Victoria Park (Dingwall)

Victoria Park, also known as the Global Energy Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is an all-seater football stadium in the town of Dingwall, Highland, Scotland. It is the home ground of Ross County, who currently play in the Scottish Premiership.

General information

Arena capacity: 6,541 spectators

Address: Jubilee Park Road, Dingwall, Ross-shire, IV15 9QZ, Scotland

GPS coordinates for the navigator: 57°35′45.41″N 4°25′08.09″W

Year of construction: 1929

Field: grass lawn with dimensions of 101 x 68

Seating plan of Victoria Park

West Stand

The West Stand is considered the Main Stand at Victoria Park.

It consists of a single tier which is split into two sections that you can freely get between. The majority of seats in this stand are coloured blue, though the two central blocks in the back section are coloured red and for executive use. The block to the left of these has the letters RC spelt out with white seating in it, and the block to the right has the letters FC spelt out with white seating in it. There are executive boxes, hospitality suites, and the area holding the matchday camera up at the very back of the stand.

The stadium’s dugouts and tunnel are located down the front of the stand, with the changing rooms based inside. Attached to one end of the stand, over by the stadium’s northwest corner, is a two-tiered hospitality building.

Your view from anywhere inside the West Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.

Windshields are in place at either end, but they only provide protection to the rows further back. The rows further forward have just small walls in place to offer protection.

Academy End

The Academy End used to be uncovered terracing but now consists of a single tier of seating.

The outer seating blocks are coloured red, with the inner seating blocks coloured blue and having the letters RCFC spelt out in white across them. The red block next to the stadium’s northwest corner additionally has a flat platform down at the front for disabled supporters to use.

Your view from anywhere inside the Academy End is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.

Windshields are in place at either end, but they only provide protection to the rows further back. The rows further forward have just small walls in place to offer protection. The end next to the northeast corner however has its protection aided by buildings housed in there, including the Reception for the Highland Football Academy Campus.

East Stand

The East Stand used to not run along the whole length of the pitch, but it has now been extended at both ends.

The stand is single tiered with the extended parts both containing entirely blue seating, though the one nearer to the stadium’s northeast corner doesn’t have seating blocks that are as big as the rest of the stands.

The central blocks of the stand are split between two sections that you can freely get between. It has blue outer blocks, with the central blocks coloured red instead. The block further back and to the left of these red blocks has the letters RC spelt out in white seating in it, and the block to the right has the letters FC spelt out in white seating in it. Executive boxes and hospitality facilities are located up behind the back row in the stand’s centre.

Your view from anywhere inside the East Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.

Windshields are in place at either end, but they only provide protection to the rows further back. The rows further forward have just small walls in place to offer protection. The end next to the northeast corner however has its protection aided by buildings housed in there, including the Reception for the Highland Football Academy Campus.

Jail End

The Jail End used to be covered terracing but now consists of a single tier of seating.

The outer seating blocks at either end are coloured red, with the inner seating blocks coloured blue. Down at the front of the block nearest to the southwest corner is a flat platform for disabled supporters to use. The space next to this block is taken up by a Tea Bar that offers refreshments for those on this side of the stadium.

Red supporting pillars come down from the stand’s roof and will likely restrict the view of those sat behind them. They will not get in your way at all if you are sat right down at the front.

The Tea Bar provides protection from the sides at one end of the stand. The other end has a windshield in place, but it does not provide full protection to the very front rows of the stand.

Away Fans

Away fans are housed behind the goal in the Academy End on the northern side of the ground.

This used to be a completely uncovered stand, but is now a single tier of seating which has a flat platform down at the front which disabled supporters can use.

Smaller crowds will often be sectioned off into one part of the stand via rows of stewards or large sheets. The biggest of crowds, typically around 2,000 supporters, can be housed in the whole of the Academy End, where they are already well segregated by home fans elsewhere in the stadium.

Blocks in the adjacent West Stand can be made available as well if necessary.

Your view from anywhere inside the Academy End is perfectly clear, with a good level of protection from windshields and club buildings at either end.

The end next to the northeast corner however has its protection aided by buildings housed in there, including the Reception for the Highland Football Academy Campus.

Turnstiles for this part of the stadium can be found along Jubilee Park Road by the stadium’s northwest corner.

Where to buy tickets?

If you’d like to see Ross County play the football then how much you’ll pay for the privilege depends on your age, where you’d like to sit and who it is that The Staggies are playing.

If the opposition is one of the ‘premium teams’, however, then you’ll see a £2 increase to ticket prices across the board. Premium teams include Aberdeen, Celtic, Rangers, Hearts and Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

It’s pretty unusual for Ross County to sell out their ground, so tickets are normally available on match day from the ticket office. Otherwise, you can buy them online or over the phone, should you be so inclined.

How to get there?

Victoria Park is located within 0.5 miles of the Highland Town’s Centre. The River Peffery runs along a short distance north of the stadium, with Pefferside Park roughly 0.5 miles away to the northwest.

Coming to Victoria Park by car is certainly possible (if you fancy what could well be a long drive for most up to the Scottish Highlands).

There is a car park immediately to the west of the stadium, which costs £2 per vehicle to park at.

Finding free parking within Dingwall should be possible though. Ensure that you are legally to park where you find and do not block the drives of any residents.

There’s good news if you don’t fancy taking your car up to the Highlands, however.

Dingwall Station, served by a ScotRail service that runs from Inverness, is less than a five minute walk southwest of Victoria Park. It is perfectly placed for those coming by rail.

You can alternatively use the bus to get between Dingwall and Inverness. The Number 27 service runs from Station Road in Dingwall and ends at Inverness Bus Station which is next door to Inverness Train Station.

Where to eat and sleep?

Dingwall is only a small town, but there are a couple of nice guest houses that might interest you. There’s also Inverness not far away, if you don’t mind travelling:

1. The Royal Guest House. This attractive 3-star B&B is less than five minutes on foot from The Global Energy Stadium and has ten rooms, Wi-Fi in the reception area and a continental breakfast included in the cost of your stay.
2. Tulloch Castle Hotel. A touch further afield at more like twenty minutes walk is this delightful hotel in a castle-looking building. It’s got a restaurant, a bar, a business centre, a conference space, a garden and free parking. There’s also free Wi-Fi and breakfast included in the price.
3. Mercure Inverness Hotel. Eleven miles away from the ground is this member of the Mercure chain of hotels. It has a fabulous location right on the bank of the river and promises a restaurant, a bar, a fitness centre, a business centre with a meeting room and free Wi-Fi.

Dingwall doesn’t offer the bright, shiny lights of Glasgow or Edinburgh or even Inverness, but it does promise a great night out and a friendly atmosphere. Here are some of the best pre-match pint locations:

1. The Mallard. Overlooking the train station is this modern bar and restaurant with an excellent menu. There are beers, wines, spirits and even cocktails on the drinks list and there are TVs for live sports coverage too.
2. Oscars Sports Bar. The clue is the name with this place. It’s a sports bar that is child friendly, serves reasonably good food and has loads of decent drinks to choose from. What more do you want before you go to the game?
3. The Conon Bridge Hotel. This hotel is a member of The Scotch Beef Club, which might tell you a little something about what you can expect from the menu! It’s not just a hotel, though, as there’s also a pub that is part of the property and you can get a tasty bite to eat, a good drink and watch some live sport there. Perfect.

Facilities

The facilities at Victoria Park are about what you’d expect from a top-flight club’s stadium. The Away Stand features all of the usual mod-cons. Want to grab a drink or bite to eat at half-time? You can do, no problem. There are toilets, too. How posh.

There are three main hospitality options at the home of Ross County. The MacLean Suite promises a two course hot and cold buffet, half-time refreshments, priority seating in The West Stand and a pay bar facility should you fancy a mid-match pint. The Victoria Suite is a slightly different affair with a 3 course waitress service lunch, prime seating, complimentary bar and pre/post match analysis. The MacGregor Executive Box, meanwhile, has a three-course hot and cold buffet, half-time refreshments and a complimentary bar that is open before and after the game.

A number of The Global Energy Stadium’s rooms and suites are available for private hire for conferencing and personal use. They can host anything from an intimate meeting for up to 16 in the wood paneled Clubroom up to parties and conferences for up to 120 in the MacLean Suite. If you’re interested in finding out more then your best bet is to contact the club directly.

Exterior

If you are coming to Victoria Park from Dingwall Station, you will likely head up Jubilee Park Road and first be brought to the stadium’s southwest corner.

There is a brick building here which leads to Staggies Bar The Grill.

Continuing in a clockwise direction along Jubilee Park Road from here brings you to the West Stand.

Its exterior has a blue and white concrete base with blue corrugated iron and a row of windows higher up. There is another entrance for the Staggies Bar by the southwest corner, and a little further along from here is the stadium’s Main Entrance which also holds the Club Shop. The Players Lounge and MacLean Suite Hospitality Entrance is towards the middle of the West Stand’s exterior.

Turnstiles for the West Stand itself (5-8) are based at either end of the exterior. Turnstiles 5-6 are near to the stadium’s northwest corner, and Turnstiles 7-8 are in the stadium’s southwest corner.

Victoria Park’s Car Park is out beyond the West Stand, and you can also find the Matchday Ticket Office in a portacabin. Home Ticket Sales are at one end of it and Away Ticket Sales are at the other.

Heading past Turnstiles 5-6 and past a white brick wall allows you to be in line with the stadium’s North Stand.

It is better known as the Academy Stand because the Highland Football Academy’s Dingwall Campus is situated right outside of it. The Academy’s Reception is next to the stadium’s northeast corner.

You can find turnstiles for the Academy End itself however (1-4) near to two West Stand turnstiles in the stadium’s northwest corner.

Jubilee Park, where the Academy train, and the River Peffery are out beyond the Academy End and the Highland Football Academy.

The East Stand at Victoria Park has a brickwork and partly concrete base with blue corrugated iron and a row of windows higher up. Part of the corrugated iron section protrudes outwards as well. The Entrance for the stand’s executive boxes and hospitality facilities can be found at the base of a glass façade, with many other doors along the exterior not meant for use on a matchday.

The turnstiles for the East Stand (13-16) are located in a brick building by the stadium’s southeast corner. They face towards the southern side of the stadium however.

Out beyond the East Stand’s exterior is a large grass pitch and 3G pitch which are both part of the Highland Football Academy Campus.

The South Stand at Victoria Park is known as the Jail End. This is because the old County Jail and Sheriff Court were once located behind it. The jails have since been converted into housing and despite the Sheriff Court still remaining intact, it is no longer in use.

There’s nothing of note on the Jail End’s exterior, which has a white concrete base with blue corrugated iron in place on it. There is a path immediately outside of it which you can walk along though to get from one side of Victoria Park to the other.

Turnstiles for the Jail End (9-12) are housed in the stadium’s southwest corner off Jubilee Park Road.

History

In 1966 a reported 8000 people turned up to watch Ross County play a Scottish Cup game against Rangers. The money raised from the game allowed the club to build a new stand at the Jail End of the stadium. The Jail End takes its name from the fact that the old County Jail and the Sheriff Court were behind it. The jail itself has been turned into housing, but that hasn’t stopped fans giving the stand its unusual name.