Season 76/77

Bury: Crowd safety measures needed at Gigg Lane - 02/11/1976

Source: Bolton Evening News

BURY'S football ground should be shut down unless crowd safety measures are carried out, say the police. The police describe the ground as a potential battlefield of missiles. A spokesman listed the hazards faced by officers on match day extra duty as

Broken masonry around the ground perimeter and piles of bricks behind one stand.

Stones, bottles and pieces of wood on the terraces, and crumpled tarmacadam on the club car park

Lengths of tubular steel accessible to hooligans.

He said that six policemen have been injured on duty at Gigg Lane this season.

Cardiff City - Tottenham Hotspur - Cup - 76/77

Source: ITK forum - Spurs lad view

Took loads of coaches down there and as we entered Cardiff the traffic was gridlocked. After seeing a few Spurs bods getting done in the traffic ahead, we jumped off our coach and had a good toe-to-toe with the warpainted sheepshaggers, trying also to avoid the traffic as we make our way to the ground with scuffles going on all the way there.

Soon after the game kicks off, there's trouble in their grange end as some Yids are batter.gif with the Cardiff having been earlier told by ob.gif to go in that end before being forced out by sheer numbers and joining us in the away end.

After the game the fun really kicks off as loads of us Yids leave before the final whistle and go to the back of their home end. As soon as some Cardiff try and leave they're forced back in and with some of ours standing on their turnstiles chucking missiles at them they refuse to emerge. The ob eventually push us back into the coach park as the Cardiff make their exit all hell breaks loose in the coach park with wall to wall fighting and missiles flying everywhere. Our superior numbers mean we have the upper hand and eventually back them off but it was one of the most eventful days ever at a Spurs away game.

Newcastle - Manchester City - 29/01/1977

Source : Press

Crowd trouble stops the game at Newcastle for eight minutes, where Manchester City win 3-1.

Liverpool - Southampton- Charity Shield - 14/08/1976

Source : Press

A record gate of 76,500 people see Liverpool beat Southampton 1-0 in the Charity Shield match at Wembley.

Following crowd disturbances and attacks on the Liverpool players at Wembley, the FA are considering the erection of a protective wall over the players' entrance. Ted Croker says: 'We daren't risk any crowd scenes being responsible for getting England banned from international competitions.'

Nottingham Forest - Wolverhampton Wanderers - 28/08/1976

Source : Press

There is serious crowd trouble at Nottingham where Wolves beat Forest 3-1.

Derby County - Manchester United - 28/08/1976

Source : Press

Derby v Manchester U. clash, ends in an uproar as rival fans stage a bloody battle on the pitch. Thirty-five spectators are hurt and three policemen are taken to hospital.

Despite the Bank Holiday weekend, the football authorities begin to act on the fearful crowd scenes at Derby. An FA spokesman says: "The public must know we are going to do everything in our power to conquer this evil.' Tommy Docherty: 'If that's what happens when we draw 0-0, what will those idiots do when we lose? I'm in favour of bringing back the birch.' Dave Mackay: 'There is a limit to how much we can do. No matter how tough you are there's no way a few men can stop a mob on the rampage.' Measures suggested were long imprisonment for offenders, fencing-in of fans, and closing of grounds.

Leeds Utd - Manchester Utd - 02/10/1976

Source : Press

There are 85 arrests at Leeds, where Manchester United win 2-0.

Nottingham Forest - Chelsea FC - 20/11/1976

Source : Press

The Nottingham Forest v Chelsea match is held up due to crowd trouble, and referee Denis Turner takes the players to the dressingrooms for four minutes.

Napoli - Fiorentina - 76/77

Source : Press

FC Haarlem - FC Utrecht - 76/77

Source: bunnikside.nl

Millwall FC - Tottenham Hotspurs - 76/77

Source: forum - MFC view

...Spurs done better at the boxing day game. Not inside the ground but outside. In fact I reckon they were probably the best mob I saw back then in terms of actual damage done. They even turned over a few tasty wall firms at east st market and around the back of the cathedral. They still got done though. That was the worst fighting I ever saw at a home game. Even worse than the newcastle and west ham games the year after.

Nottingham Forest - Chelsea FC - ??/11/1976

Source: forum

Packing the Trent end, lots of trouble in outside the ground was involved in a few scuffles outside near a particular boozer (forget the name) group of 50 odd cfc involved in a heated ruck.. details are muttered, . Trouble on the bank of the Trent as we came out where Forest stood waiting... broke out to multiple skermishes... What a interesting walk back to the station that was on that dark winters night!

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I went to that game and can tell you exactly why chelsea had the trent end-both specials came in one after another but neither got a proper escort and the first 500 or so chelsea walked over trent bridge just before the gates were opening,they charged at the lines of forest (not mob)and scatterd them down the ramp towards the river.this left 500 or so cfc who started paying into the trent end just as the second train load came across who started fighting with a mob of forest-once the police broke it up the easiest thing to do was push all the cfc straight into the nearest turnstyles(already a couple of hundread paid in)and made that the chelsea end.the older north stand lot went into what was a big terrace on the left hand side where all the forest mob/barmies/scarfers had been relocated to and got bashed down the front and got led in to the trent end.....

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Loads of agro that day. Had a row with Forest in some street market before the game and got a scarf off one of theirs. Just stuffing it in my pocket when bang - got clumped by a chelsea fan who thought i was forest and was trying to nick the scarf. Got to the ground and chelsea already in the trent end. match starts and about 50-100 chelsea in the corner of the left hand side getting steamed. About fifty of us decide to go round there and help them out. Got on the pitch and walked right round the edge of the pitch - no one bothering us and tried to jump in the corner bit. Forest going mental - coins - gob -anything they could throw. Got the others out and we walked back to the trent - no ob.

Came out after and the usual lot slipped off into town. Got caught up in the push to get everyone over the bridge and forest started appearing. We were doing them at first and then they came from nowhere - hundreds of them and they started hamering us. Ob were letting them through and when we fought back they were laying in with their truncheons. Bricks raining down - ob on horses with long sticks wacking any chelsea they could see. Got back to the station and saw a few of the ones who had slipped away earlier - nearly got done again when i told them what had happened. Good day out though - forest had a good mob.

Manchester City - Chelsea FC - 76/77

Source: forum

We were banned and had two coaches. Got to Maine Road and the ob wouldn't let us near the ground and escorted us back out of the city. We stopped in Coventry for a few beers on the way back and ended up having it with loads of locals outside some nightclub - bins going through the windows - bouncers and locals getting caned all over the road. Don't think I went to a Chelsea game there though.

Cardiff City - Wolverhampton Wanderers - 76/77

Source: forum - Wolves view

we had hired a private coach known as the "monster coach " in those days just a crew of lads from the George hotel in town. The plan was to get to the back of stand and fan out , think lads from Cwmbran may have been with us to ,best laid plans eh ....Cardiff sussed us within minutes and kicked us down into the corner, only the local plod saved us from a good hiding in my opinion, the funny thing was plod lined us up outside gave us a bollocking for being in the wrong end then put us in the the stand running down the side of the pitch to loud cheers from the rest of the Wolves. After the game remember bricks raining down as we we were held outside the game , back on the coach and to Newport for a few beers ,no chance ... non stop bloody battling only 17 of us made it back to Wolves with all the rest nicked , but naughty when a local got on the coach in Newport with old bill and was pickin lads out that had been fighting, for a lad of 17/18 that day was all about sticking together and an eye opener about a trip to cardiff

Leyton Orient - Chelsea FC - 21/08/1976

Source: local press

Millwall FC - Chelsea FC - 04/09/1976

Source: forum

After we got in the ground a few people split from the main group who went into the Millwall end, and I with a few others I knew from Bristol/Swindon, ended up at the away end.

I remember looking back up at the Millwall end, and seeing the Chelsea mob who we walked to the ground with surrounded by Millwall, proceeded with 15 odd cfc to investigate this specific situation... It was well proper madness..
this was however for all who remember Millwall away 76 .. of no matter because if you were a Chelsea fan you were soon found out. and being cfc and all that at the time our mob have a great respect for millwall..

Back to our our end, scuffles started to break out, and a chant of Chelsea went up which was a big mistake in some folks views. This rally cry was soon to come to a swift end as Millwall from everywhere just came over, and I remember Millwall coming up at us with one man shouting come ere'you wanker! the 15 odd cfc.. i was with.. proceeded to leap over 1 or 2 terraces'... and like lighting it went off like you'll never imagine...

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I remember that day as a watershed. 16 years old full of bravado, 3 of us went together using a kids Red Rover bus ticket (35p). Wished I had stayed in the suburbs with all the other fresh air cockneys.

We had a small scuufle with a few kids our own age on a bus in the Old Kent Road, one had a T shirt with MFC in diagonal across it from one of those We Print T shirt stalls that were all the rage at the time. Anyway saw the same little group outside the ground and he had put a jumper on. This filled us with false confidence, thinking that Millwall were scared of us!

There was a large mob of North Stand outside the crowd but we were told to fuck off as we were too young. We queued up to get in and a guy about 10 places ahead went through the turnstile and was out on a stretcher covered in claret before we even got in! Inside it was bedlam and we got belted at least 3 times by diferent groups of Millwall in the Ilderton and the Half Way line side. Men against boys literally. Although my mate got a bright red ear from a local housewife.

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Source: local press

Blackpool - Chelsea FC - 25/09/1976

Source: local press

Millwall FC - Burnley FC - ??/??/977

Source: http://www.thefootballnetwork.net/boards/read/s37.htm?38,9475790

Last game of the season and the Viscount coach got attacked before the game. Simmy the driver jumped out and we all piled out after him - much mayhem ensued!

Manchester City - Middlesbrough - 11/04/1977

Source: Hooligans 2 book

Borough brought a large firm down and they too attempted to take the Kippax (the local main stand).
Hundreds of City lads repulsed their attack and the visitors were saved from various injury only by the police, who escorted them around the ground.

Leeds United - Manchester City - FA Cup - 26/02/1977

Source: Hooligans book 2

The City Cool Cats invaded the pitch in an attempt to get the match posponed. It failed, and throughout most of the match Leeds fans stoned away supporters.

Brentford FC - Watford FC - ??/03/1977

Source: forum - BFC view

They took the Oak just before kick off, but Bees regrouped, and with reinforcements and some help from Chelsea gave the visitors a right surprise. They ran faster than I've seen anyone run from the Oak - great fun as they threw themselves over the fences to get into "safety" in the New Road. We then hammered them 3-0 to round off a great night.

Nottingham Forest - Wolverhampton Wanderers - 28/08/1976

Source: http://www.molineuxmix.co.uk/vb/showthread.php?s=a2f864392a7cb6d668a426715bd2d4ea&t=47148&page=2

Wolves had just been relegated from the old first division. I drove to the match with four of my mates after parking up some way from the ground it soon became clear whilst walking to the ground that serious trouble was brewing.

Making our way past the Bridgford stand towards the Brian Clough stand. The bridgford stand then was an uncovered open terrace. As a few Wolves coaches began to disgorge a boisterous mob. a sort of chanting stand off aimed at Forest fans occupying the bridgford stand soon turned ugly. The forest fans charged down the stand exit points towards the gates and proceeded to rip the gates apart [yes that's right ripped off the gates of their own stand to attack the Wolves fans baiting them in the adjacent car park.

After a melee that lasted some time the Forest fans retreated back to where they'd came from leaving the 'triumphant' Wolves fans to queue into the Brian Clough Stand. Just when you thought that's the end of the aggro. The forest mob poured under the brian Clough stand and started battering Wolves fans as they came through the turnstiles! That was the final straw for quite a few of us. we decided to take our chance by entering the Bridgford stand on the other side of the ground. Incognito with colours hidden we were able to enter the ground only to witness the battling remnants 'temple street mob' to the fore, fighting for their lives backs to the wall in the Brian Clough stand!

For newer fans to football, this match just like most in those days, was characterised by disinterested and outnumbered police, and 'stewards' were still years away, and fan segregation and fences were yet to be a feature of football grounds.

The fighting raged backwards and forwards across the Bridgford Road end. To quote the famous Norwegian commentator, 'we took hell off a beating that day' With Wolves winning 2-0 [final score 3-1] the remnants of the Wolves fans were forced onto the pitch, the game was halted whilst police reinforcements tried to restore order. At one point Brian Clough was battering a forest hooligan in a head lock. even coaching staff tried to help the police to restore order. Finally the Police, decided that they could not guarentee the safety of the remaining Wolves fans, the remnants were forced to leave the ground through the players tunnel, leaving a shell shocked Cloughie appealing for calm from the centre circle.

The home ficture against Forrest that season involved a certain amount of reprisals.

Chelsea FC - Hull City - 14/05/1977

Source : YouTube

Notts County - Millwall FC - 21/08/1976

Source: http://boards.footymad.net/forum.php?tno=402&fid=17&sty=2&act=1&mid=2117032780&page=1

(...) Millwall did invade the pitch at Notts once and take the Lane End. Mind you, most of us were in the Main Stand, so there wasn't much of a fight.

Cardiff City - Blackburn Rovers - 28/08/1976

Source: http://stats.footymad.net/forum.php?tno=73&fid=51&sty=2&act=1&mid=2118507862

(...) One Ribblesdale coach that refused to park on the official car park because the driver would`nt pay. It was in a side street and after the match a large gang of Cardiff fans attempted to turn it over with Rovers fan on, at least the ones who had managed to get on without getting a good kicking!