"REMEMBER THE MAYHEM THAT WAS EASTVILLE STADIUM"?

Drove past the old eastville stadium site yesterday(its tesco's now)and for about half an hour all i could think of was those mad,mad trips we used to have there.everytime we went there it was potty-battling with the worzels in the tote end,fires burning on the terraces etc.worst time is when jeff hemmerman got injured there(we were already promoted)and he never played again.that was another proper ground,like our legendary ninian park(gosh i miss that place)!!!

I lived in the street dead accross the road for a year. The club is still there in the corner of the ikea car park - cheap snooker and drinks. The old people dont like you interupting their bingo by playing pool though!

Drove past the old eastville stadium site yesterday(its tesco's now)and for about half an hour all i could think of was those mad,mad trips we used to have there.everytime we went there it was potty-battling with the worzels in the tote end,fires burning on the terraces etc.worst time is when jeff hemmerman got injured there(we were already promoted)and he never played again.that was another proper ground,like our legendary ninian park(gosh i miss that place)!!!

I was there that day. The coppers took my umbrella off me, so I stood in the rain on an open terrace, bless them. Crazy challenge by Hemmerman. He didn't have to go for it, the ball was almost out, but he lunged towards the ball and their goalkeeper and that was it, career over.

Very lively day, before, during and after the match. 1983, was it?

Drove past the old eastville stadium site yesterday(its tesco's now)and for about half an hour all i could think of was those mad,mad trips we used to have there.everytime we went there it was potty-battling with the worzels in the tote end,fires burning on the terraces etc.worst time is when jeff hemmerman got injured there(we were already promoted)and he never played again.that was another proper ground,like our legendary ninian park(gosh i miss that place)!!!

I was there that day. The coppers took my umbrella off me, so I stood in the rain on an open terrace, bless them. Crazy challenge by Hemmerman. He didn't have to go for it, the ball was almost out, but he lunged towards the ball and their goalkeeper and that was it, career over.

Very lively day, before, during and after the match. 1983, was it?

yes i think it was 1983-bob hatton and hemmerman were lethal in those days.always had great times at eastville.

Drove past the old eastville stadium site yesterday(its tesco's now)and for about half an hour all i could think of was those mad,mad trips we used to have there.everytime we went there it was potty-battling with the worzels in the tote end,fires burning on the terraces etc.worst time is when jeff hemmerman got injured there(we were already promoted)and he never played again.that was another proper ground,like our legendary ninian park(gosh i miss that place)!!!

I was there that day. The coppers took my umbrella off me, so I stood in the rain on an open terrace, bless them. Crazy challenge by Hemmerman. He didn't have to go for it, the ball was almost out, but he lunged towards the ball and their goalkeeper and that was it, career over.

Very lively day, before, during and after the match. 1983, was it?

yes i think it was 1983-bob hatton and hemmerman were lethal in those days.always had great times at eastville.

Had some lively ones at Trashton Gate as well.

I live in Undy , so spend a lot of time now in Bristol shopping with my mrs, every time i pass that , i tell her bristol rovers used to play there and now its a tescos. she goes nuts every time!!!!
i used to love going to watch the City at Rovers , had some great times there , remember many times being bombarded by stones from the big banks over looking the train track.lol.
much prefer going to Rovers in those days over Bristol City. good times , good times!!!!

The match people are describing was one of my first away match - not even Stoke 2000 has come close ( out of the ones I've been to ) - union jacks being burnt on the terrace, Cardiff in the Bristol end, policeman beating a fan as her was on the top of a fence, people trying to break down the fence, policeman running out of the Cardiff end after being set on, cavalry charges outside... a real eye opener for a young teenager

The match people are describing was one of my first away match - not even Stoke 2000 has come close ( out of the ones I've been to ) - union jacks being burnt on the terrace, Cardiff in the Bristol end, policeman beating a fan as her was on the top of a fence, people trying to break down the fence, policeman running out of the Cardiff end after being set on, cavalry charges outside... a real eye opener for a young teenager

I'd been to Chesterfield away just before that, so nothing surprised me that day!

The match people are describing was one of my first away match - not even Stoke 2000 has come close ( out of the ones I've been to ) - union jacks being burnt on the terrace, Cardiff in the Bristol end, policeman beating a fan as her was on the top of a fence, people trying to break down the fence, policeman running out of the Cardiff end after being set on, cavalry charges outside... a real eye opener for a young teenager

i remember when we got outside the cardiff fans had already overturned several police vans.also after the game a police horse sneezed all over this city fans f*cking head,he was plastered in green mucas ha ha!!

i remember at that game in the city end somebody hured a empty flaggon of bow straight at a coppers head thank god those days have gone the football specials were nuts in them days if only my father[god rest his soul] knew what i had just witnesed crazy days the younger generation today aint got a clue

I was one of the ones in the Tote end, we'd gone up a coach from Aberdare and were drinking in Chepstow by eleven, got there and we were blitzed, about thirty of us went in the Tote and there were a good few other city in there, was mental for a while then we all got escorted over to the other end.

Mad day and just glad I got back with no convictions. A lot of those lads still get down there and travel away on a regular basis.

In them days going to Eastville stadium was a real local derby, the atmosphere in and out of the stadium was hostile but passionate. The football specials would be crammed packed and service trains,coaches. While the game was going on there would be trouble in all parts of the ground and non stop under the flyover behind the open away end, which would be packed with thousands of Cardiff fans. To me Bristol Rovers/Bristol C and Newport County were my rivals in the 70's and even 80's.

Fantastic Days. Saw us play there several times in the 70s and early 80s. Jeff Hemmerman colliding with there keeper Thomas. Hell what a day that was

For some reason the game that stands out for me was in 76/77 (I think). 1-1. We gave away a crazy goal in the first half, and Tony Evans scored in the second. Both goals in front of us, at the open end. The terraces were, literally, crumbling, and bricks, stones, and mortar were used as missiles by both lots of fans. We needed crash helmets that day.

Always enjoyed the Bristol Rovers games. City too, but apparently Ashton Gate's days are numbered. Sad to see another old ground go. Even after what happened there a few weeks ago!

Remember my old Man took me there to watch us in the late 70s and we was on the side in the home end. We was 2-1 down with about 5 mins to go and my old man "Come on son lets beat the traffic" and when we got home the final score we lost 4-2 . I said after that i would not leave early again. But sometimes i still do.

My memory is coming back form a postponed match on the train from Swindon the train stopped at Stapleton Rd and the City fans thought, here is a chance to go and see a game of football, and decided to take their opportunity, you could pay on the gate in them days!!!!!!

just adding to bigGwynram comment ......i remember you boys comming in the tote end ..... i was a young 17yr old rovers wanna be hooli lol wet behind the ears .....our local pub was the anchor in filton which was on the main a38 rd from the m4 into bristol and the day of the game a coach load of you boys stopped off before the game ...our pub had a bit of a rep of a tough pub which had a lot of older lads in it who we all sort of looked up to being younger. There was no trouble in there before game and both lots chatted together. i can always remember one of your boys wearing a blue mohair jumper saying we will be comming in your tote end.....well we all throught BEER TALK ..but we were very wrong .... down at the ground it was mayhem with you lot bringing 5k with a gate of only 12k .... but true to your word the blue mohair jumper chap and his mates came in through the turnstiles.....but were clocked by the older lads from our pub whos numbers were a lot bigger than up the pub before .....i think the police saved the day for the city lads abit then and were taken out to the other end ....it was one mad day and i still have a scrap book with lots of cuttings from our local paper on the monday about the day .....whats sad is not only has our old eastville ground long gone.... but so has our old pub to ... in the early 90s ..knocked down and a silly family pub re built there on the spot ......r,i,p eastville and the tote end and the anchor pub and a good pint of bristols finest cider

My memory is coming back form a postponed match on the train from Swindon the train stopped at Stapleton Rd and the City fans thought, here is a chance to go and see a game of football, and decided to take their opportunity, you could pay on the gate in them days!!!!!!

J, it is a long time ago now but if you think again the story goes like this:
Football special to Swindon, game gets called off as train is waiting on tracks outside Swindon station
There the train stays as a little dismantling goes on
Train starts up and slowly heads back to Cardiff via the railway back routes
Train ends up stopped on tracks behind Eastville stadium and Rovers are at home and game is underway
Half train gets off -on tracks!- and runs down embankment to back of Tote End
Bricks fly and gates are rushed but no-one enters ground
Crowd run through Stapleton Rd causing mayhem
Eventually rounded up by OB taken to Stapleton Rd railway station and special train put on to take everyone back to Cardiff

Just wouldn't happen today.

My memory is coming back form a postponed match on the train from Swindon the train stopped at Stapleton Rd and the City fans thought, here is a chance to go and see a game of football, and decided to take their opportunity, you could pay on the gate in them days!!!!!!

I was the first one of the train, but by accident, my mate Needs pulled the cord we opened the doors and next thing I'm pushed out the door, and it hell of a drop, mad day, they were playing York and 4 or 500 of us turn up half time, it was bedlam.

The police alsatians were biting everything that moved that day.
Great day out at Eastville, sad that Hemmerman finished his career there.

Remember this, wasn't the ground breaking up, I seem to remember bits of concrete being thrown back and forth or was that somewhere else?

I was one of the ones in the Tote end, we'd gone up a coach from Aberdare and were drinking in Chepstow by eleven, got there and we were blitzed, about thirty of us went in the Tote and there were a good few other city in there, was mental for a while then we all got escorted over to the other end.

Mad day and just glad I got back with no convictions. A lot of those lads still get down there and travel away on a regular basis.

https://gaschat.co.uk/thread/6438/eastv ... ?q=Cardiff

Best away day ever !!!

Yeah they were mad trips to bristol, used to go to them all with the Cwmbran boys. On one of the trips (late 70's i think) there was a storey going around that a city fan got killed on one of the trains coming into bristol. Did this happen or just a rumour??

Yeah they were mad trips to bristol, used to go to them all with the Cwmbran boys. On one of the trips (late 70's i think) there was a storey going around that a city fan got killed on one of the trains coming into bristol. Did this happen or just a rumour??

It was true i was on that train, when we got off in Newport (hundreds of city fans from Newport back then) we weren't allowed to leave the station had to go through BTP office and give our names and addresses apparently he fell from the train in the Severn Tunnel.

Yeah they were mad trips to bristol, used to go to them all with the Cwmbran boys. On one of the trips (late 70's i think) there was a storey going around that a city fan got killed on one of the trains coming into bristol. Did this happen or just a rumour??

It was true i was on that train, when we got off in Newport (hundreds of city fans from Newport back then) we weren't allowed to leave the station had to go through BTP office and give our names and addresses apparently he fell from the train in the Severn Tunnel.

Thanks for that, it was in the seven tunnel that was being rumoured at the time.

Drove past the old eastville stadium site yesterday(its tesco's now)and for about half an hour all i could think of was those mad,mad trips we used to have there.everytime we went there it was potty-battling with the worzels in the tote end,fires burning on the terraces etc.worst time is when jeff hemmerman got injured there(we were already promoted)and he never played again.that was another proper ground,like our legendary ninian park(gosh i miss that place)!!!

I was there that day. The coppers took my umbrella off me, so I stood in the rain on an open terrace, bless them. Crazy challenge by Hemmerman. He didn't have to go for it, the ball was almost out, but he lunged towards the ball and their goalkeeper and that was it, career over.

Very lively day, before, during and after the match. 1983, was it?

yes i think it was 1983-bob hatton and hemmerman were lethal in those days.always had great times at eastville.

I was there too,gutted for Hemmerman.It was also Alan Ball's last ever league game and I remember thinking how good he must have been in his pomp.