Never used special trains. But remember a couple of incidents when they were late. 1, Chester away end was empty one minute, full the next after gates got crashed in. 2. Bradford away was late. I was sat in the stand proper shittin missen. Coppers split the away following up and put em in different sections of the ground. At back of goal a line o coppers keeping hundreds of neanderthal Bradford fans apart from dozens of Tarn fans. ( Shittin the sens ). Unbelievable sight. Lost count of number of coppers carried out. I've never been as relieved to get home alive. Great days.
Right. I gor up at 20 to midnight week afore wi played at crystal palace. Went on a penny farthing. Forgot the way. Finished up in western super mare. (You try finding crystal palace for a night game.) Anyway a local pointed out the way to that there london. Got to ground with half hour gone. And realised ad gone to watch Burnley. To top it all Burnley lost. B'stds.
Bradford in them days I remember well pal I was only 17 when on a double decker bus from Barnsley bus station we arrived in Bradford and were met by about 200 Bradford idiots we got chased all over we never got to the game no coppers anywhere I remember seeing a copper about 3-15 we asked him how to get back to the bus station he laughed and said are you Barnsley fans we said yes he reply was you shouldn’t come here because the police can’t control the Bradford fans anyway we got the 4 o’clock bus back there were 30 odd Barnsley fan on that bus just had the bus was leaving a big mob of Bradford fans came running into the station luckily we got home safe good old days
You were lucky. We used to have to get up in the morning at 10 o'clock at night half an hour before we went to bed, walk to the Millwall match in our bare feet in a blizzard with only a handful of cold gravel to eat. After the match we had to lick the terraces clean with our tongues AND pay for permission to clean up, then crawl home through the snow. When we got home George Moncur would kill us for slagging him off on social media, then dance around on our graves singing hallelujah.
Yep, on that too. Long, long escorted walk through the fog from Lime St. Local scallies picking off stragglers by those council flats. Was it there the kid got his back badly cut by stanley knives?
Went everywhere on em... Two stand out. Reading.. when the police expected about 50 fans getting off and near a thousand arrived. And Port Vale where the train arrived at a place called Long Port.. Sure it took nearly an hour to walk to the ground..
No, you were lucky. I went with Mr Badger. God knows how we got home when he dawdled back to the car so slowly. Luckily my superb scouse accent saved me...not!
Forgive me if I have any of these facts wrong - it was a long time ago, but as I remember it: - you were driving. - there were four of us. - we were late due to the fog/traffic. - it was a fantastic night to be a Barnsley Fan (inside the ground but less so outside). - when we went back to the car (parked on a Liverpool backstreet) some scallies had forgotten their watches and sought the time. - they took offence at our accents. - you drove from the scene like David Starsky with a few boots being aimed at the vehicle, with the sound of ‘Taste’ coming from the cassette player. Of course, you may not be the man whom I remember, in which case, please accept my apols.
Think he was thinking why scouse accent when you replied to a millwall quote. Via the Yorkshire traction quote Hope this helps.
Surprised we don't do these a couple of times a season, to cut back on long travel times compared to being on the road. Be pretty popular for trips to places like Plymouth and Bristol Rovers.
I was talking to a British transport copper on the train back from Birmingham last season, he said most of the force would like them to be brought back. It makes their jobs much easier.