Activities and sports - The Rough Guide to London - page 434

out. Two county teams are based in London: Middlesex ,
who play at Lord's, and Surrey , who play at The Oval.
Two international sides visit each summer and play a series
of Test matches against England, which last up to five
days. In tandem with the full-blown five-day Tests, there's
also a series of one-day internationals , two of which
are usually held in London.
Tickets Test match tickets can be di cult unless you book
months in advance, and cost £30 and upwards. However,
not all matches last the full five days, so tickets for the fifth
day are usually sold on the day and can cost as little as £10.
Tickets for Twenty20 matches, one-day competitions and
county championship matches cost in the region of
£15-20.

Twickenham Stadium Whitton Rd, Twickenham
(82,000 capacity) T 0871 222 2120, W rfu.com;
Twickenham train station from Waterloo.

TENNIS
Tennis in England is synonymous with Wimbledon , the
only Grand Slam tournament still played on grass. The
Wimbledon championships last a fortnight, in the last
week of June and the first week of July. An easier
opportunity to see big-name players is the Men's
Championship at Queen's Club in Hammersmith, which
finishes a week before Wimbledon. Many of the male
tennis stars use this tournament to acclimatize themselves
to English grass-court conditions.
Tickets Getting hold of a ticket for Wimbledon is a bit of
a palaver. You really need to camp overnight if you want
to get one of the five hundred day tickets for the show
courts (prices from around £35-90); otherwise, if you
get there by 9am, you should get admission to the
outside courts (where you'll catch some top players in
the first week of the tournament), which costs £15-20.
Avoid the middle Saturday, when thousands of people
camp overnight, and don't bother queuing for show
court tickets on the last five days as all seats are pre-
sold. For advance tickets, you have to enter a public
ballot: send a stamped, addressed envelope to the club
for an application form (available from the August
preceding the championship) and return it by December
31. As with Wimbledon, you have to apply for Queen's
tickets in advance, although there are ground tickets
(£20) and a limited number of show court returns on
sale at 10am each day (£35-100). For priority booking,
you need to put your name on the Mailing List and you
will be sent an application form in January.

31

CRICKET GROUNDS
Lord's St John's Wood, NW8 (28,000 capacity) T 020
7616 8500, W lords.org; ! St John's Wood.
The Oval Kennington Oval, SE11 (23,500 capacity)
T 020 7820 5700, W kiaoval.com; ! Oval.

RUGBY
There are two types of rugby played in England. Thirteen-a-
side Rugby League is played almost exclusively in the
north of England. However, the Super League does feature
one London club, London Broncos , who play at the
Twickenham Stoop. The season runs from February to
September, and games traditionally take place on Sundays
at 3pm, but there are now as many matches on Friday and
Saturday. The final of the knock-out Challenge Cup is
traditionally held at Wembley Stadium (see opposite).
In London, however, virtually all rugby clubs play fifteen-a-
side Rugby Union , which has upper-class associations.
Two teams in the Premiership play in London: Harlequins ,
who play at the same stadium as the London Broncos, and
Saracens , who play at the Allianz Park in Hendon. Despite
their names, London Wasps and London Irish play
outside the city. Matches are traditionally on Saturdays at
3pm and the season runs from September until May,
finishing off with the two knock-out finals organized by the
European Rugby Cup - these are known as the Heineken
Cup and the Challenge Cup.
Tickets International matches are played at Twickenham
Stadium, but unless you're a liated to a rugby club, it's
tough (and expensive) to get a ticket. A better bet is to go
and see a Premiership game, where there's bound to be an
international player or two on display - you can usually get
in for £20-40.

TENNIS CLUBS
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Church
Rd, Wimbledon, SW19 T 020 8944 1066, W wimbledon
.com; ! Southfields or Wimbledon Park.
Queen's Club Palliser Rd, Hammersmith, W14; T 020
7386 3400, W queensclub.co.uk; ! Barons Court.

GREYHOUND RACING AND MOTORSPORT
Wimbledon Plough Lane T 0870 840 8905,
W lovethedogs.co.uk; ! Wimbledon Park or
Earlsfield train station from Waterloo. The most
central London venue for watching greyhound racing
(Fri & Sat evenings). Trackside admission costs £6.
Evening meetings usually start around 7.30pm and
finish at 10.30pm, and generally include around a dozen
races. The stadium also hosts stock-car and banger races,
every Sunday from October to April ( W spedeworth
.co.uk), with tickets from £14.

MAJOR RUGBY STADIUMS AND CLUBS
Harlequins Twickenham Stoop Stadium, Langhorn
Drive, Twickenham (14,800 capacity) T 020 8410 6000,
W quins.co.uk; Twickenham train station from

Waterloo.