Hooliganism and Violence Maine Road 80's/early 90's

I went to Leicester away in 1976. On my tod as I was living darn south. I turned away from the ticket office (newly acquired ticket in hand) to find myself in no man's land between two groups (City and Leicester) who were chucking house bricks at one another.

I was lucky to slide away unseen, but this is an example of how easy it was to find trouble without looking for it. I could easily have found myself heading a brick.
I remember 76 away at Leicester first game of season 2-2 red hot day,on the piss after the game left it late and could only get a train as far to Sheffield but a nice young lady put me up for the night in Sheffield and I carried my journey on to Manchester on the Sunday,happy days.
 
Born 1968 started going in the mid 70's and still going to this Day, fuckin does my head in all this shite about 'tough men' the sooner they rid this from football the better.
Most so called 'tough men' involved in hooliganism are fuck all without back up from their hooli mates. I remember one guy in my town who led a gang of reds. He was regarded as the hardest guy in town and nobody messed with him. I was drinking in a pub when he and his mates came in. They picked on a blue aged about 18 and took his City shirt off and burned it with a cigarette lighter. I couldn't do anything as I was about 20 and on my own and they were in their mid 20s and about a dozen strong, this was about '84. They thought it highly amusing burning that poor lads shirt and watching him leave the pub bare chested, bullying cunts.

20 years later I walked into a pub and saw the town bully sat on a stool at the bar. I was going through a bad divorce and in a bad mood and thought I'd ask him if he was still a bully. "I've never been a bully" he replied. I reminded him of that shirt burning incident but he said he didn't remember. I then told him to bully me (half thinking I could get beat up) and he said - "look mate I don't want any trouble". He never ever looked at me as he just stared at his pint, a pale shadow of his former self when with his mates to back him up. I'm not a violent guy but I wanted to beat the shit out of him because I hate bullies, especially rag football bullies.
 
It’s not for everyone this thread I get it ,
It’s different now but back in the day we had challenges, on and off the field .
As a 16 year old in the early eighties I wouldn’t want to miss a match and barely did from Middlesbrough to Millwall I had to be there . Knowing we had lads who’d back us all the way made it easier, probably wouldn’t have done as many games without knowing we’d have a turn out .To this day I’m still in-touch with many of them friendships grown from forty odd years ago.
I was never in the front of it but I’m not ashamed to know of those who helped many of us out back in the day.
 
Born 1968 started going in the mid 70's and still going to this Day, fuckin does my head in all this shite about 'tough men' the sooner they rid this from football the better.
Tbf it largely has, that’s why the thread is about the 80s and 90s. Football is incredibly safe these days in comparison
 
God knows how it all started.
But for me early 70s to 80s it was more about not going to look for it but it was coming your way like it or not and protecting yourself and others as a group.
You got a kicking or thump at say Leeds and you waited for the return fixture at home for revenge and so it went on.
Stupid really but hay ho that was Saturday.

Edit
Not every Saturday :)
 

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