Walsall

Bescot Stadium

NORTHSTARR STAND Home end · two-tier · Green sector B.A.T STAND Away end · Blue sector PALLET-TRACK STAND Main Stand · West · Red EXPERIENCED ENERGY SOLUTIONS Community Stand · East · Yellow N ↑ · South is the away end · Goals sit in front of the NorthStarr and B.A.T stands

Bescot Stadium — currently branded Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium — has been home to Walsall Football Club since August 1990, when the Saddlers left Fellows Park after 94 years. It sits on Bescot Crescent (WS1 4SA), less than a mile from Junction 9 of the M6 and a two-minute walk from Bescot Stadium railway station. Capacity is 11,300 all-seated. For visiting supporters it is one of the more straightforward League Two away days: compact, close to the action, and unusually well served by both motorway and rail.

The ground is four separate stands rather than a bowl. The tall two-tier NorthStarr Stand (green sector) is the home end behind the northern goal and holds just under 5,000 after its 2003 extension. Opposite, behind the southern goal, is the single-tier B.A.T Stand (blue sector). That is where away fans sit, typically around 2,000, with a licensed bar and televisions on the concourse. Along the west touchline is the Pallet-Track Stand (red sector), the main stand with hospitality, the tunnel, dugouts and television gantry. Facing it on the east side is the Experienced Energy Solutions Stand (yellow sector), the community stand, with pitch-level wheelchair bays at the front — including spaces used by disabled away supporters.

On a large following the club sometimes also opens part of the east stand to visitors, so check your ticket for stand and turnstile before you queue. B.A.T Stand turnstiles are usually 27–28; extra away seating in the Experienced Energy Solutions Stand is often turnstiles 1–2. Supporting pillars in both the away end and the community stand can clip the view from some seats, so if you have a choice, avoid the very front rows immediately behind a post.

Getting there is simple. Leave the M6 at Junction 9, follow the A461 towards Walsall, then the A4148 Wallows Lane, and the stadium is on your left. Away parking is the Blue Zone immediately behind the B.A.T Stand, closest to the motorway and the station — take the second entrance on Bescot Crescent, by the hotel, not the first. Stadium parking is card-only and should be booked when possible. Trains from Birmingham New Street and Wolverhampton stop at Bescot Stadium; the walk is short and obvious. Buses from Walsall town centre also drop outside.

The stadium is cashless for tickets, food, drink and parking. Programmes, when sold from a stall, have sometimes still been cash. Concourse food is the usual pies, sausage rolls, burgers and hot drinks. The Locker bar at the ground has admitted both home and away fans on some matchdays (a small entry charge for adults). There is little else immediately around the ground, so most visitors drink on the train, in Walsall or Wolverhampton, or go straight into the away bar, which typically opens well before kick-off.

Atmosphere travels well in this tight, rectangular ground. Even a modest away following can be heard from the B.A.T Stand. Flags and banners usually need prior consent from the club; drums are not allowed. Turnstiles commonly open around 90 minutes before kick-off. Leave time after the final whistle if you used official parking — some home car parks are locked two hours after the game. It is not a grand stadium, but it is practical, close to the pitch, and easy to reach. For most visiting supporters that is exactly what you want on a Saturday in the Black Country.