Zaglebie LubinGround: Dialog Arena Visits: 1 Date: 30th October 2013 Match: Zaglebie Lubin - Lechia Gdansk 1-3 (Ekstraklasa) Attendance: 4 738
As in recent years I was free from work, from Wednesday onwards, the last week in October. There were midweek fixtures in several countries and in the end I decided for a Poland/Germany combination with two matches in each country. The fact I would be joined by my German friend Jonas (www.groundchecker.de) in Poland and have access to his (rental) car made my decision easy. The first two matches on this tour were in the Wroclaw area and at 22.50 on Tuesday evening my flight left Copenhagen airport. Monday was a special day in Denmark and southern Sweden. Hurricane winds closed the Öresund bridge for both cars and trains and it was chaos in many parts of Denmark and Sweden. From Kristianstad trains were cancelled until 18.00 on Tuesday evening (from 17.00 on Monday afternoon) and I decided to drive to Malmö/Hyllie station and take the train from there. Copenhagen airport was almost empty on Tuesday evening and I can´t remember ever seeing so few people at the airport. Five minutes before midnight I then arrived in Wroclaw and with only 20 passengers on the flight I only had to wait two minutes for my bag. I found a taxi and at 00.15 I was at Hotel Slask in Wroclaw.
As I woke up on Wednesday morning I was quite surprised. As I looked out the window I could see a football ground right next to the hotel and from my room I had a perfect view. This was Stadion Oporowska, the old ground of Slask Wroclaw. When I arrived at the hotel it was dark and I hadn´t notice the ground then. After a late breakfast I went inside the ground to take a few pictures. Stadion Oporowska is a typical old-style Polish football ground. Nowadays it is used only for the reserve team of Slask Wroclaw. Shortly after 2pm Jonas arrived and we then made the 75 km trip to Lubin in his car. Traffic in Wroclaw was heavier than expected but we were outside Dialog Arena in Lubin around 16.15 (kick-off 18.00). Dialog Arena was opened in 2009 (three stands) and in 2010 (whole stadium). The all-seated capacity is around 16 000. There are still some remains of the old ground left outside the new ground. The old Stadion Zaglebia Lubin had a capacity of 35 000 but was very basic.
Jonas had managed to get a free VIP-ticket but I had to buy a ticket. The most expensive (non-VIP) ticket costed £3 so it was an easy choice for me. Buying tickets in Poland can be a bit tricky. On-line sales are for members only and you have to get a Karte Kibica (club card) before buying your actual ticket. I had my picture taken by a web-cam through the ticket office window and after they had entered all my passport details in the computer I was then eventually given a plastic card (my temporary Karte Kibica) plus a paper receipt with my seat number. The plastic card was taken away from me after I had passed the turnstile. I had 10-15 minutes of sun-light left and managed to get my pictures before it was dark in Lubin. As kick-off approached I realized the crowd would be quite low. In total 4700 made it to Dialog Arena with around 150 of those coming from Gdansk. The hard-core home supporters, in the stand to my right, did their best to generate an atmosphere though and they were quite vocal during the match. To be honest this was a poor match. Lechia Gdansk scored the only goal in the first half but hardly any chances were created by either team. The second half started as poor as the first with nothing exciting happening. Lechia the made it 2-0 in the 72nd minute and from now on the match was entertaining. Lubin pulled a goal back but with the last kick of the match Lechia Gdansk made it 3-1. Four goals but still not a great match. We were then back in Wroclaw by 21.15 and after a late dinner I quickly fell asleep.
Remains from the old ground
Dialog Arena
North Stand
East Stand
South Stand
TV filming the warm-up
Lubin fans
Lubin fans
Lubin scarfs
Kick-off
View of Dialog Arena
Lechia Gdansk fans
East Stand
View of play
South Stand
Lubin fans
Scarfs are out
Pano
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