Comments on: A Night That Brought Shame on the Club We Love

By: Engraved Rings To Last Forever | Last Minute Gift Ideas

Engraved Rings To Last Forever | Last Minute Gift Ideas — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:09:27 +0000

[...] A Night That Brought Shame on the Club We Love Â« West Ham Till I Die [...]

By: Jon M Bishop

Jon M Bishop — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 13:42:08 +0000

As a foreigner to the UK, I have not been a Hammers fan for as long as most of you, I fell for the Hammers magic when I moved to the Isle of Dogs and watched Pards guide us back into the top flight and then all way to the FA Cup Final.

What I really captured me was:
- the way Westham play football, the way it should be,
- the fact that there were (and still are) no heros/ primadonnas at the club, just honest hard working players.
- My first live game at Upton Park vs Chelsea showed me just what a passionate bunch of fans we really are (I especially enjoyed the first time I heard the song comparing Lamps to a fat Paul Ince!)

What I wasn’t impressed by was this history of the club’s hooliganism glorified in movies and so on. Even after understanding from talking to locals where it all started (especially with Millwall), I still think it is something that should confined to the past, like trench warfare World War one. There is just no place for such actions in modern society.

I am horrified to see this behaviour back in the modern game and it is the first time I have experienced being embarrassed as a Hammer. When my Spurs supporting mates tease me about a bad result, I can always stand up for the Hammers by pointing out something good. At the moment I find it hard to stand up for Hammers fans. We should all be ashamed.

By: Upton Spark

Upton Spark — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:40:01 +0000

Dear Mick; Please don’t think you have all the answers mate re me not supporting West Ham that long.
I have been going to West Ham for some 40 odd years now and I and MY SON have been season ticket holders for 8 years.
We are in the Automatic Cup Scheme,which means we already had been allocated the tickets without asking for them,and even if I had phoned and asked for them the question is; Why shouldn’t we go to see our team who we love to see every home game and some away.
We are true supporters and NOT THUGS!!
I will not let these mindless idiots turn me away from the game I love.
Some of these morans were at the Southend Utd game last week and they were talking about getting a few of the “Mob”out to take on the ‘Ammers!
Some of them don’t even like football and just went along for the punch ups. These non football yobs were planning this in the pubs across London and just dedcided to turn up because it would be the place to go for a ruck.
As I said Mick I don’t have all the answers but don’t assume you do by thinking you know what people get up to.
We are genuine and long time supporters and I hope all the yobs who turned up to spoil others enjoyment get their punishment as I have no time for these idiots.

By: Richard

Richard — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 08:10:16 +0000

Matt,
In the mirror today 28th August. they are running a story about West Ham playing the next Caring Cup game behind closed doors.
http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/West-Ham-facing-ground-closure-after-Millwall-riots-article133275.html
You may want to read. This was I worried about when I first posted my concerns. You appeared to think that I wasn’t a west Ham fan!!!.

By: Mick

Mick — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:59:01 +0000

To the guy who takes kids to WestHam against Millwall, you are obviously not a long time hammers fan, This fixture warms the heart of all who have ever been in a firm no matter what club and if you who brought kids, the club with the amount of stewarding and the plod with there paltry turn out did not see it coming,then this will be allowed to nuture like it did in the early eighties.
The numpties who ran on the pitch was not expected and this you could say are the once in a blue moon have a row charlies and should be barred for life.
The boys having it outside had a whale of a time, no bans, few arrests and rows from new cross to tower hill along commercial road, the lot.
The east end has always been a place to come and enjoy the hospitality etc but if you come and take liberties then there will be retribution and cockneys seem to have a long memory, millwall, leeds, spuds, chelsea, that crowd in madrid, Lincoln?.
Football is only the Glue that holds it together, it could well be any pub in any town, if you walked in mouthing off and taking liberties then someone will give you a spank, it happen every minute of every day in all parts of the country. This is the life that the underclasses live in every day and anyone who doesnt believe needs to spend a few days with the real people.

By: West Ham v Millwall « More Than Mind Games

West Ham v Millwall « More Than Mind Games — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:31:44 +0000

[...] suppose I ought to show a kind of willing and repost this by Iain Dale: Finally, it pains me to say it, but the odds are that on a blog with 35,000 [...]

By: Aggy

Aggy — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 03:21:19 +0000

The whole problem with this situation is that idiots move the masses. It is just like Newton’s 3rd law “To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” So it usually only takes one person to start the mayhem and then it spreads like wildfire. I don’t condone the justification for retaliation, but it will happen no matter what we try to do to prevent a situation like this from occurring.
It is a shame that the FA is considering the idea of ejecting West Ham from the Carling cup because of the few idiots. I feel sorry for the honest football loving fans that go to the match just for the love of the sport.

By: Phil

Phil — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:14:02 +0000

From the Mail:

” But banning thugs from grounds is not enough to stamp out violence in the game, according to the Metropolitan Police Federation.

The organisation, which represents the 26,000 police officers in London, said promises by West Ham and Millwall to stop anyone found responsible for the violence from watching their club again does not send out a strong enough signal.

‘Banning individuals from football grounds would not sufficiently reinforce the message that violence of the type seen at Upton Park will not be tolerated,’ said a Federation spokesman.

‘Much better to force the clubs to play matches behind closed gates or impose massive points deductions. ”

I think this is wrong. My worry is that the FA will respond to public clamour aswell as these comments by the Metropolitan Police Federation by punishing the clubs for the actions of these idiots.

There needs to be a clear distinction between the correct responsibility of the clubs to adequately ensure the safety of those at the game, and the error in holding the clubs responsible for the actions of individuals. The responsibility is for dealing with the behaviour not for the behaviour in itself. To take action because of insufficient stewarding or failing to keep people off the pitch is one thing, but to punish clubs for the actions of the idiots on Tuesday, especially those outside the ground, is wrong. The people who fight don’t care about football or league positions or what the players or fans think, just about their reputation for violence. Punishing the clubs would be to give power and status to those who we have been trying to disassociate from football. It is the individuals alone that must be punished for their actions. I’d like to see them tagged and any football related tattoos surgically removed but that’s just my opinion.

By: Upton Spark

Upton Spark — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:05:56 +0000

Hi Kim; Firstly this is not having a go at you but looking at the replay’s re crowd trouble in the ground with people trying to get onto the pitch in front of the Millwall fans,coupled with a couple of hundred mindless idiots who were running onto the pitch after we scored,say totall 400 to 500 people. Yes,compared to 23 to 25,000 fans that were there,that is a small minority.
BUT,my 14 year old who was there was frightened at these scenes,plus the 2,000 or so yobs that were outside the tube station and cut off Green Street had a very bad effect on him. Is this fair?
This is my point Kim; There is no place for this in our game of football that we all love and to put my son off going to a Millwall game again is very sad indeed.
So,I do not think I am getting over hysterical. I hope you understand that from a parent point of view it was indeed a very bad thing and something that has had a bad effect on a young teenager.That can’t be right even if it is only a small minority.
That small minority should not be allowed into our game.

By: WHU Kim

WHU Kim — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:45:27 +0000

I think we need to be careful not to get over hysterical about this. West Ham are not being villified in Outer Mongolia and all points east and west at present. I’m certainly not ashamned to be a West Ham fan. Properly policed most of the problems wouldn’t have occurred. The people who are over reacting also need to remember that there were over 22,000 Hammers fans in the ground who were not fighting or running on the pitch so let’s have some proportionality. It’s bad enough reading garbage in the press never mind from West Ham fans who are taking Phil Thompson’s rantings on Sky Sports as an authortive report as to what went on inside the ground.