| Football Violence. 11:10 - Nov 17 with 33339 views | qpr_1968 |
What was your first experience of football violence/crowd disturbance.
and did that first experience have an effect on you.....not being involved, but as a by stander.
The first was at home to glasgow rangers, pre season friendly in 1969, as an 11 year old it was pretty hairy, and although not very violent in the ground, the atmosphere was intense.
outside though plenty of trouble, in later years i've learnt that west ham and tottenham fans were there for trouble.
it did have an immediate effect, one terrified but excited the same time, but that was when i was nearly home after.....just to add, 3 of us all 11 year olds went to the game on our own, from sutton esteate off north pole road.
First away experience was at leeds in 1973, 2-2 draw.
we went by football special, 400 on the train in all, in them days everyone was a target, wearing your colours or getting caught out by your accent.
we had trouble at the turnstiles before the game, no segregation, and lots of leeds fans in what we now call the away end.
coming out was even worse, hundreds of leeds fans waiting outside to pick you off, and a few did get caught out and beaten up....thank god for the green buses back to the train station. |  |
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| Football Violence. on 11:17 - Nov 17 with 10380 views | Boston |
Never heard a word about Spurs or West Ham at that fixture, though I was not in attendance. Always seemed to be the odd scuffle, can’t recall being surprised by problems, it was an ever present threat at away fixtures. | |
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| Football Violence. on 11:27 - Nov 17 with 10348 views | Konk |
Mike Keen's testimonial. |  |
| Fulham FC: It's the taking part that counts |
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| Football Violence. on 11:43 - Nov 17 with 10285 views | loftboy |
The first game my dad took me to was Chelsea v Newcastle (Gary Locke the Chelsea right backs Auntie lived opposite me) he gave my dad two complimentary tickets in what was then the new stand. Both teams were at the bottom of the table, Newcastle had about 200 fans stood on the old North stand,at half time Chelsea skinheads basically steamed them, then at the end in Fulham Broadway it all kicked off, my dad who had been going to Chelsea since the 1940’s vowed never to go to another game whilst me was buzzing!!
Seen a few bad incidents following QPR down the years, Leeds away in the FA cup, Cardiff away in the FA cup, Luton away in the FA cup was particularly nasty, had a few run ins at Chelsea, remember having to be lively on my feet away at Coventry in 86 after they avoided relegation.
Millwall at home in the league cup 87ish was very lively and the away leg was definitely an eye opener. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 11:45]
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| Football Violence. on 11:52 - Nov 17 with 10252 views | Rs_Holy |
Crystal Palace away 1983... Whatever the train station after Selhurst is?
The tension in the carriage was palpable (we won 3-0 on our way to promotion). Lots of shouting and swearing was going on as a Palace fan had started on a very young QPR fan...
As the train pulled into that station all the flappy doors opened and it was as if everyone (from the whole train) got sucked onto the platform. I was the only person left on my carriage!
The platform was literally full of fans throwing punches... I took one look and thought 'nah... I'm going home'. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 11:53]
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| Football Violence. on 12:03 - Nov 17 with 10199 views | MrSheen |
I started going to games independently in the 1979-80 season. Although there was a lot of threats and menace at LR, the police always had seemed to have it under control and controlled contact at the ground. It was a different story at Brentford when I went with friends, you could still stroll around the ground and there were only about 2 policemen in attendance. Violence there was generally about six-a-side: the fighters were well-known, and when they went on the move to take on the Southend or Reading massive, a gang of kids would follow them to see what happened. The boot was on the other foot when Sheffield Wednesday came to town and everyone ran in terror when they spotted 10 or so skins in Crombie coats standing behind us. Something to talk about at school on Monday, much more thrilling than the actual game.
My first experience of violence at a Rangers game was away at Charlton that season. There were about 7,000 knocking around the Valley, which was hopelessly decrepit then. I guess our lot thought the odds looked favourable and set off across that huge terrace to meet the home fans in a pre-Iron Age battle of sticks and lumps of concrete. It continued in the streets outside after the game. I remember turning a corner and coming face to face with an enormous skinhead in Charlton colours. My 15 years flashed before my eyes, but he wasn't remotely interested in me. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 12:05 - Nov 17 with 10202 views | Juzzie |
My first season was 82/83 when we won the 2nd division (the Championship in today's money for you youngsters out there). I went to 10 games and didn't see any trouble as such but in one of the latter games at home to Leeds I saw a lad drop an iron bar out of a tube train window just as we pulled into Shepherds Bush station.
The following season back in the 1st Division our first home game was against Villa, I think it kicked off in the away end but as I was in the Loft nothing that affected me.
I sort of recall seeing things from afar at a few games but nothing that worried me, I think the first close-hand experience I had was actually non-QPR. We were away at Everton and a mate of mine (also QPR) lived in Charlton and that Saturday Charlton were playing as the away team against Crystal Palace who they ground shared with (first game in England between two clubs who shared a ground I believe).
Now, there wasn't actually any trouble that i saw at that game, it was on the way home....
We got on a train to London Bridge and ended up with a load of Stoke fans, who had played at Millwall, in the same carriage. "Don't say we're QPR, we'll be a 'scalp'" so we said we were Charlton. Two of us, loads of them. As Charlton weren't really a threat to anyone we were safe.
We pulled into London Bridge and as we all got off the train we heard from the end of the platform "They they are!" and loads of coins and bricks came our way from the Millwall fans who had an altercation with the same lot of Stoke fans about an hour earlier.
Oh crap!... I jumped back on the train and made my way down the carriages as it was kicking off on the platform. Lost my mate and it turned out afterwards he fell down the gap between the train and platform and had to climb back up before also making his way back down the carriages.
We 'laughed' afterwards but it was scary for a moment! |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 12:21 - Nov 17 with 10158 views | izlingtonhoop |
Coming out in Leeds, in 1973, was always gonna be fraught with difficulties. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 12:27 - Nov 17 with 10129 views | queensparker |
Always remember me, my younger brother and Manc cousin were put in charge of looking after my ten year old sister one weekend. So obviously we decided to bring her along to Chelsea away in around 1988 or so.
Not too bad in the ground, but afterwards we all got penned into a road that was blocked at both ends and it all kicked off everywhere - us three boys had to form a Roman shell over our little sister to protect her from the bricks etc raining down, while sh*tting ourself (more from what the parents were going to say than the Chelsea).
Needless to say she loved it and still talks about it to this day. |  | | |
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| Football Violence. on 12:39 - Nov 17 with 10080 views | R_from_afar |
I have been lucky enough to largely avoid that sort of thing. The worst situation I can remember in connection with QPR is when we were in the third tier and some fans of Mansfield, as I recall, got out of hand in and around The Adelaide and a load of bottles and glasses were thrown.
Worse than that was my experierence at Wycombe v Oxford Utd a few years ago. I go to a few Wycombe games because my best mate is a season ticket holder, plus it's a sort of pilgrimage going to watch Ainsworth marshalling his troops 
That game is both teams' big derby and it can get spicy, indeed, that day, it did. My mate's seat is in the front row of the top tier of the main stand and overlooks some corporate boxes. For that game, some Oxford fans had booked a box just below us and got rowdier and rowdier as the game wore on. The nearby Wycombe fans gave them loads back, including my mate (and Ainsworth's wife, who was sat near the boxes), but no line appeared to have been crossed.
Appeared is the operative word because suddenly, I noticed this grey haired, 60 something bloke heading unsteadily, but rapidly, along our near empty row towards my mate and I. Hurling abuse, he launched himself at my mate and managed to land a punch on him and split his lip but the Oxford fan was trollied and dwarfed by my tall and burly mate. Wycombe fans leapt to our aid and I held back my mate as the others restrained the assailant; I knew my mate could've destroyed the other bloke. Stewards eventually appeared, followed by a policeman.
The worst thing about the whole episode was how poorly the stewards and security people "controlled" the idiots. My mate found one of the Wycombe board after the game and made his displeasure at the way the box had not been properly monitored abundantly clear. |  |
| "Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1." |
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| Football Violence. on 12:43 - Nov 17 with 10070 views | CroydonCaptJack |
| Football Violence. on 11:52 - Nov 17 by Rs_Holy |
Crystal Palace away 1983... Whatever the train station after Selhurst is?
The tension in the carriage was palpable (we won 3-0 on our way to promotion). Lots of shouting and swearing was going on as a Palace fan had started on a very young QPR fan...
As the train pulled into that station all the flappy doors opened and it was as if everyone (from the whole train) got sucked onto the platform. I was the only person left on my carriage!
The platform was literally full of fans throwing punches... I took one look and thought 'nah... I'm going home'. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 11:53]
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East Croydon probably mate. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 13:10 - Nov 17 with 9997 views | SydneyRs |
| Football Violence. on 11:43 - Nov 17 by loftboy |
The first game my dad took me to was Chelsea v Newcastle (Gary Locke the Chelsea right backs Auntie lived opposite me) he gave my dad two complimentary tickets in what was then the new stand. Both teams were at the bottom of the table, Newcastle had about 200 fans stood on the old North stand,at half time Chelsea skinheads basically steamed them, then at the end in Fulham Broadway it all kicked off, my dad who had been going to Chelsea since the 1940’s vowed never to go to another game whilst me was buzzing!!
Seen a few bad incidents following QPR down the years, Leeds away in the FA cup, Cardiff away in the FA cup, Luton away in the FA cup was particularly nasty, had a few run ins at Chelsea, remember having to be lively on my feet away at Coventry in 86 after they avoided relegation.
Millwall at home in the league cup 87ish was very lively and the away leg was definitely an eye opener. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 11:45]
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Was at those Millwall (home and away) and Luton cup games.
The Millwall one I remember well. Big, noisy away following but no trouble in the ground until half time when it kicked off in about 5 different parts of the ground at the same time, seemed to be co-ordinated. We won 2-1 and they got their goal near the end. It was like they'd won the world cup, they went mental, on the pitch etc. It carried on outside after and a bunch of them ran onto the platform at White City (I was luckily on the other platform) just slapping anyone that happened to be there, I remember them chanting "bush whackers" which I think was one of their firms.
The away leg at the old Den was scary. I was expecting at least 1500 Rangers to be there as would be the norm for a midweek away game in that part of London at the time. People must have been put off by the fighting at our ground as probably 200 max QPR were in the old away corner terrace up against a sizeable home crowd. Rangers then played a ultra defensive 90 minutes to get a 0-0 featuring endless back passing etc and winding up the home fans a treat. It took ages to get them all out of the ground after the game as they were intent on hanging around to have a go at us. Very glad to get on a train out of there.
The Luton one was unpleasant. Got in the ground to hear stories that two QPR had been stabbed before the game. The away terrace was next to a Luton section and coins were flying during the game. We lost to an own goal and then had to get back to the station afterwards. Tense is not the word. I was on my own and along came a group of maybe 100-150 QPR clearly looking for revenge but with Police following them to make sure they got to the station and on a train back to London. I decided my safest option was to tag along with them. There were a few bottles flying outside the station as a bunch of Luton appeared but the police made sure we were herded onto the train.
By far the worst violence I've seen though was at Chelsea when they got relegated in a playoff v Boro in the 80s. It was the early days of the playoffs where a top flight team would play sides from the second division. Chelsea had lost 2-0 at Boro but 40,000 turned up to see them try and turn it around. They won 1-0 but it wasn't enough and they were relegated. I was in the Boro end among maybe 5,000 or so away fans, only there to see the scum go down! After the game they wanted to get to the Boro fans but couldn't cross the 3 mile gap between the pitch and the away end due to police blocking them off. So they then turned on the police. In particular it absolutely kicked off in the benches to the right of the away end and took a long time to restore order and get the home fans away before we were finally let out. It only added to the joy of them going down to see them so angry! | | | |
| Football Violence. on 13:14 - Nov 17 with 9990 views | joe90 |
I can't recall any football violence apart from a few scuffles between our fans and stewards.
When I was younger my Dad would take me to games, sometime he'd come in with me and sometimes I'd go in alone and he'd pick me up after. I had wanted to go to the Portsmouth game (97/98?), my Dad who isn't a football fan and doesn't know about the different reputations, for some reason wouldn't let me go. Must have had some sort of parenting instinct!
Since I've been going as an adult I've not seen any trouble, but I have noticed you get these 'lads' who dress the part, but none of them are scary, especially if you've grown up in London, you're not going to be sacred of a few boys from the home counties in a Stone Island jumpers, haha
The one thing I have noticed is that with the Northern clubs their 'hooligans' seem to be a lot older, I clearly remember a few Huddersfield fans - proper big blokes - having a go had some young lads. I was shocked by that. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 13:43 - Nov 17 with 9926 views | hantssi |
I started going to football in the mid ‘70’s so pretty much every game had an interesting mix of excitement and scariness, but by far the worse violence I saw was at Chelsea the year they got promotion back to Div. 1 (early ‘80’s?), I was in The Shed with a mate who was (is) a Chelsea fan against Leeds last game of the season.
It was packed and although The Shed was fenced in, the other 2 sides were not and for the full 90 minutes the Chelsea fans got on the pitch to get at the Leeds fans.
In injury time Paul Cannoville (remember him?) scored cue pandemonium, the ref blew to re-start the game and to finish in the same breath. Chelsea fans running at the Leeds fans, Leeds fans trying to climb the fencing to get on the pitch, it all spilled over into Fulham Broadway station and on into London!
As an interested bystander I wasn’t too scared but it could have been really dangerous. | | | |
| Football Violence. on 14:01 - Nov 17 with 9893 views | stowmarketrange |
There always used to be trouble at London derbies during the mid 70’s as I remember.You’d get a group of spurs or arsenal fans trying to take the loft about 2 minutes before ko so the police couldn’t throw them out.
I especially remember the season after we almost won the league and we played arsenal on a midweek evening game.One muppet said to me and my mate at ko time “You Rangers too?”Yes I replied.”Well f@ck off then,coz it ain’t safe here.”And he pulled out a medium sized baseball bat from his jeans.We took the hint and moved to over where the tea bar used to be in the bit where Q block is now.
How I laughed later when we took over Highbury for the league cup semifinal replay,and a few arsenal w@nkers got battered on the north bank.
The 6-1 cup game against West Ham got a bit tasty in the loft too.We started in the middle of the terrace but as each goal went in we got nearer to the South Africa Road exit. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 14:37 - Nov 17 with 9813 views | CliveWilsonSaid |
Might have been my first away game. Stamford Bridge I’ve got it in my head it was a 1-1 draw so looking back at our head to head with Chelsea that would be August 1989. I’d have been 13. I don’t remember much about the game apart thinking what a sh!thole and wtf are all the cars parked around the pitch.
Anyway it was hardly serious but on the way out there used to be a wall separating the home fans from the away fans near the exit. Bottles and all kinds came flying over. Cnts. |  |
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| Football Violence on 15:20 - Nov 17 with 9721 views | Boston |
Derby away, evening fixture mid / late 70’s. Decent Rangers turn out, Derby fronted is in the street after the match, no coppers... [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 15:24]
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| Football Violence. on 15:37 - Nov 17 with 9672 views | 2Thomas2Bowles |
Can't clearly remember which of these game it was
06 Oct 1973 Queens Park Rangers v Chelsea D 1-1 League Division One
15 Jan 1974 Queens Park Rangers v Chelsea W 1-0 FA Cup
But think it was the cup game
I'm pretty sure this was when the hatred of the scum really started
Loads of trouble before the game in the streets around LR . in the loft and all-round the ground
I've seen a few bad things, was at that Luton/Millwall game but to me, that game was the worst.
Like wild crazy neanderthals terrorising kids and woman, smashing car windows and to the homes. |  |
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| Football Violence. on 16:15 - Nov 17 with 9597 views | welwynranger |
Barnet away in the cup . Anyone who was there will never forget it. | | | |
| Football Violence. on 16:19 - Nov 17 with 9587 views | stevec |
| Football Violence. on 15:37 - Nov 17 by 2Thomas2Bowles |
Can't clearly remember which of these game it was
06 Oct 1973 Queens Park Rangers v Chelsea D 1-1 League Division One
15 Jan 1974 Queens Park Rangers v Chelsea W 1-0 FA Cup
But think it was the cup game
I'm pretty sure this was when the hatred of the scum really started
Loads of trouble before the game in the streets around LR . in the loft and all-round the ground
I've seen a few bad things, was at that Luton/Millwall game but to me, that game was the worst.
Like wild crazy neanderthals terrorising kids and woman, smashing car windows and to the homes. |
Pretty sure it was the cup game during the 3 day week, so had to be played around lunchtime as no floodlighting.
Remember our headmaster saying anyone who left school at lunch to go to the game would be expelled, needless to say half the school decamped to LR. We watched it from the top of the flats behind the school end. Massive trouble after the game, all down Bloemfontein and SAR.
Worst I’ve seen was at a Chelsea West Ham game in the Shed. Went to meet some Chelsea schoolmates and West Ham were down the side and ran at Chelsea, had come in along the back and bodies were literally being thrown up there after a beating. Had to step precariously over some huge nutters who I reckon we’re in their early 40’s , have to say it was pretty scary. |  | | |
| Football Violence. on 16:48 - Nov 17 with 9498 views | BazzaInTheLoft |
Not old enough to remember any of the 70s or 80s fixtures mentioned, but I remember as a 7/8 year old kid seeing a United fan being kicked to fck outside the Springbok in the early 90s. Stuck with me that, and caused me some distress and stopped me wanting to go for a little while. My parents are adamant we won that game too.
Otherwise from my teens until now where I’ve been to almost all away grounds in the top three divisions I’ve rarely seen anything other than mild scuffles that barely last 30 seconds, and personally only came up against any kind of agro at Forest Away, and even that was by a 70 year old man who would have been blown over by a light breeze. We just laughed at him.
Just been lucky I guess. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 16:53]
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| Football Violence. on 16:49 - Nov 17 with 9492 views | BlackCrowe |
| Football Violence. on 16:19 - Nov 17 by stevec |
Pretty sure it was the cup game during the 3 day week, so had to be played around lunchtime as no floodlighting.
Remember our headmaster saying anyone who left school at lunch to go to the game would be expelled, needless to say half the school decamped to LR. We watched it from the top of the flats behind the school end. Massive trouble after the game, all down Bloemfontein and SAR.
Worst I’ve seen was at a Chelsea West Ham game in the Shed. Went to meet some Chelsea schoolmates and West Ham were down the side and ran at Chelsea, had come in along the back and bodies were literally being thrown up there after a beating. Had to step precariously over some huge nutters who I reckon we’re in their early 40’s , have to say it was pretty scary. |
Around about '88, I went to Chelsea West Ham with a mate (chelsea). We were drinking outside a pub with 50+ Chelsea supporters and big roar goes up and someone shouts 'ICF...hundreds of them...leg it'. So were all running down this side street and one Chelsea tw@t screamed...'what are we running for..stand and fight. STAND AND FIGHT'. And they did.
We carried on to get reinforcements  |  |
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| Football Violence. on 16:56 - Nov 17 with 9470 views | ParkRoyalR |
| Football Violence. on 11:52 - Nov 17 by Rs_Holy |
Crystal Palace away 1983... Whatever the train station after Selhurst is?
The tension in the carriage was palpable (we won 3-0 on our way to promotion). Lots of shouting and swearing was going on as a Palace fan had started on a very young QPR fan...
As the train pulled into that station all the flappy doors opened and it was as if everyone (from the whole train) got sucked onto the platform. I was the only person left on my carriage!
The platform was literally full of fans throwing punches... I took one look and thought 'nah... I'm going home'. [Post edited 17 Nov 2020 11:53]
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Thornton Heath was the station it all spilled onto the platform and kicked off,
Headed to the game after school with two school pals, left 5 minutes early, wrong call, we were chased down the hill towards Selhurst Station and one of the lads (a crazy Slav) got weighed through a rather large privet hedge!
Onto aforesaid carriage, where a few older Palace were trying to bully some younger Rangers, heading towards us till an R's dad stood up and with a growl of 'leave the kids alone' (think John Rambo or Arnie Swarz and you'll get the scene) chinned the Palace bully, train pulled into the station and all spilled onto the platform where more Rangers were waiting, Karma. | | | |
| Football Violence. on 16:57 - Nov 17 with 9456 views | MrSheen |
| Football Violence. on 16:19 - Nov 17 by stevec |
Pretty sure it was the cup game during the 3 day week, so had to be played around lunchtime as no floodlighting.
Remember our headmaster saying anyone who left school at lunch to go to the game would be expelled, needless to say half the school decamped to LR. We watched it from the top of the flats behind the school end. Massive trouble after the game, all down Bloemfontein and SAR.
Worst I’ve seen was at a Chelsea West Ham game in the Shed. Went to meet some Chelsea schoolmates and West Ham were down the side and ran at Chelsea, had come in along the back and bodies were literally being thrown up there after a beating. Had to step precariously over some huge nutters who I reckon we’re in their early 40’s , have to say it was pretty scary. |
I saw Ch*ls**-West ham from the top of the East Stand in 1980. West Ham at their most terrifying, they started wandering out of the side of the north terrace and began to fill the south-west corner of the Shed end, then charged forward in a column towards the middle. Swirling chaos for about ten minutes, lots of people carried out. Me and my friends didn't dare leave for about an hour afterwards.
Dire game, won by a Graham Wilkins own goal! | | | |
| Football Violence. on 17:04 - Nov 17 with 9448 views | Paddyhoops |
Worst I've ever seen was at the FAI cup Final at Dalymount Park in Dublin back in the eighties.
My team ,Sligo Rovers were playing Bohemians . It was a home game for them as it was thier ground.
Place was a complete dump. Decrepit and mostly terraced.
On our terrace we had to endure bottles, bricks and apples spiked with razor blades.
Classy bunch they were.
Sligo had the last laugh mind . Won the game 2.1.
As for Rangers.. I remember travelling over for the milk cup final( sorry, the game that shall never be spoken off)
It all kicked off at our end. Apparently a few Chelsea fans had decided to infiltrate our end.
Never quiet got the full story!! | | | |
| Football Violence. on 18:40 - Nov 17 with 9254 views | Beckenhamhoop |
| Football Violence. on 17:04 - Nov 17 by Paddyhoops |
Worst I've ever seen was at the FAI cup Final at Dalymount Park in Dublin back in the eighties.
My team ,Sligo Rovers were playing Bohemians . It was a home game for them as it was thier ground.
Place was a complete dump. Decrepit and mostly terraced.
On our terrace we had to endure bottles, bricks and apples spiked with razor blades.
Classy bunch they were.
Sligo had the last laugh mind . Won the game 2.1.
As for Rangers.. I remember travelling over for the milk cup final( sorry, the game that shall never be spoken off)
It all kicked off at our end. Apparently a few Chelsea fans had decided to infiltrate our end.
Never quiet got the full story!! |
I was introduced to football violence by watching Millwall from the East Stand at the old Den. SCARY. | | | |
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