Momentum Energy along with Melbourne City FC gave lucky fan Craig Williams the chance to travel to the UK to see Manchester City as the winner of Momentum’s ‘Win a trip to the UK’ competition. Craig reflected on his experiences of the trip.
Thank you Momentum Energy for a once in a lifetime experience
On April 18 we flew out of Melbourne aboard an Etihad Airways flight to the UK. The accommodation was arguably the best in Manchester, floor to ceiling windows with views over the city. The accommodation was excellent and located in the heart of the city close to restaurants, shopping and attractions.
The first night consisted of having a brief look around town before an early night to recover from the flight. On Wednesday we were up early and made the most of the breakfast provided by the hotel before making our way into the city centre to observe some of the many attraction, one of which was the National Football museum. On Wednesday night we made our way out to Old Trafford on the metrolink tram to watch Manchester United beat Crystal Palace 2-nil. It was a great experience to finally see the famous Old Trafford ground.
Thursday was a free day and a chance to further explore the Manchester city attractions which saw us soaking up some of the excellent weather that Manchester was providing us. Manchester has many old buildings, some of which we observed like the John Rylands Library, Town Hall and the Manchester Cathedral.
Friday we made our way out to Etihad stadium for the stadium tour which was very insightful. We observed the chairman’s room which was set up for the following day’s match between Manchester City and Stoke City. We then made our way down into the inner sanctum of the ground where there was a dedicated room to their championship year 2013/14, then onto the players change rooms. Because of the game the following day all the player’s kits were laid out ready for the following day.
Following this we made the mad rush out to Preston on the train to watch Preston North End vs Burnley. This was a local derby and the atmosphere was electric with the 6000 Burnley fans taking up one end of the ground.
Game day Saturday, it was an early start at the Etihad 12.15, so we made our way out to the stadium to soak up the atmosphere of game day at the Etihad. They sure do put on a show with the precinct having several bars and pre match entertainment in the area adjacent the ground at City Square. About an hour before the match we made our way into the ground and our pre match buffet lunch and refreshments which was in an exclusive area of the ground, before making our way to our seats. The seats were excellent on the second level just on the half way line.
The stadium is amazing, you are so close to the action. The game got off to a slow start, before City clicked into gear and made light work of Stoke winning 4 nil. The atmosphere was sensational and a great experience to see Manchester City live.
Thank you to Momentum Energy for a once in a lifetime experience.
