Montgomery Waters Meadow – Shrewsbury Town

Shrewsbury Town have created a bit of history last season by becoming the first League Club in England to install rail seating, at their Montgomery Waters Meadow Stadium, thus creating a safe standing area. Six rows containing 550 rail seats have been installed at the back of the South Stand and can be switched between standing and seating. It is hoped that this will help boost the atmosphere at the stadium and attract more fans. I am sure this will be the first of many safe standing areas to come to other clubs in the coming years.

The stadium which is located on the outskirts of Shrewsbury has four separate stands, which are simple single tiered stands, that are covered. Below the roof at the back of the stands is a sizeable strip of perspex that runs along the length of the stands. This is to allow more light into the stadium to facilitate pitch growth. Each of the stands are 18 rows high, with the Roland Wycherley Stand (named after the Club Chairman) on one side, being the ‘Main Stand’. This stand has a slightly different layout to the others with a press area and eight corporate boxes at its rear, the type of which that you can sit outside of. The Pro-Vision CCTV Stand at one end of the stadium where the away fans are located also houses a prominent looking Police Control Box. Four small floodlights pylons are present on the roofs of the side stands. An unusual feature of the stadium is that the areas for disabled fans are high up at the very back of the stands and are accessed by lifts. There is also a small electric scoreboard located beneath the roof of the away end.

In 2017 the stadium was renamed the Montgomery Waters Meadow Stadium in a corporate sponsorship deal. Montgomery Waters are a leading bottled water supplier.

Before moving to the New Meadow the Club played between 1910 and 2007 at Gay Meadow.

The stadium has been built in such a way that the corners of the stadium can later be filled with seating, which would raise capacity to around 12,500. However the Club have not announced as to when this will take place.

Away fans are located in the North Stand at one end of the ground. Leg room is good and the stands are quite steep keeping the fans close to the action and there is good height between rows. The concourses are quite well laid out, although the swing doors at the entrances to the toilets were met with a bit of trepidation. Although they were clearly marked one for entrance and one for the exit, the inevitable occurs with fans piling out of each.

The catering has a selection of pies made by Wright’s, including; Steak and Ale, Chicken Balti and a ‘Pie of the Day’ (all £3.40). The club also provides plastic forks to tackle those hot pies, which come in handy. I have to say that my steak and ale pie was very tasty, one of the better that I have had on my recent travels. There are also large plasma screens on the concourses showing Sky Sports throughout the afternoon.

I had a pleasant visit to the Montgomery Waters Meadow and was surprised by the reasonable atmosphere inside. This is boosted by a drummer in the home end, whilst most of the Shrewsbury singers tend to congregate close to the right of the away supporters in the West Stand. Hopefully, this will be boosted more by the home safe standing area in the South End. Even though I was at a local derby, the atmosphere was not hostile and I encountered no problems.

Outside the stadium, behind the Salop Leisure South Stand is a small Fan Zone which has bar facilities and away fans are able to enter. David Matthias informs me; ‘There are a couple of pubs within walking distance of the stadium. Firstly there is the ‘Wild Pig (known before as the Brooklands Hotel)’, just off Meole Brace Island, about five minutes walk away. It also has about 100 car parking spaces costing £5 each. Big screens and catering on matchdays, plus real ale from the Salopian Brewery. Also handily located just up from the BP Garage across the road is the ‘Flippin Fish’ Fish & Chip Shop. The Wild Pig is situated on Mill Street. From the stadium turn left along the B4380 Oteley Road. Head around the large roundabout towards Shrewsbury Town Centre. Then turn left into Roman Road and then left again into Mill Street. The hotel is down on the right. Please note though that for certain high profile games the Wild Pig reverts to a home fans only pub.

The other pub (and in the opposite direction) is the Charles Darwin; which is around a ten minute walk away. It has a car park (70 spaces) which is free as long as you patronise the pub. It is family friendly shows Sky Sports, as well as offering cask ales and food. To find this pub; then from the stadium entrance turn right along the B4380 Oteley Road. Take the second left into Sutton Road and the pub is down on the right. Opposite the pub is the Tasty Plaice fish & chip shop.

Derek a visiting Wolverhampton fan informs me; ‘As the Wild Pig pub was packed I walked to the Meole Brace Bowling club, which was little more than a stone’s throw away. They had a large car park which was only about half full (approx an hour before kick off) and cost only £3. The club has a bar and welcomes all non-member visitors whether home or away supporters. It wasn’t overcrowded in the two rooms, and they had a good selection of beers including Old Speckled Hen on draught. A selection of baps were also available’.

James Bradbury a visiting Sheffield Wednesday fan informs me; ‘After being unable to gain access to the Wild Pig we were directed to the Grove pub on Belle Vue Road. Inside it had a mix of home and away fans, but there were no problems’. The pub is located just over a mile away from the stadium and is about a 20 minute walk. Next door to the pub is the ‘Cod Father’ fish and chip shop.

Neil Le Milliere a visiting Exeter City fan recommends; ‘The Prince of Wales Hotel on Bynner Street. Although near the town centre (albeit on the new stadium side), in the Belle Vue area, this CAMRA Good Beer Guide listed pub was an excellent find. Good ale, food and a friendly welcome. The pub also runs a coach to the stadium for each home game, which away supporters can use for £2.50 (if there is space)’. More information can be found on the Prince of Wales Hotel website.

Gareth Hopkins informs me; ‘There are some other pubs and some off-street parking to be had along the Hereford Road  (A5191) going towards Shrewsbury Town Centre’. Otherwise alcohol is available to away fans within the stadium before the game but the bars close 15 minutes before the kick off, before opening again at half time.

There is a Retail Park nearby to the stadium, which has some eating outlets such as a McDonalds, Pizza Hut and a supermarket cafe.

At the end of the M54 continue onto the A5. After about seven miles, there is a traffic island which is at the junction with the A49. Bear left at this island still following the A5. At the next roundabout take the 3rd exit onto the B4380 (Thieves Lane). Continue along Thieves Lane going straight over two roundabouts and this will lead you into Oteley Road. You will reach the stadium down further down Oteley Road on the left.

There is a large car park at the stadium, holding almost 700 cars, however, this is for permit holders only (although I have received reports of fans turning up early and being admitted for £10). Parking is prohibited in the nearby Retail Park and nearby streets, so to find some street parking you may have to drive a bit further away. Check though for any parking restrictions detailed on posts, before parking up. Otherwise there is a car park at the Meole Brace Bowling Club, which also offers parking at £3 per car and has a bar on site too. It can be found at Meole Rise (Off Upper Road, SY3 9JF).

Tony Morris a visiting Portsmouth fan informs me; ”At the top of Oteley Road which leads to the ground, there is the Meole Brace Roundabout. Around the roads leading onto the roundabout there are a number of private car parks providing match day parking, each of which charges £5. One is located behind the petrol station on the corner of Roman Road which is where we parked. We got there about an hour before kick off and there was plenty of room – I’m guessing at a capacity of around 200-300 cars. On the roundabout itself is the Wild Pig pub, which also offers parking”.

Alternatively you can use the Park & Ride scheme operated by the Club. This costs £2 per person and commences at 12.30pm on Saturdays & 5.30pm for evening matches. It operates from Shire Hall (but not the nearby Meole Brace which is a park & ride for the town centre). It is located off the A5 (just take the A5064 towards the town centre) and at the roundabout with Lord Hill’s Column, take the 3rd exit and then first right into the car park. I have heard though of delays in getting back to you car after the match (in some cases up to 40 minutes) so bear this in mind.

For any fans wanting to make a full day of a Saturday at Shrewsbury, I would recommend the use of the Meole Brace Park & Ride site. It is only a 10-15 minute walk from the ground and is well signposted from the A5. For £1.60 per passenger (return ticket or a group of five adults can go on for £2.50, accompanied Under 16s are free), people can park at the site, catch a bus into Shrewsbury town centre, find plenty of food and drink outlets, and then catch a return bus back to the site. Journey time between 10-15 minutes depending on traffic volumes. Please note that parking is provided for those using the Park & Ride and not for matchday parking. There is also the option of renting a private driveway near in the local area via YourParkingSpace.co.uk.

Post Code for SAT NAV: SY2 6ST

Shrewsbury Railway Station is just over two miles away from the Greenhous Meadow Stadium, so if you do decide to walk it is going to take around 40 minutes. Otherwise you can grab a taxi up to the ground which should cost about £5 (although I have heard that taxis at the station can sometimes be scarce, so you may wish to find the number of a local firm before you go). Alternatively, you can catch the Meole Brace Park & Ride service (operated by Arriva) from the railway station which takes you to the Meole Brace Retail Park, which is close to the stadium. Services on Saturday afternoons run every ten minutes and the cost of a ticket is £1.60. It doesn’t run though in the evenings. There is a Football Special Bus Service that runs from the Town Centre Bus Station up to the stadium, which costs £2.50, In addition, bus service numbers 8, 16, 23, 25 and 544/546 all stop near to the stadium (but are rather sparse or non-existent in the late evening after midweek games). The Football Special Bus Service promptly departs from behind the South Stand, ten minutes after the final whistle back to the town centre. Shrewsbury train station is served by trains from Birmingham New Street, Manchester Piccadilly, Crewe and Newport (Gwent).

Booking train tickets in advance will normally save you money! Find train times, prices and book tickets with Trainline. Visit the website below to see how much you can save on the price of your tickets:

The Club have announced that they are to apply for permission to install a safe standing area at the Greenhouse Meadow Stadium. It is proposed that an area of around 400 seats are to be removed from the back of the Salop Leisure Stand at one end of the ground. As League One Clubs are not required to have all-seater grounds (this only applies to (Premier & Championship League Clubs) then permission should be forthcoming, which will mean that Shrewsbury will make history and become the first English Club to install it. If things go to plan then the Club hope to have it in place before the end of the 2017/18 season.

Shrewsbury have played their home games at a vast array of grounds over the years with Gay Meadow unquestionably the most well known of the lot; the club called Gay Meadow home from 1910 through to 2007. After that, they moved to their current home, New Meadow, but before 1910 they’d called several places home including Monkmoor Racecourse, Ambler’s Field and Sutton Lane.

The Club operate a category policy (A & B) for the pricing of matchday tickets. This means that the more popular games (Category A) cost more to watch. Category A prices are shown below with Category B prices in brackets:

All areas of the stadium (excluding Family Stand)

Adults £22 (B £20)
Over 65’s £17 (B £15)
Students/Under 22’s £17 (B £15)
Under 19’s £12 (B £8)
Under 12’s £10 (B £6)
Under 8’s Free*

* Under 8’s can gain free admission, providing that they are accompanied by a paying adult.

Official Programme £3

Shrewsbury vs Telford rivalry: If you think about football violence, Shrewsbury don’t exactly spring to mind. This Shropshire derby though gets extremely fiery at times. The two towns are separated by just a 20 minute drive down the A5.

Shrewsbury vs Wrexham rivalry: Wrexham is another club with whom Shrewsbury have experienced a number of violent clashes over the years – at least from a fans perspective. The two clubs are near to one another (12 miles) but because they lay either side of the Welsh border this fixture takes on even more significance. Over the years, the two clubs have done battle a lot in the lower leagues.

Shrewsbury vs Walsall rivalry: Walsall might be based around clubs much bigger than Shrewsbury with Wolves, West Brom and Birmingham all in the vicinity but the Shrews have faced Walsall a fair few times over the years, which the others can’t say, and therefore the two clubs that are just 45 minutes apart are very much rivals.

Shrewsbury vs Wolves rivalry: Wolves are Shrewsbury’s nearest ‘big club’, which makes matches between the duo interesting. The heat is somewhat reduced now though with Wolves playing most of their football at a superior level.

Shrewsbury Town FC fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website).

For details of disabled facilities and club contact at the ground please visit the relevant page on the  Level Playing Field website.

Record Attendance

At the Montgomery Waters Meadow Stadium:
10,210* v Chelsea
League Cup 4th Round, 28th October 2014.

At The Gay Meadow Ground:
18,917 v Walsall
Division 3, April 26th, 1961.

Average Attendance

2019-2020: 6,059 (League One)
2018-2019: 6,407 (League One)
2017-2018: 6,249 (League One)

* This record attendance is higher than the quoted ground capacity, as additional temporary seating was brought in for this game to fill the corners on either side of the Salop Leisure (South) Stand.

Official Web Site

www.shrewsburytown.com

Unofficial Web Sites

Salop Ultras

Shrews Chat

Blue & Amber Message Board

New Meadow

Londonroad.net

Goodbye Gay Meadow (Book For Sale)

Vital Shrewsbury (Vital Football Network)

If anything is incorrect or you have something to add, please e-mail me at: [email protected] and I’ll update the guide.

Special thanks to Danny Davies providing the photos of the Salop Leisure Stand including the rail seating.