QPR fans face a long journey north on Tuesday night as the out of form R's visit Doncaster's Keepmoat Stadium for the first time.

Ground Name: St Mary’s
Capacity: 32 251 (all seated)
Address: Britannia Road, Southampton, SO14 5FP
Main Telephone No: 0870 220 0000
Fax No: 02380 727 727
Ticket Office: 0870 220 0155

By Car:
From the M3 take the A33 into Southampton. Continue on the A33 until you reach the junction with the A3024 Northam Road and turn left onto this road towards Northam. Then turn right onto the B3038, Britannia Road for the stadium.

Map:

Click on the map to visit the Multi Map site, tour around and zoom in or out.

Parking:
Like so many new stadiums, Southampton's St Mary's ground offers absolutely no parking on site whatsoever. I mean if I was designing a stadium I'd recognise that over 50% of my customers arrive each week by car and would therefore put a bloody ten storey car park up next door as a matter of priority but what the hell do I know?

Park and ride looks to be the best option. I didn't drive last season so don't know quite how well it worked or if it's been scaled back since relegation but from what I can tell it's just off Junction 8 of the M27 and it's free when you present your match tickets. There's a regular bus service from there and you're advised to ignore the signs that say "pass holders only."

One thing I can vouch for is the traffic round the ground and the city centre after the match. It's absolute carnage. Some sites recommend driving into Southampton and parking in the town centre car parks or at the marina but it doesn’t look great to me.

Barry from the message board, a former resident, added the following:

For anyone travelling down by car, you can park about 15 mins drive away from the ground for nothing. Forget about the park and ride schemes as it will take ages to get back to the car park.

Find a road called Alma road which is off the A33 (London Road) and park around there.

To get to the stadium just get back onto the London Road and follow it into town and then follow the crowds.

By Train
We had horrendous problems a couple of seasons back because some inconsiderate git threw themselves under a train a Basingstoke and although in theory this is a nice easy trip out of Waterloo for the travelling Rangers fans we look set to have problems again because even though 3000 people want to travel between London and Southampton Network Rail have decided to close the line this Saturday between Southampton Airport and Southampton Central. You really have to marvel at the way these people work.

Trains leave Waterloo at five past and thirty five minutes past the hour and journey time, with a bus between the airport and the city centre, roughly one hour and forty five minutes. The cost of the journey is £30.90 return and it is a walk up fare.

If you don’t fancy the bus then there are a couple of trains running right through to Southampton from Reading which might be good if you live over that way or want to go out of Paddington. 0945 and 1146 are the departures you want from Reading with a journey time of an hour and a half. There are a few £20 fares knocking round between Paddington and Southampton if you book in advance.

All the guides say it's over 1.5 miles to walk from the station and it will take you half an hour. Well that, in my experience is total rubbish. Out of the station's south entrance and turn left, then basically just keep going straight on. Up Western Esplanade, which becomes Civic Centre Road, between the Civic Centre and the Marlands Shopping Centre. Cross into New Road at the crossroads with the Nationwide on the corner. At the next cross road cross Kings Way into Northam Road and follow this road for until you reach the ground on your right.

The sign posting between the station and the ground is excellent and it's very hard to get lost. There is a shuttle bus service which may be useful for the lazy or if the weather is poor.

Pubs:
Tracy had this to say when reviewing her day in Southampton for us in the past:

"We went for a pre-match drink in the designated away fan's bar in the upstairs of the King Albert pub (just across a bridge nearby the away turnstiles). A bar was exactly what it was, not much room up there with around 3 tables or so placed around the small corner, which as we got in there just before 1pm, managed to nab one. Mind you, you wouldn't be able to afford too many rounds in there, nearly £8 for a pint of Stella, a pint of bitter shandy and a bottle of j20. Talk about daylight robbery. There was a TV showing on one side the lunchtime game in the Championship, whilst the other side were showing the cricket. Unfortunately I got lumbered sitting on the side where the cricket was showing. Groan."

If you don't fancy that we've had the following letter from a land lord near the ground.

I am writing to you as I own The Coopers Arms public house in Southampton and your supporters are visiting us next weekend.

We are open for breakfast at about 9-00 am and for Alcohol at 10-00 am. We have a very cheap menu, with a full (big) breakfast. My Pub is five minutes walk from the stadium and we specialise in welcoming away supporters along with their families and children are especially welcome. We appreciate that it is difficult going to an away game and finding a place that is safe for the family, This is what we offer. Our Address is 70 Millbank Street

The guide recommends The Prince of Wales, The Bevois Castle, The Station, The Eagle and The Anchor (next to the East Street indoor shopping centre) as good friendly pubs for away fans. The Chapel Arms (formerly le Tissier Arms) near the ground apparently has a habit of not serving away fans close to kick off time so beware.

Tickets:
QPR have 800 tickets left from a 3200 allocation and any remaining ones will be returned to Southampton and sold on the day from ticket office number three after noon on Friday. Adults £24, seniors, teens and students £18, juniors £10, disabled £24 per pair and there is also a discount for a “lad and a dad” - £30 for one adult and one junior.

Links:

Official website

Detailed fans' guide to St Marys

Photo: Action Images

Queens Park Rangers Polls