the game from as it provides excellent high views. The southern side of the field has hard standing at ground level and in the middle a wooden dugout structure with a filming gantry on top of it. The western end similarly has hard standing at ground level but there is also a food outlet in the south-west corner with half a dozen picnic benches in front.

The only stand at the venue is a 471 seat structure which runs for most of the northern side of the ground. The remaining sections either side of this are uncovered hard standing. The back of the stand has a box in the middle for the club announcer to reside from. Unusually the players emerge into the arena to the east of the stand via a tunnel which resembles a large drainpipe. This feeds through from an adjacent site which houses the dressing rooms.

Avarta were looking to kickstart their season after a poor start had seen them lose seven of their first nine games. In comparison their opponents Frem were sitting in mid-table so were aiming to keep in the hunt for the promotion play-off places. The first half was a really poor one with no clear cut chances created by either side. The only saves required by the two keepers were easy ones from tame headers from set pieces. The second half wasn't much to write home about either though there were a handful of better chances than in the first period. In the 53rd minute Avarta's Christian Offenberg was put through on goal but his shot was saved by the visiting keeper. A couple of minutes after this another Avarta effort from the right side of the area was deflected just past the post. Frem's best opportunity came in the 66th minute when Beran Camili was sent down the left wing on a counter attack and his cross fizzed across the goal with the home goalie pushing it out for a corner. The only other item of note was Avarta being reduced to ten men in injury time when Emil Thomsen picked up a second booking. That concluded one of the dullest football matches I can ever remember seeing.

Result: Avarta 0-0 Frem
Division: Danish 2. Division
Attendance: 450

Ground #276 - Tingbjerg Idrætspark

Date: 29th September 2018
Ground: Tingbjerg Idrætspark
Location: Brønshøj, Copenhagen, Denmark

My twenty-fourth new ground of 2018 was on Saturday 29th September at Tingbjerg Idrætspark in Brønshøj, Copenhagen, Denmark. The match was Brønshøj vs. Skovshoved in the Danish 2. Division.

Tingbjerg Idrætspark is part of a sports complex nestled in a triangle of land with roads to the south and east and a housing estate to the west. The sports complex has an artificial pitch to the west of the ground with numerous additional pitches and mini pitches to the east and north with Copenhagen Cricket Club beyond this. The ground is around 1.5 miles north-east of Husum railway station which is part of the C-Line and H-Line on the Copenhagen S-Train network. Tingbjerg Idrætspark has been home to the club since 1977 when they moved from their Rådvadsvej home where they had played for the previous 40 years.

The west side of the ground is dominated by an all-seater stand which was opened in June 2003. This stand has 491 seats in the main spectator area with two equal seating sections split by a gap in the middle allowing a walkway to the interior of the stand. This middle area also has an announcer box above the walkway. The southern half is taken up by the more vocal fans who also engage in a lot of flag waving. At the back of this half there is a standing area along the back row of the stand. The northern half has a boardroom at the back and an additional row of seating in between this and the main seating deck. This pushes the seating capacity over the 500 mark and with the additional standing area and the back of the southern half gives the stand an overall limit of 600 spectators. To the north of the stand is a large open-air bar with numerous standing tables which plenty of fans were using to enjoy the game while drinking a beer. This area also houses a control room and a club shop before you reach the ground entrance in the north-west corner.

The eastern side of the ground is uncovered concrete standing though there is a raised platform for the middle half of this side. By the halfway line there is a camera gantry which the club use to upload match highlights during the game. At ground level the two dugouts are either side of this. The northern end is a fair way back from the goal and is entirely uncovered with a flat concrete area behind the pitch and grass behind this. This end sees the players enter the field via an adjacent building outside the ground perimeter. In the north-east corner there is an additional food and drink shack. In recent years the southern end had a five level wooden terrace behind the goal but this has since been removed leaving this end as the sparsest section of Tingbjerg Idrætspark. There is no hard standing facilities with just grass underfoot to view the game from.

Brønshøj went into the game as favourites with the visitors struggling near the bottom of the league having picked up just four points from their first nine games. The early going was very quiet with the only chance of note coming in the 7th minute when a header from a home free-kick was was saved by the away keeper. The game really kicked into life at the midway point of the half when the first goal arrived. Brønshøj's Anton Holse sent his cross from the left-wing to the back post and found Oscar Buch who half-volleyed past the keeper to put his side 1-0 up. A couple of minutes later Skovshoved almost gifted Brønshøj a second when Tobias Brogaard rolled his goal kick straight to Andreas Baes. However Brogaard redemed himself well to save Baes' shot from just inside the area. 60 seconds later and the away side had what turned out to be their best opportunity of the game. Brønshøj appeared to be napping as a long ball found Simon Bræmer in acres of space in on goal. Home keeper Kasper Vilfort rushed out to meet him and this put Bræmer off sufficiently that his lobbed finish failed to find the net. This miss proved crucial as in the following minute the home side doubled their lead. Kevin Bechmann Timm tried to lift the ball into the box and when the ball was headed back to him by a defender he hit a terrific half-volley from 25 yards into the corner of the net. Brønshøj added a third four minutes before the interval when Jamil Fearrington's cross from the right wing found Bechmann Timm who nodded in from the six-yard line. The contest was put to bed four minutes after the interval as Skovshoved failed to clear a corner properly with the ball falling to Oscar Buch who slammed the ball into the net to grab his second of the game. The next goal arrived in the 62nd minute and again it was a Jamil Fearrington cross from the right which Bechmann Timm got on the end of. It was another cracking finish from Bechmann Timm who hit a first time shot in off the far post from the 18-yard line to secure his hattrick. Not to be outdone Oscar Buch then also completed his hattrick in the 65th minute. Bechmann Timm turned provider this time as he threaded a ball through to Buch who did well to keep the ball in play. The Skovshoved defence thought the ball was heading out so had frozen allowing the quick-thinking Buch to quickly spin, duck inside a challenge and shot past Brogaard in the visiting goal. With the lead extended to six the home manager decided to make some changes including substituting the two hattrick heroes. With the hosts easing off this  allowed the away side to play a little but they never looked like scoring with the game running to its conclusion with no meaningful further action. It was a great day for Brønshøj as they secured their biggest win for eleven years with the afternoon also being the first time in half a century that two players had scored hattricks in the same match.

Result: Brønshøj 6-0 Skovshoved
Division: Danish 2. Division
Attendance: 485

Ground #198 - Parken

Date: 16th May 2016
Ground: Parken
Location: Indre Østerbro, Copenhagen, Denmark

My ninth new ground of 2016 was on Monday 16th May at Parken in Indre Østerbro, Copenhagen, Denmark. The match was Copenhagen vs. Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga.

The stadium is part of a sporting complex which lies adjacent to the Fælledparken green space. Parken is the largest of two stadiums in the area with the 7,000 capacity Østerbro Stadium sitting next door playing host to two smaller Copenhagen sides. The venue is one mile west of Nordhavn railway station and has been home to Copenhagen since it was constructed in 1992.

Parken was built on the site of the former Danish national stadium of Idrætsparken which was in use between 1911 and 1990. Completed in 1992 the venue became the new home for Copenhagen and the Danish national team. It has a capacity of 38,065 for football but this can be increased up to 55,000 for concerts. The stadium has also played host to handball and the Danish round of the Speedway Grand Prix world championship. The east and west stands hold the largest number of supporters - the two run alongside the pitch and are almost mirror images of each other. Both are two tiered stands with a strip of corporate boxes separating the two tiers. The East Stand is considered the main stand and contains the dugouts and dressing rooms.

The other two-tier stand is behind the goal at the southern end of the stadium. The lower tier is given over to the more vocal home support with a minimum age limit of 15. The northern end of the ground is the only single-tier one at Parken. Above the single tier of seating are several glass floors of offices and hospitality areas which means the stand is of roughly the same height to the other three. All four stands are separate in so far as none of the four corners are filled in with seating. This ensures the venue retains a compact feel. These corners hold a variety of facilities - the north-east corner containing offices and a restaurant, the north-west corner having a cafe and the club shop, the south-west including a gym and the south-east housing a fan club.

Copenhagen went into the match knowing a win would be good enough to secure them the Danish Superliga title with a couple of games to spare. They went close to opening the scoring in the 9th minute when a shot from Youssef Toutouh from the edge of the area curled just wide, hitting a stanchion behind the goal. In the 23rd minute they went close again when a corner was cleared as far as Peter Ankersen who drilled a 30-yard shot through the pack of players only to see his effort palmed away by David Jensen. Despite being well on top it was 0-0 at the interval and the hosts continued the second half in similar attacking form to the first. It was all Copenhagen in the opening passage of play and their banging on the door finally paid off in the 63rd minute. Benjamin Verbic picked up the ball and advanced towards the area before laying it off to Federico Santander who, with his back to goal, turned and shot low from 18 yards into the bottom corner of the net. The home side doubled their lead in the 67th minute. Again it was Verbic and Santander linking up with the former making good work down the right wing as he skipped over a sliding tackle before crossing low for Santander to poke home on the line. It took until the 80th minute for Nordsjælland to finally test Robin Olsen in the home goal. However by that point it was too late and the visitors, on a poor run of form, slipped to another defeat. Celebrations could start as the final whistle went confirming Copenhagen's 11th Danish Superliga title. Plenty of fans stayed to enjoy the occasion and applaud the players on their lap of honour.

Result: Copenhagen 2-0 Nordsjælland
Division: Danish Superliga
Attendance: 23,063