Vicarage Road

Macs Bar

Burger van outside North East corner of ground

Probably best to drive, but good luck finding a parking space!

OK, lets not beat about the bush here, Watford is a bit of a dump, and the stadium at Vicarage Road itself isn't much better. If you're more used to the country delights of leafy High Wycombe or deepest rugby country of Thomond Park you are going to get a bit of a shock down Watford way.

Getting to the ground is quite easy as the ground itself is only a few minutes walk from the town centre and is just off the ring road towards West Watford. There are regular train services stopping at both Watford Junction, the main railway station serving the town or Watford High Street which is nearer the stadium. There is even an underground station in Watford but it takes longer to get there using the service than it does by overground train so it's a bit pointless using it really!

If you can stomach the long walk through the arse of end of Hertfordshire from Watford Junction to the ground there are a plethora of reasonable public houses to stop off at along the way. Just watch where you step on your route through the town centre, slipping on a regurgitated kebab left over from the previous nights revellers is a regular hazard on a Sunday morning.

The obvious drinking establishment for rugby supporters heading to Vicarage Road is the Red Lion directly opposite the ground on Vicarage Road itself. Saracens paraphenalia adorns the walls and it is possible to get a half decent pint, although getting to the bar an hour either side of the game is a bit of a challenge.

Round the corner from the ground you can also find the slightly larger and quicker service to be enjoyed in Macs Bar. You can also enjoy the benefit of a BBQ in what passes for a garden out the back of the pub providing it is a nice day, however five square meters of grass surrounded by brick walls isn't exactly going to inspire you to hang around long after the final whistle.

The ground itself is much like any other football ground around the country (Saracens ground share with Watford Football Club) The three newer stands in the North, South and West (Rous Stand) are of pretty good quality having been re-developed during the nineties, however the wooden East stand is a bit of a throw back to days before the fire at Bradford FC and is in dire need of knocking down and rebuilding. The stand is actually condemned and cannot be used on match days leaving a big empty gap even when there is a half decent attendance.

The facilities in place inside the ground are in keeping with the majority of grounds and as such you will be able to find a variety of places to purchase any refreshments you may need during the game. Mobile beer sellers can sometimes be seen in a half arsed attempt to placate the members of the club that have been turfed out of their own members bar.

The food on offer from these outlets is pretty diabolical really, and for the prices they are charging you would be better placed to grab a burger from one of the vans outside the ground or even head to the chippie a couple of minutes walk in the direction of town after the game.

Saracens are having a fantastic run this season and long suffering fans finally have something to cheer about. Holding home games anywhere other than Watford is proving popular as the atmosphere inside the ground hasn't been much cop. The supporters rattle around in an enormous stadium which is much bigger than they will ever need it to be and getting up an intimidating atmosphere for opposing teams is quite a task for the home fans. That said however, the FezBoys dressed in their matching tunics complete with fezzes are a sight to see pre-match outside the ground, and together with the drummers banging out their rhythums during the game a good fist of support is made of what could be an awful place to play their matches.

Vicarage Road will never have the fortress feel of some of the dedicated rugby grounds around the world, but if you can look past the glaringly obvious negatives by being based in a football stadium in Watford then you will find yourself amongst good passionate supporters and you will enjoy your time at the game.