Lowest Ever Crowd

[cahill]

The reason was due to public image, it was unfashionable to go to matches, not somewhere to take family and loved ones.
The media made the general public believe that all football grounds were full of racists and trouble makers at every match. Football fans in general were seen as scum, the police used to treat fans like animals and get away with it because a fair amount of fans did act like animals. When I went to Bramall Lane in the 80’’s there weren’t many children attending our matches and certainly few girls were remotely interested. It was bad but no where near as bad as the media made out.

It all changed when the all seater stadium were introduced in 1990 and also changed when the Premier League started started in 1992 because they started a campaign of marketing and brainwashing/ exagerrating all the good stuff, so gradually it become so fashionable to like football that now the middle classes (who always hated football), women and young girls love going to matches.

Good post

 

[Sheffsteel]

That’s why some of us shake our heads when hearing some of the reports/ quotes from the Hillsborough disaster enquiry.

Quotes like, “the treatment from tne police was deplorable, they made us feel sub human, like animals”
It puts the SY police in a poor light and of course you have massive sympathy towards the ill treatment of the fans

Then you think back to those times and think...
hold on......every police force in the country treat football fans with distrust and contempt...it was normal...the newspapers made it clear football fans were scum with seemingly negative headlines on an almost weekly basis...this meant the police were given the green light by the Authroties and the public at large to do what they want and for years they were allowed to get away with it.

It was a totally different era and it’s very misleading to use values from one era to judge the behaviour of people in another era.
I remember hearing early reports of the Hillsboro disaster and just assumed it must be the Liverpool hooligans starting trouble again invading the pitch like at the Heysel stadium 4 years earlier.

 

[BushBlade]

That’s why some of us shake our heads when hearing some of the reports/ quotes from the Hillsborough disaster enquiry.

Quotes like, “the treatment from tne police was deplorable, they made us feel sub human, like animals”
It puts the SY police in a poor light and of course you have massive sympathy towards the ill treatment of the fans

Then you think back to those times and think...
hold on......every police force in the country treat football fans with distrust and contempt...it was normal...the newspapers made it clear football fans were scum with seemingly negative headlines on an almost weekly basis...this meant the police were given the green light by the Authroties and the public at large to do what they want and for years they were allowed to get away with it.

It was a totally different era and it’s very misleading to use values from one era to judge the behaviour of people in another era.

Thinking about it, in the mid eighties, with the football and the strike, it was as close to a police state as I’ve seen in my lifetime (then there’s the Met’s abuse of sus laws). You could get nicked doing something legal such as going to the match and, even if you’d done nothing, if it was your word against the police, you’d be found guilty.

 

[Sheffsteel]

Thinking about it, in the mid eighties, with the football and the strike, it was as close to a police state as I’ve seen in my lifetime (then there’s the Met’s abuse of sus laws). You could get nicked doing something legal such as going to the match and, even if you’d done nothing, if it was your word against the police, you’d be found guilty.

Made me laugh because it’s so true.

I’ve been to away matches in the 80;s where we were being lead from the train station in a large crowd.
The copper would shout “keep off the road...stay on the fckng pavement”
My 17 year old mate had 1 foot on the pavement and 1 foot on the road and the copper came along slapped him in the face and pushed him towards the pavement like herding sheep.

The police were like old fashioned bouncers and could do what they wanted knowing they’d get away with it. There’s plenty of stories where the police actually created the trouble by wading into a crowd and bullying individuals making the crowd react.

 

[vorpal blade]

I’ve been to away matches in the 80;s where we were being lead from the train station in a large crowd.

that's heavy man

 

[vorpal blade]

it's quite good how you incorporated the names of three metals into your post ...... btw, I remember that happening at every away match in the 1980s. I once got thumped by a Policeman for going into a shop in Blackburn to buy some sweets which seemed a bit steep.

I came to realise just how compliant we all were .... there might be 1000 blades being controlled by 20 policemen armed with nothing other than truncheons and therefore how much of the 'agro' was just a mutually convenient pose between fans and the police - a strange role-play.

 

[Revolution]

Just checked. On the 5th May 1966 Arsenal had 4,454 against Leeds. It wasn't winter but put down to some live Liverpool match on TV

Liverpool were in the Cup Winners Cup Final against Dortmund. The sixties were a lost decade for Arsenal.

 

[vorpal blade]

I remember hearing early reports of the Hillsboro disaster and just assumed it must be the Liverpool hooligans starting trouble again invading the pitch like at the Heysel stadium 4 years earlier.

we were away at Northampton Town ..... the rumour I heard was trouble in the 'quadrant' -wasn't that what we called that corner bit of terracing between the Leppings Lane and the Cantilever stands? ... As I remember it, at half-time they announced something because of course the semi-final was abandoned ... but I can't remember if it was still thought of as 'trouble' (meaning fighting) ... but I think by then, they realised it was a crush and nothing to do with fighting?

 

[cahill]

Liverpool were in the Cup Winners Cup Final against Dortmund. The sixties were a lost decade for Arsenal.

I became a bit of an Arsenal « fan » in the early to mid sixties, Ian Ure, Bob McNab, Jon Sammels etc. Remember them losing to Leeds in’the League Cup final. Without sounding xenophobic, I’m not sure as an Arsenal fan I could relate to the current group of unpronounceable mercenary players names. Remember Addison scoring at Arse 1967 on MOTD. One of the only surviving games that Saturday due to winter conditions.

Not that I was ever really an Arse fan

 

[cahill]

I became a bit of an Arsenal « fan » in the early to mid sixties, Ian Ure, Bob McNab, Jon Sammels etc. Remember them losing to Leeds in’the League Cup final. Without sounding xenophobic, I’m not sure as an Arsenal fan I could relate to the current group of unpronounceable mercenary players names. Remember Addison scoring at Arse 1967 on MOTD. One of the only surviving games that Saturday due to winter conditions

 

[Bladesince59]

Again going from memory but I'm sure we've had crowds of under 4 000 for League games.

I was wondering what was our lowest crowd, and if anyone here went to the game?

I was thinking of League games but maybe there were some other games with lower crowds.

Maybe even Reserves or u21s etc, if they publish or published attendances.

Or away games.

Like Yeovil on a Tuesday night.

I was at the Yeovil Tuesday night match. There were 8 of them and 2000 of us.

 

[Greenwich Blade]

Anyone remember or even going to the Wimbledon match 2003? An away game but only 1,325 turned up because of the moving to Milton Keynes debacle.

The only time I've seen United's away following make a referee laugh, when he came close enough for us to serenade him with, "How's you father, How's your father, How's your father referee? You've not got one, You've not got one, You're a bastard referee."

 

[Greenwich Blade]

We played Chelsea in a Cup Match onthe Saturday at Stamford Bridge, Carl Bradshaw booked after 20 seconds, the previous Tuesday Chelsea had played Southampton in a top flight match in front of 7,000.
I also believe Arsenal had a 4,000 crowd sometime in the 1960s during deep winter.

Just checked. On the 5th May 1966 Arsenal had 4,454 against Leeds. It wasn't winter but put down to some live Liverpool match on TV

We chanted, "Where were you on Tuesday night?" at them. They didn't seem too bothered about it, the twats.

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

We chanted, "Where were you on Tuesday night?" at them. They didn't seem too bothered about it, the twats.

Is there a club that has so transformed it's followers? I remember going in the 70s and 80s and they (The Headhunters) were a notorious bunch ready to ruck with everyone, and in the 80s every bit a racist as West Ham, Millwall, Leeds. Now the epitome of the prawn sandwich, plastic, glory hunter brigade as you're likely to find.

 

[Killamarshblades]

Is there a club that has so transformed it's followers? I remember going in the 70s and 80s and they (The Headhunters) were a notorious bunch ready to ruck with everyone, and in the 80s every bit a racist as West Ham, Millwall, Leeds. Now the epitome of the prawn sandwich, plastic, glory hunter brigade as you're likely to find.

I think that's a bit of the classic marketing of the modern era of football that gives that impression. Obviously its nowhere like the 70's and 80's (no football club is) but chelsea are still more than ready to fight and be racist..the group of 40 lads that went to budapest recently (that europa game that theyre going to get punished for) that didnt have tickets and were walking around being racist, anti semitic and generally looking for both showed it hadnt gone away, or the battles theyve had in Paris, Amsterdam or when travelling up to Scotland with the Rangers lot. Its very plastic appearing on match days, but theyre a set of wrong uns

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

I think that's a bit of the classic marketing of the modern era of football that gives that impression. Obviously its nowhere like the 70's and 80's (no football club is) but chelsea are still more than ready to fight and be racist..the group of 40 lads that went to budapest recently (that europa game that theyre going to get punished for) that didnt have tickets and were walking around being racist, anti semitic and generally looking for both showed it hadnt gone away, or the battles theyve had in Paris, Amsterdam or when travelling up to Scotland with the Rangers lot. Its very plastic appearing on match days, but theyre a set of wrong uns

You might be right. The last time I went to Stamford Bridge though, many of the 'home' supporters looked as lost as the away supporters. More interested in taking pics and getting the shirt and obviously not frequent visitors; and the normal 'reception committee' that always greeted you was nowhere to be found. Maybe they all just appear for big games and European trips nowadays.

 

[BushBlade]

You might be right. The last time I went to Stamford Bridge though, many of the 'home' supporters looked as lost as the away supporters. More interested in taking pics and getting the shirt and obviously not frequent visitors; and the normal 'reception committee' that always greeted you was nowhere to be found. Maybe they all just appear for big games and European trips nowadays.

A couple of years ago my mate went to Chelsea v Spurs. He was having a quiet pint in the Sloaney Pony on Parsons Green when all hell broke loose outside. Big blokes with pickaxe handles and the like really going at one another. Obviously a pre-arranged meet. He said it was pretty bad and he’s no wuss.

 

[1973Blade]

Hopefully tomorrow won't be our lowest ever home league crowd, but it will definitely be our lowest post war crowd, beating the 6647 who attended in March 1987 against Crystal Palace. This may be one of a few dubious records we achieve tomorrow!

 

[Freddie]

Again going from memory but I'm sure we've had crowds of under 4 000 for League games.

I was wondering what was our lowest crowd, and if anyone here went to the game?

I was thinking of League games but maybe there were some other games with lower crowds.

Maybe even Reserves or u21s etc, if they publish or published attendances.

Or away games.

Like Yeovil on a Tuesday night.

Six six four seven. Yes I was there. X

 

[CPB]

Gonna be the same for most teams I guess. To the fans who've gone. Give them some support it will benefit us more for the players to go away knowing get back to good ways and support is there

 

[mattbianco1]

If there's only 10 of us there, no doubt we'll report the crowd as a sell out (5,000 whatever it is).

I'm going and didn't have a problem with the £40, but think this proves the club missed a trick, massively

 

[United Aren't Back.]

The pigs also slipped below 7,000 in that era too, against Colchester I think.

I remember "big" clubs like Chelsea getting under 10k too.

Bradford.
Heysel.
.Moynihan and his odious puppeteer.

 

[The Bear]

When the ball shot up high in the air, no one could see it so it was guesswork on which direction the ball was going to when it came back down

A bit like under Bassett then.

 

[bypassblade]

Thanks. Couldn't search from phone.

Was about to ask about the 68 000 + v L**ds but I'll wait till I get back and look that one up.

Apparently that's our highest ever attendance at BDTBL.

 

[bypassblade]

In 70's and 80's and some of 90's fans were essentially cattle, treat like dirt I remember going to Boothferry Park (Hull) in 70's, and this copper was riding besides the terrace we were on hitting fans with his baton.

There are only so many times you kick a dog before it bites, the fans pulled him off his horse and fucking pasted him it was a night game.

 

[Keen Blade]

Remember, early 1990s , I think , and we played Chelsea away in a FA Cup match ( Jones had just signed for Chelsea and he was booked 1st minute of our match) in front of a 40,000 crowd, on the previous Tuesday Chelsea played Southampton in a top flight league game at the Bridge in front of a 7,000 crowd


Was weird in those days

I certainly remember Chelsea having very low crowds for quite a while in that period + take pleasure in reminding their fans that without the Russian money , they could easily be a minor London club

 

[Davalon]

Remember going to the Bridge early 90's with 7k plus other Blades for the Cup game. 30 odd thousand there.

Chelsea had been home to Southampton a few days earlier in the league and got 8 or 9,000.

 

[Maidenhead]

The only time I've seen United's away following make a referee laugh, when he came close enough for us to serenade him with, "How's you father, How's your father, How's your father referee? You've not got one, You've not got one, You're a bastard referee."

I started that chant, and it's "who's your father"

 

[Maidenhead]

Remember going to the Bridge early 90's with 7k plus other Blades for the Cup game. 30 odd thousand there.

Chelsea had been home to Southampton a few days earlier in the league and got 8 or 9,000.

I thought it was Coventry that they played midweek but I temeber the "where were you on Wednesday night" chant well

 

[Revolution]

I thought it was Coventry that they played midweek but I temeber the "where were you on Wednesday night" chant well

It was Southampton. Attendance 7,148.