NEW!! Mitr Phol Stadium, Ratchaburi by Neal Oliver: 2020

Mitr Phol Stadium, Ratchaburi
by Neal Oliver

Before I start about Mitr Phol Stadium, to put it into perspective, I’ll start with a little bit of my Thailand Footballing History.  I moved to Hua Hin, Thailand in 2012, and soon developed an affiliation with Hua Hin City FC – firstly at Fort Thanarat and ultimately at Takiab Stadium.  We didn’t appreciate the best of Thai Football, and it was a bit like the UK, comparing Victoria Park, Hartlepool with Old Trafford. 

However, we did get to some half decent stadiums in the lower leagues, with an empty SCG Stadium to watch Assumption Utd probably being the premier facility.  The new Nonthaburi Stadium, built alongside the old stadium was one of the best, although totally under-utilised.  I think the worst stadium I visited in the Hua Hin City era was at Prachinburi, where one goal mouth was split level (the photo below doesn’t do it justice), and Hua Hin City had a goal denied when the ball ricocheted off the corner of the step between levels on the goal line.

So my first 5 years of Thai football took me to some very varied locations.

We fell out with Hua Hin City for some appalling reasons, but needed to get our fix of league football somewhere.  We had 2 logical choices:

⦁ Closest was Prachuap, who had just made it into the top level of Thai football.  That was a non-starter because we still had memories of their president leading a bloody charge of drunken supporters attacking Hua Hin City players in 2014.  A disgusting incident that will never be forgotten.  Whilst he continues at the head of that football club, we could never support them.

⦁ The other choice was Ratchaburi Mitr Phol.  We knew very little about the club, but decided to give it a go.  It is about a 2 hour drive from Hua Hin, but the roads are much friendlier than the drive to Prachuap.

So 3 of us went on adventure to Mitr Phol Stadium.  We didn’t have a clue where we going, simply followed the SatNav.  As we approached, we could see the stadium, with the dragon sat on the roof as a warning to all visiting football teams.

We drove into the more than adequate car park, directed to a parking bay by friendly stewards.  We parked up, and just sat there for a few minutes, totally gob smacked.  This was just like an English football stadium.  Hundreds of fans, all wearing Ratchaburi shirts.  Remember, we were used to Takiab Stadium where the total crowd was often less than100, and club shirts may go on sale half way through a season, but never larger sizes.

We got out of the car and went exploring this new wonderland.  We found a ticket booth and somehow bought what we to this day consider the best seats in the house, and these days have season tickets for those exact same seats.  140฿ a ticket for top class football in Thailand, we just couldn’t believe our luck.

Tickets in our pockets, we moved next door to the club shop.  Wow!!!  The last time I’d seen so many shirts was at Old Trafford.  All colours, all sizes including Foreign Fat Boy sizes.  I’m rather a large chap, and have great difficulty buying clothes off the shelf in England, let alone Thailand.  That evening, I bought orange, purple, light blue, green and yellow shirts – I didn’t like the black one.  What an incredible shop.  Unfortunately, despite the Thai population getting fatter, they have downsized the shirt sizes they sell, so we manufacture our own these days.  Typical Thai business acumen – you have a product that sells out before everything else, so you discontinue it.  That is probably the most baffling part about the club to me.

We took our shirts back to the car, and each changed into our favourite colour.  I had been wearing a Plymouth Argyle Shirt, but was now wearing the colours of my new Thai team – orange.  I was now a Ratchaburi Mitr Phol supporter, and proud.

There was a food court selling all sorts of Thai food to the side of the club shop, although, alas no Pukka Pies, Fish & Chips or Cornish Oggies.  Seriously, quite a good selection + beer if you wanted it.  Several other food outlets on our way to the entrance on the other side of the stadium.

Of course, after a 2 hour drive, purchase of tickets and going crazy in the Aladdin’s Cave club shop, our next stop was the toilet.  Now football ground toilets throughout the world are an unforgettable experience, with a smell that could be used as WMDs.  I’ll never forget the Boxing Day matches in the UK when the smell used to take on a spiced tone, with a mix of Brussels sprouts, and the steam coming off the communal trough.  This is an odour that only football supporters can appreciate.  Well, what a shock – the toilets didn’t smell.  They were clean, they were fresh.  There was even soap to wash your hands.  Mitr Phol Stadium was getting better and better.

Now this stadium was relatively new, and made for football.  I hate those huge provincial stadiums with running tracks.  If you get behind a goal mouth, it can be 50 yards to the first goal, and the other goal is a white blob in the distance.  Ratchaburi is seated on 3 sides.  When we first went, the (main) West Stand was roofed, whilst the Curve Zone and East Stand (where we were) were open to the elements.  This season saw a brand new roof added to the East Stand.

We were told at the start of this season (seems a hundred years ago now) that the next big project was to complete the build, by building a North Stand.  Wherever you sit in Mitr Phol Stadium, you have an unobstructed pitch side view on a proper seat.

OK, so we took our seats in section U of the East Stand.  The first thing we realised was that the band was in front of us.  Brilliant – all we had at Takiab Stadium was a tone deaf kid with a megaphone, who thought chanting made him hard.  We were going to experience bit of proper football atmosphere at last.  Then the teams came out, and we were in heaven – a ginormous Ratchaburi flag was raised in front of us.

This was repeated every time we scored a goal, so the flag was raised 4 times that night.  This was real football.  Unfortunately, the flag vanished last season with the emergence of the Space Invader logo, but I’m pleased to report the dragon has emerged from the ashes, and a brand new flag is back.

Then there was the pitch.  I’ve mentioned the condition of lower league playing surfaces, and the split level Prachinburi goalmouth.  The Ratchaburi pitch was more like a snooker table.  In fact, it wasn’t until my 3rd visit that I realised it wasn’t an artificial pitch.  If you can’t play great football on that surface, you’re as well giving up.  Definitely one of the best surfaces I’ve seen anywhere.

One concern we had was rain.  We all know that when it rains in Thailand, it rains.  The East Stand, which we love, was totally open to the elements.  We used to find ourselves checking the weather forecast all the way to the match, and choose our seat accordingly.  If there was any likelihood of rain, we’d opt for the West Stand.  However, as we found out against Sukhothai last season, a roof offers no protection to Ratchaburi rain.

So what do I think of the West Stand?  It is full of people who aren’t really passionate about their football.  I’ve been there many times, and am amazed at how many people are sat there watching soaps on their phones, rather than the football.  I’ve even seen some watching other live games on their phone, whilst ignoring the game in front of them.  Yes, I’m sure a few will be watching the game, but probably only 50%.  The atmosphere, when compared to the East Stand resembles a morgue.  I always sat in section D or E whilst in the West Stand, so maybe other sections are more passionate about their football.

I would rate Mitr Phol Stadium very highly when compared to other stadiums in Thailand, purpose built and totally suited to the crowd Ratchaburi Mitr Phol attracts to each match.

Unlike many Thai football stadiums, visiting fans are segregated, but they are not made to feel like pariahs, they are given decent pitch sides under cover.  I have never seen crowd trouble at Mitr Phol.

The final thing to say about Mitr Phol Stadium is I have always found the crowd very welcoming and friendly to us foreigners to the extent they are delighted to have us in their stadium.  Even better, this season so far, the football has been worthy of a great stadium.