MILTON KEYNES DONS V COVENTRY CITY
SATURDAY DECEMBER 29TH AT 3PM
AT STADIUMMK, STADIUM WAY, MILTON KEYNES, MK1 1ST
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MATCH DETAILS
Kick off at 3pm.
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TRAVEL
stadiummk is located in the Denbigh North site between Grafton Street, Saxon Street and the A5.
Due to stadiummk only being built in 2007 your satellite navigation system may not recognise the postcode. It may help to enter MK1 1QB which is the nearby Asda store.
By Road
SOUTH BOUND M1: Exit the motorway at Junction 14 and turn right at the roundabout at the top of the exit slip road towards Milton Keynes.
NORTH BOUND M1: Exit the motorway at Junction 14 and take the left-hand filter lane towards Milton Keynes.
Continue straight over the roundabout (Northfield) on H6 Childs Way. At the next roundabout (Fox Milne) turn left onto V11 Tongwell Street. Continue straight over next roundabout (Monkston) along the V11 Tongwell Street. At the next roundabout (Brinklow) turn right along the H8 Standing Way (A421). Continue on the H8 Standing Way (A421) following signs for Buckingham continuing over a number of roundabouts, on reaching the Bleak Hall roundabout turn left onto the V6 Grafton Street and follow signs for the stadium.
Vehicles traveling from other areas should follow the brown football signs which are located on all main approaches to the area.
The stadium can also be accessed easily from the northbound A5 running from Dunstable. Exit the road signposted Central Bletchley and take the first exit off Redmoor Roundabout. The stadium turning is on the left.
Away supporters should follow the brown signs for Football Coaches and enter the stadium site via the Saxon Street entrance (between KFC and McDonalds) which is the most convenient for Gate 3.
Parking
Those traveling to the match by car should follow the brown stadium signage. Limited parking is available at the stadium - car parking fees of £7 will be charged.
Alternatively, patrons should park considerately in the industrial areas surrounding the stadium and NOT in the parking areas of the nearby retail and trade outlets, or in areas signed as privately owned (such as Granby Trade Park) where there is a risk of clamping. Dedicated disabled parking is only available at the stadium site.
No football parking is permitted at the Asda store adjacent to the stadium site and a Parking Charge Notice of £60 will be issued for cars identified as parking for football or those exceeding the two-hour parking period.
By Train
The two stations nearest to the stadium are Bletchley and Milton Keynes Central. Bletchley is approximately a 25-minute walk from the stadium site and Milton Keynes Central is a 30-40 minute walk. Both routes are along Milton Keynes Redways. For train timetable information, contact National Rail Inquiries on 08457 484950. The MK Dons Matchday Express shuttle bus service runs from Blecthley and Milton Keynes Central, details can be found below.
Taxis
Hackney Carriages charge a fixed fee of £9 from Central Milton Keynes Station to the stadium. Licensed private hire companies vary, but will be less than this.
The four big licensed minicab companies in Milton Keynes are:
Ace Cars: 01908 555555
Eezy: 01908 218218
Raffles: 01908222222
Skyline: 01908222111
These are fully licensed and will show Milton Keynes minicab 'BLUE' plates to the rear of the vehicle. To use the services of a minicab a person MUST FIRST pre-book with the operator (company).
Buses
There is one bus service - Arriva Service No 1 - which runs from Milton Keynes Central Rail Station via the City Centre, Oldbrook and the Hospital to the stop on Grafton Street adjacent to the stadium entrance. It then continues to Bletchley Bus Station. This runs every 30 minutes at 5 minutes and 35 minutes past the hour from Milton Keynes Central Rail Station and the journey time is 10 minutes. The return journey leaves the Granby, Grafton Street stop at 15 minutes and 45 minutes past the hour and arrives at the Central Rail Station 9 minutes later.
Shuttle Service
The MK Dons Football Express offers two different routes to stadiummk. Route 1 starts at Bletchley Railway Station from 1pm on a Saturday matchday and every twenty minutes until 2.20pm. From there it stops at Bletchley bus station before arriving at stadiummk with the last scheduled arrival at 2.34pm.
After the match, the return services collects from the Grafton Street bus stop opposite stadiummk from 4.50pm on Saturdays and again runs every twenty minutes.
Alternatively, Route 2 kicks off from Milton Keynes Central Railway Station from 1pm on Saturdays with a stop on Midsummer Boulevard by JD Wetherspoons followed by a pick up at MK College on Chaffron Way. Operating every 30 minutes, the Route 2 services leaving MK Central station for the last time on Saturday at 2.30pm with the last arrival at stadiummk being 2.51pm. For midweek games, Route 2 starts at 5.50pm and again runs every half an hour with the last arrival at stadiummk being 7.41pm.
And in terms of return journeys, Saturday pick ups on Grafton Street run from 4.50pm and are every half hour until the last run at 6.50pm, while for midweek fixtures the first run is 9.45pm and the last is 11.15pm.
The MK Dons Football Express is priced at just £1.50 either way or £2 return, offering superb value for money compared to £7 for parking at stadiummk or the alternative of leaving your car in an unsecure car park near the home of the Dons.
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ADMISSION
Tickets are available on the day from a cash booth at the away end or by card and cash in the Box Office.
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THE LAST TIME
Coventry City have not played a competitive first team game at StadiumMK before. However, City Reserves did play there in a behind closed doors friendly last season.
This won't be the first time that City supporters have been to the City of Milton Keynes for a competitive game. Back on Feb 21st 2004, City played the defunct club, then known as Wimbledon FC and won 3-0 at the National Hockey Stadium.
Julian Joachim put City ahead in the eighth minute before a Ben Chorley own goal in the 39th minute made it 2-0 to the Sky Blues. In the 62nd minute, Bjarni Gudjonsson hit the third in front of a crowd of 5,905.
The City team that day was:
1 Shearer,22 Deloumeaux,4 Konjic,37 Clarke,35 Grainger,17 Doyle,26 Warnock (19 McSheffrey 83),31 Gudjonsson (11 Barrett 83),6 Safri (5 Shaw 76),8 Suffo,21 Joachim SNU 13 Ward,7 Pead.
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MATCH OFFICIALS
The currently appointed referee for Coventry City's trip to MK Dons on Saturday is Andy Woolmer from Northamptonshire.
A postman by trade, he has started refereeing at sixteen and worked his way through the United Counties League and the Southern league before becoming a National List referee in 2004. He had been an assistant referee for ten years including four on the Select Group.
His last City game was the 1-0 defeat at Crewe earlier in the season.
Other games that he has been in charge of are: the 1-1 draw at Burnley on April 14th 2012 and he also was in charge of the 2-2 draw with Blackpool at the Ricoh Arena on September 27th 2011.
Other City games he has officiated at are the 1-0 pre-season win at Northampton on July 21st 2010 and before that the 3-0 defeat at Reading on April 5th 2010, the 1-1 draw at Palace on Sept 18th 2007 and the 2-1 win at Hull City in Jan 2006.
This season, he has had 17 matches and shown 43 yellow cards and three red.
His assistants are; Jake Hillier and Declan Ford and the Fourth Official is Geoffrey Russell.
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BETTING ODDS
The bookmakers have Coventry City down as under-dogs for Saturday's game at MK Dons.
The Sky Blues are being quoted by a number of bookmakers as a 3/1 shot to win with the Buckinghamshire side at 4/5 and 5/2 on the draw.
If you are planning to have a bet on the game, make sure you shop around for the best odds available. You can check the odds being offered by some of the leading bookmakers by clicking on http://www.oddschecker.com/football/english/league-1/mk-dons-v-coventry/winner