That Night- 20 Years On

[LeeB]

A vile night with a toxic atmosphere. People of all ages quite literally frothing at the mouth in anger all around us in the Holte. The fun and games then spilled onto here after the game with the C-bomb gate. The world turned crazy for 24 hours! Was less intimidating getting into the Atletico Madrid ground through the truncheon happy coppers.

I was at that game as well, thankfully only looking on rather than getting battered

[johny]

Amazingly, we got through unscathed. People in front and behind were not so lucky.

[Rory]

I wasn't at the 03 game, but went the year after and that was extremely tetchy as well, the game where Stern John equalised. I've never seen so many police dogs before or since. Three crap years against them, with no wins, two draws and four defeats. Thankfully the universe has righted those wrongs in no small measure since.

That Stern John game was awful. Was living on Kos at the time and couldn't bear to watch the last couple of minutes so went to the toilet, leaving my girlfriend at the bar to carry on watching.

I came out of the toilet when I thought it was safe, and her face told me everything I didn't want to know.

I was at home, following on bloody Ceefax of all things. I remember just staring, waiting for nothing but that 'FT' to appear. When it did, I started jumping about and it took me a good 5 seconds to realise that, along with the addition of FT, the score had changed.

[KevinGage]

Nevermind the Dublin sending off (which was bollocks, as he was squaring up to that blond tart and didn't expect the theatrics) there was a sinister, malevolent atmosphere in the ground right from the start. Haven't experienced that before or since.

That's why I don't want us sharing the same league as the Rags any time soon.

Win those games (hammer them, even) = it's expected.

Lose = we never hear the end of it.  With the outside chance of scenes like above.

The upside of beating them doesn't offset all the other bollocks.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Thankfully I wasn't there that night. Was the violence random/spontaneous, or was it more of the Danny Dyer 'pwopah nawty' variety?

It was arranged, spontaneous, targeted, random, intense and brutal. I wasn't at the Rangers game but it was by far the worst I've ever known.

And to think the afternoon had been so pleasant, meeting some wonderful people off here at Villa Park, followed by a couple of swift pints in a hidden back street boozer in Handsworth (?). We'd been living in a bubble all day. On return to Villa Park you could immediately sense the atmosphere was on another level and was about to go up a few more notches to 'Pure Evil' inside.

In all my years following Villa, home and away, I've never seen an atmosphere like Villa Park that night. It wasn't just a few baying for blood, it was everybody. Neither was it pretend anger, it was very real. Others have mentioned what went on inside the ground but my memory will never forget leaving the Holte at full time and turning into Witton Lane where the police had closed the it, putting themselves in between to stop the Villa fans. Even they could not have planned for what followed, rain after rain of bricks, bottles and whatever the Villa fans could get their hands on. Then there was the charging at the police lines. Normally the police know exactly what they're doing and are trained to deal and defuse the situation, taking back control. Not on this night though they did manage to hold their line which was some achievement.

With Witton Lane closed I had to walk around the ground to get to Witton station bridge where I'd arranged to meet my Dad and his mate. The look of relief on their faces when I turned up said it all, followed by 'let's get out of here'. On the walk to the car and the drive home not a word was said. It really was a night to forget for so many reasons.

[LeeB]

My mate shut my hand in the door of the car when we got back to it as well, the prick

[RamboandBruno]

I wasn't at the 03 game, but went the year after and that was extremely tetchy as well, the game where Stern John equalised. I've never seen so many police dogs before or since. Three crap years against them, with no wins, two draws and four defeats. Thankfully the universe has righted those wrongs in no small measure since.

This is me. I missed the 03 game and watched in misery in the pub for reasons i can’t  remember. The 04 game was on a Sunday if i remember and i was severely hungover after celebrating my 30th the night before. Was still queuing to get in when i heard the roar for Graysons early goal, went down a bit early for a half time hair of the dog and missed Hitzelbergers piledriver, saw both of their bloody goals though!
I really hate games against the noses, just had all sorts of horrible experiences as a kid in particular. The worst was going to a pre season friendly at their gaff for Ian Handysides testimonial, i was about 12 and David Seaman was still in goal for them, it was summer and i had a Villa tracksuit on, stupid in hindsight, the lads i went with were about 14-16. After the game we were cornered by a load of them, i legged it away but my mates were battered. Ill never forget being 12 and trying to find my way back from their gaff to Hockley on my own and getting to town and noses waiting at bus stops spitting at me, happy days.

[PeterWithesShin]

Grayson? Vassell opened the scoring after 21 mins.

[LukeJames]

Grayson scored an early goal against WBA in the Cup, but it was a few years earlier.

[RamboandBruno]

Grayson? Vassell opened the scoring after 21 mins.

Well there you go, i wasn’t in the ground and was still scoobied from the night before and all these years i thought i missed  a Grayson goal, random.

[PeterWithesShin]

As Luke says, Grayson scored early (4 mins) in the 4-0 FA Cup win over Albion in 1998. Maybe you are thinking of that?

[RamboandBruno]

As Luke says, Grayson scored early (4 mins) in the 4-0 FA Cup win over Albion in 1998. Maybe you are thinking of that?

Maybe but i was at that game, Collymore got a couple if i remember, no matter, i saw Stern bloody John get the equaliser.

[joe_c]

I took my then six year old nephew and we left around the same time as Joey Gudjohnsson. I genuinely didn't believe it was going to be as awful as it turned out to be. I particularly remember my dad dropping us on the Lichfield Road before the game where he'd normally leave us up by King Edwards School but I thought it might be too dark going through the park and suggested there instead and recall how the malevolent atmosphere was something you could physically feel.

[Stu]

Tickets in the home end were too easy to get for away fans. My nephew and I had ST's in the Holte and I was able to get my dad (Villa) and my uncle (Blues) two tickets in the Holte End. Anyway, they were both pretty old school, both in their 60's then, and left at some point when it really started kicking off when we were 0-2 down.

Towards the back of the Holte, where my nephew and I were, I'm certain the couple behind me were noses, or at least the woman was, and were keeping quiet except to have a laugh here and there (no banter though - not on that night - it was strictly non-football related stuff) and as we watched that fella being booted down the stairs in the upper Witton, she announced she was leaving before she had her head kicked in. Mental night, quiet journey home in the car, nose uncle didn't even take the piss, think he was as stunned as everyone else.

I was a hod carrier at the time and my gaffer was a nose as well as half the site (we were working on the Dickens Heath development) also a couple of stripeys in the mix. The following day at work was a gigantic piss take, which you just have to take really, apart from a Chelsea fan who I threw half a batten at, the cheeky ******.

Fake edit - just remembered my girlfriend at the time was also a nose.

Happy fucking days.

[Villa Lew]

On that night my route back to my car, was probably the only area of the ground, where there was no trouble, I only  found out how bad it was, when my nephew, phoned me the following night.