47000 my arse!

I travelled up to Manchester on the train with the London Supporters branch for this match. For some reason the train was delayed by nearly 3 hours, so by the time we got to Maine Road the second half was underway. Don't remember any problems getting into the Kippax. While obviously delighted that we were getting promoted I felt gutted to have missed the first 3 goals and all the excitement. At least I got to celebrate 2 more, including Phillips pile driver before the 6 hour journey home.
 
ancoats said:
i can 100% say without any doubt the gates at manchester city was being fudged by swales. and working on the gates myself knew the score and it was happening all over country and every club was at it. both workers of the turnstiles and the club accountants knew the line and the amount of fiddle you could get away with ? you always had to sign on and off your turnstiles numbers in pencil and your turnstile cash and tickets taken was added together and bagged before handing it in then again in pencil you would sign off the turnstile you worked on

the trick of a good turnstile operator was the double up or putting the kid over the turnstile gate. it was so easy to bag a few quid for yourself and if you was not greedy you worked on the same turnstiles every game. the head of the turnstiles knew his best workers and if you had any trouble or your turnstile was way off you was demoted to season tickets turnstiles or exit gates. cash turnstiles was the holy grail for the operator and you had to be trusted 100% and it was like a gang of family members running the turnstiles. even little things like a sweetener was handed over by the men working on the cash turnstiles like bottles of whisky or cigs to the head of the turnstiles staff

so from top to bottom the turnstiles and gate figures was being fudged every game and the top of the tree swales was making big money of the gates. and at the bottom was taking a fee quid and everybody was happy
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Great post. Always slipped cash over instead of ticket.
 
Nit my first game but the first one I went to without a family member, just me and half a dozen lads from school.
 
ancoats said:
i always wonder how the hell noboby ever got killed getting out of the top of the kippax and down them stairs ? it was the worst thing ever if you was trapped on them and many times it just felt like you was flouting on water and your feet was not touching the floor
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It got worse when the nearest ones to the away fans were bricked up as well.
 
WENT TO GAME, USED TO STAND ON THE KIPPAX and went in early and couldn't get near to where we stood at every home game, had to stand near the north stand, we got the pink un on the way home and we couldn't belive there was 47k I would say more then 57k
 
stonerblue said:
Great post. Always slipped cash over instead of ticket.
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we can laugh now ? but it was happening all the time ? crazy to think want happened at Hillsborough it was a small paddock to the kippax stand and and safety records say it held 26 thousand but that is a one arm length to the next man and we was talking about being packed in like sardines and easy could be talking about 10 to 15 thousand more at a push. football and club got away with it until Hillsborough and the tragedy then they did something about it with all seating stadiums
 
horlock_was_super said:
My late younger brother and me three rows from the front in the North Stand. Loads sat on the steps as has been mentioned. Sneaked in a bottle of vodka got in about 2:30 the place was rocking. Watched match, got pissed, ran on the pitch at the end and then went to town. Sure we went in the Cypress, but, could have been anywhere. Woke up next morning almighty hangover then read the papers. That was the first I knew about Bradford. The day before seemed so far away at that point. Bittersweet memories.
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Those were the days. The Cypress Tavern was always our last calling point on match days. I remember going in there after the Ipswich FA Cup semi in 81. When I woke the next morning I realised I had walked home to Withington with no shirt on and just one shoe.
 
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