Middlesbrough pitch invasion

[Thunder Bolt]

Let's see if the FA take any action. Not as though it will make any difference to us now, but they were clearly failing to control their fans and endangering our players' safety. You wonder what would have happened if one of our players had got badly injured in the melee and missed the play-offs.

That went through my mind. There's another game within 6 days and our players could have been injured, bruised and not able to play.

 

[Ernest]

I think it's obvious what [MENTION=38]Beach Hut[/MENTION] and his boy meant and if we beat Wednesday next Monday no doubt some hotheads will be on the pitch trying to goad their fans as they would do if roles were reversed

 

[Hampster Gull]

if we beat Wednesday next Monday no doubt some hotheads will be on the pitch trying to goad their fans as they would do if roles were reversed

Then just make sure you DONT go on then, turn RIGHT to the exit, not LEFT to the pitch

 

[clapham_gull]

I think it's obvious what @Beach Hut and his boy meant and if we beat Wednesday next Monday no doubt some hotheads will be on the pitch trying to goad their fans as they would do if roles were reversed

..and I find it mildly bizarre how anyone could come to a conclusion otherwise.

 

[BN9 BHA]

I think it's obvious what [MENTION=38]Beach Hut[/MENTION] and his boy meant and if we beat Wednesday next Monday no doubt some hotheads will be on the pitch trying to goad their fans as they would do if roles were reversed

..and I find it mildly bizarre how anyone could come to a conclusion otherwise.

A figure of speech was misunderstood, how bizarre
I'm sorry chaps, it's obviously bothering you both.

 

[nicko31]

The reality is Boro's have hardly ever filled their ground in recent years, was up there 3 years ago before Christmas and only had 13k against us. Every season since they were relegated apart from this one they have not averaged 20k, Sunderland or Newcastle they ain't

With plenty capacity and a huge game its inevitable you are going to get some t*ats getting tickets that hardly ever go and are fringe fans that cause trouble, pity as most are good natured..

 

[Whitechapel]

No they didn't.

A dozen or so ran on the pitch on the final whistle but were sent back by the stewards. We then waited for the players to come back to celebrate. At 3-1 most Walsall fans had already left.

Strange.

I remember being one of a couple of hundred fans on the pitch and seeing people goading Walsall fans including one lad who was pissed, running the width of the pitch to swear at Walsall fans before managing to trip himself up.

I'm not actually sure if it's cute or embarrassing how blue and white tinted some peoples specs are. Jesus.

 

[Hutonthebeach]

We saw Tony Bloom at Kings Cross on the way home. Certainly not happy that the whistle was blown early. They wasted time throughout injury time and we were cheated out of at least thirty to forty seconds. Doubt very much we would have scored but I think the complaints of the man bankrolling the club are a bit more valid than your view,

The whistle wasn't blown early. I've just watched the highlights on Sky - the keeper has hold of the ball, the whistle is blown at 98:13, keeper boots the ball into the air and the pitch invasion starts.
The whistle was blown before the invasion and after 98 mins had been played.
Plenty to moan about but not this I'm afraid.

 

[Parmo_Jaramillo]

The reality is Boro's have hardly ever filled their ground in recent years, was up there 3 years ago before Christmas and only had 13k against us.

Tbf, if the football is shit people tend not to turn up and be more selective with the games they choose to attend. You guys found that yourself at the Goldstone when you were plummeting down the football league. I remember Darlo going there in the mid 90's when you were guys were bottom and there was only 3,000 fans there (and about 300 of them were Darlo.)

But then obviously you get a full-house against Donny for the last game at the GG and suddenly 8,000 fans spring up from nowhere when Steve Gritt starts working his magic. Its basic football-nomics.

Our away following is normally quite decent though. I remember we took something like 3 and half thousand to Barnsley when we were playing utter shite football under Gordon Strachan. And we had 27,000 or so at the Riverside under Mowbray against Hull I think it was.

Every season since they were relegated apart from this one they have not averaged 20k, Sunderland or Newcastle they ain't

To be fair the Mackems had a drop-off of about 10,000 fans when they got relegated - even though the illiterate and innumerate *******s wouldn't dare admit it. Newcastle are gonna be even worse when they get relegated and become the next Leeds United.

With plenty capacity and a huge game its inevitable you are going to get some t*ats getting tickets that hardly ever go and are fringe fans that cause trouble, pity as most are good natured..

Pretty much. Its no different to your pitch invasion against York back in the day. I remember the vast majority did it with peaceful reasons, but there was an nasty element that wanted to make into a violent protest that it actually descended into. You're always gonna get idiots in the general throng of a large crowd.

 

[Parmo_Jaramillo]

For the last time I'll say it: my walk back to town to get my car was not pleasant at all, and I had young kids with me.

Now, it may be the case that those in town had not been at the game, had spent all afternoon in the pub and you may classify them as 'not real Boro fans' - the majority of whom were probably still in the ground celebrating. It wasn't nice though, and it sounds like it was even worse for the poor Albion fans who had to return to their coach at the Holiday Inn Express, immediately adjacent to that square. Having had to walk through the mob gathering there, I can well appreciate that.

So, please forgive me for having a pretty low opinion of the people of Middlesbrough. Nothing you post is going to make me change my mind.

Well at least you don't have visit Middlesbrough next season.

Yeah there are a lot of knob-heads in the town. There always are... even as a Boro fan I don't feel safe hanging around there during a big game. It just gets ugly when alcohol is involved. I even know some Boro fans with kids who also had abuse and glass bottles thrown at them. Its totally inexcusable for anyone from anywhere to behave like those knuckle-draggers.

I remember the atmosphere after our win against Oxford in 1998 and it was so different. It was just very cordial with the Oxford fans after the match and very little trouble. I sorta feel like there has been a new generation of twatty fans as well as the whole economic decline of the area all contributes to this. But who knows... Whatever it is, its pretty embarrassing to be associated with.

 

[Guinness Boy]

The bitterness on this thread is hilarious!! It's also funny that you don't see the irony in calling boro fans classless. I think what is classless is to slate our fans when a large number of them applauded you as you were leaving. I was sat right next to the away end and if you think your fans weren't goading us when you scored then you must have been sat with your eyes closed and fingers in your ears.

I saw a couple of younger lads gesticulating at you when we scored. It happens in every game throughout the land. I was on the far left next to your fans with only netting between us, so I had a clear view.

I didn't see your fans applaud us, but I was watching closely to see if our players managed to get off the pitch safely as they were being assaulted on the pitch.
I stayed right to the end

For the last time I'll say it: my walk back to town to get my car was not pleasant at all, and I had young kids with me.

Now, it may be the case that those in town had not been at the game, had spent all afternoon in the pub and you may classify them as 'not real Boro fans' - the majority of whom were probably still in the ground celebrating. It wasn't nice though, and it sounds like it was even worse for the poor Albion fans who had to return to their coach at the Holiday Inn Express, immediately adjacent to that square. Having had to walk through the mob gathering there, I can well appreciate that.

So, please forgive me for having a pretty low opinion of the people of Middlesbrough. Nothing you post is going to make me change my mind.

Let's be clear about this. It was a big game with an old school atmosphere in a deprived old working class town. I don't expect to be applauded, I expect both sets of fans to be somewhere between passionately biased and actively hostile. However there is a line.
[MENTION=6886]Bozza[/MENTION] wasn't the only one to encounter drunken nobheads after the game. There was a group of teenagers walking against the flow of Brighton fans towards the ground who'd been in the town drinking and they were staring out everyone and looking for a scrap with the police yards away. I wan't with my kids, in fact I was with a mate who's ex Royal Navy and no shrinking violet but we decided to get on the first train out of town rather than risk a glassing or getting nicked ourselves.

In the past I've had two clubs on my personal "don't play the game list". Birmingham City where a lone mate in colours was attacked by a mob of about thirty outside McDonalds just because we'd won (many years ago) and Cardiff where they used to pick you off in the car park no matter who you were. I'd been to Ayresome Park in the 90s but that was bother free. Boro only joined the out of order list on Saturday.

I don't doubt it was a minority. I don't doubt the vast majority of Boro fans concentrated on getting behind the team on a big day and having a bit a banter, Several Boro fans have wished me well on Twitter (I wrote a blog on the game). But, had we won, that would have got REALLY nasty and there would have been plenty of casualties.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Well at least you don't have visit Middlesbrough next season. :glare

Good to know you've written us off already. We might as well not bother playing on Friday or Monday now.

 

[The Orange Seagull]

But, had we won, that would have got REALLY nasty and there would have been plenty of casualties.

Probably the reason why the ref ensured Boro's promotion on Saturday, he was probably fearing for his own, and his fellow officials, safety too !!

 

[sparkie]

Probably the reason why the ref ensured Boro's promotion on Saturday, he was probably fearing for his own, and his fellow officials, safety too !!

It did cross my mind that given the way he positioned himself for a quick exit from the pitch that he was very happy that he hadn't upset the home fans.

 

[seagullhoop]

 

[East London Exile]

The whistle wasn't blown early. I've just watched the highlights on Sky - the keeper has hold of the ball, the whistle is blown at 98:13, keeper boots the ball into the air and the pitch invasion starts.
The whistle was blown before the invasion and after 98 mins had been played.
Plenty to moan about but not this I'm afraid.

You must remember that the added time is a minimum. The referee can add more to it for time wasting, injuries etc. I imagine Tony Bloom wanted the extra for the time wasting during added time.

What you do not see on the Sky highlights is that as soon as their goalkeeper caught the ball and went to ground 20 or 30 Borough fans ran onto the pitch by the corner flag at the opposite end. Mike Dean was looking at them as he retreated to near the tunnel to blow the final whistle. As much as I would love to think that with an extra 10 or 20 seconds we would have scored the winner in all reality I think it would have been unlikely.