A five-star FA Cup extra preliminary round performance by Wisbech Town crowned a perfect start to life at the club's new £350,000 Lynn Road ground. More than 660 people crammed into the Tom Wood's Beer Fenland Stadium to see the Fenmen storm to victory.

Wisbech winger Craig Parker and striker Andy Furnell had opportunities to give the Fenman the early advantage before a deflected 20-yard volley by midfielder Scott Carter (11) put the Reds ahead. There were further chances to increase the scoreline before the visitors were reduced to ten men when Tom Williams (32) was sent off after picking up his second yellow card.

The sides started slowly in the second half before Darren Jimson came off the bench and curled a 20-yard free kick into the top corner (69) to re-ignite the game. Parker (80) added to the scoreline later after being put through by Matt Lunn and firing low under keeper Chay Carter. Jimson (84) grabbed his brace with a close range tap-in from Parker's delivery who then completed the rout himself with another cool finish on the fifth miniute of added injury time.

Club chairman Paul Brenchley was delighted with the show of home support on a red letter day for the Ridgeons Premier Division club. "It was a great result and a great way to start life at this new stadium," he said. "I am really pleased with the amount of people who came along to show their support."

Tony Norman, who grew up in the Fens, arrived at the ground after travelling from his home in Australia and said the stadium was "magnificent".

He said: "I came over especially for this game because it's a massive day for the club and with it being the FA Cup, I felt like I had to be here."

Club programme editor Spencer Larham added: "I think for the level of football we play at it's far better than most grounds we go to."

Long time Fenmen supporter Michael Foot admitted the emphatic result was the perfect way to begin life at their new home.

"It was great that the first game at this wonderful stadium was a FA Cup game," said Foot, who has supported the club for 30 years. "Some people have worked really hard to get this fantastic football ground ready and it was fantastic to see so many people here and so many goals."

The Fenmen simply cruised into the next round of the prestigious competition. Today the difference in class between the Eastern Counties League and East Midlands Counties was clearly evident and the scoreline reflected this. Thanks must go to the hard-working players, many of whom returned to the club after spending a brief spell at Soham Town Rangers.

So what's the new ground like? Situated only a stone's throw from the old ground in Lerowe Road, the new Fenland stadium is a superb facility. Found a couple of miles out of town on the Lynn Road, it has an exposed location being surrounded by open fields. The entrance is marked by a large flag complete with Ridgeons logo emblazoned across it. Clearly much work is still needed to complete the unmade car park and other out buildings which at the moment resemble a typical construction site - diggers and plant equipment occupy land by the side of the entry pay booth and turnstile.

A high wooden perimeter fence surrounds the stadium to give it an enclosed feel. Hard standing is already in place on all sides with a wide concourse in front of the clubhouse to the right. The large brick built pavilion is an impressive building characterised by a smart bar lounge and livery; a purpose built kitchen and tea bar and a varied selection of framed photos and a trophy cabinet affixed to the walls. Identical stands provide plenty of cover (spanning the width of the penalty areas) over the terraced steps behind each goal. Thankfully on an afternoon punctuated by heavy showers these offered much needed shelter and protection from the elements! 

A much smaller stand, with just over 100 seats, sits close to the half-way line on the far side. Although this looks disproportionately small there is much room to increase its size in the future on the adjacent land. Interestingly this cover was transported from Outwell where the club ground-shared during the development of the Fenland Stadium. Several lengths of plastic sheeting cover the borders and space to the side of the stand at this stage. There are only four floodlight pylons (each mast with six bulbs) on site: unusually those on the far side are positioned inside the perimeter fence and are much closer to the pitch.

The game attracted an encouraging crowd of 663 spectators including several hoppers taking advantage of a new tick. I was pleased to meet up with fellow hoppers Vince Taylor and Dave Garrow who had travelled independently to the Fens for their footy fix. The 'gate' was the largest in the league today and may be the highest come next May. However this is in stark contrast to cub record which currently stands at 8,044 (v Peterborough United on 25th August 1957). This seems quite surprising when the official capacity is listed officially as 3,804.  It will be interesting to compare subsequent home games throughout the rest of the season. 

A 44-page programme, priced £1, was issued for the match and came with a full colour cover portaying a number of ground photos charting the development of the ground. The traveller (from London) standing in front of me in the programme queue bought no less than 12 copies and looked to have got the last few on sale. Thankfully the lady steward allayed my fears when she produced some more after opening a new box!! Phew! A wide range of refreshments could be purchased from the tea bar and mobile catering van parked pitch-side for the afternoon. Town also publishes a superb website (with forum) entitled 'Fenmen On-line', the adddress for which is shown below. Check it out! 

A visit to Fenland Stadium comes highly recommended. Although the old ground (one of my favourites) will take some beating in aesthetic terms, travellers should not compare the two stadia. It's unrealistic. The new facility is totally different and should offer the club and its fanatical supporters a stable future. In times of financial difficulty surely this has to be better than renting at Outwell? Just ask the locals. The joys of hopping in the flat country continue...        

FGIF Match Stats

Scorers: (H) S Carter (11); S Jimson (69; 84); C Parker (80; 95) and (A) N/A

Attendance: 663; Admission: £6; Programme: £1; Match rating: 5/5; Ground rating: 5/5.

http://www.wisbechtown.co.uk/