Lost in the Wilds of UK Sports: Flight to Chicago

After attending 17 sporting events in 15 days in three countries it was time to go home. Here were my stats:

I attended 12 games in England, 3 in Scotland and 2 in Finland.

I attended 10 soccer matches consisting of 4 English Premier League, 2 Champions League, 1 Europa League, 1 Scottish Premier League and 2 Carling Cup.
I attended 2 rugby matches – 1 in the Guinness Premiership and 1 in the Magners League.
I attended 2 county cricket matches – both Division I and Division II.
I attended 2 NHL games – the first regular season NHL games in Finland.
I attended 1 NBA game – probably the least exciting from a global standpoint.

My flight was scheduled for 2:40 pm so once again I packed up my stuff, said bye to Big Chris and took the underground to London’s Heathrow airport. The trip was a great experience but it was time to get home to Nicole.

Traveling back to Manchester

Since I went to sleep relatively early Tuesday night, I woke up early Wednesday morning. I was at the hostel’s free breakfast as soon as it opened at 7:00 am and was on the train back to Manchester at 8:00 am.

Once again, I was nervous that I would need to pay a one way fare from Glasgow to Carlisle since I only had an England BritRail pass, but, once again, the conductor glanced at my pass and went onto the next passenger. I had successfully taken the train to and from Scotland and England four times without a penalty fare even though I had specifically bought an England only BritRail pass. I bought the pass in August before realizing there would be three matches I would want to attend in Scotland. If I planned to attend the Scottish matches originally I would have spent the extra $90 on the England and Scotland BritRail pass.

I arrived in Manchester at 11:18 and checked into the Hatter’s Hostel – the hostel I had booked a week earlier knowing I would attend the Manchester United Champions League match versus Wolfsburg. Of course, I was again too early to check into the hostel even though I had a single. However, this time I could check in by 1:00 pm.

Champions League: Sevilla at Rangers

In order to get to Ibrox Stadium, I took the subway from downtown Glasgow. I arrived at the Ibrox station around 4 pm even though the game did not start until 7:45 pm. My plan was to hang out at a few pubs in the neighborhood.

Obtaining Tickets
As soon as I got off the train a man selling Rangers souvenirs was offering to sell his two tickets to the match. His tickets were priced at £37 each. He would have sold me one for face value. Instead I chose to see what ticket prices were at the box office. I knew tickets were £40 each so wondered how he had gotten a £37 price point.

I went to the box office and asked if they had a student discount – the guy said no. Thus, I walked back to the souvenir man and offered him £30 – he said no. Thus, I walked back to the box office to buy a ticket. However, I saw a sign that said concessions (meaning less than 18 years old or over 65) that said £30. I asked the next guy at the ticket office if I could buy a concession seat and he said yes. I bought the ticket for £30.

Pre Game
The only pub I could find in the area was the Stadium Bar directly across the street from the Ibrox subway station. Once again, the pub did not serve any food so I had to wait until I got into the stadium to eat. In the pub I found out how the souvenir man received a £37 price point – it was included in a three game ticket package. The fan who gave me that information made fun of me when he saw I bought a concessions ticket. I figured he was just upset that I paid less than him.

Secondary Ticket Market
We actually could all have paid less than what we paid at the box office. For the first time since heading to Northern England, there were fans around the stadium with extra tickets. I counted at least 15-20 fans with extra tickets. Disappointed that I had not held out until game time, I was still happy to find out that fans were selling their extra tickets.

The Game
Sevilla crushed Rangers 4-1 as they scored a goal in the 50th, 64th 72nd and 74th minutes. It rained most of the match which left the pitch in similar shape to the two Villareal matches I attended. Each time a player cut water would jump up from the pitch. After Sevilla’s fourth goal (which gave them a 4-0 lead) fans started to leave.

Post Game
The line to get onto the train at the Ibrox subway stop was incredibly long after the game and with the rain coming down hard I walked back to the Stadium Bar to wait out the line. Around 15 minutes later the line had dispersed so I scampered into the subway stop to avoid the down pouring rain.

The pubs in downtown Scotland were closing down when I got back so I decided to head back to the Euro Hostel and go to sleep.

Touring around Glasgow, Scotland

Once again I was on an early train. And, once again, I was hoping I would not have to pay for a one way ticket to Scotland. This time I was taking the train from Manchester, England to Glasgow, Scotland. My plan was to attend the Rangers and Sevilla FC Champions League match on Tuesday night.

I took the 9:46 am train from Manchester and had to change trains in Preston, England. I was safe taking that train since the train only traveled in England. It was the Preston, England to Glasgow, Scotland train I was nervous about. However, when the conductor came by to look at my ticket he did not say anything. Just said thanks and moved along to the next passenger.

I arrived in Glasgow at 1:01 pm. The Euro Hostel was near the train station (as were all of the hotels and hostels I booked), so I walked over to check in. The one downside with staying in hostels is that they will not let you check in early even if they have room available. They told me check-in was 3 pm, which I had feared they would do. However, the reason I took the early train was that this was the first time I had been to Glasgow and I wanted to tour around.

Touring Glasgow
I decided to eat at Babbity Bowster – a Scottish restaurant that Let’s Go recommended. The main tourist attraction I planned to see was the Glasgow Cathedral. Since the restaurant was on the way to the cathedral I walked through downtown Glasgow and saw the architecture Glasgow had to offer.

The cathedral was similar to most of the cathedrals I have seen in Europe. After viewing the cathedral I walked back to downtown Glasgow and decided it was time to head over to Ibrox Stadium.