Boro v City 40 years ago today.

[If I die in the Kippax St]

I was there too mate ..... i went to Ayresome Park a few times , and it was never the best place to really go .... the place was crammed with 'Phill Mitchell' lookalike hoolies , and Middlesbrough fans are a really game bunch .... the first leg of the League Cup semi in the seventies there was a bit dodgy too , especially in the dark, getting back to the train station later.

i have never had a kicking though , anywhere ... although i did come close on occasion , during the seventies, at both Leeds and Spurs.

There was also one occasion in the nineties, or early noughties, when Boro fans came down Wilmslow Road and attacked the Clarence Pub in Rusholme about an hour or so before the game , and i actually encountered them as cops struggled to contain them near to the Sherwood .... and, not content with that, they also entered the home section of the North Stand just before the game was finishing culminationg in a scrap, after which City chased them off.

But all the north east grounds were generally tough places to visit back in those days .... Sunderland was bad enough , but you really had to watch your back up at Newcastle .... and an FA Cup game there back in 1976/77 season , City won 3-1 , was absolutely horrendous ... we had around 10,000 fans there that day , but the constant fighting in the 'divided' Gallowgate End was that bad that a lot of City fans left at half time!

I was at the boro game and got legged all the way back to the station but I was bloody fast in those days. IT didn’t stop me going to ayresome park but I always got the shakes as soon as the gates opened on 75 mins. Also was at the Newcastle game in the 70’s when we won 3 v 1 think Bobby Owen scored twice and it was like Custer’s last stand in the gallowgate. I now live in Newcastle and it is well tame these days or is it because I’m old and the nutters ignore me!

 

[Ancoats blue]

I was at the boro game and got legged all the way back to the station but I was bloody fast in those days. IT didn’t stop me going to ayresome park but I always got the shakes as soon as the gates opened on 75 mins. Also was at the Newcastle game in the 70’s when we won 3 v 1 think Bobby Owen scored twice and it was like Custer’s last stand in the gallowgate. I now live in Newcastle and it is well tame these days or is it because I’m old and the nutters ignore me!

Lol , yeah visting Newcastle now is far different to visiting it back in the 1970's , they had more than a few nutters around with black and white warpaint on their faces who were always well up for hospitalising the visiting fans .. even inside the ground .... and their yobs smashing all your coach windows in with bricks or scaffolding poles was always expected.

It makes you wonder how the Geordies must have felt back in 1968 when half of Maine Road turned up there to see us beat them to take the title!

 

[If I die in the Kippax St]

Lol , yeah visting Newcastle now is far different to visiting it back in the 1970's , they had more than a few nutters around who were always after ambushing the vising fans .. even inside the ground!

It makes you wonder how the Geordies mush have felt back in 1968 when half of Maine Road turned up there to see us beat them to take the title!

They weren’t happy cos we were packed in the leazers end. Yes the home end as we couldn’t get in anywhere else. I was a 12 year old with my mates uncle but don’t remember much in the way of skirmishes. Probably 68 was slightly before the hooligans landed on the scene.

 

[BolinCell]

A lot of these bad away days were pay back for the experience of visiting Maine road,mid to late 70's and early 80's were particularly bad. Leeds used to be frothing at the mouth for revenge when we visited.

 

[mancunial]

Lol , yeah visting Newcastle now is far different to visiting it back in the 1970's , they had more than a few nutters around with black and white warpaint on their faces who were always well up for hospitalising the visiting fans .. even inside the ground .... and their yobs smashing all your coach windows in with bricks or scaffolding poles was always expected.

It makes you wonder how the Geordies must have felt back in 1968 when half of Maine Road turned up there to see us beat them to take the title!

View attachment 1658

I’m actually on that photo but I’ll tell a story , the following season I went there in the league thinking the same amount of fans will be there , must have only been about 1500 there, a fight broke out in the open end at half time, you could sense the atmosphere was nasty, wynn Davies scored for them on the 89th minute with an header, walked out and it was kicking off outside I can see it now George m,les T, Mark b,it was really Vicious Geordies coming from every part of the ground, I was a very lucky 16 yr old to get to the coach park, I went back in the fa cup when we drew nil nil a few week later in the 4th rd, a lot blues were there that day, they really are a strange lot the Newcastle fans they are either a good laugh or want to fight you, strangely it’s black and white with them

 

[edinburgh123]

I can see the current Mrs 91:23 old house on that picture of old Ayresome Park. I moved up here about 15 years ago now and Teesside isnt as bad as its painted by some on here. Like Manchester it has it's bad areas but Boro is a thriving town just as Manchester is. They still have their share of industrial areas up here but 5 minutes away is the North York moors to the south and stunning Northumberland to the north. I just wish they had a decent team up in the PL so that going to a match would only take me 15 mins rather than the 2 or 3 hour journey it takes me to get to the Etihad. For the avoidance of any doubt though...... Manchester will always be home!

Edit. They do like to mention the 8-1 though. Which is fair enough but the conversation doesnt last too long when I ask, 'So how is your trophy haul since then?'

My missus always wanted to come with me to Boro away shame they aren't in the same division now. Mainly though she wanted to come because she could go shopping there - everything is about half the price of anywhere else in the UK, where as coats were about a quarter of the price as nobody buys things to keep them warm from there upto Newcastle geographically

 

[bluestevei]

Yeah, that 1-0 cup defeat that night at Barnsley was a bit dodgy , and especially on the way back to the station .... 35,000 fans were there that night and i swear half of them were probably trouble causers from either Sheffied or Leeds!

They were throwing bottles and bricks at the City fans under that bridge , and whilst we were on the platform.

1 of my mates got tickets for the side of the ground in the Barnsley lot, which didn't matter to us as 2 was city fans and 3 just went to watch the game, near the end of the game, there was that much 50ps coming from city fans to that side of the ground we were in, I was more interested in getting money than the home fans who wanted to get to city fans it paid for tickets and a few drinks back in Donny

 

[Indaparkside]

1 of my mates got tickets for the side of the ground in the Barnsley lot, which didn't matter to us as 2 was city fans and 3 just went to watch the game, near the end of the game, there was that much 50ps coming from city fans to that side of the ground we were in, I was more interested in getting money than the home fans who wanted to get to city fans it paid for tickets and a few drinks back in Donny

You could have bought a house in donny for a handful of 50 ps

 

[Pablo123]

A mini bus load went to boro for the 8 -1 , needless to say it kicked off and one of our lads got lifted . we knew he had hardly any money so proceeded to the local police station to hand over some cash . Asked the desk sergeant if we could leave some cash as he had one of our lads to which he replied ' one of your lads , I've got a fuckin load of em '

 

[AJ71]

Was there that day, apparently their was about 50 odd of them never went to the game, they were drinking in town made their way to the ground and rushed into north stand lashing out at anyone near the end of the game, I know these lads did not go because a red I was chatting to told me he saw them in town whilst the game was going on, from what I saw they didn’t stay long they got a few digs in return and ran out, it was organised but anyone leaving early would have been in a bit of trouble caught in the back of the north stand with these coming in

I was at the game with my nephew, who would have been about 7. We were in the family stand bit of the North Stand and left about 30 seconds before they came in. We passed them at the back of the North Stand, they'd come out of the away section, and the coppers outside their were caught unaware's. They actually went into the family stand as I understand.