[Football] Traveling Away With The Albion Way Back When

[Bodian]

It's good to see that so many others also used to drive to the opposition town and drive round looking for the floodlight pylons. It was ok for night time games as you could home in on the night glare but much more difficult in the day. Once , while up North on work, I decided to go and see Blackburn v Sunderland (?) . Found the stadium , parked up and got in a queue only to find it was all ticket (which was very rare - almost unheard of) - so I got the daily paper and found that Bolton were also playing at home that night and hastily drove down there to catch the second half at Burnden Park only after clocking the floodlights.

You'd have a problem finding the Amex by that method today as there are no signposts to it.

You'd have trouble finding Burnden Park now as well....

 

[sully]

I often travelled by train on my own. My dad worked for British Rail, so I got cheap tickets and he seemed fine with me going off all over the place while still at school! I then started working for them myself and continued my regular trips.
I generally had no idea where the ground was when I got off the train, but always seemed to find it. Luckily, I generally allowed plenty of time. I remember heading for Birmingham City once and probably walked a good couple of miles the wrong way before resorting to asking someone and trekking all the way back across the city.
I was very late at Doncaster once due to a broken down train, so jumped in a taxi with a couple of others. It was only at half time that I realised I hadn’t really paid attention to the route from the station.
Happy days! I wonder sometimes how we managed without all the gadgets we have nowadays.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Went to Aldershot twice in the early 70s. Dad drove. One was an early KO because there was a coal miner strike and Aldershot couldn't use their floodlights.

I recall Gerry Fell played one game (RIP).

There was some sort of pitch invasion, and I saw my school pal Brian K on the pitch with his Sta Prest and his scarf tied to his wrist

Went on my own (with my mate Nils) to Stains around 77. Must have trained it but I don't remember the journey. We were punk rockers at the time and we were given a wide berth by the footy lads. Not bad for nine and a half stone of wet piss.

 

[Questions]

I set out on a few Worthing Clifton coaches that were fun butcIm not a grass.

 

[BluesRockDJ]

I remember going to away games back in the day, including Newcastle '79, on the Seagull Special train along with Mullers and the players....wonderful times !

 

[Iggle Piggle]

In the early 90s I was at Uni and popped along to Fulham away. I was on me own as I couldn't convince anyone to come along and watch that shit and I had had Glandular fever so one of the side effects was that I couldn't drink for 6 months and was in about month 3. Deep joy at 19 that.

Anyway, I was walking into the stadium behind a bunch of mouthy lads who clearly weren't on a Glandular fever alcohol ban and the police decided to pick on me presumably as one of the gang

"How much you had son?
"Nothing, I haven't had a drink for months"
"Yeah, course you haven't. How much you had?
"Nothing, I've been ill recently"
"Last chance son, how much you had?
"I had 5 pints 6 months ago if that helps"

I was then whisked off to a police van before they got bored and let me go about 20 minutes later. I must have been one of the only people in England to have attracted police attention for the crime of not drinking at the football.

 

[Arkwright]

It must of been early eighties, we use to collect Persil Tokens, it was something like three tokens and you got half price train travel.
We had family, friends and work colleagues collecting for us, saved a small fortune.
Funny, forty odd years later we still travel by train with the benefit of an Over 60's Rail Pass.

 

[Seagull on the Hill]

Bloody hooligan

Just youthful high jinks, old chap.

 

[Bodian]

It must of been early eighties, we use to collect Persil Tokens, it was something like three tokens and you got half price train travel.
We had family, friends and work colleagues collecting for us, saved a small fortune.

And cornflakes. We went on the MotorRail to Scotland and the Lakes on Persil and Cornflake tokens. We had packets of cornflakes piled in the larder all with bits missing off the boxes.

 

[East Staffs Gull]

Hitch-hiked from Brighton to West Brom and back in 1979. Also, hitch-hiked from Liverpool to Villa Park and back for a night game around the same time. Got some interesting lifts, including from a bunch of scousers in a stolen car, who hated students. I had to invent a few stories about what I did for a living.

 

[South Stand Bonfire]

Does anyone remember Norwich away in the very early 80s with a scarf put on the dividing fence between the away/home fans and then set alight?

 

[Arkwright]

Does anyone remember Norwich away in the very early 80s with a scarf put on the dividing fence between the away/home fans and then set alight?

I do, if I'm honest I was a bit tiddly.
Did we lose 3 - 1.

 

[BN9 BHA]

Hitch-hiked from Brighton to West Brom and back in 1979. Also, hitch-hiked from Liverpool to Villa Park and back for a night game around the same time. Got some interesting lifts, including from a bunch of scousers in a stolen car, who hated students. I had to invent a few stories about what I did for a living.

Should have just told them you were unemployed……just like them.

 

[Eeyore]

If I recall correctly, BR had some offers in the late 80s during the winter months where tickets were £5 or £10.

£10 was still a lot of cash, but a bargain deal for a trip to Yorkshire or some similar distance. Anyone remember those ?

I think Birmingham on my YP Railcard back then was £16.

 

[Bodian]

If I recall correctly, BR had some offers in the late 80s during the winter months where tickets were £5 or £10.

£10 was still a lot of cash, but a bargain deal for a trip to Yorkshire or some similar distance. Anyone remember those ?

I think Birmingham on my YP Railcard back then was £16.

Yes - we used one of those. £15 return from Southwick to Montrose to watch Brechin City play a couple of games. Got dropped off by the team bus at the station after they played at East Fife - back in Brighton just in time to catch the 1.06 pisshead's special on the west coast line to Southwick.

 

[The Maharajah of Sydney]

I used to write to the AA a few weeks before away matches and they would sent back a printed turn by turn route to the away matches. This was okay if you had a passenger but trying to follow it when perched on the seat of a Mini Metro in the mid 80's was challenging if driving by myself.

Didn’t the programme from the previous home match carry those same travel details for the next away game ?

 

[Eeyore]

Didn’t the programme from the previous home match carry those same travel details for the next away game ?

Yes, although they did seem a bit sketchy when I looked at some of them.

 

[Ezzun]

The Rothmans football yearbook used to have a 'How to get there' section for each team which came in handy on occasion. Otherwise, I'd usually go by train and just follow the rest of them... Only once did I get to a game late - Cambridge Utd 1983. We won 4-3 with a last minute goal from Graham Pearce (?)

 

[South Stand Bonfire]

If I recall correctly, BR had some offers in the late 80s during the winter months where tickets were £5 or £10.

£10 was still a lot of cash, but a bargain deal for a trip to Yorkshire or some similar distance. Anyone remember those ?

I think Birmingham on my YP Railcard back then was £16.

I did Reading to Aviemore for a weekend using that offer. Not to watch football but I did visit a whisky museum and go up Caiirgorm (not in that order though). I think it was £12 return on the overnight train from Euston.

 

[El Presidente]

The Rothmans football yearbook used to have a 'How to get there' section for each team which came in handy on occasion. Otherwise, I'd usually go by train and just follow the rest of them... Only once did I get to a game late - Cambridge Utd 1983. We won 4-3 with a last minute goal from Graham Pearce (?)

I was there, did we have Alan Young and Terry Connor up front?