When your ground’s biggest fault is how bland its main entrance is, you know you’re doing something right. And thus, Easter Road is something of a cracker.
Wedged in amongst Victorian townhouses on the edge of Edinburgh city centre, I’d only ever been here once before, when one of the stands was being rebuilt, and in all honesty I couldn’t remember much of it. After a day of watching shows at the Fringe (including the superb Phil Ellis – highly recommended) this was the perfect treat before heading home.
Plenty of club banners on the outside to give it character, although it is mightily strange how featureless the club’s main stand is. Honestly, I walked past it three times before I realised that was the main bit.
It’s a huge let down, as are the massive screens in each corner of the ground preventing anyone from looking in. From a commercial point of view it’s probably quite good, but for tourists like me it’s frustrating. Also, surely one of the perks of buying a house opposite a football stadium is being able to see into the ground on a match day? Poor form, Hibbies.
The plus sides are how much the ground dominates the local area, as well as gorgeous views out towards the city centre and surrounding countryside (including Aurthur’s Seat). Plus, bright green metalwork in club colours jutting out. It makes it much more photogenic than Tynecastle, home of fierce local rivals Hearts.
It may be a relatively newer stadium (in terms of the stands being built), but it’s far nicer on the eye. So for me, in the Edinburgh derby, there’s only one winner.
I’m going to the green side.
Football Grounds I Can Be Bothered To Visit 