Maine Rd terrace characters

[Biginoil]

Rob Gretton...

I knew Rob, vaguely. I'm best mates with his nephew - that vaguely. I used to see him at his family parties and chat with him, but he wouldn't recognise me when I saw him in the Hac or wherever. The last time I saw him was after a match, walking through Rusholme with, I think, Pickering and a couple of others who I recognised. His chest was about three foot in front of the rest of him - City shirt straining as he swaggered. I shouted "ROB" and he gave me a big thumbs up and a massive grin. We'd won that day. Daft as it sounds, I treasure that memory.

 

[Ticket For Schalke]

Ask him if he remembers ''Strafford Upon Avon'' LOL was a nightmare, Cainy, Cagze, Haigy all fighting with the locals got thrown out of Boozer, went back to the van and it was smashed to bits, was like custers last stand 12 against 50 yocals. fucking cold trip home that night! LOL

If its Cainy im thinking of. He was with us for a few beers in Cyprus and Hamburg in Europe the other season and he had a drink with our crowd after the Wolves game. Huge lad and had what looked like a piece of scaffolding hanging out of his arm for a while after doing his shoulder in. Seems like a sound guy but wouldn't want to mess with him.

Know Cainy well play footie with him on weds in openshawe, he got a little hiding in poland, even though he looks like a pole.

 

[BillyMC]

Anyone remember hammer? my uncle said he chased utd fans off with a dog and a axe haha

I saw Hammer a couple of seasons back near the Dry Bar..think he still lives Ancoats way

 

[Pezzer2]

If its Cainy im thinking of. He was with us for a few beers in Cyprus and Hamburg in Europe the other season and he had a drink with our crowd after the Wolves game. Huge lad and had what looked like a piece of scaffolding hanging out of his arm for a while after doing his shoulder in. Seems like a sound guy but wouldn't want to mess with him.

Know Cainy well play footie with him on weds in openshawe, he got a little hiding in poland, even though he looks like a pole.

Yeah a few of my mates play. Im Looking to turn up now and again if im not working away. He said he was struggling with numbers lately. I heard there was about 30 people turning up when it first started and now the numbers have dwindled. Heard he was in a right mess after Poland

 

[mcfcliam]

Bump!

This is, by a country mile, the best thread on this forum.

 

[bono]

Johnny Marsden. (wrote all over Marsy was here MCFC)
Johnny Muir (his mam had the pub end of dickinson road)
Stan Hayes Nipper Bert & Tracker the first city skin heads..with army pants & docs.
Les tate.. i know him well Goton Mount pub..
Slim Jim from Gorton.. skinny as f***
Paul Passmore & his brother ALWAYS fighgting rags..
Paddy (think he is a full time tramp now)

Barry Gates.. lol...

Paddy the puff ,as he was known as then ,wore a pink leather jacket<br /><br />-- Wed Oct 05, 2011 8:47 pm --<br /><br />any body remember Brian Slater proper loone
ps dont tell him i said so

 

[mcfcirlam]

We had a guy called John on back row of kippax.
Always got mixed up when one of our black players scored.
We
laughed when he asked if Horlock scored. It was the goat.

 

[Wilmslow Road]

Anyone remember hammer? my uncle said he chased utd fans off with a dog and a axe haha

True Story but Dog and a Hammer, hence the nickname.

 

[1_barry_conlon]

Rob Gretton...

I knew Rob, vaguely. I'm best mates with his nephew - that vaguely. I used to see him at his family parties and chat with him, but he wouldn't recognise me when I saw him in the Hac or wherever. The last time I saw him was after a match, walking through Rusholme with, I think, Pickering and a couple of others who I recognised. His chest was about three foot in front of the rest of him - City shirt straining as he swaggered. I shouted "ROB" and he gave me a big thumbs up and a massive grin. We'd won that day. Daft as it sounds, I treasure that memory.

Are you sure? I used to go to the match with him and never have i seen him wear a city shirt.

 

[cyberblue]

They were loads of top lads & characters from the 60s onwards .if they got up to fraction of what they did nowadays not only would they be banned from the ground the pc brigrade on here would call them rotten & want them banned .many love these sort of threads as it brings back some brilliant memories but as i said it wouldnt be tolerated nowadays by many on here

 

[IOWBlue]

From about 74, i remember a lad who looked like Rod Stewart ( Kippax ), loads of others hanging on his every word and always a blonde girl with him. Seemed to have an aura, to a nine year old anyway ;)

 

[ragger]

M27 how do you remember that !
I was behind the goal when curley scored that pen, the reason I ask you is because my dirty rag mate was in stretford ene and he sed he had never seen a set of fans celebrate a goal like we did that night. We went absolutely raving mental. I got crushed jumped on and stamped on. Lol brilliant night. 10 men you couldn't beat 10 men

Great memories, was in the Stretford end that night, went off royal in the corner and there was loads of blues in there.

I was in the stetford end (paddock) that night in the corner next to their main stand approx 150 blues, dont recall it going off royal just plenty of verbals and a bit of pushing and shoving nawt major.. but the look on the rags and old bill faces when curley scored, with city going mentle in the their end, after that we were cornered off till the final whistle and kept behind for 10 mins, a few of us climbed into the main stand to get out

 

[ragger]

saw him the other week at leicester and at coms most games

Cockney Pete, he travels up from london every week, he used to stand in the kippax under the tunnel that advertised piccadilly radio, remember talking to him at forest away in the eighties, he was telling us he was traveling to manchester on the train a few weeks earlier with west hams icf, he was having a laugh with them taking the piss out of the rags, respect to the fella he spent all his money on city over the years even when we were rock bottom, true city legend

 

[xgorton]

From about 74, i remember a lad who looked like Rod Stewart ( Kippax ), loads of others hanging on his every word and always a blonde girl with him. Seemed to have an aura, to a nine year old anyway ;)

Think that was Eric

 

[scotty123]

Hammer and brian slater used to knock about with our lot from early seventies until about mid eighties two better lads you couldnt meet both mad as feck. Hammer got the knickname about 1971 after a derby at the swamp we had a massive ruck with utd in bottom yateses on oldham road and he got a bit of a kicking wait here lads he said i wont be long and went home to ancoates but came back an hour later with his dog and a claw hammer and laid right into the scum it was hilarious. Last time i seen him about eight years ago he told me he was now a hgv driver and moved to portsmouth. Brian slater iv known for forty odd years used to bury tools on waste ground all the way from maine rd back to town the night before derby games and if needs be he would use them mad as a hatter but looked like jesus with his long hair and beard well known by the guvnors and sully well into his fifties now aint seen him for ten years but heard he turned out for the semis

 

[goosed]

While autographing, pre-season at Maine Road, in the mid 60's I met a lad called Butch, surname something like McGoragan. He was always up for something, one day I remember him climbing up the drainpipes, near to the main entrance, to an open window where some of the team were visible. He climbed straight in, a few minutes later back down the drainpipe with a full autograph book.

A couple of years later Butch took it upon himself, unofficially, to be the team mascot, he used to go to the match with his kit on under his clothes, strip down to the kit 10 minutes before kick-off, jump over the Kippax wall, onto the perimeter, run around the perimeter a couple of times, hang around the tunnel and run onto the pitch with the team, have a kick-in with the keeper, then back over into the Kippax.

Unfortunately his career as team mascot didn't last long, I think the match was against Liverpool or Everton and as Butch was running around the perimeter a scouser ran onto the pitch waving a flag. Naturally Butch took exception to this, ran straight at the scouser and flattened him. As usual he talked himself out of any trouble and was ushered back into the Kippax.

Does this ring a bell with anyone?

 

[nobody can eat fifty eggs]

Rob Gretton...

I knew Rob, vaguely. I'm best mates with his nephew - that vaguely. I used to see him at his family parties and chat with him, but he wouldn't recognise me when I saw him in the Hac or wherever. The last time I saw him was after a match, walking through Rusholme with, I think, Pickering and a couple of others who I recognised. His chest was about three foot in front of the rest of him - City shirt straining as he swaggered. I shouted "ROB" and he gave me a big thumbs up and a massive grin. We'd won that day. Daft as it sounds, I treasure that memory.

Rob was my late Dad's cousin and I never knew until my Mum told me a few months back amazingly. As I have always been a fan of Joy Division/New Order I was gutted that Dad never got round to telling me but you can imagine the look on my face when my Mum mentioned it as a mere matter of fact!

 

[bluevengence]

saw him the other week at leicester and at coms most games

Cockney Pete, he travels up from london every week, he used to stand in the kippax under the tunnel that advertised piccadilly radio, remember talking to him at forest away in the eighties, he was telling us he was traveling to manchester on the train a few weeks earlier with west hams icf, he was having a laugh with them taking the piss out of the rags, respect to the fella he spent all his money on city over the years even when we were rock bottom, true city legend

Think he might live in Milton Keyes,saw him get on our train
at the station there Arsenal away

 

[hydemainecoms]

As a kid I remember a giant of a cop with a totally bald head he always stood outside the Maine stand entrance or players entrance at Maine Road think his name was Ronnie.

 

[blue by birth]

There was a girl called Deb who could fight with the best of the lads, especially on derby day. Remember her steaming into some Utd who had come in our side of the Kippax, fearless she was...... Sadly I think she is no longer with us.

Fuck me i remember Debs well, she used to go all away games with group of lads Pezzer, Shiner, Dave and Mick to name a few ( saw them at services in Corby all going to a NF meeting in london , i was on coach going to watch City at Brighton )
Debs got nutted by a yid at our ground and he said sorry thought you was a lad lol.. later on at Hough End where all away coaches parked he got fucking leathered by her an a few others(no names mentioned)
Remember one year when Everton had the Platt lane and Mick was in there and got chased out he came in Kippax got a big mob and went back in( gateman said i cant open gate and Mick said open it or i will do you lol) it was opened and a few hundred blues stormed in and it was chaos
They stopped going when Mickey and Donald and them started to build a rep. Does anybody remember Clive (charlie Millwall was his nickname)<br /><br />-- Thu Oct 06, 2011 10:23 am --<br /><br />

From about 74, i remember a lad who looked like Rod Stewart ( Kippax ), loads of others hanging on his every word and always a blonde girl with him. Seemed to have an aura, to a nine year old anyway ;)

Think that was Eric

Was it Eric Williams by any chance? used to go school with lad who looked like that and he was a massive blue