Villa Park as I know it

[Scully]

These days when a player from the opposition gets stretchered off they receive sympathetic applause. I remember a time when the would leave the pitch to the sound of "your going home in a f****** ambulance".

[ClarrieBlue]

Getting the Villa Special back to town and hoping the Argus would already be on sale.
Drinking in the Upper Grounds when Benny from Crossroads was always in there.
The toilets outside the Upper Grounds for some reason called "The Rhinos" by some.
The bloke next to me in the old Trinity Road stand who used to jump up and down on his programme as we tumbled into the Third Division.
Walking through town after a game and every window sill alive with starlings. Millions of 'em.
The night we "ejected" all the Arsenal fans from the Holte End and they swarmed across the pitch and got into the Witton. That was the night Sammy Morgan terrorised Bob Wilson. 6ft 2, eyes of blue etc
Staying in town on Saturday night drinking and then getting the Sunday Mercury about half ten on New St Station.

[conman]

Getting the Villa Special back to town and hoping the Argus would already be on sale.
Drinking in the Upper Grounds when Benny from Crossroads was always in there.
The toilets outside the Upper Grounds for some reason called "The Rhinos" by some.
The bloke next to me in the old Trinity Road stand who used to jump up and down on his programme as we tumbled into the Third Division.
Walking through town after a game and every window sill alive with starlings. Millions of 'em.
The night we "ejected" all the Arsenal fans from the Holte End and they swarmed across the pitch and got into the Witton. That was the night Sammy Morgan terrorised Bob Wilson. 6ft 2, eyes of blue etc
Staying in town on Saturday night drinking and then getting the Sunday Mercury about half ten on New St Station.

yeah i remember the millions of starlings flying from the outskirts of Birmingham to the City centre every night , and i remember the arsenal cup game , i was with mates from school  in the north bank highbury for the 1st match when sammy morgan got sent off and with my old man in the holte when he inevitably scored in the replay , yeah and i remember saturday nights upstairs in the hole in the wall or the red lion and if not going to barberellas , sloopys , rum runner or the cedar i would get the last bus home at 11pm

[wittonwarrior]

went the 1st game at Highbury however as a  13 year old wasnt allowed to travel to Birmingham alone for the replay no matter how tempting.

[SirSteveUK]

My dad letting me stand on my own at the front of the Witton End - peering through the bars at these huge men playing for Villa - and being frightened when the ball came my way. Tumbling down the back of the Witton End - waiting for a 7 outside IMI - and somebody would have a radio - so we would all listen to the opening music that still gives me goosebumps and occasionally dusty eyes

[Witton Warrior]

First home match 1977 - W Ham - birth of the Firms - 1:45 there were 200 ICF at the back of the Holte. The only match my, now, wife ever went to. I can still hear the rumble of hundreds of DMs as we ran up the steps at the back and chased them onto the pitch - then the glory of a 4-0 win! Remember winning?

[castlefields_villan]

Getting the Villa Special back to town and hoping the Argus would already be on sale.
Drinking in the Upper Grounds when Benny from Crossroads was always in there.
The toilets outside the Upper Grounds for some reason called "The Rhinos" by some.
The bloke next to me in the old Trinity Road stand who used to jump up and down on his programme as we tumbled into the Third Division.
Walking through town after a game and every window sill alive with starlings. Millions of 'em.
The night we "ejected" all the Arsenal fans from the Holte End and they swarmed across the pitch and got into the Witton. That was the night Sammy Morgan terrorised Bob Wilson. 6ft 2, eyes of blue etc
Staying in town on Saturday night drinking and then getting the Sunday Mercury about half ten on New St Station.

yeah i remember the millions of starlings flying from the outskirts of Birmingham to the City centre every night , and i remember the arsenal cup game , i was with mates from school  in the north bank highbury for the 1st match when sammy morgan got sent off and with my old man in the holte when he inevitably scored in the replay , yeah and i remember saturday nights upstairs in the hole in the wall or the red lion and if not going to barberellas , sloopys , rum runner or the cedar i would get the last bus home at 11pm

I remember that Arsenal game well - of course in those days FA Cup replays were played just 3 or 4 days after the original tie.  January 1974 and we were struggling in the old second division and Arsenal were as they have always been - a decent top division side - but we were dynamite especially in the replay - I was a 16 year old at the time and I remember dashing home to watch the highlights and clearly my dad (who would've been 46 then) saying - quite annoyed - "Why can't they play like this EVERY week ?"

[castlefields_villan]

One of the great Villa Park nights in the 1970s - must see if I can Utube it !!

[adrenachrome]

These days when a player from the opposition gets stretchered off they receive sympathetic applause. I remember a time when the would leave the pitch to the sound of "your going home in a f****** ambulance".

Or the very non PC "Bring on the bostick, take off the spastic".

[adrenachrome]

Lost In History ‏@SadHappyAmazing 3h3 hours ago

Wonderful photo of Villa Park during a match between Aston Villa and Liverpool in 1907

[conman]

These days when a player from the opposition gets stretchered off they receive sympathetic applause. I remember a time when the would leave the pitch to the sound of "your going home in a f****** ambulance".

and
you're going home in a wooden overcoat  , or was that to the away fans

[class-of-82]

Those Arsenal games was the best remember the "walk on" we did at vp towards the end of the game truly magical
Also how good was alun Evans to

[ColinMac]

Lost In History ‏@SadHappyAmazing 3h3 hours ago

Wonderful photo of Villa Park during a match between Aston Villa and Liverpool in 1907

That's been photoshopped, this is the original
http://avfc.footballappfeeds.performgroup.com/javaImages/17/ae/0,,10265~10661399,00.jpg

[Godfrey Brian]

It looks like it is from the same spot but from a later game .I love the small details in the original such as the screen at top right of the ground to stop people standing on Aston Park Hill to get a free view.

[ez]

Standing on the Holte End and getting a whiff of one of those God-Awful farts that smelled like the perpetrator had followed through and shit themselves.I definitely don't smell them now , maybe they disappeared when it went all seater or my sense of smell has diminished over the years.

oh god yeah , thinking about it , i can smell one now , while i am eating my dinner

And worse, people pissing on the terrace.