KongsvingerGround: Gjemselund Stadion Visits: 1 Date: 11th April 2022 Match: Kongsvinger - Skeid 1-0 (OBOS-ligaen) Attendance: 1 406 Most games in OBOS-ligaen are played on Monday evenings, bad news for fans but good news for groundhoppers. My choice for the 4th and final game on this tour was Kongsvinger v Skeid at Gjemselund Stadion. Kongsvinger is 75 minutes by train (northeast) from Oslo and at 13.04 I boarded a train at Oslo S. As has been the case in recent days the weather was really nice and I had some nice views from the train. Once in Kongsvinger the plan was to cross the river Glomma and go to the ground to take some pictures. The walk from the train station took me around 15 minutes and once at the ground I was pleased to find out the entrance gate was open. The ground has a capacity of around 6,000 and the only covered stand is the all-seated main (south) stand. The far side is an open seated stand and one part of this stand is given to away fans. I could see remnants of the former athletics track but thankfully Gjemselund Stadion is nowadays a proper football ground! Next part of my plan was to make it by foot to Kongsvinger Fortress. The fortress was built in 1682. Although a significant part of the Norwegian border fortification during several wars with Sweden, Kongsvinger never saw an attack. The closest offensive occurred in 1808 during the Napoleonic Wars, when a Swedish column advanced against the fortress of Kongsvinger. They reached the Glomma River after a victory at Lier on 18 April, but did not cross the river and invade the fortress. On 10 March 1809 an interim armistice was signed at Kongsvinger. The walk to the fortress made me really tired but once I was there I had a fantastic view of Kongsvinger and its surroundings. I spent around 30 minutes at the fortress before heading back to central Kongsvinger for a well-deserved dinner. Kick-off was at 18.00 and half an hour or so prior to kick-off I was back at Gjemselund Stadion. Despite limited financial resources, Kongsvinger played in the Norwegian top flight for 17 consecutive seasons between 1983 and 1999. In the new millennium Kongsvinger has mostly played in 1. divisjon (OBOS-ligaen) though. In 2021 the club played in 2. divisjon but they are now back in the Norwegian 2nd tier. Skeid, from Oslo, brought around 30 fans to Kongsvinger this evening and the official attendance was given as 1,406. Kongsvinger made it 1-0 in the 10th minute and that was the score at half-time. Skeid tried their best but Kongsvinger was the better team tonight and deservedly won 1-0. Shortly before 22.00 I was back in central Oslo and my trip was coming to an end. I will be surprised if I don't return to Oslo in the near future though! Glomma (with Gjemselund Stadion in the background) Kongsvinger Fortress Kongsvinger Fortress Kongsvinger Fortress Nice view! Entrance to Gjemselund Stadion Welocme to Kongsvinger! South Stand South Stand West Stand North Stand East Stand Players nad officials entering Scarves are out Kongsvinger fans Kick-off North Stand Skeid fans View of play East Stand 1-0 South Stand Pano Pano |