Vital Statistics
Founded: 1976
Chairman: Phil Wallace
Last Season: League Two - 18th
Nickname: The Boro
Rivals: Woking, Barnet
Major Honours
None
Scheduled Matches
Portsmouth vs Stevenage: Saturday, November 26th (3pm)
Stevenage vs Portsmouth: Saturday, March 18th (3pm)
Stevenage: A brief history
Stevenage are one of the newest football clubs in the country having been founded in 1976 following the demise of Stevenage Athletic. They joined the United Counties League in 1980 and were in the Conference National by 1994.
Despite winning non-league's top tier in 1996, Boro were denied a place in the Football League due to insufficient football ground facilities. Promotion to League Two finally arrived when Stevenage won the Conference in 2010 and then won promotion to League One the following season by beating Torquay in the play-off final.
Boro remarkably reached the play-offs again the following season but lost in the 2012 League One play-off semi-final to Sheffield United. Fortunes soon dwindled and the Hertfordshire club were relegated back to League Two after finishing bottom of the third tier in 2014.
The Manager: Darren Sarll
The 33-year-old had a brief playing career in non-league football at clubs like Bedford Town and Chesham United before becoming a reserve team coach at Stevenage in 2008.
He moved to Brentford later that year to coach the youth team and was promoted to assist Andy Scott who was promoted to manager. Sarll followed Scott to Rotherham but left in 2012 when he returned to Stevenage as a youth coach once more.
He was promoted to first team manager in February 2016 following Teddy Sheringham's sacking and, with some help from Glenn Roeder, kept Stevenage in the Football League to keep the job on a permanent basis.
The Ground: Broadhall Way (Capacity: 6,700 - Away: 1,400)
Situated right next to a motorway, Broadhall Way isn't exactly the ideal location for a football ground. The only place to drink nearby is the club bar but to be fair it's a good size, has live football on TV and you get served quickly. There are also fast food restaurants nearby in the retail park.
The ground itself isn't too bad for a club that was non-league not so long ago. From the away end, the Main Stand on the left is the most impressive.
Opposite the away stand is the North Terrace which looks dingy and is certainly showing its age. Stevenage do plan to redevelop this stand in the future.
On the right is the East Terrace which houses the more vocal Boro fans who like to break out in the famous "Dale Cavese" every now and again. (You know the one; "nahnahnah nahnahnahnah! Whoooaoooooooh!")
Overall, Broadhall Way isn't too bad. The away end lacks facilities for a big following but the view of the pitch is good enough and the atmosphere is alright for a small ground. There are worse venues in League Two.