Who’s ready for another respectful visit to London? Well, Watford, but you know what I mean. After absolutely battering The Royals (in this week of all weeks! How disrespectful), the Lads return to the south of England to take on Elton John’s and former hardcore punk darlings Gallows’, Watford.
Yes, lovely nondescript Watford. The kind of team that’s chocked full of players you’ve never heard of, yet have been playing Craig Cathcart at centre back for the past 15 years. They’re the team you couldn’t name five of their players with a gun at your head and they’re that team that whenever they show up on Match of the Day you wonder, “when did they get promoted?!”.
Watford does provide that certain level of limbo when it comes to an away day. Do you stay and enjoy some drinks in London or do you venture in the concrete void that is this hollow commuter town? Well, it’s good that you’ve got an effortlessly cool columnist like Cans & Megabus to guide you through it.
How Do I Get There?
If you’re embarking on your second car journey down south this week then you are either a) a loser or b) a Massive Lads Fan. Anyway, take the A1(M) and M1 down to junction 5 near Watford then head along the A4008 and follow the signs for Vicarage Road. There’s parking around the ground and in the town centre so you can find them there.
Sat nav losers: WD18 0ER
The RMT have called off their planned strike for Saturday so it makes riding the rails to Watford that little bit easier. The simplest way to get to Watford is hopping on the West Midlands Train service from Euston to Watford Junction, which takes about 20 minutes. You can also take the London Overground but that will take double the time. It’s about a 25-minute walk from the station to the ground.
What’s the Ground Like?
How many times do you get to be in a stadium that has a stand dedicated to a national treasure like Elton John? We are truly blessed as a nation. Anyway, the rest of Vicarage Road is quite nice and Watford fans in general seem to be alright (full disclosure: I have never met a Watford fan).
Sunderland fans are housed in the creatively named Vicarage Road Stand which is quite nice, albeit, the concourses are quite small so I wouldn’t recommend hanging round there much.
Yer thirsty?
As a painfully dull London commuter town, you can imagine that Watford isn’t awash with the greatest of pubs. Immediately opposite Watford Junction station is a passable O’Neill’s which has a sizeable beer garden in front of it. Both The Horns (Hempstead Road) and The Golden Lion (Estcourt Road) are both among the top rated pubs on TripAdvisor, but it is also a list that includes Walkabout on it so read into that what you will.
A little closer to the ground, you’ll find Oddfellows on Fearnley Street which, again, is a fairly pleasant choice. Obviously, there’s Spoons in the town centre, so go nuts.
What’s happening in Watford?
Erm, the Queen’s funeral, do you not have any respect? Disgraceful. You could actually go to that Harry Potter World place that’s near Watford, that could be fun. However, let’s be honest, London will be so rammed you’re better off just going home.
