NimesGround: Stade des Costières Visits: 1 Date: 22nd February 2016 Match: Nîmes Olympique - Metz 2-1 (Ligue 2) Attendance: 10 085
After three games in Spain it was time to move on. In France there is always one Ligue 2 fixture on Monday evening. In this round that fixture was Nîmes Olympique vs Metz. From Girona there are direct trains to Nîmes and at 10.01 I left the train station in Girona. As we passed the border there was a passport control but that went smoothly. 12.48, on time, the train arrived in Nîmes and my hotel was then opposite the station. Nowadays Nîmes has a population of around 150 000. The city has a rich history, dating back to the Roman empire when the city was home to 50 000- 60 000 people. Several famous monuments are in Nîmes, such as the Nîmes Arena (Arenes de Nîmes) and the Maison Carrée. After checking in at my hotel I went to the amphitheatre (Arenes de Nîmes) and admired the old architecture. I also decided to visit the (city centre) club shop but that was not only closed for the day, it was closed for good. Instead I went to a nearby bar for a late lunch. As I was about to pay I noticed a sign saying "Tickets for Nîmes games can be purchased here". Apparently the bar has replaced the club shop. Anyway, the bartender told me I could buy a ticket in the VIP-section of the North Stand for only 10 Euros. That sounded too good to be true but he said something about a campaign. The game would kick-off at 20.30 and knowing there wouldn´t be any buses back to the city centre after the game, meaning I had to walk back to my hotel, I decided to visit the ground in the afternoon and the do the walk in daylight. The walk would take around 25 minutes and I didn´t want to risk getting lost on my way back late in the evening in a city I don´t know. From the amphitheatre there was a direct bus (T1) to the ground and once at Stade des Costières I noticed there was a flee market outside the ground. I took a few pictures before making the walk to my hotel.
Nîmes Olympique moved to Stade des Costières in 1989. In recent years he club has mostly played in Ligue 2 but the all-time record attendance at Stade des Costières is from the 1991/92 Ligue 1 season when 25 051 showed up for the visit of Marseille. Nowadays the capacity is around 18 500. Shortly before 7pm I was back outside Stade des Costières. Having started the started poorly Nîmes have now won 6 of their last 9 games are currently just above the relegation zone. Attendances this season have gone up but I had no idea how many would turn up for this game. As kick-off approached the ground filled up and in total 10 085 was at Stade des Costières this Monday evening. From Metz it is 700 km to Nîmes but 30 or so away fans were actually at the game. Metz hit the inside of the post twice in the first half but it was Nîmes who scored the only goal, 1-0 at half-time. Metz wants to be promoted back to Ligue 1 and in the 55th minute they equalized. I was by now convinced Metz would go on a score a winning goal. Despite a few chances they didn´t though. Instead it was the home team who in the 91st minutes scored the winning goal. Massive celebrations inside Stade des Costières and a great end to this trip for me. I was back at my hotel shortly before 11pm and at 07.20 next morning my TGV-train left for Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. I was then back home around 7pm on Tuesday evening.
Avenue Feucheres
Statue
Arenes de Nîmes
Arenes de Nîmes
Arenes de Nîmes
Arenes de Nîmes
Arenes de Nîmes
Roman road
Maison Carrée
Maison Carrée
Stade des Costières
Rear of the North Stand
Rear of the East Stand
Rear of the South Stand
Stade des Costières at night
East Stand
South Stand
West Stand
North Stand
Players and officials entering the field
Line-up
Kick-off
East Stand
Nîmes´ fans
South Stand
South Stand
Metz fans
Metz fans
North Stand
Substitution
2-1!
Pano
Pano
Pano |