Topic: Scariest ground you have been to

[ScouserAtHeart]

Fuck me, talk about 'top trumps'

Not sure I would leave the house again, let alone set foot in a stadium.

It was nothing. I'm from Bangalore, and I was at the game.(It was an IPL game.) At the time it sounded like fireworks being set off before the game, or a burst transformer. It was only when the game was held up for a while that anyone in the ground realized it had been a "bomb." It was very low intensity, there weren't even minor injuries.

[Davvo7]

Speaking of bomb sites, have you ever been to Southport's Haig Avenue?

[Pheeny]

Sounds like you were legged by the queue for our local gay club.

Whoosh...

[dave 5516]

Speaking of bomb sites, have you ever been to Southport's Haig Avenue?

The year Chelsea knocked us out in the 3rd round of the cup we were going to Bolton to see them and on the train there we found out it was called off so we headed to Southport to see them .

We got there and that was also off,so we broke into their development office...a garden shed.

We ended up on the pitch fighting with men who came out of the club..it was soaked with rain and we ended up looking like mud wrestlers.

The team they were down to play that day was Wimbledon in the 4th division.Fun times.

[Kopite B205]

Athens 2007 - a horrible, horrible experience.

[Istanbul, 2005]

I went to QPR-Millwall a couple of years ago, outside Loftus road it was fucking mayhem, maybe 100-200 millwall fans just running around and smashing things up, QPR had a big firm out as well so it was fights all around Shepards bush. Some of the games in the Championship are a throwback to the 70-80´s, I saw QPR-Swansea and it was chaos as well.

Been to AIK-Djurgarden ( The Stockholm derby) and IFK Gothenburg-AIK (propably the biggest fixture in swedish football), absolutely mayhem and probably some of the biggest hooligan matches in Europe bar none.

[RobbyR]

If anybody would like to contribute a few stories to my second hooly book i would be grateful.    first book called road end hooligans about the 80s casual movement which we started.  its on amazon

[spen71]

Never saw this thread before.   It brings back some memories of the late 80s And early 90s when I was a regular at the aways

West Ham was always dodgy
Norwich was an odd one but always went off
The old k stand showering you with coins and anything else they could get their hands on
Got Battered in the broadwater estate after taking the wrong turning
Chester v Wrexham

[Alf]

Went to a pre-season friendly at Crewe once, the ground was full of wasps.

They had them at the back row of the away end at Newcastle. Fuck dealing with that wasps nest. Maine Road was always the type of place where you thought you'd get your head kicked in if it wasn't a match day, neither the Den or Elland Road are a picnic either.

[ggcc14]

Very back row of the old Mestalla, A wall no more than 5 foot between you and what seemed like a million foot drop.

[dave 5516]

If anybody would like to contribute a few stories to my second hooly book i would be grateful.    first book called road end hooligans about the 80s casual movement which we started.  its on amazon

Wool.

[kesey]

The walk to Seven Sisters tube station at Spurs was always dodgy.

[kesey]

Wool.

 

Yes. That was a Southern based term. It didnt really have a name in Liverpool as it was just the way it was. If I could try and come uo with a term I would say it was just called going the match.

[Crosby Nick]

The walk to Seven Sisters tube station at Spurs was always dodgy.

With or without a game taking place!

[Nick110581]

West Ham away a few years back when Owen scored near the end.

Millwall in Carling Cup.

[FlashingBlade]

Followed the Reds home and away from mid seventies to early 90's...y'know just as we stopped winning things!

Roma '84 stands out as the worst experiance...although I wasnt there, Spurs in the cup in '79 resonates with lots of lads.

London was special..travelling across it you could bump into various mobs getting back to Euston.. I always likend it to "The Warriors"

The thing was, Liverpool would always take a decent following which meant all the other teams where always up for it when Liverpool where in town...the big games where good cos we would have such a big mob..Mancs away was sound...but the risks where an WBA or somewhere like that, where we didnt take our usual mob but local nutters would be out in force cos LFC where in town.

Dont forget Anfield was hell for most away fans and Ive heared many a scary anecdote from opposition fans.

"We're the best behaved supporters in the land.....but a right shower of bastards when we lose"

[Buck Pete]

Stadio delle Alpi 2005 watching Rafa's reds give Juve a masterclass at their own game.  Another game Ibra got fuck all out of Big Sami and Carra

Despite the show of friendship we attempted in the first leg the away game experience wasn't very pleasant at all.  We all know about the big Hillsborough banner they unfurled and I'm not posting a picture of it i took. Fuck them

Outside we were greeted by these friendly faces.  Fair play to the Turin Police though, as well as not being photo shy they policed it well and stopped us from getting leathered which definitely would have happened otherwise.

They couldn't stop the bottles of piss reigning down all game though.

[Son of Spion]

Never saw this thread before.   It brings back some memories of the late 80s And early 90s when I was a regular at the aways

West Ham was always dodgy
Norwich was an odd one but always went off
The old k stand showering you with coins and anything else they could get their hands on
Got Battered in the broadwater estate after taking the wrong turning
Chester v Wrexham

My mates and I always enjoyed Norwich away. Never had any problems there. We went twice in a week once. Played them in the league then again in the cup. Both times Liverpool took over the Norwich City Supporters Club without incident. We also stayed over for the first game and went out on the town, again without incident. Their hardcore in the ground acted tough but you always got the impression they'd last all of two seconds if they came to Anfield.

The old K-Stand was full of pricks throwing stuff. I used to love turning around and getting eye contact with one of the twats and staring them down.

Maine Road was a dodgy place. We always got tickets in their home stand opposite the Kippax from the City supporting husband of my cousin. Never had a problem in the ground and there were Reds all over the place. Outside was different. Little alleyways all around. We got sussed and legged on one trip there. My heavily pregnant cousin who arrived to pick us up by car had her unborn baby called a ''scouse bastard'' by City fans.

Someone mentioned Krakow earlier in the thread. I went there on a city break a few years ago and before going was told that if I buy any football related stuff there to keep it well hidden in case I got an axe in my head. Wisla and Cracovia hate each other with a passion. You can tell by the grafitti on the walls whose areas of the city you are in. I saw a small shop which sold club merch from both clubs as well as the national team, probably to tourists, but you never see locals wearing it themselves. I do like to buy footy related stuff on my travels, but wouldn't touch Wisla stuff as their fanbase has a big fascist element.

[EstonianRed]

My mates and I always enjoyed Norwich away. Never had any problems there. We went twice in a week once. Played them in the league then again in the cup. Both times Liverpool took over the Norwich City Supporters Club without incident. We also stayed over for the first game and went out on the town, again without incident. Their hardcore in the ground acted tough but you always got the impression they'd last all of two seconds if they came to Anfield.

The old K-Stand was full of pricks throwing stuff. I used to love turning around and getting eye contact with one of the twats and staring them down.

Maine Road was a dodgy place. We always got tickets in their home stand opposite the Kippax from the City supporting husband of my cousin. Never had a problem in the ground and there were Reds all over the place. Outside was different. Little alleyways all around. We got sussed and legged on one trip there. My heavily pregnant cousin who arrived to pick us up by car had her unborn baby called a ''scouse bastard'' by City fans.

Someone mentioned Krakow earlier in the thread. I went there on a city break a few years ago and before going was told that if I buy any football related stuff there to keep it well hidden in case I got an axe in my head. Wisla and Cracovia hate each other with a passion. You can tell by the grafitti on the walls whose areas of the city you are in. I saw a small shop which sold club merch from both clubs as well as the national team, probably to tourists, but you never see locals wearing it themselves. I do like to buy footy related stuff on my travels, but wouldn't touch Wisla stuff as their fanbase has a big fascist element.

They like to burn the scarfes they nick off from each other as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFKzZKGLxg0

Remember seeing Danny Dyer football hooligan episode in Krakow. Scary stuff.

EDIT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3WAf7ZQcg8 - here is the episode

[Demo]

I remember as an 8 yr old being taken to Oakwell (Barnsley) on a sunday around 84 for an FA cup tie,we twatted them 4-0,
think Rushie got a hat trick if my memory serves me well?

At the end of the game we were walking back to the coach a van full of yorkshires finest proceeded to launch empty milk bottles at us whilst we were walking along,needless to say a few lads chased after them and gave them a bit of a caning!!

On the coach for the umpteenth time since he'd been taking me the away games my old man muttered the immortal words
"dont tell yer ma what youve seen today!!"   

Over the following years i witnessed some things i shouldn't have been allowed to see ha ha

[dave 5516]

 

Yes. That was a Southern based term. It didnt really have a name in Liverpool as it was just the way it was. If I could try and come uo with a term I would say it was just called going the match.

It did have a name, K....it was Scally....Scallies. At the point it becomes casual...knobheads....it moves away from what was a working class youth culture from the streets and terraces of Liverpool into the mainstream as the media and fashion industries get a hold of what we'd done.

It started off in the various areas in the city...my mates live down on Vauxy and their memories of what was going and changing are different from where I lived. it was Gola trainees and straights with mohair jumpers and DC haircuts in the beginning for me. It becomes a movement once all the different parts are put together on the terraces. In the beginning you wore what you robbed....it was only later that we made an effort to out do each other with the different labels and trainees. I think it's the most important youth movement in my lifetime...a thing that starts with working class lads and girls in our city becomes a massive influence on how people dress and still is 40 years on.

[dave 5516]

Followed the Reds home and away from mid seventies to early 90's...y'know just as we stopped winning things!

Roma '84 stands out as the worst experiance...although I wasnt there, Spurs in the cup in '79 resonates with lots of lads.

London was special..travelling across it you could bump into various mobs getting back to Euston.. I always likend it to "The Warriors"

The thing was, Liverpool would always take a decent following which meant all the other teams where always up for it when Liverpool where in town...the big games where good cos we would have such a big mob..Mancs away was sound...but the risks where an WBA or somewhere like that, where we didnt take our usual mob but local nutters would be out in force cos LFC where in town.

Dont forget Anfield was hell for most away fans and Ive heared many a scary anecdote from opposition fans.

"We're the best behaved supporters in the land.....but a right shower of bastards when we lose"

Coventry, Notts Forest, Boro...nothing but fuckin grief. WBA we always went in their end...I liked going to Smethwick..it smelt like no part of Liverpool I knew...loads of Indian shops with weird food outside and smelling great.

i got twatted outside Smethwick Rolfe with a iron bar....blood pissing out of my head and the police locked us and the WBA lads in the waiting room at the station...it's smaller than James St...obviously we kicked off and the police fucked off and left us to it...it was a good day.

We got back to New St and a bit later the specials for Birmingham City pulled in....luckily they were happy that we'd beaten the Baggies.

Leicester away in the mid 70's, we were kids and this fat c*nt comes over to us and say's I'm Fat Ada the leader of Leicester..a little scally from Bootle twatted him with a piece of wood or a metal bar and knocked him out...stood over him and said "I'm so n so from Bootle...we were screaming laughing.

[please, I have my reasons for it but...]

Been to Cairo Stadium multiple times for the NT games, Al Ahly games (as well as Zamalek's sometimes when my friend was going) but going to Ahly v Zamalek in a Cairo derby was a surreal experience. Thankfully, I only lost my phone.

[Alan_X]

Dont forget Anfield was hell for most away fans and Ive heared many a scary anecdote from opposition fans.

It could be a bit dodgy for a southern Liverpool fan in the seventies. I got a bit of a kicking after my first game at Anfield on the way back to Lime Street because I obviously had all the wrong clobber on and my accent gave me away.

Scariest game for me back then was probably the UEFA Cup semi-final against Spurs. My mate at school was a Spurs fan and he got me a ticket in the Spurs end. When Heighway scored the away goal I wanted to go mental but they were baying for blood. My mate could be a bit of a c*nt and I was shitting myself that he'd drop me in it. And we got mugged at Kings Cross in the way home. Happy days.

[jamieredders]

Great thread.  Never seen this one before either.

As others have said, in those days going to footie was a whole different experience.  Personally, I was young, rebellious and honestly felt like I was a soldier at war when I went to away games.  I'm sure plenty of lads understand totally what I mean by that.

As soon as you left home, you had to be completely on your guard.  You never knew when you would meet battalions from other clubs, however you travelled.  Remember a car load of 'Wall' trying to ram us off the motorway once!

Almost every ground you went to there would be an element of trouble.  Either we were hunting them, or they were hunting us.  Just normal Saturday afternoon behaviour!

Great days with amazing memories and some incredible battles won and lost.

For me, Man City, Man Utd, Middlesbro, Leeds, West Ham, Chelsea, Spurs and Millwall were the biggest battles.   

[dave 5516]

It could be a bit dodgy for a southern Liverpool fan in the seventies. I got a bit of a kicking after my first game at Anfield on the way back to Lime Street because I obviously had all the wrong clobber on and my accent gave me away.

Scariest game for me back then was probably the UEFA Cup semi-final against Spurs. My mate at school was a Spurs fan and he got me a ticket in the Spurs end. When Heighway scored the away goal I wanted to go mental but they were baying for blood. My mate could be a bit of a c*nt and I was shitting myself that he'd drop me in it. And we got mugged at Kings Cross in the way home. Happy days.

It could be dodgy if you were getting on a special at Runcorn.

I missed the day train for one game as I stayed in some girls flat on the Woody, over the water. So I had to get the special and when it stopped at Runcorn all the lads getting on were pelted with ale and food and being told to fuck off coz they were all bad wools....loadsa Scousers living up there like, but, still they were wools.

I think that was the last special I went on..I even bunked the day train home with me mates rather than come back on the special.

[FlashingBlade]

Coventry, Notts Forest, Boro...

Forest where tough nuts...and Boro..jeez!!.they where all Skinheads, Tatoo's Scars!! ..and that was just the women!...mates tell a funny story of getting legged through a Hospital near Ayersome Park

Tell you a nasty place, Luton. Got caught there by a mob..feared the worst but come out of it ok..got my revenge though.

Lads who went in that era can tell many a funny tale, which would probably freak out the more genrtified fan now...but our mettle was tougher then.

Remember "Your going home in a St John's Ambulance" chant? Was talking about the United league cup final in '83(?) with the lads after the game Sunday ....we where meant to  go down in a van , lad who was driving and had van bailed night before so his brother offered to take us, he was a voulenteer for ....guess who...and had access to vehicles.. I know you wont believe it but we went down to Wembley .....and home ...in a St Johns Ambulance!!!. .." We're going home in a St.Johns Ambulance!"

[dave 5516]

Forest where tough nuts...and Boro..jeez!!.they where all Skinheads, Tatoo's Scars!! ..and that was just the women!...mates tell a funny story of getting legged through a Hospital near Ayersome Park

Tell you a nasty place, Luton. Got caught there by a mob..feared the worst but come out of it ok..got my revenge though.

Lads who went in that era can tell many a funny tale, which would probably freak out the more genrtified fan now...but our mettle was tougher then.

Remember "Your going home in a St John's Ambulance" chant? Was talking about the United league cup final in '83(?) with the lads after the game Sunday ....we where meant to  go down in a van , lad who was driving and had van bailed night before so his brother offered to take us, he was a voulenteer for ....guess who...and had access to vehicles.. I know you wont believe it but we went down to Wembley .....and home ...in a St Johns Ambulance!!!. .." We're going home in a St.Johns Ambulance!"

I believe you. I can remember lorries getting hijacked out of Burtonwood services...if I was to tell some of the tales of things we did I'd have to be perma-banned.

We were in Maxwells one morning, a Thursday as I had the new NME and I noticed The Human League were starting a tour at Huddersfield U that night...Brendan went out and come back with a car...he didn't own, and off we went to Huddersfield. It was a good gig too.

We were in Boro in 78, I'm sure it was the last day of the season,iirc. Anyway...we had the till off in the pub we were in...the owner chased around the park nearby with a shotgun..five of running through this park screaming laughing at the fat c*nt. Oh to be that young and stupid again.

Footie was much more fun back then.

[Son of Spion]

They like to burn the scarfes they nick off from each other as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFKzZKGLxg0

Remember seeing Danny Dyer football hooligan episode in Krakow. Scary stuff.

EDIT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3WAf7ZQcg8 - here is the episode

Ah yes. They're nutters over there. Great city, though.

I remember plenty of scarves getting burned on the old Spion Kop back in the 70s. Particularly Leeds and Newcastle scarves.

I've always wondered what opposition fans made of Anfield because it used to scare the shit out of me and I'm a Red. Two of my cousins married Mancs. One a City fan and the other a Salford fan. The Salford fan got strung up in a tree in stanley Park by Reds on one visit to Anfield. 

As a young Red in the 70s I got mugged by fellow Reds in the park myself. Thanks lads. 

I remember a night match against Forest. There was loads of trouble afterwards around the park. A lad from school ran back towards what he thoughts were fellow Reds, only to find they were Forest. He came into school the next day sporting a peach of a black eye.

There always seemed to be loads of moody little crews knocking around Anfield in the 70s in particular. Mind you, even in the 90s when I used to take a disabled lad to the match with work I saw some stuff going down. Some Barnsley getting a severe kicking on waste ground at Sleepers Hill, and a group of Newcastle walking in front of us getting ambushed and laid out in a swift, stealth attack by a really professional crew of Liverpool. It was over in seconds. Newcastle floored everywhere. Passers-by said it was revenge for an attack on us at their place.

[FlashingBlade]

Do we still have a crew?....lost contact with lads who knew this type of thing years ago....Doesnt seem like it.

[Sir Afghan]

Away at Zenit a few years ago was as bad as anything I've seen, bunch of neo nazis.

[Son of Spion]

Circumstances mean I can't get to games these days, so I'm not up to date on this but I was under the impression that we don't really have a crew these days. Weren't the Urchins the last ones to indulge? I did hear a few opposition fans suggesting that the Urchins were ones to watch as they were up-coming and pretty handy, but they seem to have fizzled out.

[rednose54]

No one mentioned Birmingham, very dodgy. First visit there I ended up with a few of the Rd ends finest. They thought it was bad and they revelled in bovver. Most London games barring Arsenal, Leeds was bad by train, Middlesborough personally, for a small ground seemed a high percentage of hoolies, everywhere else there seemed a higher percentage of fans.

[paulrazor]

Barnsley in 1998 i believe was a bit hairy

was reading books years ago from the 60s, 70s and 80s

seemed like EVERY away game there was fights. and i dont mean handbags, proper serious fights and beatings.

wasnt and never will be right, just the way that it was

[rakey_lfc]

I remember taking the missus to an away game in Birmingham, we parked up in the bull-ring parking and as I went to get out the missus said I needed to move the car. I looked left and the car next to us had bullet holes down one side, both side windows smashed and a baseball bat with what looked like blood on the end sticking out of the front windscreen.

Needless to say it was one of the only times I've followed her requests without arguing or moaning about it.

I don't particularly like going to Chelsea, never seen any trouble despite the stories but it just feels horrible around the stadium.

Someone mentioned Norwich, I do that every year as its the closest to home and its always a great laugh, the pub on the bridge (The Anglear?) is always rammed and its been boiling hot sunshine the last couple of times lots of beers in the garden on the river!

[kesey]

Not so much a ground but this springs to mind.

I use to live in London in the mid late 90s and we played Forest away. There was about six or seven of us and some Forest lad come out the side streets and said theres a few of them waiting if we fancied a bit. One of the lads just said ' nah ' and passed him a spliff. That was the Collymore return game . Anyway the shit yer kex time was on the train back to London and the train stops at Mansfield or somewhere daft and about 30 Millwall get on. Yep. Plop yer kex time that. We all decided to split up and sit on our own. I think my head was buried in a newspaper for the rest of the journey.  We ended up going to see John Powers Cast in the Forum that night and met John in a boozer and had a spliff with him. Great day and night out that.

[Flaccido Dongingo]

Went to a Cliftonville against Glentoran match at Solitude (Cliftonvilles ground) in the 90s with a few mates, both Belfast teams in the Irish league, from, let's just say diametrically opposed sides of the political spectrum, about 25 minutes in, in what was obviously a coordinated incident, about 100 Cliftonville fans started pelting the Glentoran supporters with golf balls, it was absolute mayhem, balls bouncing everywhere, police wading in mob handed, utter chaos, I left soon after, was only about 18 at the time, and wanted to avoid what was shaping up to be an almighty ruck afterwards.

[ABZ Rover]

Been to Cairo Stadium multiple times for the NT games, Al Ahly games (as well as Zamalek's sometimes when my friend was going) but going to Ahly v Zamalek in a Cairo derby was a surreal experience. Thankfully, I only lost my phone.

Got invited to one of these beauties on a business trip a few years ago.  Bloody mental.

[GinKop]

Two overseas games for me, Milan vs. Juve in 2009 was an interesting experience leaving the ground and also Atlante vs Cruz Azul in 2014.

We were in the Atlante home end, completely outnumbered by the Cruz Azul fans who despite being away, had 3 sides of the ground. Atlante Ultras were boss, when we left the ground, they circled us and made sure we got into a cab before it all kicked off.

[Chris.]

Delle alpe in 05 without question