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The battle of bath lane

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tabs and beer said:
Fortunately it is avoidable.
Unless you look for it, you can avoid it.
Casuals only look for other casuals apparently.
Knowing this, you can avoid them and their Stone Island coats.
Obviously mistakes occur and the innocent may suffer.
Frankly this is sheer bad luck though.
Football will always have knobheads though sadly.
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Tell that to numerous away fans up and down the country purposely lead past opposing pubs by the Police so's it kicks off and they have their arrests for the day - this is FACT.
 

was on first footy special through that day. not many SAFC on that train as must of been hanging back for the other 3 or 4 trains, and as soon as we left central station we ended up on our own 2 of us with no police to be seen. We had our scarves as you did back then but as were only young uns about 15 so somehow we got away with it but just lucky.
Stupidly did same thing the next year, think it was a New Year's Day when they won 3 1 anyhow we were in a small group of SAFC and as we approached the ground we got twatted after saying 4 1 to wind up a group of middle age blokes who were calling us. Thats probably a victory for them, middle age blokes twatting young uns.
 
Was at the game , 3 of us in their East Stand paddock , must have been loads of wor lot dotted all ower
They were goin mental , from what I remember that corner near the old leazes there was loads ejected
Was only 13 but remember the bother at Bath Lane
They just cant take a twatting from us
 
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billingham-mackem said:
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1979 1-4 :D
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Ah that one, I was there, not really a famous one.In fact I may be on that pic, was after we passed the Strawberry Pub if I can remember on way to ground, they ran at us a few started to turn back, but we rallied, stood and got stuck in, one of the mags was wearing a mask, he got it first.Borough Boys aka Vauxies lead the charge.
 
MakemIndo said:
Ah that one, I was there, not really a famous one.In fact I may be on that pic, was after we passed the Strawberry Pub if I can remember on way to ground, they ran at us a few started to turn back, but we rallied, stood and got stuck in, one of the mags was wearing a mask, he got it first.Borough Boys aka Vauxies lead the charge.
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Wrong
Wrong
 
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supermackem123 said:
Everytime I hear about this epic' battle' the story changes completely. Last year I was told it was 50 hardcore Sunderland lot, then it was 200. Then the pubs change name, the sequence of events change aswel.

Who were the goodies and who were the baddies? :D
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I have the true account and can tell you it blow for blow, correct lot of shite accounts on here.Mind you I had no idea it was dubbed the battle of Bath Lane.

Daffy said:
Wrong
Wrong
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Wrong pub then, rest of story is accurate,as I was there at the front.

PISTON said:
Well newcastle were waiting along the route pretty much from the train station to the ground for one reason only. Being factually correct it didn't kick off until that pub but as i said, it was warming up from the train station onwards as word went around we we'd arrived.

In my opinion the mighty mags bit off way more than they could chew. They were put on the back foot from the very start and never recovered. Any mag who says otherwise either wasn't there or is a complete bullshitter. They were in front of us and couldn't stop our advance to the ground. They were getting battered and scattered left right and centre. Humiliated on their own patch.
It was a f**king great day on and off the pitch.
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That is almost right, I got the pub name wrong, but rememebr mags running out of the pub at us, they beat a retreat and the pub was bombarded with whatever the lads got their hands on.
 
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MakemIndo said:
I have the true account and can tell you it blow for blow, correct lot of shite accounts on here.Mind you I had no idea it was dubbed the battle of Bath Lane.


Wrong pub then, rest of story is accurate,as I was there at the front.
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Fair comment
It was a big story at the time - made all the local papers etc
Bath Lane is on the way to the ground , just below Stowell Street
 
Daffy said:
Fair comment
It was a big story at the time - made all the local papers etc
Bath Lane is on the way to the ground , just below Stowell Street
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Street names I dont remember. What happened was there was a fuck up with the trains and we ended up with two trains arriving at same time, one from Sunderland the other came in via Durham so we had double numbers.Police had requested one train at a time at intervals.

Cochise 2 said:
Numbers were huge, 2 football specials arrived at the same time, after the first train was stopped en route allowing the 2nd train to catch up.
The police were powerless to stop hundreds bursting out of Central station, scattering the welcoming comittee waiting outside.
After that it calmed down a bit, as we were marched in a huge line up past Pink lane towards Westgate Rd.

As others have said, it escalated at The Waterloo pub. It was packed with mags, some came outside and Sunderland fans attacked the pub. Windows were put in and the mags trying to get back inside copped it. The photo on this thread was taken outside the pub.
Onwards up bath lane and down towards the ground, fighting was breaking out all over, one of the biggest flashpoints was down near the petrol station that was on the corner, as all the mags had regrouped and were waiting there.

I think there was a later train, which arrived just before kick off, with just a few hundred on, and this lot had a bit of a rougher ride.
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This is better, correct about the two trains, ok Waterloo pub, I didnt notice the name at the time.Yes the petrol station they regrouped there added reinforcements, had a run at us, mag with a mask on at the front, sunderland hesistated some started to back off, we rallied and went back at them, class.
 
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Porrohman said:
Am ah being whooshed here, is Dougie, Mr J, MWN?
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Its Dougie Hall man. ferchrissakes everyone who ever set foot in Thornhill knows who it is.
super sleeves said:
Why would you or a member of your family be around 'these people' you speak of and about. You can't avoid arseholes.
Say you get the metro to the mags away you know fine well the buses will be safer. So you'd take the bus. Everyone is happy now. Bye
You've got MBH all over you
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MBH has posted more than a few laddish tales from his youth. London games especially. Unless hes on a wind up.
 
jcrossan said:
We were at the Boilermakers club and caught the last train inot magland before the game. There were coppers all around at the start of the walk from the station to the ground. then they vanished and Mags appeared both sides of the Lane.

It was a bit nasty but all in allnot too nad. Whjat made it unusual was it being such a opitched battle involving so mnay people. usually most stuff back then was more bravado, or a few lone people getting a kicking or the outnumbered lot running off. That afternoon because of the location no one could run away so it was a real set to.

Worst injuries i saw were not from the fighting but from the police dogs who were let loose when the cops finally reappeared.

It was featured as the main story on the next day's front page of the Sunday Sun which sort of cemented its fame.
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It was the second last train we went on not the last.

socrates said:
it was recounted to me 3 years ago, over a pint or ten, by a participant. very interesting.

the narrator was THELORDROWELL. my moneys on the old fucker starting it.:lol:
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If he was indeed there as I was, he will know exactly what happened, lot of bullshit being quoted on here.
 
No defo the second last, like I said two trains arrived at same time.
Can even name all the lads on the front line that day.
 
strawberry and waterloo only a 100 yards apart it happend word for word by sum on here i was 18 with gateshead n vauxie lads off last train frightend yes i was .. 100s onto 100s bar the waterloo where the so called older hard mags 20 0r so of them got a reet ----------- they backed into pub they run up the hill sum got at us in our escort they got --------- fact .. this was the mags main mob who knocked around together for years fact age group wait for it 35 plus the same mob who came to roker regular at 9 in morning .... the rest were up the hill waiting which clashed minutes later ..
we had alot of older lads as well as to me it was as bad as ive seen just as at roker in league cup v mags and glasgow after rangers game few years ago - the mag dressed as a vicar and one in mask were from heaton new them through railways both now in mid 60s ,.

people say you should not scrap at footy those days every time v mags you had no option at theirs the so called lads always sussed you or a 100 safc walking together stands out mile hoolis or other we were a target so what do you do run - lay down - fight your corner - or shake hands with a big mag who wants to smack you - they hated us after that day thats what made it even worse they just could not take it from sland - i recon that day safc lit a fuse that went on for years yes it happend in the early 70s beforehand but this day was a massive turning point -and for those living around roker park 70s before this day how many windows did your dad replace after they came down to us - pubs wrecked - kids smacked by old mag piss heads - it was time to stand up and we did whatever sum think ....
 
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