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OSTRAVA AWAY UEFA CUP 1ST ROUND
We were expecting to be able to feature travel offers to Ostrava on this page, however due to our meagre allocation of 900 tickets for the away leg, every single travel operator has now had to change tac.
We were in negotiations with Sportops, a top London sports travel firm who were going to lay on an aircraft from London for us but understandably, Sportops cannot now justify taking the risk, due to the miserly ticket allocation. Also, the comments from Cleveland Police are clearly designed to discourage us from making the journey.
Superintendent Steve Ashman, of Cleveland Police, the 'match commander', offered the following 'advice'.
"We are aware that there are thousands of people who would very much like to go to this match. But at the same time we are aware that there are only 900 tickets available and we would request those fans without a ticket not to travel. We cannot guarantee the safety of fans without tickets, especially as they are unlikely to gain entry to the stadium. Any fans who might consider trying to obtain tickets for the home areas are likely to be ejected and we cannot ensure their safety outside the stadium. The environment around the stadium is similar to any industrial town in this country, but the facilities inside are very different because the stadium is very old. Those fans who do travel - and we would advise them to go on an official Middlesbrough Football Club trip - should respect the fact that they will be meeting a different culture with different policing as well. We want it to be a memorable occasion for the fans who go there, but those without tickets should stay well clear of the town because there is nothing there for them, and at this stage we do not know if the game will be shown on local Czech television."
Bloody rubbish! And here are the facts:
Ostrava does have a hooligan problem but we come in peace, with or without tickets. The Czech Republic's economy is not as advanced as ours and there will almost certainly be tickets touted outside the stadium. The face price for the away end is £25 but for the home end, the price will be way less than a tenner. I went to see PSV Eindhoven play JC Roda in August 2003 and I paid 6 Euros (£4) to get in, as did the other 24,999 attendees. Bayern Munich charge a tenner and an AC Milan home game costs around £12. Offer the Czech touts £25 (less than 40 Euros) and they will probably be able to feed their family until Christmas. Here is the magnificent Banic Ostrava stadium in all it's glory.
 
 
Have a good look at the picture on the left of the second row. That is where the ComeOnBoro.com party for the ticketless fans will take place. Unless we are lucky enough to obtain match tickets ourselves. We would like to invite Superintendent Steve Ashman, of Cleveland Police to our bash and if he shows up, it is in that very place that we will address the other grievances that we have about his earlier comments, including...
Why are you advising fans to go on an official Middlesbrough Football Club trip when this is very clearly overpriced?
Why are you so obviously concerned about Boro fans causing trouble on the day?
Why are you trying to dissuade Boro fans from travelling to our great occasion? ...and there are many more questions as well...
So to all travelling Boro fans, who in our experience are nothing but good ambassadors for the town and club, here's how you get to Ostrava.
The Official ComeOnBoro.com flight leaves from Gatwick Airport South Terminal at 0955 and arrives at Prague at 1300. You can book yourself onto the flight via the EasyJet website. The flight costs £51 (current today, Thursday 9th September). There is a train leaving for Ostrava from Prague at 1403 and arriving at 1853. Another train leaves Prague at 1435 and arrives at 1915. Just in time for the match.
Please be advised that these prices are current today (Tuesday 7th September) but are likely to change on a daily basis. ComeOnBoro.com cannot accept responsibility for any problems that may occur through using our recommendations.
Having said that, we hope that you can make it to the ComeOnBoro.com party in Ostrava on September 30th, whether you are in possession of a match ticket or not.
The Boro supporters keep our club in business and our show of strength in Ostrava will be very evident. We hope to see you there!
| 2004/05 UEFA Cup match calendar |
| Stage |
Dates |
| First round, 1st leg BANIK OSTRAVA (H) |
16.09.2004 |
| First round, 2nd leg BANIK OSTRAVA (A) |
30.09.2004 |
| Group stage, matchday 1 |
21.10.2004 |
| Group stage, matchday 2 |
04.11.2004 |
| Group stage, matchday 3 |
25.11.2004 |
| Group stage, matchday 4 |
01 & 02.12.2004 |
| Group stage, matchday 5 |
15 & 16.12.2004 |
| First knockout round, 1st leg |
16 & 17.02.2005 |
| First knockout round, 2nd leg |
24.02.2005 |
| Second knockout round, 1st leg |
10.03.2005 |
| Second knockout round, 2nd leg |
16 & 17.03.2005 |
| Quarter-finals, 1st leg |
07.04.2005 |
| Quarter-finals, 2nd leg |
14.04.2005 |
| Semi-finals, 1st leg |
28.04.2005 |
| Semi-finals, 2nd leg |
05.05.2005 |
| Final (Lisbon, Portugal) |
18.05.2005 |
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