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Post by oatcakemate on Dec 7, 2007 14:53:19 GMT
MEMORIES.......
09:40 - 07 December 2007
Police and fans are calling for calm ahead of Stoke City's televised FA Cup tie against Premiership side Newcastle United.
The appeal follows recent website comments by some fans recalling the violence which exploded on to the city's streets when the two clubs last met in October 1995.
The fierce fighting was sparked by a rumour that United supporters had stabbed a pregnant woman outside a pub in Penkhull shortly before the Coca Cola Cup game.
In fact a young woman was punched and kicked by a group of Newcastle supporters, but the incident was not as serious as reports at the time had suggested.
During the ensuing street battles, two Newcastle fans were seriously injured, minibuses carrying supporters through Stoke town centre were attacked and overturned and police came under attack from yobs throwing stones and other missiles.
The fighting outside the Victoria Ground led to 18 arrests and brought shame on the club and the city.
The hostilities overshadowed not only the 4-0 defeat inflicted on the home side but also Stoke's stunning achievement of beating Chelsea in the previous round.
In the aftermath of the carnage, fans criticised the management and policing of the match for failing to keep the rival groups far enough apart.
The forthcoming FA Cup match at the Britannia Stadium on January 6 will be the first time the two clubs have met since the disturbances 12 years ago.
But comments have already appeared on online message boards which suggest memories of the fighting remain fresh in many minds. Most recall the horror they witnessed on the day, and the damage to the club and the city's reputations.
But some messages appeared to suggest that fans might be hostile towards the Tyneside visitors, and even try to settle old scores.
In a timely reminder of Stoke City's chequered past, the Oatcake website this week posted a lengthy editorial on the club's history of hooliganism.
One extract reads: "As much as things have changed in recent years you know that the undercurrent of feeling is still there for some people.
"They may not care about the fear they spread through the hearts and minds of ordinary fans and they may brush aside the inconvenient reality of the harm their actions have on the club they follow, but down deep in their hearts they care about the club."
The author added: "Reduced and marginalised though it may be, the hooligan problem at Stoke City will never truly go away."
Bryan Shaw, chairman of Stoke City Supporters' Club, said he hoped fans would put the memories of 1995 out of their minds and enjoy the exciting spectacle of a rare chance to play a top-flight team.
"We have just got to concentrate on the football and forget about whatever has gone on in the past," said Mr Shaw.
"The last thing we want is for anything to happen that would take attention off the pitch and on to the terraces."
Staffordshire Police is also hoping the FA Cup game passes off peacefully.
Superintendent Bernie O'Reilly said: "We want this match to be remembered for what happens on the pitch and are committed to ensuring fans can enjoy this match in a safe environment."
WORST PAPER IN THE COUNTRY! BOYCOT IT
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Post by DansViews on Dec 7, 2007 14:57:33 GMT
It probably will go off, but with the way policing is, and CCTV and the fact that booth of our Hooligan "Fringe" and Newcastles are mostly 12-16 year olds, nothing will come of it, and it will be more of a chasing game between these people and the police.
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Post by Kenilworth_Stokies on Dec 7, 2007 15:04:24 GMT
Hmm, so a single thread reminiscing about the trouble in 1995 read by a small minority of the club's fans that are on-line has now been picked up by the paper media and brought to the attention of the rest of the fans too.
A quality example of media stoking the fires in readiness for a nice juicy story.
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