There was literally only one place to be today. With a complete white-out of fixtures in East Anglia due to the treacherous conditions caused by the recent snow and ice I was really pleased to get to a game at all. As an added bonus it provided the ideal hoppertunity to cheer on my beloved Tigers who were playing at nearby Peterborough United in an important Football League Championship match. How cool is that (no pun intended!).

In the hours leading up to the game the excellent Twitter feed published on the Posh website kept fans informed about the state of play. Thankfully an update posted just after at 10.30am confirmed: ‘Pitch passes morning inspection at London Road. Peterborough United's npower Championship fixture with Hull City is ON. A team of volunteers cleared the surface of snow and the surrounding areas have been gritted to allow supporters to reach the stadium safely. The pitch had been covered all week and is in a decent condition considering the cold weather'.

Although I have been to the London Road ground several times in the past (most recently to watch a Women’s international match between England and Iceland Ladies back in 2004. Doesn't time fly?), I had never actually seen the Tigers play here before. Today was a crucial game for both clubs as the hosts needed valuable points to avoid relegation whereas a win for high-flying Hull would leapfrog them back into second place over Leicester City who had beaten Middlesborough on Friday evening. The Tigers also had a point (well hopefully, three) to prove after losing 2-1 against their opponents back at the KC Stadium in September. If my memory serves me right this was actually their first win of the season.

The game was essentially a poor one. The Tigers who dominated for most of the first half opened the scoring after half an hour when a Robert Koren corner from the left was sliced over the line by Posh defender Joe Newell (33) from two yards out. Rather than building on the goal Hull seemed to sit back on their lead. With only ten minutes remaining United deservedly equalised when substitute Grant McCann (79) converted from the penalty spot after James Chester had bundled over Tommy Rowe inside the box. It was a fair result. Based on this performance though I must say that the hosts look certain to go back to Division 1 whilst Hull face a difficult task to maintain a play-off place. No bias here then.

The match played on an increasingly slippery (but perfectly playable) surface in arctic conditions attracted just over 6200 spectators with about 1000 making the journey down from East Yorkshire. A great deal of snow had certainly been cleared to the sides of the pitch where the long black covers had been rolled up and placed near to the perimeter fencing. Before the game stated I was pleased to meet up with fellow hopper Tony Earl who had travelled by train from his base in March just up the road. A glossy 84-page programme packed with great content, stats and photos was issued price £3 for the game. It will take me a week to read it no doubt. A range of hot and cold refreshments were available at surprisingly decent prices from catering vans parked up outside the turnstiles.

London Road is certainly a stadium of contrasts with three old traditional stands built when the ground was first opened in 1934 - one behind each goal (where there is covered teracing) and a long all-seater North Stand alongside the touchline. Opposite, the modern 5,000 capacity Norwich & Peterborough South Stand (built in 1996), is an impressive sight. Encased in supporting tubular steelwork, this two tiered stand, is covered and all seated. There is also a row of executive boxes running across its middle. The floodlight bulbs are positioned along the roof compared to the two free standing pylons found on the opposite side. The ground had a set of four at one time, but two were taken down when the new South Stand was built.

According to Duncan Adams' excellent internet Football Ground Guide the Club have announced that they are to make London Road into an all seater stadium if the Posh remain in the Championship League for the 2013/14 season to comply with League rules. This would see the redevelopment of the Moyes End of the ground, which would see a new 2,500 all seated stand replace the existing terrace. It is presumed that the London Road End Terrace would also be redeveloped rather than being converted to seating. 

Sadly I was unable to take many ground photos here today. Eagle-eyed stewards were keen to confiscate my camera even before going inside the stadium and only after seeking permission from the chief of operations I was allowed only 30 seconds to take a couple of frames from just side the gate in the corner at the away end. That's Football League rules and copyright I'm afraid. Shame I didn't bring my i-phone 'cos the camera on that would have been OK!!    

Despite the poor match it had been a most enjoyable day out. The chance to see a game of football today was more than I had certainly expected twenty just four hours earlier. To watch my favourite club was the icing on the cake (not another pun?). Great thanks must also go to the many match day volunteers who had helped to get the game on by their tireless efforts with the loan of spades and wheelbarrows. The joys of finding a game of football in deep winter continue...have fun wherever you go. In the meantime I shall unashamedly plug the boys wearing black and amber: ’C’mon you Huuuuuullllll!!!’.