Home of Samut Prakan City Football Club
by Phil Williams
“Phil, I’ve never been to your ground before. How far is it from the sky-train station?”
“You could do it in 30 minutes by taxi, but it might take you an hour if the traffic is bad”
“An hour? Bloody hell. What’s the nearest well-known landmark?”
“There isn’t one. Just a decrepit shopping mall called the Yes Plaza but hardly any taxi drivers know it”
“Can you get a public bus from Sukhumwit Road - or maybe even a minivan?”
“No”
You get the picture. When it comes to Thai Premier League football stadia, the SAT Bang Plee is in the middle-of-fucking-nowhere. I’ve chatted to Thais who were born in that neighborhood and have still never seen or heard of it. But if you can convince a taxi driver that there is indeed a football ground in Bang Plee, it’s so worth the effort.
It’s difficult to describe the appeal of the SAT Stadium, but it’s most definitely there. A midweek game under floodlights is like taking a nostalgic trip back to 1970’s England and those inner city football grounds – many no longer with us - that frankly, put the fear of God into you in an ‘am I going to make it out alive’ kind of way.
Leicester City’s Filbert Street and Middlesbrough’s Ayresome Park spring instantly to mind. Shoehorned between rows of drab, slate-grey terraced houses, you would make the short walk from the railway station along dimly-lit streets, with just the sparsest of police escorts standing between you and the local bovver boys who were already baying for blood. Eventually you would reach the safety of the away end and spend the next couple of hours in an enclosure constructed entirely of concrete, corrugated iron and barbed wire. Things got even shittier if it was raining.
However, this is Thai football of course. The blood-curdling rivalry doesn’t exist and the Samut Prakan home fans guarantee you a warm welcome. They’ll share a beer and ask you for a selfie. A friendlier bunch of supporters you couldn’t wish to meet. These are good honest, working class lads.
And we know how much effort you’ve made to get there.
You’ve negotiated the confusing one-way system that leads to the ground, you’ve carefully picked your way past council garbage bins overflowing with food scraps, avoided upsetting that pack of soi dogs and swerved the potholes in the footpath – some so deep that they must give health and safety officers sleepless nights. And finally you’ve managed to cross the road without getting whacked by a motorcycle.
Upon arrival at the stadium, as your gaze falls across the rutted gravel concourse, taking in the fan zone, the ticket office and one of the goalmouths, your mind will probably contain one solitary thought - “What a shithole”. You’re probably right, but you know what? - it’s our shithole and we love it! The SAT only holds 5,000 spectators anyway, but even crowds of 2-3,000 can still generate a terrific atmosphere. I’m convinced it’s up there with one of the best match day experiences in the Thai Prem.
Behind both goalmouths are banks of uncovered plastic seating. These are the cheap seats. In the rainy season, buy tickets in these zones at your peril because if the heavens open, you’re gonna get soaked.
The one stand behind the goal gets fairly full with home supporters. This is the closest seating to the fan zone, where all the food and drink vendors are, so you don’t have far to carry your beer. This is also where the ticket office and club shop are located. Actually, let’s not get carried away – the ticket office is two girls sat behind a trestle table and the club shop is an open-sided van.
The other goalmouth end is what I refer to as ‘the school end’ on account of it having a large government school behind it. I don’t know the name of the school but someone has painted it bright pink. This is always the last section of the ground to fill up on busy match days.
Running alongside one length of the pitch is the main stand and this has been much improved in recent times and actually now looks quite swanky. My wife and I sit in this stand, along with other fans who can afford 200 baht for a match ticket and get the best view in the stadium. The main stand also houses a press box and a VIP section, which on match days fills up with prawn sandwich eaters, WAGs (players’ wives and girlfriends) and various friends of corporate sponsors who have probably never been to a football match in their lives. Oh, and small kids who can never fucking sit still.
Wedged into one of the corners, between the main stand and the school end, is the away zone, which I believe can accommodate about 550 supporters.
Opposite the main stand is the popular side. This is where the Samut Prakan hardcore fans and hoodlums congregate, those who wave enormous flags, beat drums, shout through megaphones, pour large quantities of beer down their throats and generally go topless at the first opportunity (the men that is)
Come and take in a game at the SAT Bang Plee. You’ll bloody love it!
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