Information for Spurs fans travelling to Preston this weekend

THST Board members held an online planning meeting with staff from Preston North End FC, Tottenham Hotspur FC, Preston Police and the Metropolitan Police to discuss our visit to Deepdale for the fourth round FA Cup tie this coming Saturday. Here’s a summary of our discussions, which we hope will provide insight for the 5,600 Spurs fans heading to Lancashire this weekend. 

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Pre match
Transport and Preston City Centre 

• THFC is anticipating train and car being the most popular modes of transport to the match. Train tickets should now be bookable online. Please note that the last train leaves Preston at 8pm
• There are likely to be up to 8 subsidised coaches provided by Big Green Coach via THFC at £10 return, which aim to arrive 1-2 hours before kick off, and will depart after the match from immediately outside the stadium near the away end
• Stadium parking is available for £15 but needs to be booked in advance. Details will be provided by PNE via their pre-match communications. External parking on Moor Way, opposite the stadium, is available on a first come, first served basis for £7. There are controlled and timed parking restrictions on street and in supermarket car parks, so be aware if not using official car park spaces
• Fans arriving by train at Preston Station can take buses 19 and 19A from Preston Bus Station or take a 30-minute walk to Deepdale. This is considered a safe walking route with plenty of pedestrian crossings. Alternatively, taxis from the station to the ground cost around £5. There are plenty of hackney carriages, which offer disabled access
• There are no designated away pubs. Spurs fans are welcome in any of the city centre pubs, and there’s no controlled drinking zones in operation, so street drinking is permitted
• Preston Police adopt a refreshingly sensible approach to football fans, policing on behaviour not reputation with a planned proportional response on the day
• Local options for pre-match drinks include St Gregory’s Social Centre, Blackpool Road, PR1 6XD, a 5-minute walk from Deepdale. Spurs fans are welcome although there will be plenty of PNE fans, too. It’s likely to open around 2-3pm and is £1 entry for non-members. Car parking at St Gregory’s is £3 which can’t be pre booked. There may be pie and peas to tempt you and, we are assured, a fine selection of ales
• Fulwood Sports and Social Club, Blackpool Road, PR2 3AE is a 15-minute walk to the stadium, and it’s quieter than St Gregory’s. There may be a nominal charge to get in. It’s £3 to park which, again, cannot be pre booked. They open at 1pm, have a less extensive, but still good, selection of beers. Sandwiches will be available on a first come, first served basis

 At the stadium 

• The stadium will open at 4.30pm and our allocation takes up the entire Bill Shankly Kop, behind the goal with entrances along the stand. Blocks run from K (nearest the Sir Tom Finney Stand) to Block R (nearest the Invincibles Pavilion). Block N is the most central block. It’s a single tier stand with one long concourse with kiosks along the length of it
• No soft ticket checks are planned ahead of match tickets being scanned at the turnstiles
• There are 3 turnstile banks with 11 turnstiles in total to process our 5600 visiting fans
• Fans are advised to arrive an hour prior to kick off to alleviate congestion and to ensure everyone gets to their seats before kick-off
• Spurs will be taking an increased number of their own stewards to the match due to the increased away allocation and the number of official coaches being taken
• There is a prayer room at the stadium – those wishing to use this should speak to a steward on arrival
• Spurs fans needing to report urgent issues with ticket failures, or to collect duplicate tickets etc. should speak to a steward or go to the away ticket office which is located at the Bill Shankly Kop end of the Invincibles Pavilion (the stand that runs the length of the pitch)
• The bag policy states that nothing bigger than A4 should be taken to the stadium, and umbrellas are allowed. THFC will be circulating lists of non-permitted items

Inside the stadium 

• Alcohol, soft drinks, pies and sausage rolls will be served in the stadium kiosks. Expect standard football fare
• Payment inside the stadium is by card and contactless methods – no cash
• PNE rely on contractors to staff their refreshment kiosks and are aiming to be fully staffed for our visit, however this will be at the mercy of staff arriving for shift on the day. We have told them to expect it to be exceptionally busy!
• There will be Spurs stewards, home stewards and police officers inside the stadium. As Spurs are taking an entire stand, there are no segregation lines around our support. PNE stewards will be focusing on keeping gangways and vomitories clear, and trying to alleviate significant migration, should that occur
• There are plenty of toilets in the away stands, including 2 accessible toilets and a Changing Places facility in the Invincibles Pavillion
• PNE staff will be supervising the entrances to the Ladies toilets to prevent those becoming an overflow for the Gents    

Egress 

• There is no planned hold back and this would only be necessary in the unlikely event of serious disorder ahead of or during the match
• The car parks tend to empty relatively quickly after the matches but the ring road gets very congested, so it can be quicker to walk, if possible, back into town
• Club coaches will be waiting close to the away end for a quick departure back to London on final whistle

  Accessibility

• There are 19 wheelchair spaces at Deepdale and designated access for disabled supporters
• Concourses are accessible, but an in-seat service will also be available for refreshments
• Audio description commentary is available. THFC will organise for relevant fans, who should pre-book
• There are two parking spaces for Blue Badge Holders in the stadium car park
• Preston train station has step-free access
• Accessible taxis are available from the station and can be pre-booked for after the match, though there is likely to be heavy traffic

Anything else

• Preston North End will be issuing a visitors’ guide which will be linked to the Club’s comms. Please look out for that
• Preston Police’s twitter account will issue up to the minute advice, and is worth a follow: @PNEPolice
• There is limited space for flags due to the design of the stand, and sell-out crowd. Fans need to request approval of flags or banners by emailing safety@pne.com

  
We would like to thank everyone on the call for a very professional and positive briefing. We hope you’ll find this information useful and that the trip is a success in every way.
 
COYS
 
THST Board
24 January 2023