BRFC - The Nostalgia Thread

[den]

19 minutes ago, Stuart said:

The fact thing is, it used to be cheap and accessible and absolutely packed.

I imagine Hillsborough changed the game more than the PL. The answer wasn’t seating only but crowd management. That in itself became political. Easier to save a few arses in the establishment by blaming the working class football fan.

I’m interested in that middle part though. Post big crowds (or small crowds) who were largely friendly foes and the riotous mobs. Thatcher crushing the unions and using football management tactics to demonise the working man? Or militant anti-Tories finding it easy to bait police at matches? Or something else?

Something changed that took away the fun and made it serious.

A change in society Stuart. A move to an era where respect to others simply doesn’t matter. 
 

I went down to Norwich to a cup tie that ended 2-2 in 1966. Rovers had developed a hooligan minority even then. Rovers fans caused quite a bit of city centre damage before the game. It was widely reported at the time. Not good.

Edited October 9, 2020 by den

[den]

Just seen this photo of Ewood.... wow!

 

[jim mk2]

43 minutes ago, arbitro said:

Yes Tyrone just deciding on the hoof to go to a game wasn't the hassle it is today. I remember one Saturday and I was playing in the Darwen Amateur League and our game was called off around 1.30. As Rovers were away several of us decided to go to Old Trafford to see them play West Brom who had a great side at that time. We paid on the gate and saw the best game I have ever seen live. It was 5-3 to West Brom and the football was as good as it gets. Without the ability to have paid on the day we would have gone back to the pub.

Yes, it was great back then. Late 1960s and early 1970s often used to make last minute decisions to go and watch First Division football at Burnley (supporting the opposition of course). Jump on the train or bus and back home in time for a pint. FA Cup final and England Wembley tickets were more freely available too. Like many fans, I miss those days when you could just turn up at the turnstyle, pay your money, stand behind the goal in a great atmosphere and enjoy football like it used to be .......including the smelly loos and bad food.  

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, arbitro said:

Yes Tyrone just deciding on the hoof to go to a game wasn't the hassle it is today. I remember one Saturday and I was playing in the Darwen Amateur League and our game was called off around 1.30. As Rovers were away several of us decided to go to Old Trafford to see them play West Brom who had a great side at that time. We paid on the gate and saw the best game I have ever seen live. It was 5-3 to West Brom and the football was as good as it gets. Without the ability to have paid on the day we would have gone back to the pub.

I remember that game from TV, West Brom were awesome. Cunningham and Regis put Utd to the sword. I think a Manchester lad I remember playing against as a kid, Len Cantello, played for West Brom that day in central midfield..

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, Herbie6590 said:

The season starts here...

 

That's how you start a game !

[oldjamfan1]

6 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

That's how you start a game !

Indeed! Speedie’s goal was what Maradona pretended to do to Shilton 5 years earlier!

[Gav]

1 hour ago, Herbie6590 said:

The season starts here...

 

I’m on the video, a young whipper snapper.

The dream started here, Speedie Speedie.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 minute ago, oldjamfan1 said:

Indeed! Speedie’s goal was what Maradona pretended to do to Shilton 5 years earlier!

I loved Speedie, my sort of player. He'd give you 110% every game, he didn't know any other way of playing. Craig Skinner and Wilcox on the wings. Tony wasn't messing about with the wide striker bollocks was he ?

[simongarnerisgod]

1 minute ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I loved Speedie, my sort of player. He'd give you 110% every game, he didn't know any other way of playing. Craig Skinner and Wilcox on the wings. Tony wasn't messing about with the wide striker bollocks was he ?

wide strikers are a mowbray invention,stein,clough,ferguson,paisley,trapatoni,robson did`nt bother with them did they

[HowieFive0]

1 hour ago, arbitro said:

Yes Tyrone just deciding on the hoof to go to a game wasn't the hassle it is today. I remember one Saturday and I was playing in the Darwen Amateur League and our game was called off around 1.30. As Rovers were away several of us decided to go to Old Trafford to see them play West Brom who had a great side at that time. We paid on the gate and saw the best game I have ever seen live. It was 5-3 to West Brom and the football was as good as it gets. Without the ability to have paid on the day we would have gone back to the pub.

Exactly the same when the Accy Combination games got called off. Usually called off quite early and even if it was last minute with games KO at 2 pm lads could shoot off to Ewood .And with the old licensing hours of pubs shutting at 3pm  it was probably the only option ! (Unless hitting the ole W.M.C.s!)

[Gav]

6 hours ago, simongarnerisgod said:

were any of you older fans at the blackpool game when the ammonia was thrown at their fans?

My dad was at Blackpool that night, the ammonia wasn’t slung at the Blackpool fans he said, but it was let off in the ground and made national headlines, think we got banned from travelling away.

Birdie 2, who is no longer with us, was blamed, but he was blamed for most agro at the time, so who knows. 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, HowieFive0 said:

Exactly the same when the Accy Combination games got called off. Usually called off quite early and even if it was last minute with games KO at 2 pm lads could shoot off to Ewood .And with the old licensing hours of pubs shutting at 3pm  it was probably the only option ! (Unless hitting the ole W.M.C.s!)

When I was playing you could see the floodlights at Spotland from our home ground. We kicked off at 2-30 and we'd shower off and dash up to the game in the cars to get there just as they opened the gates to let fans out. We'd normally get the last 15 minutes.  We were football daft. I remember seeing Alan Gilliver playing for Brighton after he left Rovers. 

[simongarnerisgod]

21 minutes ago, Gav said:

My dad was at Blackpool that night, the ammonia wasn’t slung at the Blackpool fans he said, but it was let off in the ground and made national headlines, think we got banned from travelling away.

Birdie 2, who is no longer with us, was blamed, but he was blamed for most agro at the time, so who knows. 

iv`e heard of him,he was a headcase extraordinaire apparently!!iv`e never seen much trouble following rovers tbh,got a bit out of hand at grimsby once when the natives were`nt to pleased to see us,ive mad more scary moments following chorley,there are some proper mentalists in that town?

[Darrenbot]

49 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I loved Speedie, my sort of player. He'd give you 110% every game, he didn't know any other way of playing. Craig Skinner and Wilcox on the wings. Tony wasn't messing about with the wide striker bollocks was he ?

Speedie was the kind of player who you'd hate for years when he played for other clubs against you but after 1 game for playing for us he's be one of the fav players in the team.Savage was the same,hated him at Leicester/Birmingham but loved him winding up the other team when he was ours.

[Exiled in Toronto]

First game at Ewood where I remember significant aggro was Sunderland at home in 1969 I think. Back then we usually started off in the Darwen End. At half time all the Sunderland fans in the Blackburn End strolled round the Riverside and proceeded to kick the shit out of the Darren Enders who had quickly abandoned hope of strolling round to the Bburn End. I, for one, ended up with the pensioners in the Nuttall St Stand! I think that game prompted fences going up either side of the Riverside.

[Aqualung]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I remember that game from TV, West Brom were awesome. Cunningham and Regis put Utd to the sword. I think a Manchester lad I remember playing against as a kid, Len Cantello, played for West Brom that day in central midfield..

That was a brilliant WBA side and that nights game was dubbed the "game of the century". 

Alongside Len Cantello was a young Bryan Robson. Tony Bomber Brown up front with Regis (RIP). Derek Statham at Left back and Brendon Batson at right back IIRC. 

I'll have to admit, before I was introduced to seeing Rovers by my new neighbours in 81/82 I was only ever interested in West Broms results. Mainly because it was the first football strip I ever received for Christmas at aged 5. Why my parents bought it me ill never know! 

That day BTW when Albion won 5-3 at old Trafford I was on the turf watching Burnley play either Cardiff or Newcastle I think. Funny how things work out. 

[Aqualung]

Just want to add that I love this thread. 

And, I was wondering about Rovers followings away from home in the early days. Difficult to know exactly as segregation wasn't around so much but looking at that spurs vid v Rovers in the fa Cup 1960 ish.. There must have been a fair few who traipsed down to the capital. 

[Stonesrick]

1 hour ago, Gav said:

My dad was at Blackpool that night, the ammonia wasn’t slung at the Blackpool fans he said, but it was let off in the ground and made national headlines, think we got banned from travelling away.

Birdie 2, who is no longer with us, was blamed, but he was blamed for most agro at the time, so who knows. 

I was at that game with my Dad. It was in October 1968, I was 13 years old. We used to go to all the Blackpool away games which always seemed to be night matches and had our tea at my two Aunties who lived on Westmorland Ave, near to Bloomfield Road. There was trouble during the game and after. Several people were taken to hospital after the Ammonia incident. I think we may have won 1-0, Malcolm Darling scoring. We were just a player or two short of getting back to Division One. Dick Mulvaney as an emergency centre-forward :)

They had a decent team, Jimmy Armfield,  Alan Suddick, Tommy Hutchinson and Tony Green (a tremendous player who I played against in 5 a side when he had retired with knee injuries; I couldn't get anywhere near him)

[Atko's Engine]

27 minutes ago, Stonesrick said:

I was at that game with my Dad. It was in October 1968, I was 13 years old. We used to go to all the Blackpool away games which always seemed to be night matches and had our tea at my two Aunties who lived on Westmorland Ave, near to Bloomfield Road. There was trouble during the game and after. Several people were taken to hospital after the Ammonia incident. I think we may have won 1-0, Malcolm Darling scoring. We were just a player or two short of getting back to Division One. Dick Mulvaney as an emergency centre-forward

They had a decent team, Jimmy Armfield,  Alan Suddick, Tommy Hutchinson and Tony Green (a tremendous player who I played against in 5 a side when he had retired with knee injuries; I couldn't get anywhere near him)

Looking at that programme & the league table, Rovers were 3rd after 11 games but with only 14 goals scored & 10 conceded. Blackpool a place below us with a similar record. That's a bit boring & perhaps not too impressive, but look at Brum, the entertainers in the division with 24 scored and 27 conceded, in 11 games!!

Edited October 9, 2020 by Atko's Engine

[den]

14 minutes ago, renrag said:

The changing of ends at half time only started after the Blackburn End was covered after the cup final. Prior to that there was a metal railing separating the B E from the Riverside, as it was 3d (just over 1p) cheaper than the covered areas. Up until then the Darwen End was where the younger fans mainly stood. I’ve seen it bucketing down numerous times, and there would always be a handful of hardy souls stood on the B E to save a ‘thrippenybit‘. Or maybe it was just their spot?

The Darwen end was the home fans end when I started going renrag - around 61/62. Pretty sure about that.

Edited October 9, 2020 by den

[Gav]

50 minutes ago, Exiled in Toronto said:

First game at Ewood where I remember significant aggro was Sunderland at home in 1969 I think. Back then we usually started off in the Darwen End. At half time all the Sunderland fans in the Blackburn End strolled round the Riverside and proceeded to kick the shit out of the Darren Enders who had quickly abandoned hope of strolling round to the Bburn End. I, for one, ended up with the pensioners in the Nuttall St Stand! I think that game prompted fences going up either side of the Riverside.

My dad tells me an Anglo Scottish cup game against burnley in early 70’s was the reason that the fences went up, carnage apparently, Rovers fans had an awful reputation back then. 

I’m not trying to glorify football violence, I’m told that our lot routinely hammered the burnley fans throughout the 70’s, terrible to think of that now, but part of football back in the day. 

Burnley being 10/15yrs behind Blackburn in every respect ended up with a hooligan firm in 80’. Blackburn was the centre of Acid House at the time, as was the rest of UK, we’d move on. 

Burnley SS were tearing up towns across the 4th division unposed and looting Boots during the 80’s, terrifying eh.

Centre of a music revolution or looting boots and fighting Halifax? 

You be the judge.

 

Edited October 9, 2020 by Gav

[47er]

3 minutes ago, den said:

The Darwen end was the home fans end when I started going renrag - around 62. Pretty sure about that.

And, if the toss meant that that was our defensive end, the fans would cross over right away as the game kicked off! Then back again at halftime!

[47er]

Anyone else at Burnley when a Rovers fan threw a bottle at the Burnley goal? It hit the crossbar and shattered all over Adam Blacklaw, who, of course , joined us a year or two later.

It was an early season night game, warm and sunny. No idea what the score was.

The lad who threw it was just behind me and I was terrified the police would randomly grab me!

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

54 minutes ago, Aqualung said:

That was a brilliant WBA side and that nights game was dubbed the "game of the century". 

Alongside Len Cantello was a young Bryan Robson. Tony Bomber Brown up front with Regis (RIP). Derek Statham at Left back and Brendon Batson at right back IIRC. 

I'll have to admit, before I was introduced to seeing Rovers by my new neighbours in 81/82 I was only ever interested in West Broms results. Mainly because it was the first football strip I ever received for Christmas at aged 5. Why my parents bought it me ill never know! 

That day BTW when Albion won 5-3 at old Trafford I was on the turf watching Burnley play either Cardiff or Newcastle I think. Funny how things work out. 

Derek Statham was a class act at left back, bags of pace, liked a tackle and he was decent going forward. I liked him a lot.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

4 minutes ago, 47er said:

Anyone else at Burnley when a Rovers fan threw a bottle at the Burnley goal? It hit the crossbar and shattered all over Adam Blacklaw, who, of course , joined us a year or two later.

It was an early season night game, warm and sunny. No idea what the score was.

The lad who threw it was just behind me and I was terrified the police would randomly grab me!

According to Mike Jackman's book the earliest we played Burnley in any season that Adam Blacklaw  would have been playing was October the 1st. I went to two Burnley v Rovers night matches in that era. In one we were never at the races and lost 3-0 with Mike England getting an early bath after losing his rag with Andy Lochead and in the other we lost 1-0 to a Gordon Harris penalty. Fred Else gave a Brad Freidel style performance in goal, the best I ever saw him play. It could have easily been 4-0 or so. He even got a hand to the pen but couldn't keep it out. I don't remember the bottle incident but that's not to say it didn't happen.