Football Days

Villa Park - Aston Villa FC

Aston Villa 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

06/05/12 - Premier League

Att: 36,008

With the season drawing to a close I felt it was time to do an updated review of one of my favourite stadiums that this country has to offer. Despite the football being amongst the worst in the Premier League this season and, quite literally, the worst seen at Villa Park in history, I was looking forward to the day out in sunny Birmingham.

I opted to get the train and with the cheapest tickets not arriving in Witton til half an hour before kick off, it was a late start, with the train departing at 10:30am, before a change in Reading took me straight to Birmingham New Street. Due to it being a Sunday there was a bit of a wait for the connection to Witton, but the train still rolled in with enough time to have a trip to the bookies (cheers Bolton and Everton, I didn't want to win anyway) and have a quick look around the ground before going into the Holte End.

Set right in the heart of the community, Villa Park is easily accessible from both Witton and Aston stations. With pubs, chip shops, bookies, houses and everything else around it, it feels like a proper football ground, unlike a lot of new grounds which are built in retail parks, no where near the town centre. There's a really good buzz around on match day and from the outside the stadium is a really impressive sight. The claret and blue gates, the imposing Trinity Road Stand and the beautiful brick facade of the Holte End all contribute to one of the most historic grounds in the country, oozing with heritage and tradition, but modern enough to make it fit for 21st century football.

Founded in 1874, Aston Villa began life at Aston Park, before moving to Perry Barr, but lack of access, increasing rent and growing crowds due to success on the pitch meant that Villa needed a new home, with Aston Lower Grounds, later renamed Villa Park, the obvious choice and they moved there in 1897, having just won the league and cup double. It was in the late 19th century that Aston Villa emerged as one of the most successful sides in the game, winning five league titles and three FA Cups by the end of Queen Victoria's reign. By the 1930's Villa had racked up six league titles and six FA Cups and were one of the most famous teams in world football, but in 1936 they went down to the second tier for the first time. Two years later Villa were promoted as champions, but they had to wait until 1957 for their next piece of silverware, as Manchester United's 'Busby Babes' were defeated 2-1 at Wembley. It was the seventh time Villa had lifted the cup and a few semi-final appearances and a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea in the 2000 final have since followed, but Villa haven't won it since.

Shortly after the cup win Villa were relegated again, but bounced back and in 1961 became the first team to win the League Cup. The 1960's was the darkest period in the club's history, after being relegated again in 1967, Villa struggled and in 1969/70 they dropped into the third tier. Despite this, Villa still reached the 1971 League Cup final, losing to Spurs and a year later were promoted back to the second tier. Ron Saunders took over in 1974 and in his first season in charge lead Villa to promotion and a second League Cup win. Back amongst the elite and competing in Europe, Saunders built a side that won the league title in 1981 and despite leaving half way through the 1982 season, after a falling out with the chairman, his assistant Tony Barton stepped up and lead the club to it's greatest triumph, as Bayern Munich were beaten 1-0 in Rotterdam in the 1982 European Cup final. Despite defeating Barcelona to lift the Super Cup a year later, things took a turn for the worst and in 1987 Villa dropped out of the top flight again. Graham Taylor lead Villa to promotion and achieved a second placed finish in 1990, a feat that would be repeated by Ron Atkinson in the first Premier League season in 1993. League Cup wins in 1994 and 1996 are all Villa have had to celebrate in more recent times, but under Martin O'Neill, Villa finished 6th for three consecutive seasons. But just two years on, they were going into the last home game of the season with their Premier League status still not secured.

Inside the ground it's an impressive sight, with a capacity of 42,789 the oldest part of the ground is the North Stand, built in the late 70's. It's showing it's age and there were plans afoot for it's redevelopment, but with crowds at their lowest for 11 years, it looks as if those plans have been shelved. The ~~Witton Lane~~ Doug Ellis Stand was built in 1994 and the imposing Holte End was re-built a year later. The Trinity Road Stand, once the sight of one of Archibald Leitch's masterpieces, is now a large three tiered stand, with it's huge cantilever roof visible for miles around. While it's come in for criticism by some, I actually quite like the stand I think it makes the ground look a lot more balanced and modernised than it did before.

After Arsenal and Newcastle had failed to win before this match, it was a huge chance for Tottenham to cement a Champions League place and they couldn't have asked for a better fixture, with Aston Villa's home record being nothing short of shocking. Villa have managed just four wins in front of their own fans all season, the worst in the clubs history, but Villa still needed something from the game to ensure safety. Tottenham had sold their full allocation of 3,000 tickets, but there were still vast empty spaces in the home areas of the Doug Ellis Stand and in the upper tier of the North Stand. Last season this fixture attracted nearly 4,000 more than it did this afternoon - A sign of the times.

Villa Park was bathed in sunshine as the teams emerged from the tunnel and there was a good atmosphere in the ground at kick off. Villa started quite brightly, but Tottenham had the better chances, with Given making a great save to keep the scores level. With clear cut chances at a premium for both sides it was Villa who took the lead, when Ciaran Clark's long range effort took a deflection before beating Brad Friedel. Spurs failed to respond and at half time the home fans were content with what they had seen.

At the start of the second half things got worse for Tottenham and their Champions League hopes when Danny Rose was sent off for a lunge on ex-Spurs full back Alan Hutton. 1-0 up at home to ten men, surely this was a great chance for Villa to secure a win? Not under this manager, no. It was Spurs who did all the attacking, enjoying the vast majority of the possession and it wasn't much of a surprise when they drew level just past the hour mark. Richard Dunne, not for the first time, made a clumsy challenge in the area, a penalty was given and Adebayor made no mistake from the spot. It was a match that typified Villa's season and with Spurs still dominating, Villa were hanging on and even took the ball into the corner with five minutes to play, in an attempt to hold out for a draw. West Brom's fightback at Bolton meant that, barring a ridiculous final day goal swing, Villa are safe for another year at least and there was a collective sigh of relief at the full time whistle, followed by a resounding rendition of "sack McLeish, my lord" from The Holte End as banners appeared in all four stands.

It was the first sign of discontent amongst the home fans, with the atmosphere being very supportive during the game. I think it's unfair that the press criticise the treatment that McLeish gets at Villa Park, as the fans have shown great patience with a man that should have never been hired in the first place. Despite everything, it took until the 85th minute of the penultimate home game against Bolton for the fans to turn and in this match any feeling towards the manager was left until after the full time whistle. If you compare this to the treatment that Steve Kean has received at Blackburn all season, I think Villa fans should be applauded, if anything.

With the game over and done with we watched the end of season lap of honour (minus McLeish) and headed back to the Aston Hotel for a few post-match beers before heading into Birmingham for a few more. By 7pm it was time to get the train home from what had been an enjoyable afternoon, even if the match hadn't been great.

I first visited Villa Park in 1999 for Villa's match against Nottingham Forest and I really do rate it as a truly superb stadium. Traditional, full of character, full of class and with all the modern facilities that you expect from any top stadium. It's a shame that the attendances have been down recently, but one day they'll be back and Villa Park with 40,000 in attendance is a really special place and one I'd recommend to anyone who hasn't visited.