Fruit Bat

He was also a slow starter with us. Took a while to win the fans over. Can remember watching him in the warm up early days. Built like a brick sh*t house but struck me as very graceful. We had a tremendous spine to that team. Cech, Terry, Lampard, Drogba.

Then again the crowd in the paddock doesn’t seem as packed as you’d expect at Old Trafford 1970? Suffice to to say he was a dangerous bastard

Gotta be the famous challenge on Bremner when he gave him a new centre parting. The footage of this is extraordinary. It wasn’t intentional and Eddie Mac did seem genuinely concerned with Bremner’s condition after. No free kick, no booking. Unintentional GBH

A straight A for effort. D minus for application

It’s been stated before but we lack natural leaders and seem quite timid. Title winning teams have a core of players that carry a certain gravitas. We seem to be carved from a banana. No backbone

The Best of Saint and Greavesy was on ITV 4 this morning. From 85/86 JB returned to The Bridge- had an entertaining chat with Bates, John Hollins, Wee Pat, plus George Anstiss who was groundsman for an amazing 52 years. Remember watching this back in the day. There was another feature on Chopper Harris who’d just bought a golf course. Showed a clip of him going straight through the back of someone at Highbury followed by his trademark butter would melt innocent expression.

Presently on a building site, mud up to me bollox....everything’s brown....” They’ll be Brown Birds over...The Brown Cliffs of Dover...” ☹️

Carefree...wherever you may be.. We are the Chelsea OAP’s...

Forecourt ram jammed with mobility scooters, Stannah stair lifts to The East Upper....hurling dentures at opposition fans 😁

My brother in law whose about the 70 mark ( in the music business and wrote Blue Dat btw) grew up off Brixton Hill which was staunch Chelsea by his accounts- as was Stockwell which is basically a series of dodgy council estates- we had a good firm out of there- I know of Millwall fans from the North Brixton going towards Kennington area, also Coldharbour Lane way- bit of a mish mash- also got to know a lot of CFC from Kennington who still go now. You’d think it would be a Millwall stronghold but loads of us from that way. All changed now no doubt- everyone’s moved to the ‘ Burbs or Home Counties

Briefly lived on Mitcham Lane Streatham in the mid 90’s. How was the football demographic when you grew up there? I’m guessing majority Chelsea with a smattering of Palace and Millwall- plus Cockney Reds

I thought that was somewhere like Shrewsbury? A fella in the photo came on the site a couple of years back

Wet concrete seats and barbed wire...

I hear where your coming from an respect your opinion, however peak Hazard was freakily good. I’d put him in the top 10, possibly top 5 attacking players in the World at one point.

Heyday being 70s and 80’s

I think most of the Den closures going back were for attacking referees and linesman. If you look at the heyday of FV I think Society was more violent then. More fatal youth stabbings now, mostly concerning a certain demographic, but not pub fights like their used to. They were routine- used to happen all the time

Stood in the Whitehorse a couple of times in friendlies v Chelsea. One was pre season circa 79- we took the Holmesdale- coming up on the bus we past a church with a Jesus saves sign- someone dobbed underneath “ Yea but Gary Stanley nets the rebound” Second time was George Graham Testimonial end of season 80 I think. Got me collar felt that night

Stood in the Whitehorse a couple of times in friendlies v Chelsea. One was pre season circa 79- we took the Holmesdale- coming up on the bus we past a church with a Jesus saves sign- someone dobbed underneath “ Yea but Gary Stanley nets the rebound” Second time was George Graham Testimonial end of season 82 I think. Got me collar felt that night

The Whitehorse End was the away end. Oddly enough my first experience of the power being in the crowd was in there with Fulham fans circa 77- surging and chanting away- a year before first time in the Shed, which was the same sensation magnified. Can’t believe they crammed 51,000 in there when they got promoted in 79.

Was in there for FA Cup in 2009- stuck seats in but still sh*tty view. Was right in the corner next to Everton fan. Some gobsh*te kept going on about my Aquascutum raincoat- “ You got a string of Rolex watches in there have you cockney. Nylons, anyone need nylons...” The bloke kept going for it...Me: Yeah alright mate. I’m just hear to watch the game..turn it in FFS.. He had an orientatal girlfriend next to him...he wouldn’t shut up “ At least I didn’t have to go to Thailand to get meself a f**king bird” He went absolutely garrity. Stewards carted him off

Extremely amusing

Know the feeling. There was a YouTube thing until recently of us leaving the ground under escort that day in 1990. Hot day, shirts off SG from Hounslow at the front

The Dell was pretty ramshackle. Worked with a Saints fan that spun a good yarn... Apparently before kick off someone entered an unlocked door under a stand, to find he was in a small gymnasium. From there he went to his usual standing spot in the paddock, right on the touchline....the game started....Mick Channon got flagged for offside...next thing the linesman’s felled by a medicine ball hurled into his back and he’s face down chewing the cud!

It was a unique ground, full of quirks; then again most old stadia were. Stands were built one at a time and more than often didn’t match what was adjacent to them. Highbury was probably the most symmetrical. Most of the new grounds I’ve been to lack character. Give me a higgledy piggedly Luton, over a Brittania Stadium any day of the week, even allowing for inferior facilities

Should be 93