The Met police has published a debrief report into its handling of the last game at the Boleyn Ground between West Ham and Manchester United. Hammers fans were demonised in the press following images of broken windows on the Man Utd team coach were flashed all around the world.
The Met Police summarise lessons learnt along with the Safety Advisory Group (SAG) of which it is a part along side Newham Council and British Transport Police. It lists eight recommendations to improve on the following areas in the future:
Ensure a secure drop off area for coaches.- Plan for access and egress to and from the ground of the team coaches.
- Better engagement/liaison with supporters and their representatives.
- Chair of the SAG to consider inviting supporter representation at the SAG meetings.
Strategies should be developed to encourage supporters to enter the ground in good time.- Ensure direct communication between the control room and the coaches (either with the driver or someone on the coach).
- Ensure that intelligence from football forums is properly evaluated and not taken at face value.
- Ensure that clubs remind players about the appropriate use of social media and the impact it can have.
The full report can be read HERE together with a blog written by Amanda Jacks from The Football Supporters Federation (FSF) on the subject HERE
Ensure Manchester Utd arrive early to avoid confrontation!!!
I don’t particularly blame the Police. I actually think they did a pretty good job, all things considered, having found themselves in an extremely difficult situation. To get the coach though, they HAD to take the the crossroads outside the Boleyn, which was chocker. Completely blocked. So was Green St. No traffic was moving wahtsoever, so SOMEHOW, the Man U coach had to get through that! Complete madness.
I had arrrived about an hour and a half early and I have never seen so many fans. Well, of course it was packe; it was the last ever game at the Boleyn. I had friends there, like many others no doubt, who couldn’t get a ticket.
It was a wonderful carnival atmosphere. Footballs were flying around; I saw one get stuck on the roof opposite the Boleyn…and yes, there were some cans and bottles flying through the air. I’m afraid that is often what fans do. Yes, there is some danger in the thick of it – and I saw some fans bloodied up from being hit (like a badge of honour!). Those fans deliberately go there for that excitement. Around the perimeter, fans were reasonably well out of danger. It was like the centre was a self policed danger zone for participants only! Watch any videos of singing in the Boleyn (or in away match bars etc) and you’ll see fans throwing beer over each other…as stated, like some sort of joyous badge of honour…(Good bl00dy luck; not MY idea of fun!).
On an important side note: It is these guys who create the atmosphere and the songs (often funny). They like to stand in Chav Corner etc, and the club must negotiate with the owners etc – sacrifice some ticket sales if neccesary – to accomodate this. I have emailed them – I suggest you all do too…I don’t want our “New Boleyn” turned into an effing library… like Arsenal etc)…..
SO considering how many fans were there, and how the drink was flowing, and into that bastion oc Claret and Blue, the Man U coach decides to drive through? Not a very good idea, eh? Yet in fact, if you look at the amount of actual cans thrown at the coach, it wasn’t THAT many. Hardly constituted a severe attack, considering there were already some cans flying about. If it was nasty, the fans could have easity thrown far worse things, or turned the coach over. No; ALL things considered, the crowd was relatively self-policing and not out of control.
NO, the REAL issue is the dirty, stinking hypoctritical effing press. EXACTLY the same thing happened when Liverpool fans attacked the Villareal coach just a week earlier, and previously Man U fans attacked the Man City coach. No howls from the press over those incidents, yet protracted, exaggerated national news over WHU fans. The press are simply lying, cheating, biased, agenda-ridden effing effing effing c*nts…(Just as well I’m showing a bit of restraint here! – Ha!)
Message for WHU fan Evening Standard writer Ken Dyer: How about doing a piece to some redressing the imbalance?
So, I actually take my hat off to the Police; they did very well, AND, in reality, SO DID THE FANS; well done, guys. If you REALLY had wanted to cause mayhem, you could have easily done so…but that was never even remotely a propect. BE PROUD – and f8ck the press.
The Police should’ve insisted both teams were there by 5pm latest as they were going to shut the road. Everyone knew that fans would be there early, apart from the Police. And also putting police vans across the road where people were walking up to Upton Park created a huge crush, which lucky enough didn’t end up as another Hillsborough. So I beg to differ, the Police could’ve have, and should’ve done a helluva lot better……..