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Eddie B 8:20 Fri Feb 10
North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

I wasn't there, but have obviously heard the stories of that day. This fella though, seems to have just made stuff up.

http://skinhead69.hubpages.com/hub/Trouble-on-the-Terraces-Arsenal-v-West-Ham-at-Highbury-1982

"1982 and an English football (soccer) match was not always a pleasant event to attend. It was a couple of years before Maggie Thatcher's clampdown on the activities of Soccer Hooligans and the gangs were becoming more vicious and more willing to use a frightening array of weaponry, which was only too obvious at this particular game.

Arsenal versus West Ham was always likely to be a major flashpoint. West Ham had always had a large trouble making following, and had a particularly large and violent gang called the Inter City Firm (ICF), named after their fondness of travelling to away games First Class on the Inter City Trains, and were generally thought of as the top gang in the Country.

Arsenal, although they had seemed to be successful in breaking free from the Skinhead element which had plagued the club in the late 60's, were not without their own violent followers, and had an up and coming young street gang known as the Gooners, a spoof name for the official club nickname of the 'Gunners'.

May 2nd 1982, an hour and a half before the kick off and the fans were streaming into the ground. In the preceding years it was common practice for the ICF to march onto the North Bank, which was the Arsenal stronghold virtually unopposed, with very little resistance from Arsenal's followers.

However. this year was to be different, and there was a very uneasy feeling as I stood on the North Bank on this particular sunny Spring Saturday. Having been part of the hooligan scene years before, I could tell who was who, and I could see the West Ham fans gathering on the North Bank. The Arsenal fans sensed this and attacked immediately, and their rivals were kicked and punched and quickly dispatched from the sprawling terrace, which when full could hold up to 20,000 people.

As the police battled to gain control, another West Ham gang had forced their way into the middle of the North Bank and set off a smoke bomb. Clouds of thickening smoke billowed across the pitch and pandemonium broke out. The players, who had just about started the game, were led off the pitch, and panicking Arsenal fans stampeded onto it for their own safety. This left the large West Ham gang cock a hoop in the middle of Arsenal territory. Their they were, the largest most vicious gang of football thugs in the country doing what they did best, bullying and taunting their beaten rivals.

Only, something was wrong. Not all of Arsenal's fans had panicked, and the next thing they launched a counter attack, and probably for the first time in their lives, the ICF were on the back foot, and were brutally pushed right to the edge of the North Bank. The police desperately fought to surround the ICF for their own protection, and despite numerous attempts by the gooners to attack again, the police line held firm, and the ICF were held until the final whistle, and then escorted to safety.

Sadly, this was not an end to the trouble on this particular day, and about an hour later an Arsenal fan was surrounded by a gang of West Ham thugs, and brutally stabbed to death. His killer was never caught, but folklore has it that he himself has also gone to meet his maker. It was the end of an era, and West Ham never again ventured onto Arsenal's North Bank. And in the following years, Arsenal were known to have taken liberties on West Ham's Manor, a feat previously unheard of since the old skinhead days of the late 60's.

This ultimately led to several undercover police operations, and many of the main players were arrested and subsequently charged. Nowadays, thankfully the only winners on match days are the police. And premiership matches, although missing the old boisterous atmosphere, are much safer places to be, with attendances on the increase, and families very much in attendance."

What are people memories of this day, is this twat just talking out of his arse?

One thing, my first visit to Highbury was in 1986 (Woodcock handball, you cunt) and we were DEFINITELY in the North Bank that day, cos I saw it with my own eyes.

Shrek 11:12 Tue Feb 14
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

23ad yes i remember that now when they went on the pitch milling around not knowing what to do and as the police started
escorting them down the tunnel some tried to sneak over the wall into the westside (no chance)which went mental, they were fortunate not to be allowed in.

Ramsgate linford I went up to forest one year around then and the police escort disappeared and they came at us when we were the last trying to get in through the turnstiles. Fortunately there were a few west ham that held them off seriously outnumbered. That song coming back to me now.

ramsgate 9:04 Tue Feb 14
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Why did you leave ,at ten to three, why did you leave! Repeated They hated it Forest 77

Linford 11:01 Tue Feb 14
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Shrek

That Forest game was a Sat 3 pm in Oct 77..... Thing is by 3.00 most of the Forest had fucked off and left the ground, they were like lambs to the slaughter that day.

Remember we spent most of the return game reminding the fuckers of their premature depature from UP....... Got the windows on our coach put through before the game, Draughty old drive back down the M1!!

23ad 10:55 Tue Feb 14
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Shrek
Forest was '78 they had just come up from Div2
They got in south bank early - no fences up then
west ham came in steamed in and run them all onto the pitch
they tried to get in west side but were beaten back onto the pitch
After milling around on pitch for 10 minutes they were advised by OB to exit the ground:)
which they did ,about 1200 of them and none of them saw the match
That season Forest won the League and we were relegated

Scully 10:17 Tue Feb 14
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

I've not read so much bollocks since i read that when we went to Millwall for Walsall we were scared to go in. Another prick rewriting history.

Shrek 11:16 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

NS, can't be sure as memory never been great. Can't remember score but sure it was a 3pm Sat kick off. Most were escorted down the tunnel past and to the delight of the westside. Great prematch entertainment.

When I started going early 70s there seemed mile end skins ect in the NB, then some started congregating in the SB to have a go at the away lot, SB do your job ect. Then many ended up in the westside. So this was when we started having a large mob in the westside as well as the SB.

Northern Sold 11:02 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Shrek... not the league cup night game... late 70's?? 0-0 draw. IIRC?

Shrek 10:59 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Does anyone remember what year Forest filled half the south bank and were very vocal before the match and were quickly ejected from the south bank and on the pitch. These would have been the Forest glory days, 70s at a guess.

whúru 4:57 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Keddy - Was definately April 1978, I was in the North Bank with my Mum and Sister, I was 11 years old then, remember it well, first time I ever saw football hooliganism up close, scared the shit out of me, ended up being escorted out by the old bill, and they kindly put the 3 of us in the seats in the West Upper tier, end block by the old North Bank cage.

Had a great view from there of the shenanigans....

Linford 4:49 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Keddy

76 was my first season going without the old man and obv my memory banks have faded over the years.... Remember the Sunderland game well, a few mackems even got slung out of Nathans on the Barking road by one of the old girls working there for daring to sing !!!

chav slav 3:57 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

remember the willie donachie incident, bloke came out of chicken run, and they showed it on match of the day, they didn't shirk from showing football violence on tv in the 70's,
chelsea palace game were jimmy hill said in the highlights,

"ooh a kung fu kick" in his obvious enjoyment at watching the violence again on a highlights re-run...

keddy 3:38 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Linford I'm pretty certain it was April 78. The game from September 76 that sticks in my mind which had a bit trouble was the Sunderland game, in the South Bank and West Side The Arsenal home game never had any 'aggro'.until 78 though I only started going in 75.

Linford 2:54 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Keddy

Always thought it was Sept 76 that they got chased out of our North Bank.....A few months after the yids came unstuck trying the same thing!!

keddy 2:17 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Northern Sold

My memory might not be what it was but it was definitely Arsenal, about April 78 (The day Arsenal tried to take the North Bank,), and Malcolm McDonald. He just stood there, in front of the South Bank and West Side, took the punch, no retaliation and the fellow who punched him ran into the East Side and got away, I think. We scored a last minute equaliser If I remember correctly..

DANNY66 1:59 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

HHG 2:41-That is probably the year i mentioned earlier.18 at the time and about to be out away.

Basildon Bob 1:54 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

maybe he got the taste for it

Northern Sold 1:45 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

Bob... that was Donachie of Man City he whacked wasn't it??

Basildon Bob 1:29 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

keddy 10:35 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

was that TB ?

robwhu 1:24 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

NS
No mate, prob a different incident..

Me dad was over there a season or 2 before , and it was carnage in the pub then by his account..think wal could have been there then...

keddy 10:35 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

This thread can't fade away without mentioning the 2-2 in '78 Arsenal home game. when Malcolm McDonald scored their second. This put them 2-0 up, which pissed somebody off so much that he ran onto the pitch and chinned him.. It was a good shot, too, if I remember and he seemed to get clean away. If that happened now the players would have walked off, the hit player would have been writhing on the ground for minutes, the media would have been spinning the story for weeks afterwards. However being the 70's the players just carried on, including Malcolm McDonald, and the whole thing was soon forgotten.. i can't remember even a mention of it in the papers..

Northern Sold 10:07 Mon Feb 13
Re: North Bank. Highbury, May 1982.

rob.... you in there with Wally and Sam Watson and co?

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