Quote The Penguin="The Penguin"I'll miss the Leyton Orient game as I'll be on a cricket tour. A shame in a way because their supporters club bar is supposed to be the bees knees.'"
The LOSC bar is excellent. It's a regular entry in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide and has won CAMRA's National Club of the Year award. It's round the back of the stand on the Oliver Road side. I've never been in on a matchday, only for beer festivals, so I'm not certain how many real ales are normally available - I think it was five, and they're sourced mostly from smaller local breweries. I believe there's a £1 day membership fee, but beer is only £2.70 a pint. The club is staffed entirely by volunteers and it shuts for the duration of the match. (Obviously the volunteers are supporters who want to watch the game so that might not apply for our games.) There's also a large bar under the stand behind one goal, and possibly more bars elsewhere.
I'm glad we using this ground, it's the only modern football ground of a sensible size for us in London, and has good transport links.
As we're playing the first OTR game there I think it would make sense to play the second one there too. Any first timers who go to the first match and enjoy it will have another one to go to a fortnight later - more chance of getting them sufficiently hooked that they'll consider going to further games at The Stoop. Maybe they've got pitch maintenance too? Otherwise I'd look to play both games there.
As the main reason for the on the road games is clearly pitch maintenance, regardless of the club's bizarre decision to spin it as some sort of bold and wonderful initiative without even alluding to pitch maintenance until the fixture list showing consecutive OTR games immediately after the union season ends made it bleedin' obvious, I assume any home tie in the Challenge Cup 5th Round (on the weekend between the two OTR games) will also have to be played on the road.
