LUSCOS

Soccer hooligan grandson of Leeds legend is jailed

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Jailed: Christopher Charles

A GRANDSON of Leeds United footballing legend John Charles has been jailed for soccer hooliganism.
Christopher John Charles has also been banned from attending Leeds United and England matches for six years.
Charles, 22, of Bank House Lane, Pudsey, Leeds, was jailed for six weeks by Leeds magistrates after admitting attempted criminal damage, pitch invasion and being in breach of a three-year banning order.
He is now not allowed within a mile of Elland Road two hours before and one hour after matches there.
The court heard Charles was part of the pitch invasion at Elland Road in April when a 1-1 draw with Ipswich saw Leeds relegated from the Championship.
Charles was seen trying to pull down the netting in a goalmouth and then give a V sign towards the directors' box.
His grandfather John Charles, who died nearly four years ago, is regarded as one of United's greatest ever players. Fans nicknamed him the Gentle Giant.
He starred for the club in the 1950s and also played for Wales in the 1958 World Cup.
Det Insp Phil Wright who investigated the trouble at the Ipswich match, said: "I am sure Christopher Charles's family will be deeply disappointed at his actions."
The court heard that Charles had been convicted of harassment at a Leeds v Millwall match in December 2004, and given a three-year ban. He had been seen at Elland Road knocking people to the ground.
After the disturbances at this year's Ipswich game, police released photos of a number of supporters - including Charles - who they wanted to trace.
Today, it was revealed that after being arrested for the 2004 offence, Charles tried to assume the identity of a friend.
He gave police the name of RAF squaddie Ross Myers along with his date of birth and postcode.
Mr Myers' mother Bernadette said she then spent months trying to clear her family's name.

YP

Kommentar:
Richard Sutcliffe: Is football hooliganism back in vogue?

After several outbreaks of violence this season, including five Manchester United fans being stabbed this week in Rome, is football hooliganism back to haunt us? Richard Sutcliffe reports.

TWENTY ONE arrests, three pubs wrecked and rival fans clashing in the streets as more than 100 police officers battle manfully to keep order.
This sounds like a typical Saturday during the Seventies and Eighties when football hooligans were, literally, running riot on what seemed a weekly basis.
In fact, these scenes occurred just last month when the northern footballing outpost of Carlisle played host to the sort of trouble that many believed had been consigned to the history books. Despite a police operation later described by the town's Chief Superintendent Andy Davidson as "the largest of its kind in maybe 30 years", fighting broke out before and after the home side's 3-1 victory over Leeds United.
Just a week earlier, Leeds's followers had been involved in similar disturbances at a game against Millwall with mounted police having to make several charges outside Elland Road to keep rival fans apart.
The two outbreaks of disorder mirrored Home Office figures for the 2006-07 season that saw arrests at football grounds in England and Wales up by eight per cent to almost 3,800 â€" the first rise in four years. A Home Office spokesman was quick to put the increase down to "a tougher police approach to anti-social and disorderly behaviour", but the figures still begged the question: Is football hooliganism back in vogue?
One man who can perhaps answer that question is Eddie Kelly, the 38-year-old being one of around 40 contributors to a new book chronicling the exploits of one of the most infamous hooligan gangs of them all â€" Leeds Service Crew.
So named because they travelled by service train in the early Eighties rather than the then more heavily-policed 'football specials', the Service Crew became synonymous with violence and mayhem.
The new book, which will be officially launched tonight at Spencer's pub in Leeds, has been written by journalist Caroline Gall and charts their role in some of English football's blackest days when the likes of Birmingham, Bournemouth and Chelsea were on the receiving end of a visit from one of the most notorious gangs around.
Kelly, now retired from the hooligan scene, agreed to meet the Yorkshire Post in a city centre pub ahead of the launch. He said: "It has changed massively since the Eighties and I doubt you will ever see hundreds on each side fighting in the street again. But trouble does still happen from time to time.
"I am not involved any more, but I think it will keep happening. There are younger lads coming through and then there are some of the older lads who might have drifted away, but then something happens to draw them back in.
"It could be splitting up with the wife or something like that. And once they start going again, then they get the taste for it.
"The police have a lot of powers, but I don't think they will ever stop it completely."
Kelly was not involved in any of the trouble at either the Millwall or Carlisle games this season due to being not only retired from the scene, but also halfway through a four-year banning order from attending matches.
It was this ban that prompted Kelly to get involved with the writing of the latest instalment of 'hooli-lit', an incredibly successful publishing genre that has spawned a host of best sellers. Colin Ward's seminal Steaming In and Among the Thugs by Bill Buford started the ball rolling in the late Eighties and since then all manner of hooligan firms have rushed to put their reminiscences down on paper.
It has proved a lucrative business with Guvnors, about Manchester City hooligans, and Cardiff City's Soul Crew both shifting around 60,000 copies apiece, while sales figures for Steaming In are believed to have reached six figures. It was during the writing of one such book on the Birmingham Zulu Warriors hooligan firm two years ago that the seed for Service Crew was planted.
Kelly explains: "I know a few of the Birmingham lads who had just brought their book out and they said 'why don't you do one on Leeds?'
"I had just been banned so thought 'why not? It will all be about stuff in the past so what more can they do to me?'
"I was put in touch with Caroline, who had written the Zulus book, and it all went from there. It has taken over two years and, in all, there were about 40 different lads of various ages who took part.
"We said right from the start that there would be no bull**** and no lies. If we had been done anywhere in the past, there was no point claiming any different.
"It was also a chance to right a few wrongs because there has been some rubbish written about Leeds in other books."
One of the commonly-held perceptions of anyone involved in hooliganism, whether past or present, is that they have little interest in football, something that Kelly refutes. He first watched United as a nine-year-old in 1979 and said: "The lads are the ones who stick by the team, no matter what. In the Eighties when we were relegated, the lads still went everywhere to support them. It was the same last season when crowds went down to 16,000 after a lot of those who started watching in the Premier League stopped going.
"Anyone who says the lads are not fans does not have a clue. The result on the pitch means everything."
Outsiders may not understand what motivates the hooligans to do what they do, but there can be little doubt that their shared experiences create a bond that is hard to break.
Kelly said: "I was probably about 13 when I first got involved in any trouble. It was nothing too serious, just getting chased by the police after a match when there was a protest against (manager) Jimmy Adamson. But it was a real adrenalin rush.
"The camarederie was great. It was a great feeling to know as you walked down a street in another town, and looked around to see all your mates there, that none of them would let you down.
"I know of lads who would do anything to help each other out, some of those who own companies have given their mates a job to help them out."
Asked what he says to those who feel books on illegal activities such as hooliganism should not be published, Kelly added: "People buy them. The Zulus sold about 22,000 copies and the publisher thinks ours mightsell more.
"I have even had some (police) officers asking me if they are in the book. One said 'make sure I get a mention'.
"What went on then is part of social history, there is no point hiding it away. You can't change the past. The book lets people know what it was like, unlike the films that have been made recently (Green Street and Football Factory). They made me cringe because they are nothing like how it was. This may go against the grain for some people, but it (hooliganism) has been every bit as much of a culture as anything else.
"Everyone is different. There are some people in life who go to garden centres and enjoy it. Now that is something I will never understand. Why would anyone want to spend any time at all in a garden centre? That is not normal to me.
"Our enjoyment came through following Leeds United everywhere. And no one can take those memories away."

YP

Ny bok

SERVICE CREW: The Inside Story of Leeds United's Hooligan Gangs
av Caroline Gall (Milo Books)
Lansert: 11. des, 2007

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Caroline Gall is a journalist for BBC Online and has written for numerous newspapers and magazines. She is the author of Zulus: The Story of the Zulu Warriors Football Firm.

The Leeds Service Crew are one of the most infamous football hooligan gangs of the past thirty years. With their cry of 'We are Leeds', they terrorised rival gangs and caused havoc around the country. Now, for the first time, key members of this secretive group tell their story.
Violence and mayhem have been synonymous with the Leeds United hardcore following since the mid-Sixties. Through the Don Revie-inspired Golden Years of the early Seventies, the bootboys and skins of tough inner city estates battled their way across the country, clashing with the hordes of Manchester, Merseyside, the Sheffield teams and the London giants.
The apex of this hooligan army was the Service Crew, formed in 1980 and named after the local service trains they took in preference to the heavily policed special trains. They were young, well organised and ruthless, and emerged as the new casual era dawned and the club experienced a dip in fortune as it slipped into Division Two. Against the bitter backdrop of the Miners Strike, the Service Crew made their own headlines, acquiring a reputation for ground wrecking and becoming despised - and feared - by their terrace foes.
With access to members of the gang from several different generations, author Caroline Gall examines the long-standing feuds with their fiercest rivals, from Manchester United to Chelsea, the gang's far-right connections, and the undercover police operations against them, including the landmark Operation Wild Boar. She chronicles their role in some of the worst incidents of football-related disorder of modern times, including the riot against Birmingham City in 1985, the notorious trip to Chelsea that saw hundreds arrested and the headline-making carnage at Bournemouth and Coventry.
Gall also charts the emergence of newer gangs such as the Very Young Team and the Infant Hit Squad, their role in the rave scene, the club's resurgence in the 1990s and their fans continuing bad behaviour, right up to the pitch invasion at Elland Road at the end of the fateful 2006-7 season.

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Quote from: kjelvi on December 19, 2007, 19:38:18
The Leeds Service Crew are one of the most infamous football hooligan gangs of the past thirty years. With their cry of 'We are Leeds', they terrorised rival gangs and caused havoc around the country. Now, for the first time, key members of this secretive group tell their story. (....)

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leeds_United_Service_Crew

http://www.leedssc.org.uk/

Dette er naturligvis ikke gode nyheter for "nye" Leeds United, bare uker etter at vi nok en gang ble fremhevet som en verstingklubb innen hooliganism`.   ::)

Vekk med pakket!   :)

På samma sätt som huliganismen ökar rejält i England så ökar den i Sverige. I Sverige finns det säkert 10 lag som har firmor som slåss för sitt lag.
Helt sjukt egentligen...

Caroline Gall skal tjene seg noen ekstra pund på et temmelig uttværet emne. Service Crew har jo blitt fulgt tett i en rekke tv-dokumentarer både på ITV, BBC og andre tv-kanaler i England, og folka som stod bak det hele, er jo ikke akkurat vanskelige å finne. Mange av dem vanker fortsatt på Waggon & Horses, The Adelphi og andre puber i Leeds, og det er vel ikke bare bare å utestenge dem fra pubene. Jeg har personlig hatt den "glede" å prate med mange av disse voldsmennene, og jeg må si at kunnskapene deres om Leeds United er meget begrenset. Mitt inntrykk er at de fleste av dem engasjerte seg bare pga. adrenalinkicket knyttet til volden, og lite pga. fotballinteresse. Leeds Uniteds støtte på tribunene har ikke tapt fordi om lag 3000 av disse menneskene er utestengt fra kampene på ubestemt tid. Snarere har vel de mer ordentlige folka (mange av dem er jo nå etablert med egne familier og tar med barna på kamp) som evner å synge litt, fått mer frimodighet til å gå på kamp.

Godt å registrere at det i Swansea ikke er 'våre' gutter som det er satt fokus på.


Swans Fans Arrests Blemish Win  

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South Wales police were out in force yesterday in Swansea City's 3-2 win over Leeds United .
In a fractious game Police officials have confirmed there have been 6 arrests made at the Liberty Stadium during the game 4 or which were Swansea supporters.
Fans have criticised the Police for their containment procedures at the end of the match as a cordon separated Swansea fans from their Leeds counterparts.
It left supporters climbing a grass bank to get onto the main road as the Police were not allowing any fans behind the North Stand.
Swansea fans were also involved in a incident where it is alleged that a small group of home supporters tried to board the Leeds United coach after the game.
There has been no offical confirmation of this event as yet.
Insp Colin Wooldridge did however confirm that damage had been caused by missiles thrown at the Leeds coaches.
He Told The Western Mail
'A couple of the away coaches were also damaged near the ground after some had bottles and things thrown at them'
These actions are deplorable and do not reflect the true support that Swansea City get.

swansea.vitalfootball.co.uk

Quote from: Hartey on December 20, 2007, 01:49:54
På samma sätt som huliganismen ökar rejält i England så ökar den i Sverige. I Sverige finns det säkert 10 lag som har firmor som slåss för sitt lag.
Helt sjukt egentligen...

Ja, men det er tross alt i Sverige da.... ;D

WHAT A SHAME CHRIS !!! >:(

Leeds United fans bricked

LEEDS United players and fans had to run a gauntlet of hate following the club's game at Swansea City at the weekend.
Coaches taking United supporters away from the Welsh side's Liberty Stadium on Saturday came under fire from bricks and other missiles hurled by local yobs.
Windows in at least two of the vehicles were smashed, showering passengers - including women and children - with glass.
An unconfirmed report today said United's team bus had also been targeted by Swansea troublemakers.
One fan at the game claimed to have seen a gang of hooligans pulling the fire door open at the back of the coach.
He said: "It looked as though the players were having to physically stop them from climbing on board."
Police made a total of six arrests for public order offences during the League One match, which Swansea won 3-2.
The top-of-the-table clash drew a 19,000 sell-out crowd, which included around 2,800 United fans.
A major security operation was mounted in and around the ground to try to prevent any repeat of the violence which has marred other Leeds games this season.
A total of 21 arrests were made at United's away match against Carlisle on November 3.
The previous weekend Millwall hooligans had wrecked buses ferrying them from Leeds city centre to United's Elland Road ground.

YEP

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Thirteen-Leeds-United-fans-handed.3647534.jp

Her straffes det gitt :-[

He he, med fullt navn, adresse og det hele  :o
Det fødes idioter hver dag, men slikt må da vel virke en smule demotiverende for potensielle bråkmakere!

flynn

Quote from: pedro on January 07, 2008, 22:03:30
http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Thirteen-Leeds-United-fans-handed.3647534.jp

Her straffes det gitt :-[

KNALL! :)

Det vokser frem nye yngre hooligans rundt flere av klubbene i england nå.
De siste 10 årene har vært flott, etter som publikum har vært "skiftet" ut og det har vært familie vennlig og gå på diverse arenaer i england.
Synd om dette skal få prege / ødelegge den fantastiske følelsen det er av og være på engelske kamper.

Quote from: Trygve on January 08, 2008, 20:17:26
Det vokser frem nye yngre hooligans rundt flere av klubbene i england nå.
De siste 10 årene har vært flott, etter som publikum har vært "skiftet" ut og det har vært familie vennlig og gå på diverse arenaer i england.
Synd om dette skal få prege / ødelegge den fantastiske følelsen det er av og være på engelske kamper.

Familiene er jo presset ut av klubbene grunnet høye billettpriser. Dermed er det fritt frem for huligansa.... Dvs miljøet blant supporterne blir tøffere!

Hallo??
E jo ikkje familiene som e pressa ut av høye billettpriser,det e jo tvert i mot.
Hooligans/Hardcore fans fra 80-tallet ble pressa ut av høye billettpriser og erstatta med meir pengesterke familiefolk som ikkje gidde å åpne kjeften under en eneste sang på tribunen.Nå når Leeds de siste årene ik er like attraktiv for "fiffen" har billettprisene gått ned og vi har fått tilbake mange ekte supportere på kampene.At det da også følger med noen idioter på lasset e bare sånn det e.Det e jo utrolig merkbart på Elland Road nå at termosdrikkende og nistespisende familier e bytta ut med øltørste paielskere som virkelig synger for full hals for United.Den gode gamle stemningen e tilbake,e jo vannvittig stemning i år,våre ekte e tilbake. 8)

Quote from: jackbauer68 on January 09, 2008, 11:13:54
Hallo??
E jo ikkje familiene som e pressa ut av høye billettpriser,det e jo tvert i mot.
Hooligans/Hardcore fans fra 80-tallet ble pressa ut av høye billettpriser og erstatta med meir pengesterke familiefolk som ikkje gidde å åpne kjeften under en eneste sang på tribunen.Nå når Leeds de siste årene ik er like attraktiv for "fiffen" har billettprisene gått ned og vi har fått tilbake mange ekte supportere på kampene.At det da også følger med noen idioter på lasset e bare sånn det e.Det e jo utrolig merkbart på Elland Road nå at termosdrikkende og nistespisende familier e bytta ut med øltørste paielskere som virkelig synger for full hals for United.Den gode gamle stemningen e tilbake,e jo vannvittig stemning i år,våre ekte e tilbake. 8)

Den forklaringa di, Jack Bauer, er så enkel at den sannsynligvis er riv, ruskende gal.

More Leeds United yobs in court

THE FATHER of a jailed Leeds United hooligan has appeared in court for his part in a disturbance at Elland Road on the same day as his son.
Nicholas Addison was, 44, was yesterday given 120 community service order and a three-year football banning order for his involvement in the ugly scenes during the match against Ipswich last April.
Addison pleaded guilty to threatening behaviour and said he was deeply ashamed of his actions after Leeds Magistrates' Court was shown footage of him taking part in the pitch invasion.
Addison appeared before a district judge just a day after his son Nathan, 22, was jailed for four months and handed a six-year FBO for throwing a coin during the same incident.
It means father and son, both of St James Road, Halifax, are banned from any regulated domestic football match and England internationals for the length of the orders.
District judge Christopher Darnton told Addison: "This has brought great shame upon yourself and upon you family. There was a time when, almost without exception, people involved in these football-prelated circumstances could expect a custodial sentence.
"This was behaviour that was totally out of character. In my view you were swept along with the crowd and the emotion at that time.
"No doubt in the cold, sober, light of day you looked back and realised your behaviour was incredibly stupid."

Duane Jordan, 20, of Vinery View, East End Park, Leeds, was also given a 12 community order and a three-year FBO for his involvement in the incident.
The court heard how Jordan, who admitted threatening behaviour, had been at the game with his parents but left them to join in the disturbance.
On Monday Leeds Crown Court heard how disabled football fans cowered in fear as Leeds United thugs showered them with coins and abuse as their team was relegated last season.
Wheelchair-bound Ipswich Town supporters and a teenage girl with cerebral palsy suffered injuries including a cut face and bruising after they were trapped pitch-side by a marauding mob who swarmed towards the away end towards the final minutes of the 1-1 draw.
Banning orders totalling 45 years were handed to 11 men and two youths by a judge at the crown court.

Two other men also appeared before the magistrates' court yesterday in connection with the disturbance prior to the Leeds game against Millwall at Elland Road on October 27.

Millwall fan Matthew Cook, 20, of Romford, Essex, was on board one of the five double decker buses which were pelted with missiles on the approach to the stadium as rival fans clashed.
Cook was arrested after he was spotted by police kicking in windows on the bus.
He was fined £300 and given a three-year FBO after admitting criminal damaged and attempted criminal damage.

Leeds fan Stephen Ottewell, of Caernarvon Crescent, Barnsley, was fined £160 and given a three-year FBO after admitting threatening behaviour during the same incident.
Ottewell was spotted shouting threats and obscenities at rival supporters as well as police who formed a cordon in front of the Billy Bremner statue.

YEP

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Leeds-United-fans-arrested-in.3763341.jp

Hmmm....virker som det blir verre og verre jo lengre ned vi kommer.

>:( >:( >:( >:( 8) 8) 8)

Leeds thugs trashed my pub

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The landlord of the Shoemakers Tavern, who did not want to be named, had to have every window replaced

A landlord has described how his pub was besieged by rioting Leeds football hooligans who threw manhole covers, road signs and rocks at the windows to cause more than £8,000 worth of damage.
During Northampton Town's match against Leeds United on Saturday, several cases of violent disorder were reported to police and a total of 18 men, all Leeds United supporters, were arrested.
The landlord at the Shoemakers Tavern, who asked not to be named, said as many as 50 Leeds fans descended on the Spring Boroughs pub intent on causing trouble.
In an interview with the Northampton Chronicle he said: "We had about 30 Cobblers fans inside having a quiet drink, and they were as good as gold and not even boisterous.
"Then trouble started outside when I'd say at least 50 people started throwing whatever they could get their hands on at the pub. They were hurling rocks to start with, then road signs and manhole covers.
"They smashed every single window. Usually I don't even have to put on extra staff when Cobblers play because we never get any trouble, and the fans don't drink in here.
"All my regulars have been fantastic, they've been down here sweeping up the broken glass and helping out, to get the pub open as usual."
The troublemakers, believed to be members of the notorious Leeds Service Crew hooligan element, were tracked to the Moon on the Square pub in the town centre andarrested at about 4.30pm, after apparently causing the fracas outside the Shoemakers Tavern, in Lower Cross Street.
The landlord, who has worked at the pub for about six months, said the damage would cost in the region of £8,000 to clear up, and he missed out on a further £400 in lost trade because he was forced to close on Saturday night.
He added: "I was surprised only 14 people were arrested. They will probably only get a slap on the wrist."
Another eyewitness, who watched the disturbance from her house, said: "It was an absolute riot, and has been understated by the police.
"The instigator looked like he was in his 50s, and it was completely pathetic behaviour from a lot of men and boys. I counted at least 30 people."
Northamptonshire Police â€" who believe the fighting was premeditated â€" charged two people with public order offences and released 16 more on bail.

YEP

Politiet vil ha tak i noen som kan identifisere noen av de som lagde bråk under kampen mellom Leeds og Millwall 27.oktober. Trist at slike folk fortsatt får lov til å gå på Leedskamper.

Men jeg må virkelig berømme politiet i Leeds for rask og effektivt arbeid  :P

http://www.leedsunited.com/page/NewsroomDetail/0,,10273~1244940,00.html

Quote from: Sleivind on February 19, 2008, 12:44:02
Politiet vil ha tak i noen som kan identifisere noen av de som lagde bråk under kampen mellom Leeds og Millwall 27.oktober. Trist at slike folk fortsatt får lov til å gå på Leedskamper.
Men jeg må virkelig berømme politiet i Leeds for rask og effektivt arbeid  :P
http://www.leedsunited.com/page/NewsroomDetail/0,,10273~1244940,00.html

Nå også med bilder!
Har sjekket, ser ingen kjente....!

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Leeds-Millwall-violence-police-photos.3873518.jp

kan ju vara Millwallhooliganer med

Quote from: kjelvi on March 13, 2008, 10:23:46

Quote from: Sleivind on February 19, 2008, 12:44:02
Politiet vil ha tak i noen som kan identifisere noen av de som lagde bråk under kampen mellom Leeds og Millwall 27.oktober. Trist at slike folk fortsatt får lov til å gå på Leedskamper.
Men jeg må virkelig berømme politiet i Leeds for rask og effektivt arbeid  :P
http://www.leedsunited.com/page/NewsroomDetail/0,,10273~1244940,00.html

Nå også med bilder!
Har sjekket, ser ingen kjente....!

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Leeds-Millwall-violence-police-photos.3873518.jp

Minnet ikke han ene litt på Bates... ::)

Endelig noe positivt å høre ....

Police praise for away fans

Police and publicans have paid tribute to football fans after an estimated 3,500 Leeds United supporters flooded into Burslem on Saturday.
Some pubs used a voucher system ensuring only regular drinkers could be admitted, and most put bouncers on the doors before and after the game with Port Vale.
There had also been fears of possible clashes between fans and hundreds of guests at a gipsy wedding at the George Hotel. A police spokesman said: "Although things were bubbling at some stages we did not need to send in any extra patrols."
Three pubs were designated for away fans. At one of them - the Leopard Hotel - a spokesman said: "The Leeds fans said they had been treated better than at most games."

thewonderofyou.co.uk

Leeds United thugs' video rampage

DAMNING footage showing Leeds United fans rioting after a match has been released on the internet.
The footage shows thugs throwing missiles, booting bins and chanting following last Saturday's match against Port Vale.
Port Vale chairman Bill Bratt is reported to be demanding compensation from Leeds United after parts of Vale Park were trashed.
Bratt estimates damage at the ground has totalled around £2,000.
He says Vale catering staff were spat at and threatened, while catering manager Keith Bailey had to pull a young Leeds supporter to safety after he was in danger of being stamped on by his own fans.
Now Mr Bratt plans to send the internet footage to Leeds United along with his claim for compensation.
A Leeds United spokesman said they have not yet heard from the club.
Mr Bratt said: "A minority of Leeds fans were generally creating mayhem.
"We had to shut the kiosks because of the behaviour of the fans.
"It wasn't the behaviour you want from football supporters, or from anyone.
"If it was our supporters, I wouldn't be at all happy. We have a reputation across the country for well-behaved fans.
"Staff shouldn't be put in that position. They are there to do a job and serve these supporters with food and drink.
"They shouldn't have to put up with that. I just find it abhorrent.
"Having said that, a lot of Leeds supporters were well behaved. I have no wish to decry the majority."
More than 3,000 Leeds fans had travelled to Burslem to watch their side draw 3-3 with Port Vale.
A spokesman for Leeds United said: "We have heard nothing from Port Vale and if we do, we will respond to them."

Se videoen her: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=zpILY4NU-Hs

YEP

Hooligans systemet i england er da ikke så gale, politiet har gjort en god jobb i england på denne fronten. Men med at hooligansen og de hardcore supporterne har minsket fra mange engelske klubber, blir også atmospheren dårligere. Hardcores blir bytta ut med familiene, og familiene lager sjelden den helt store stemningen. Prisene må selvsagt ta sin del av skylda, ettersom det å gå på kamp i england er en dyr fornøyelse. Så da får man velge hva man vill ha, mindre hardcores og dårligere stemning, masse hardcores å fantastisk stemning, eller en god blanding :P

Quote from: Lord-Meta on March 23, 2008, 19:59:17
Hooligans systemet i england er da ikke så gale, politiet har gjort en god jobb i england på denne fronten. Men med at hooligansen og de hardcore supporterne har minsket fra mange engelske klubber, blir også atmospheren dårligere. Hardcores blir bytta ut med familiene, og familiene lager sjelden den helt store stemningen. Prisene må selvsagt ta sin del av skylda, ettersom det å gå på kamp i england er en dyr fornøyelse. Så da får man velge hva man vill ha, mindre hardcores og dårligere stemning, masse hardcores å fantastisk stemning, eller en god blanding :P

Hvilke holdninger har du!!!!!!!!!! Jeg blir bare så jæ.....g rystet av slikt! Valget er da såre enkelt. Det skal være trygt å gå på kamp. De som oppsøker fotballarenaer for å lage kvalm, ødelegge inventar og sette andre menneskers liv i fare...til dem sier jeg bare : F..k off!!!! DU ER INGEN TILHENGER Ã... SAMLE PÃ... ! :o :o :o ???

Du har tydligvis ikke skjønt meningen med posten min. Men greit. Etter det jeg har forstått ved å vært på engelske forum med stortsett bare folk fra leeds, så er det ekstremt sjeldent at det er fare for noen som helst rundt stadion. de som driver med hooliganisme tar som oftest turen et stykke uten for selve stadion området pga mengden med politi. Som jeg sa har politiet gjort en god jobb. Men hvis du kan påstå at stemningen i england er den samme som før, så har du jammen meg ikke vært der borte på noen år. og når jeg sier hardcore så mener jeg ikke bare de som driver hooligans,for det er ikke mange av dem lengre. Hardcore er de som møter opp på kamp å synger å drar i uansett motstander osv. tror du har misforstått ganske mye der ja.

Jeg støtter på ingen måte noe som helst med hooliganisme, men sier bare fakta slik det er. Ikke nørdvendig å ta helt av her.

   Hvis du vil slippe å bli misforstått, må du uttrykke deg klarere. Jeg har ca. 45 kamper på "min cv", så jeg tror at jeg har lov til å uttale meg her. Var over siste gang i 2006.
  Hvis du kan lese, så skrev jeg ikke noe om stemningen på kampene. Det sier seg selv at en familie ikke skaper samme stemningen som dine hardcore-tilhengere. Men jeg tar til takke med mindre sang og lavere støynivå om du vil, enn det å ha en eneste hooligan på tribunen.

Jojo kan jeg være enig i, men uten å forsvare hooligans, så gjør de ingenting for å ødlegge sikkerheten rundt kampene. Og i england er det meste av hooliganismen død etter at politiet tok opp jakten, samt forbedrede anlegg. Så er nok mye farligere å kjøre bil til flyplassen enn å gå på en kamp i england...

Trur ikkje Lord-Meta er for vandalisme og vold på fotballkamper, eller kva seier du?

Støtter forøvrig hallghel fullstendig i hans haldning overfor hooligans, forkastelig oppførsel!

Quote from: Lord-Meta on March 24, 2008, 00:10:26
Jojo kan jeg være enig i, men uten å forsvare hooligans, så gjør de ingenting for å ødlegge sikkerheten rundt kampene. Og i england er det meste av hooliganismen død etter at politiet tok opp jakten, samt forbedrede anlegg. Så er nok mye farligere å kjøre bil til flyplassen enn å gå på en kamp i england...

Hva vet du om hooligans som tilsier at de ikke ønsker å ødelegge sikkerheten rundt kampene? Tenker du som en hooligan? Jeg tror det blir "farlig" å utelukke noe som helst når det gjelder denne bermen.
  Takk og lov, det er sikrere å gå på kamp i England enn å kjøre bil til flyplassen!

Quote from: hallghel on March 24, 2008, 11:39:05

Quote from: Lord-Meta on March 24, 2008, 00:10:26
Jojo kan jeg være enig i, men uten å forsvare hooligans, så gjør de ingenting for å ødlegge sikkerheten rundt kampene. Og i england er det meste av hooliganismen død etter at politiet tok opp jakten, samt forbedrede anlegg. Så er nok mye farligere å kjøre bil til flyplassen enn å gå på en kamp i england...

Hva vet du om hooligans som tilsier at de ikke ønsker å ødelegge sikkerheten rundt kampene? Tenker du som en hooligan? Jeg tror det blir "farlig" å utelukke noe som helst når det gjelder denne bermen.
  Takk og lov, det er sikrere å gå på kamp i England enn å kjøre bil til flyplassen!

Kan godt være de "ønsker" å ødlegge sikkertheten joda, men det har de ikke sjangs til å gjøre. Med den enorme mengden politi på hest, i bil, på motorsykkel og helikopter. Derfor jeg sier at politiet har gjort en god jobb. Men skjønner ikke helt oppstyret rundt hooligans, har vært på en del kamper, og har tilgode å se noe som helst i form av vold etc. Noe som er meget bra. Med unntak av noen klubber så er det ikke mye igjen av det gamle fryktede hooligan grupperingene i england. Så en god utvikling har skjedd.

   Det har skjedd masse positivt mht bermen som møter opp for å ødelegge for menigmann. Vær oppmerksom på at mye kan skje UTENFOR stadion også. Uskyldige kan bli skadet like godt der som inne på kamp - eller heller mer sannsynlig utenfor.
  På omkampen mellom Leeds og Galatasaray våren 2000, var det opptøyer utenfor Elland Road. En gjeng med pøbler hadde møtt opp for å "ta" tyrkerne etter at to Leeds-tilhengere var knivstukket og drept i Istanbul to uker tidligere. Da vi forlot stadion var vi farlig nær pøbelgjengen. Flasker suste gjennom luften, og alle løse gjenstander som kunne brukes som missiler ble brukt. Ikke langt fra Elland Road ligger en pub som heter Wagon and Horse (tar forbehold for korrekt navn). Der hadde de lagt sin base. Stakkars pubeier!
  Selve kampen glemmer jeg aldri, for maken til elektrisk stemning har jeg aldri opplevd. Alle skulle "ta igjen" for tragedien i Tyrkia, men de gjorde det verbalt - slik som både du og jeg ønsker det.
  Jeg synes ikke at man skal være for bastant i å hevde at ikke problemet kan dukke opp når man minst venter det. Før du vet ordet av det kan du stå midt oppi smørja, helt uforskyldt. Jeg kan love at det er en uggen følelse.

Jojo selvfølgelig, men så var galatasaray kampen et unntak vill jeg si. Og det er da 8 år siden også. Mye har skjedd siden den gang og tror neppe man vil se slike tilstander igjen på en stund, og takk for det. Man kan ved en sjelden gang havne midt i ett hooligan oppgjør, men da skal man også ha en smule uflax. Heldivis har tilstandene blitt mye bedre siste 10 året osv.
Håper vi får oppleve stemningen Leeds fansen vartet opp med i galatasaray kampen igjen en gang...gjerne i kamp mot Scumchester on 2 år  ;D

Yeovil Town v Leeds United.
No problems, say police


POLICE have told the Express this morning that there were "no problems" when Leeds United visited Yeovil Town on Friday.
Despite Yeovil Town's chief executive Martyn Starnes apologising to Glovers' fans for the "larger than acceptable" number of Leeds fans in the home sections of Huish Park, police appear to be happy with how the fixture passed off.
A police spokesman said: "The Football Intelligence Officer has reported that there were no problems."
This comes despite there being a number of scuffles involving Leeds and Yeovil fans on the home terracing during the match and some visiting supporters being ejected from Huish Park.

somersetcountygazette.co.uk

Ikke akkurat god reklame for vår kjære klubb.
Barry er p.t. UKs mest kjente stalker!


Barry George taken to clinic by his sister
LONER Barry George was taken to a psychiatric unit last night by his devoted sister.
The visit to the clinic in Ireland comes days after accusations he stalked Sky News presenter Kay Burley.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article1850213.ece

Sjekk bildet!

Mildest talt dårlig reklame....og jeg har f.... meg samme jakka hjemme!!! :o

Quote from: kjelvi on October 24, 2008, 10:16:44
Ikke akkurat god reklame for vår kjære klubb.
Barry er p.t. UKs mest kjente stalker!


Barry George taken to clinic by his sister
LONER Barry George was taken to a psychiatric unit last night by his devoted sister.
The visit to the clinic in Ireland comes days after accusations he stalked Sky News presenter Kay Burley.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article1850213.ece

Sjekk bildet!

Jeg har tenkt på å tvangsinnlegge meg sjøl jeg etter den utrolige nedturen vi har hatt de siste årene! DETTE.....er bjørnebær med is!  :D

Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday and Sunderland fans clash at station

Police arrested seven fans from rival football clubs after trouble flared at Peterborough railway station.
Trouble flared on Saturday evening after Sheffield Wednesday, Leeds United and Sunderland supporters travelling home from matches got off at the city's station to change trains.
British Transport Police said there were several separate incidents of "low-level disorder" between 9.30pm and 9.50pm between various groups of fans.
There were about 100 fans on the platforms at the time and the majority were law-abiding.
Detective Sergeant David Strange, one of the investigating officers, said: "Nobody was reported injured, but it's important that we build a clear picture of what took place and I am asking anyone with any information about this incident to come forward and talk to us.
"Anyway with any information that could assist the investigation into the incident is asked to contact British Transport Police free on 0800 40 50 40 quoting incident 616 of 4/4/09."
Seven men aged between 17 and 48 were arrested at the station for public order offences and were taken into custody for further questioning. All seven were bailed to return to police on Tuesday, June 9.
Peterborough Evening Telegraph - a Sunderland Echo sister paper - columnist DJ Kevin Lawrence said he endured "94 minutes of pure hell" aboard a train packed with "thuggish" supporters as he returned from the Norwich City vs Sheffield Wednesday match at Carrow Road.
Speaking today, he said: "The main issue I had was how noisy they were in terms of the numbers of them crammed into tiny little carriages.
"It was like being on a tube train with 95 per cent of football fans singing. They were too rude, too lewd and too boisterous. For the few that weren't fans, it was a hell hole."
He described it as the worst train journey he had ever taken and said he couldn't get out of the station quick enough.

sunderlandecho.com

Fortsatt er vi i toppen av ei liste vi ikkje ønsker å vere på:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/olliewilliams/2009/08/how_violent_your_teams_fans_ar.shtml

Jail for Leeds United hooligan
A football hooligan wanted over trouble at a Leeds United v Millwall clash two years ago, was finally snared after attending court with a friend who had committed a similar crime.
Garry Holt, 42, of Select Courts, Farsley, Leeds, was spotted by a police officer when he went to Leeds Crown Court to support a friend who was prosecuted for a similar football offence this April.
Holt was arrested and has now been jailed for 12 weeks and hit with a football banning order for six years after admitting affray.
The YEP understands Holt is the last to be prosecuted in relation to the trouble which flared on October 27, 2007.
Other defendants have been prosecuted, landing sentences of between four months and 12 months on guilty pleas.
Leeds Crown Court heard Holt was told to leave the stadium after becoming involved in a fracas where another supporter pushed a steward.
The court heard he was led outside where trouble had flared between supporters and police.
Police dog handlers and horses were drafted in as a gang of more than 100 people gathered.
For the prosecution, Alisha Kaye said: "This defendant is at the front shouting 'come on' to officers. He's shoving forward with the people towards officers.
"Officers described him as being part of a hardcore of fans. Missiles were thrown but the defendant did not throw anything."
The court heard Holt had been a Leeds United fan for 20 years and had never been involved in any football-related violence before.
He said he lost his temper as a police cordon blocked his way and said he did not want to get involved in any confrontation with Millwall fans.
Holt, a dad-of-two, has previous convictions for violence and at the time was the subject of a suspended prison sentence made seven weeks earlier for racially aggravated assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

YEP

Leeds beat Millwall in banned hooligans table
LEEDS fans are the most banned in Britain, even though arrest figures have fallen, official figures revealed today.
Home Office statistics showed there were 3,752 arrests at matches in England and Wales - a fall of 2% on the 2007/8 season.
Half were for disorder and around a third for alcohol offences. Other arrests were for ticket touting and violence.
Manchester United fans topped the Premier League arrest charts.
Of 1,600 arrests of fans with clubs in the top flight, 185 were followers of the league title holders.
Second was relegated Newcastle United with 144 arrests and third was Everton with 139. Fulham had the fewest fans arrested with just 13.
More than three thousand fans are banned from watching matches. Of those Leeds fans are the worst offenders with 162 coming under banning orders, behind Cardiff City with 124 and Millwall with 110.
International matches involving England or Wales at home and abroad led to 35 arrests.
Policing minister David Hanson said: "Hooligans once blighted our national game, but we now set an example for the rest of the world in how we police football matches.
"I am pleased with the way clubs and police work together, but we must also praise fans for realising violence has no place in the modern game.
"We are not complacent and will carry on working to ensure this success story continues into the future." (YP)

Leeds United hooligans top 'most banned' league
http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leedsunited/Leeds-United-hooligans-top-.5933768.jp?

Leeds Utd ban shame as thug arrests fall
http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/leeds/Leeds-Utd-ban-shame-as.5933582.jp

En skam rett og slett >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(

Enig!!! Stor skam!!!! Det er trist for fotballen generelt og Leeds United spesielt. Et problem vi har slitt med i mange herrens år. En stund var det jo bedre, men vi er altså på topp igjen- pokker ta! Dette er bare til å skamme seg over.

Gudskjelov er de fleste fotballsupportere og ikke idioter som er ute etter en eneste tin....BRÃ...K! Kom dere vekk fra fotballen fordømte hooligans!  >:(

Statistikk kan leses på mange måter! Dette kan like gjerne være et utrykk for at Leeds United er den klubben som tar hooliganism mest på alvor! Terskelen for å stoppe bråkmakere kan dermed være lavere enn hos andre klubber. De av oss som bevitnet Fa cup kampen mot Cardiff for noen år siden, vil kanskje huske hvordan en idiot av en Cardiff styreformann nærmest applauderte den hatske stemningen og idiotoppførslen som fanatiske hjemmesupportere fremviste i den direktesendte TV kampen. Tviler sterkt på at noe lignende ville skjedd i Leeds. For noen år siden så jeg en dokumentar om Chelsea hooligans, som viste hvordan profilerte bråkmakere nærmeste fikk ture frem  som de ville , til tross for at klubben var godt kjent med deres agenda når Chelsea spilte kamper. Tviler ikke på at det er mange idioter med hvite trøyer, men denne statistikken forteller neppe hele sannheten.  :)

Ikke uventet er møkkalaget pøbelklubb nr. 1

FAKTA
Premier League 2008/09

(Pågripelser)

møkkalaget 185

Newcastle 144

Everton 139

Sunderland 138

Arsenal 133

Stoke 118

Chelsea 102

Liverpool 100

Manchester City 82

Aston Villa 77

Middlesbrough 75

Tottenham 71

West Ham 65

Hull 61

Bolton 50

Blackburn 31

Portsmouth 31

West Bromwich Albion 26

Wigan 23

Fulham 12

Andre
Leeds 127  :-[

Cardiff 89

Millwall 78

Nottingham 78

Sheffield Wednesday 74

http://fotball.bt.no/england/article158022.ece

http://fotball.aftenposten.no/england/article158022.ece

SCUM er verst...


FAKTA

Premier League 2008/09

(Pågripelser)

Manchester United 185

Newcastle 144

Everton 139

Sunderland 138

Arsenal 133

Stoke 118

Chelsea 102

Liverpool 100

Manchester City 82

Aston Villa 77

Middlesbrough 75

Tottenham 71

West Ham 65

Hull 61

Bolton 50

Blackburn 31

Portsmouth 31

West Bromwich Albion 26

Wigan 23

Fulham 12
Andre

Leeds 127

Cardiff 89

Millwall 78

Nottingham 78

Sheffield Wednesday 74

Leeds har slitt med hooliganism i flere tiår. Dette har det vært jobbet bra med for å få bukt med  de senere år, til tross for disse tallene. Vi må ta i betraktning to faktorer; antall supportere og klubbens terskel og fokus på hooliganism. Antall utestengelser viser klubbenes policy og fokus, mens antall arrestasjoner viser fakta som ofte står i forhold til antall tilskuere/supportere. Leeds har fokus på "bad eggs" blant supporterne, samt en av de største tilhengerskarene i England. Derfor ligger Leeds så pass høyt på statistikken, tror jeg. Men vi må ikke komme tilbake til det ryktet Leeds-fans hadde tidligere, klubben må fortsette det målrettede arbeidet de har gjort de siste årene. Sportslig fokus må stå i sentrum, ikke slåssing og hærverk.  

Fra Leeds vs Millwall 4-2 høsten 2007:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ijE5wmjfJXE

En film om hvordan man kniper football-hooligans!

Leeds United, racism, and the fanzine which forced change at Elland Road

In Depth

Football supporters sometimes romanticise about the English game in the 80s, but it was also something of an ominous time â€" with Leeds United and Elland Road being a case in point.

(https://d3nfwcxd527z59.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2017/09/24162341/Leeds-United-Against-Racism.jpg)

It’s not hard to see why the decade still provokes plenty of affection. It was perhaps the last time the game could truly be considered a working class sport, before the riches of the Premier League, monstrous TV deals and foreign ownership took over.

On the pitch, Nottingham Forest, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Ipswich, Tottenham and Everton won European finals. Six different clubs, including Coventry and Wimbledon, won the FA Cup. Seven different clubs, including Wolves, Norwich, Oxford and Luton, won the League Cup.

Off the pitch, supporters were defining casual culture and style, while footage of oceans of fans toing and froing on the terraces in hysteria remains exhilarating to this day.

But football, as has always been the case, suffered the same sinister problems which faced society as a whole. Thatcherism had fractured the country, particularly the industrial towns and cities of the north, the home to some of the best and biggest clubs.

Hooliganism remained rife, overt racism was common, and the nadir was reached with the tragedies of Heysel, the Valley Parade fire, and Hillsborough.



Another northern club, Leeds United, certainly experienced the bad side of football in the 80s.

The team was largely awful, relegated from the First Division in 1982, and Elland Road was not a nice place to visit.

The club’s hooligan firm, the Leeds Service Crew, had earned a reputation as one of the fiercest around, but possibly the most bleak aspect of the decaying club were the public displays of racism from a section of its support.

Earlier this year, Leroy Rosenior recalled in his autobiography how he and Paul Parker were greeted with Nazi salutes while visiting Elland Road with Fulham in 1984.

As noted by The Guardian journalist Nick Varley in his book Park Life: “The most shocking aspect was really just the fact of it, the unashamed, unpunished, almost unremarkable mass public display. And the revelling in it.”

The atmosphere inside Elland Road was reflected in the city and outside the ground, where on matchdays the National Front would sell Bulldog, their magazine which included the ‘Racist League’, a feature in which a club would move up the table not through winning or drawing matches, but thanks to racist chants and taunts by their supporters.

(https://d3nfwcxd527z59.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2017/09/24163348/Bulldog-Leeds-United-2.jpg)

Those in charge at the club still had to be convinced that action needed to be taken, and fans eventually set up anti-racist initiatives themselves, no longer willing to stand among the vitriolic bile of a section of the support which may have been a minority, but was sickening nonetheless.

This October marks 30 years since the group Leeds Fans United Against Racism and Facism started leafleting at Elland Road, which eventually developed into the publication of the fanzine Marching Altogether.

“There were a few of us who were doing broader anti-racist stuff in Leeds, but those of us who were football fans were going, ‘If you want to do something about racism in Leeds, then the football is the most obvious manifestation of it,’” says Paul Thomas, one of the founding members of the group.

“There used to be quite a lot of violence. These people were quite threatening, if you ever came across them they tried to attack anti-racists. So the first time we went down there we took about 100 people.

“It was virtually word of mouth, any people that were involved in similar stuff, some students came from Leeds Uni, anyone that would come and stand and give out leaflets.

“It was almost meant to be like a show of force. We stood up all along the east stand and it had that impact. People would be walking past going, ‘Have you seen how many there are?’

“That was done just as much for self protection. We weren’t looking to start any trouble and we didn’t want to start confrontation but we weren’t going to be intimidated by them.”

(https://d3nfwcxd527z59.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2017/09/24165242/Marching-Altogether-Leeds-fanzine.png)

Similar groups were also starting around the country at clubs like Chelsea and Leicester City. Even if they weren’t specific anti-racist campaigns, the burgeoning fanzines all had an overt anti-racist line.

But Leeds United were initially wary of the group, expecting their presence at Elland Road to cause further violence.

“The club and the police were very negative,” Thomas says in his thick West Country accent, earned while supporting Leeds from Gloucestershire in his youth. “I’m sure they weren’t happy with the situation that existed, but they didn’t know what to do about it.

“They thought us coming along was just going to create trouble, and they both went out of their way at first to say we were troublemakers.”

After local politicians facilitated a meeting between the club and the group, Thomas and co were asked to produce evidence that racism was indeed taking place at Elland Road.

“That was the biggest mistake they ever made,” Thomas laughs. “We put this dossier together of stuff we had pulled from newspapers. It wasn’t rocket science at all. It was in different enquiries and we got national press attention. The Daily Mirror ran a really big story on it.

“Leslie Silver took over as chairman and that’s when they asserted themselves at that point. Leslie Silver was a really good bloke. We met him in later years and he was very supportive.

“I think the club just thought, ‘We need to get our act together on that.’ But we did have to force them.”



Rather than preach at fans, Marching Altogether consisted of satirical, humorous content designed to “get people to laugh at racists”, and the atmosphere at Elland Road began to change as a result.

Fans were suddenly emboldened to shout down anyone making racist taunts, while the police began to take a harder stance after members of the Far Right made the mistake of trying to publicly threaten those behind the fanzine.

As rapidly as things were changing, Howard Wilkinson’s appointment as manager in 1988 also helped change attitudes at the club, with the former school teacher often vocal in his demands that the behaviour on the terraces changed while he built the momentum which propelled the club from the doldrums of the Second Division to the top of the First.

Ces Podd was hired as community officer with the remit of showing members of the city’s black and Asian communities they were welcome â€" and safe â€" at Elland Road, becoming as influential at Leeds as he was at Bradford, for whom he made a record 565 appearances as a full-back.

On the pitch, Gordon Strachan and Vinnie Jones, two talismans of the side which eventually dragged Leeds into the top flight, reinforced the message. Jones himself would visit the clubs and pubs of multicultural areas such as Chapeltown, becoming a hugely popular figure among those communities.

Perhaps most importantly, black players of the calibre and class of Chris Fairclough were signed, quickly becoming loved by the fans who recognised they had a team and club to be proud of once again.

• • • •



READ: ‘Do You Want To Win?’: How Howard Wilkinson turned Leeds into champions

• • • •

“We were bottom of the Second Division when we started our campaign. Wilkinson took over and four years later we’re champions of England with a multi-racial team and a really positive, rocking atmosphere. It’s a nice story which we’re a minor part of,” Thomas says.

“We wouldn’t try to claim all the credit. Society was changing as well. Attitudes towards racism in society were changing and there were also more black players coming through. Even rave culture started taking some of the aggression out of youth culture.

“But we’re pretty proud of what we did. When you get to us getting promoted and we’re winning the league with Chris Fairclough, Rod Wallace and Chris Whyte, and the fans are behind them, you’re thinking, ‘Yeah, this feels a very different place from four years ago.’”

By Rob Conlon

Her er det mest om motstandernes hooliganisme:


Phil Hay’s Inside Elland Road: Chants about Jimmy Savile have no place in football and must stop

Phil HayPublished: 09:00
Updated: 09:46 Thursday 25 October 2018

This column comes on the back of a photograph taken at Ewood Park on Saturday but it was in the ether for longer than that and is, quite honestly, overdue. It concerns Jimmy Savile, an individual who football reporters are blessed not to write about but whose name has somehow pervaded the game.


The photo in question captured a Leeds United supporter in the away concourse at Blackburn Rovers, kitted out like Savile with a blue jacket, blonde wig and cigar. To say that dressing like a deceased sex offender crosses a line â€" the point of the outfit in the first place, surely â€" would only state the obvious and this is not about one supporter or an isolated image going viral over the weekend. The image, perversely, shines a light on the indifference with which football, and the Championship specifically, gives Savile the time of day.

Blackburn Rovers v Leeds.'Ewood Park, Blackburn.'United's travelling fans.'20th October 2018.
Blackburn Rovers v Leeds.'Ewood Park, Blackburn.'United's travelling fans.'20th October 2018.
Seven years ago Savile died â€" seven years next Monday â€" and still he is the subject of chants at every ground Leeds United have visited this season. The record shows that the club’s travelling crowd are prone to reciprocating, generally without fail, but despite the fool in costume at Blackburn it can be said with some confidence that the inclination to sing about Savile would not be there were his name not being thrown at them. It is a base-level game of tit-for-tat, which no-one seems prepared to disrupt.

So where to start? Originality for one, and the realisation that these chants have had oxygen and impunity for the best part of a decade now. Identity for two, and the weird presumption that connecting Savile with Leeds is anymore cutting than travelling to Madrid and taunting the locals about the UK’s control of Gibraltar. But perspective is the point; the disregard for the extent of Savile’s offences and the very recent consequences of them.

I defer to Ian Holloway on this one, a coach who spent 20 minutes laying into Millwall’s crowd after Leeds played there in 2014 and Savile got some airtime. “Stop and think about what he’s actually done,” Holloway said. “It’s not funny.”

There are, inevitably, victims of Savile’s who travel away with Leeds. I met one a few years ago at Reading. He did not talk in detail about his experience and it was not my place to ask but if the people targeted by Savile ever feel like faceless numbers, rest assured that they aren’t. The allegations against him were so vast that it is almost inconceivable that others don’t sit in the home end of stadiums where Savile is brought up over the course of each season. Has the Championship become hardened to it? Has it gone beyond the point where songs about Savile are fresh enough to cause offence? Or is football too ambivalent to deal with something it should have taken on years ago?

Football has the power to call an amnesty and put these chants to bed. Clubs can speak out, the authorities can take an interest and supporters can self-police.

Phil Hay
These questions are a magnet for whataboutery: counter points about songs relating to the Munich disaster, the trouble United’s support can been guilty of causing â€" exhibit A: reports of a vandalised tram before last month’s derby at Sheffield Wednesday â€" or any bone of contention which reminds someone like me that Leeds are not as pure as the snow. But this is about Savile and I would challenge anyone to identify a slur as ubiquitous as the chant about him. I would challenge those who govern the sport to say if they would sit back and let it ride so freely were the chant in question about Barry Bennell (the former football coach sentenced to 30 years in prison for child sexual abuse).

Many of Savile’s offences were committed at Leeds General Infirmary, on patients between the age of five and 75. I’ve been to the hospital twice in the past few months with a number of United’s players (the club are working in partnership with the Children’s Heart Surgery Fund) and having seen the sickness, the vulnerability and the professionalism there, the only conclusion you can draw is that it takes a rare type of degenerate to take advantage in those circumstances. This is best left to those who properly understand the psychology of offenders but it is grim to think of Savile gleaning pleasure from his notoriety or the banter he is inspiring. Would he have wanted this? Only he could say but he is a long way past deserving the benefit of any doubt.

Football has the power to call an amnesty and put these chants to bed. Clubs can speak out, the authorities can take an interest and supporters can self-police. Even without Saturday’s evidence it is obvious that some supporters need to. Just look at the facts: abuse by Savile was reported in Leeds, Manchester, London, Surrey and Middlesex, in more than 20 different hospitals, in schools and in other places where his celebrity let him do as he pleased.

It is a national scandal of modern times, virtually without comparison, and it deserves to be treated as such. The only thing the game should be doing is leaving him to rot.