PONTEDERA 1 V RIMINI 0 - STADIO MANUCCI - SERIE C - 5th NOVEMBER 2022

Union Sportiva Citta di Pontedera are from the town of Pontedera in Tuscany, located between the larger cities of Pisa and Florence. Founded in 1912 they have largely played their football in Serie C or D and play at the multi use  5000 capacity Stadio Manucci which has one main seated stand with some further sections of open seating also  available behind a running track.  One of their claims to fame is beating the Italian national side in a pre 1994 World Cup warm up for the Azurri.

Getting there - Pontedera station is on the line between Pisa and Florence. Its quite a hike to Stadio Manucci from the station, probably 30 minutes. You do walk through the town though so plenty of stopping off points. 

Getting in - Pontedera use ETES.IT to purchase and download. They do have an English translation so fairly easy to process and even though there were only  400 or so in attendance, they do insist on ID checks with your ticket at the barriers near the ground.

What its like  - Making a dedicated trip to Pontedera to take in their Serie C match v Rimini wasnt top of the agenda but the football fixtures aligned on this Saturday with a 5:30 kick off. This  allowed us to make a stop on the way back to Florence from the earlier kick off Serie B Pisa game.  Home fans for this fixture largely gathered in the single  main stand although they also had an uncovered section running the entire length of the pitch on the opposite side. 50 or so Rimini fans were gathered in a small section opposite the main stand and it cant have been a good view.

A fairly entertaining game on the artificial surface saw Pontedera win 1-0 on a chilly November night. The single bar underneath the main stand catered for all tastes and had a historical photo celebration of some of Pontederas highlights, including an away win at bigger neighbours Pisa a few years previous when they were in the same division. If you happen to find yourself in Pontedera or thereabouts then why not.