A lesson in Calcio planning.
Andria might not be a city that has come into your orbit much, if at all. However, with a population of just under 97,000, it is the fourth city of Puglia, after Bari, Taranto, and Foggia. Success on a football field doesn’t necessarily correlate to the size of any citizenship though. All four names mentioned here have a football club in the third tier or lower. The only team from the region in the top two leagues are Lecce, who are in the top flight. It has a population of 95,000, just a little less than Andria.
Andria is an important agricultural hub for olives, almonds, and also the wine industry. It sits inland from Barletta and Trani in a province that carries all three names, not exactly a catchy one, but I guess no noses are out of joint.
One of the three train companies that operate separate lines out of three different stations at Bari Centrale is Ferrovie del Nord Barese. They essentially provide the rail link to Bari airport, and the many Bari commuter stops along the way. It carries on out of the greater Bari area, through Bitinto and Corato, to Andria. Niche football fans be alerted. Those two stops before Andria can get you fifth and sixth tier Puglian regional calcio.
The train now terminates at Andria Sud, which you will not be surprised to read is in the south of the city! It used to carry on through Andria and end its journey on the coast at Barletta. The current arrangement will stay in place until 2029/30, as they are doubling the line between the two following a severe head-on collision between two trains on the single line in 2016. Sadly, this accident killed 23, and seriously injured another 50.
Ultimately, the centre of Andria and the football stadium are less than 2 kilometres from the Sud station. If you were going to Barletta, the main train operator, Trenitalia will whisk you north of the main coastal route in about 40 minutes.
Andria has some nice old buildings in the old centre, and its cafe society spills out nicely into the streets nearby, where traffic has been prohibited. The atmosphere is relaxed, but largely, this is a working city and has nothing that would draw you here unless you are in town to watch a game, which curiously enough, I was.
Nineteen kilometres from Andria, but still classed as coming under its umbrella if you will, is the curious Castel del Monte. There is no man selling freshly produced orange juice here, but even more oddly, it’s a castle without neither a moat or a drawbridge. In fact, it’s position on the flatlands, makes it utterly Pythonesque, just waiting for John Cleese to re-run his French accented guard in The Holy Grail. It appears it was never intended as a defensive fortress, more a lavish home for King Frederick II, who inherited it from his mum Constance of Sicily. Sadly, it was too far out of town for your reporter to have a peek. I would understand if you’d want to ‘blow your nose in my general direction’!
Like just about everything in Italy, you need your wits about you and be switched onto every possible eventuality, even when trying to organise access to a fourth tier cup tie. I had earmarked this Puglian derby at the Stadio Degli Ulivi, with league leaders Virtus Francavilla in town as something rather tasty, and I was keen to go.
This is a competition that rarely gets the fans enthused, as unlike the Coppa Italia in Serie C, where winning can see you skip a few play-off rounds, or the Eccellenza (tier 5) equivalent, a right monster of a competition, but ultimately guarantees promotion to the winners, just as Bisceglie benefited from last season.
The Serie D edition merely puts the winner in a ranking table with 9 playoff winners and any given Serie A U23 side who might want to join the party. Pistoiese won the D Coppa Italia last term and got them nowhere in terms of promotion. Yet, the year before, Ravenna did, so it can create a possibility at best.
That makes what I am about to write seem even more preposterous, but it’s why I started this article with the notion of necessary planning.
Fidelis, as the Andrian club is known, has an online sales arrangement with Vivaticket, one of Italy’s big ticketing businesses. The thing is, clubs get twitchy, especially when the game involves two teams from the same region. The system only delineates between regions, not cities. Therefore, it can’t stop a Francavilla fan from buying a brief for the home end, but why would they I hear you cry. I know back in Scotland, two certain fanbases from Glasgow don’t bat an eye at being in the wrong end, but with a thousand away tickets, on a Wednesday night at 20,30 for a cup match, Virtus weren’t going to sell their allocation.
The risk of infiltration was nonsense, but just in case, online sales were suspended. Alas, commonsense, and football in Italy do not go hand in hand. It feels like, along with total away fan bans, etc, just anything for an easy life and treat all fans with the contempt they don’t deserve.
I had been vigilant enough to notice this quirk, but with a booked trip to Benevento the day before, and ticket sales halted completely 2 1/2 hours before kick off on game day, I was fortunately in Bari on the Monday ahead of the Wednesday kick off, allowing me the chance to nip up to Andria for the 2 hour sales window from 6pm that night. Andria is 70 minutes from Bari.
The stadium is a twenty minute walk from Andria Sud, but on this trip, having already encountered massive delays on the trains (one hour became 6 1/2, and three became 7), I was twitchy about the need to leave the stadium before full-time and catch the very last train back to Bari.
I am old school, and I never really understand what’s the point of going to a game unless you can enjoy the whole event. I hate having to leave early, but granted, on occasion, needs must. The 6 1/2 hour carfuffle mentioned above saw me miss the penalty shoot out at a sixth tier cup match. If only I had known the first train back to Nola was delayed 90 minutes, I could have not only stayed to the ultimate conclusion, but had a go myself!
Hotels in Andria are jolly reasonably priced, and with money sat in my account at my hotel booking service of choice, it afforded me a nice reduction on an already cheap room, so at a stroke I took away all the angst.
I had previously been at the Ulivi, if not for a game. A Saturday morning road trip down from Ascoli Piceno to Bari with my Belgian buddy Steph at the wheel, we had time to kill, so we popped into Andria for a look, as you do. Steph blagged us access to the ground, and we had a scout around. It’s a very fine venue, holding circa 12,000 on a good day. I say that because, as a fourth tier outfit, the Gradinata opposite the main stand isn’t registered for usage, thereby keeping the tax liability down.
That visit helped clinch the idea I needed to stay the night, because something else very Italian was going to complicate any twenty minute walk to the railway station, road closures. The away end is at the south of the stadium, and therefore, I can guarantee you that the local constabulary will have closed off all the south streets nearby and immediately adjacent to the Ulivi. I have seen this played out before with a road closure blocking access to Modena station two minutes away, even though the away fans were being kept back. To reach Andria Sud on match night would require as the Gridiron fraternity would call it, ‘an end a round’, and all these uncertainty blockages cost valuable minutes when in a hurry. Staying in town was the right thing to do.
Some of what I say is probably stuff you wouldn’t think about pre-match, and in truth, you shouldn’t need to, but in Italy, they are hellbent on treating fans with utter contempt. It’s almost as if: ‘How dare you go to the game!’
Fidelis Andria have been on the go since 1920, and the Stadio Degli Ulivi has been home since 1949. The high points on the CV came in 1991/92 and 1996/97 when they reached Serie B, but on both occasions, they failed to establish themselves at the higher level.
Prior to those giddy days, they went bust and were refounded in 1971, well ahead of the more recent unfortunate trend of these occurrences in Italy. But not to feel left out, 2005, 2013, and 2018 saw three refounding Fidelis’ when the woes of finance once again darkened their door.
To be fair, they bounced back well from the last ‘issue’, and were highly competitive in Serie C until relegation three seasons ago.
Serie D really is a tough level to escape, and with Andria having had a shocking start to the league campaign this season, they are already playing catch up. It might suggest that a lengthy Coppa Italia run would aid in rebuilding confidence and help recovery in the league.
The club badge wouldn’t look out of place at Millwall, Middlesbrough or Dundee, with that classic posturing lion look. It is the coat of arms symbol of the city too.
The visitors from Francavilla Fontana, a town between Taranto and Brindisi in the south of the region, arrived in Andria as the league leaders. Virtus were also a staple of C until the same season saw them both relegated, albeit for Francavilla in dramatic, heartbreaking fashion.
They had a chance to escape the drop if they could beat Monopoli over two legs. Going into the 96th minute of the second leg, Virtus were leading and staying up. Then a cross and powerful header from the Monopoli player beat the keeper, and the emotional tide switched. They were saved. Oddly, I was given a t-shirt by my man in Monopoli, Cosimino, depicting that very moment, the miracle goal as it became known there.
In the summer, the Mediterranean Games were held in the southern city of Taranto, which got a wonderful new stadium out of the funding. Satellite cities of Lecce, Brindisi, and Francavilla Fontana all benefited from money to upgrade facilities, too, as they were used for football (men’s and women) during the competition. Brindisi got a newly roofed Curva and Gradinata, while Virtus got a roof on the home Curva and a brand new ‘away’ end, which completes the stadium very nicely. It is interesting to note that all clubs involved, except Taranto (who really are beyond saving), have started the season very well. Coincidence, or have additional finances from the games also helped the playing roster?
Given it is a long season, I was curious if Virtus would give this match everything, which was essentially a Puglian Cup Final, as the last two standing from the region. The winner would be the sole representative in the last 16, or would Virtus raise the white flag in round 3 to concentrate on trying to keep Brindisi, Martina Franca and Turris at bay. A tricky one, as no one likes losing a derby.
The stadium is at the end of a rather splendid park if you are coming from the central area of Andria. It is a large park, well looked after, complete with its very own Arc de Triomphe esque construction. All benches are tucked well under trees, pointing to places can escape the maddening summer heat, and believe me, it does get very hot down this way.
The visiting contingent was a mere 20 in the end, but that doesn’t stop immediate roads at the away end being locked down, for a mere minibus of brave souls who would have a late arrival back in Francavilla Fontana. No animosity was on display between the fans. The most curious thing was the home Ultras singing the name Barletta. A local rival, but obviously a chum, unusual!
Well, the notion Virtus wouldn’t be up for the fight proved to be a false flag. Despite Fidelis creating the better chances in the first half, it was the visitors who trotted in leading after tickling the ball home from close range following a scrap in the box.
The Andria Ultras could slip into the naughty pup category, as a laser was in use, as well as a refs whistle. The annnouncer warned them twice to howling abuse and whistles. The piece de resistance was kicking a ball over the crossbar onto the field as Virtus were pouring forward. A vigilant attacker kicked it off again so the push forward could continue. Having said all that, they were great. Never ending songs, and appreciation of the team at the end.
The home side were shooting towards their fans in the second half, and they fiddled away, but Virtus are a well organised side, and snuffed a lot out. As the clocked ticked down, home frustrations in the Tribuna grew, but Fidelis were making in-roads and the cool demeanour of the Francavilla back line was beginning to strain. It wasn’t to be for Andria though, one easy chance very late on, which was put over the bar was the glorious opportunity they’d craved. The league leaders Virtus had won, and technically they can call themselves the unofficial Puglia Serie D winners, as they march onwards into a more national competition for the last four rounds. Amongst those awaiting Virtus in the draw are some big old clubs, Piacenza, Ternana, last seasons beaten finalists Ancona and divisional rivals from Campania, Turris.
Well there you have it in a nutshell. The trials, the tribulations and the joy of discovering a new city. It’s always somewhere to consider if in the Bari region for sure.
