"Gone: and still not paid for"

I've given the DVS 2.5 out of 5 because it was fine as an athletics venue and good enough for Sheffield Eagles RLFC who had been wandering around on just about every pitch in the city trying to find a home. For football, though, it was dreadful. It kept Rotherham United alive (just about) after the landlord had taken brinkmanship too far at Millmoor but even Sheffield FC didn't hang around for long when another ground became vacant in Dronfield.

It was a good idea in principle but was under-used after the World Student Games of 1991 and the council tax payers are still coughing up for it even after its demolition.

Location

The DVS gave some focus to a run down area of the city. It looked good from a distance as well as close up. For Rotherham fans, the location was probably considered pretty awful since it wasn't in their home town at all but in the city of Sheffield, making RUFC, during their tenancy, effectively Sheffield's third club.

View

The pitch was simply too far away across the track. The far touchline might as well have actually been in Rotherham it was so distant from the seats.

Facilities

The grandstand was fine, but the rest of the stadium was never properly developed and was simply open to the weather. Nobody wanted to sit out in the rain so it was, in effect, a one-sided ground.

Food & Drink

Even for a rugby league game the queues were so long that you'd miss a fair proportion of the game if you decided you needed some crisps or a fizzy drink.

Police & Stewards

Never noticed.

Atmosphere

Dead as a doornail. How Rotherham fans must have loved it when they moved back home to a nice new 4-sided football ground!

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