Who is bigger in Manchester? City or Utd?

[Balti]

I am having my final say on the didsbury debate - in all honesty I can't remember one red from beaver road. Me and all my mates started going from the mid 80s aged 7 or 8. The only rags I knew were my cousins and John Moran his mates who were a few of the Irish lads from the parrs wood. I didn't even know where old Trafford was until I was about 15. My knowledge of manchester consisted of fog lane school lane and the 42 bus route to Maine road. A lot of the older Irish community were non match going Reds but a lot of my mates have been hard core city fans match going lads ever since. Liam Gallagher even cleaned our windows for a while- that's how blue we were!

Fog lane, school lane, Didsbury village and up to parrs wood was what I knew from the late 70s to the late 80's and have to say it seemed as if blue was normal and reds were almost immigrants to the area. I only remember two reds well one was a lovely old Irish lady from chorlton who used to babysit and one was a mate Nick who actually lived in fallow field but went to parrs wood because his mum ran a pub in Didsbury. Must have been many more red about I just don't remember them.

where we lived it was mostly the irish families that supported the rags

they even passed the hat round on a saturday night in the local or tried to except it just kicked off every time

love the boggies mostly so just saying like

 

[Mankymeat FC]

No, we played at Fog lane. You might be thinking about the pub team that the Shields lads put together. That wasn't the official St Caths team. We used the school mini bus and played in a Parish league. Started in 91/92. Did you used to live round the corner from Renders shop? Think I know who you are. William Hulme blazer??

Yes that's me - mate with Mark for a bit

No, we played at Fog lane. You might be thinking about the pub team that the Shields lads put together. That wasn't the official St Caths team. We used the school mini bus and played in a Parish league. Started in 91/92. Did you used to live round the corner from Renders shop? Think I know who you are. William Hulme blazer??

Yes that's me - mate with Mark for a bit

Ah ha! You used to go to Oldham Athletic matches in the early to mid nineties, when City weren't doing very well. We used to try and turn you towards the red side, but you hung on!

This is a true story. One time we were at a cricket match at Old Trafford together. England v Australia (Merv Hughes!) And during the lunch break we went for a stroll to the football stadium. The Stretford end had been knocked down and re-built, but not used for a match yet. There was a gate that was open and we walked right onto the pitch and nobody stopped us or said anything, then we turned around and Alex Ferguson was stood there looking down at us with his hands on his hips. Like he was the stadium caretaker. Tell me this really happened?

 

[EalingBlue2]

I must have been pissed for 30 years then! I played for that team I think - did they play at turn moss!

Ne'r the twain shall they meet.

It's a fair point I didn't know one kid on my street or anywhere who went to one of the Catholic schools and all I remember were beaver road and broad oak kids everywhere . Parrs wood was 1700 kids so must have been more of them than Barlow. Beaver road kids were everywhere on fog lane - going to a tiny primary school as is did I noticed them. Would be interesting to know if the Catholic schools and Irish communities were much more red. Funny to live in the same place at the same time and have such different experiences of who everyone was and where they went. I wouldn't even know where St Caths was and my only memory of Barlow (wasn't that Burnage in our day) was kids going off to fight them after school.

Back in the day I once organised a fight in fog one park between beaver road and St caths! 3 of my cousins and some good mates were playing for caths but there had been some trouble and about ten lads went down one night while st catha were
Playing! Nothing happened but we had to walk down to St caths to apologise on the Monday! The iriah community arond parra wood probably are in favour of the Reds but a lot of families who went to Barlow are huge blues - the ohares and Harris family of several brothers immediately spring to mind. All match going blues of generations.

Got chased in fog lane park a few times by kids from the other side of the park when playing with the kids in the street (Cranmer rd) nearly every kid went to Beaver rd apart from a few at elm grove and a couple who went to broad oak. Must have been a similar time as I lived there 76-88.

I would've gone to beaver rd except my year was a massive year for kids (baby boomers of 46 and 47 procreating) and beaver rd was packed out so went to elm grove.

Fog lane park - do they still have the black swans?

 

[worsleyweb]

Yes that's me - mate with Mark for a bit

Yes that's me - mate with Mark for a bit

Ah ha! You used to go to Oldham Athletic matches in the early to mid nineties, when City weren't doing very well. We used to try and turn you towards the red side, but you hung on!

This is a true story. One time we were at a cricket match at Old Trafford together. England v Australia (Merv Hughes!) And during the lunch break we went for a stroll to the football stadium. The Stretford end had been knocked down and re-built, but not used for a match yet. There was a gate that was open and we walked right onto the pitch and nobody stopped us or said anything, then we turned around and Alex Ferguson was stood there looking down at us with his hands on his hips. Like he was the stadium caretaker. Tell me this really happened?

I did used to go to Oldham with my best mate from school! I remember that game at the cricket and I remembwr walking into the swamp near the tunnel but I can't picture you!!!

 

[EalingBlue2]

I am having my final say on the didsbury debate - in all honesty I can't remember one red from beaver road. Me and all my mates started going from the mid 80s aged 7 or 8. The only rags I knew were my cousins and John Moran his mates who were a few of the Irish lads from the parrs wood. I didn't even know where old Trafford was until I was about 15. My knowledge of manchester consisted of fog lane school lane and the 42 bus route to Maine road. A lot of the older Irish community were non match going Reds but a lot of my mates have been hard core city fans match going lads ever since. Liam Gallagher even cleaned our windows for a while- that's how blue we were!

Fog lane, school lane, Didsbury village and up to parrs wood was what I knew from the late 70s to the late 80's and have to say it seemed as if blue was normal and reds were almost immigrants to the area. I only remember two reds well one was a lovely old Irish lady from chorlton who used to babysit and one was a mate Nick who actually lived in fallow field but went to parrs wood because his mum ran a pub in Didsbury. Must have been many more red about I just don't remember them.

where we lived it was mostly the irish families that supported the rags

they even passed the hat round on a saturday night in the local or tried to except it just kicked off every time

love the boggies mostly so just saying like

Lad I know from Govan got a slap for throwing the hat in the air as how can I put it mildly didn't like the hat being passed round when he was in an Irish pub in Manchester. Times have changed.

 

[Balti]

Fog lane, school lane, Didsbury village and up to parrs wood was what I knew from the late 70s to the late 80's and have to say it seemed as if blue was normal and reds were almost immigrants to the area. I only remember two reds well one was a lovely old Irish lady from chorlton who used to babysit and one was a mate Nick who actually lived in fallow field but went to parrs wood because his mum ran a pub in Didsbury. Must have been many more red about I just don't remember them.

where we lived it was mostly the irish families that supported the rags

they even passed the hat round on a saturday night in the local or tried to except it just kicked off every time

love the boggies mostly so just saying like

Lad I know from Govan got a slap for throwing the hat in the air as how can I put it mildly didn't like the hat being passed round when he was in an Irish pub in Manchester. Times have changed.

and thank god for that :-)

quite an eye opener though for a young patriotic english lad seeing the hat being passed around for the apparent 'enemy' at the time......

I went to one pub regularly down the road full of squaddies on leave and then this other pub full of Irish half a mile away where the hat went round....

strange days indeed

most peculiar mama

 

[Stoned Rose]

It would depend how you define 'Manchester'.

If we were to look at 'Greater Manchester' I'd say Utd would outnumber City.

If we are working from the (correct imo) perspective and defining Manchester as those districts within the city of Manchester only, I'd estimate City would outnumber Utd to quite a tune.

Real Mancunians in the area.

 

[EalingBlue2]

where we lived it was mostly the irish families that supported the rags

they even passed the hat round on a saturday night in the local or tried to except it just kicked off every time

love the boggies mostly so just saying like

Lad I know from Govan got a slap for throwing the hat in the air as how can I put it mildly didn't like the hat being passed round when he was in an Irish pub in Manchester. Times have changed.

and thank god for that :-)

quite an eye opener though for a young patriotic english lad seeing the hat being passed around for the apparent 'enemy' at the time......

I went to one pub regularly down the road full of squaddies on leave and then this other pub full of Irish half a mile away where the hat went round....

strange days indeed

most peculiar mama

Amazing how split things were even in Manchester - as a kid I never even knew about the Catholic primary schools and despite living all primary school and a few years of secondary school barely knew any kids from St carbs or Barlow etc. wastnt like my family had amy issue my mum taught in many catholic primary schools in Manchester .

 

[Stoned Rose]

Lad I know from Govan got a slap for throwing the hat in the air as how can I put it mildly didn't like the hat being passed round when he was in an Irish pub in Manchester. Times have changed.

and thank god for that :-)

quite an eye opener though for a young patriotic english lad seeing the hat being passed around for the apparent 'enemy' at the time......

I went to one pub regularly down the road full of squaddies on leave and then this other pub full of Irish half a mile away where the hat went round....

strange days indeed

most peculiar mama

Amazing how split things were even in Manchester - as a kid I never even knew about the Catholic primary schools and despite living all primary school and a few years of secondary school barely knew any kids from St carbs or Barlow etc. wastnt like my family had amy issue my mum taught in many catholic primary schools in Manchester .

The kids from St Carbs were all proper fat fucks.

 

[worsleyweb]

and thank god for that :-)

quite an eye opener though for a young patriotic english lad seeing the hat being passed around for the apparent 'enemy' at the time......

I went to one pub regularly down the road full of squaddies on leave and then this other pub full of Irish half a mile away where the hat went round....

strange days indeed

most peculiar mama

Amazing how split things were even in Manchester - as a kid I never even knew about the Catholic primary schools and despite living all primary school and a few years of secondary school barely knew any kids from St carbs or Barlow etc. wastnt like my family had amy issue my mum taught in many catholic primary schools in Manchester .

The kids from St Carbs were all proper fat fucks.

That will have been all that Irish stew