City Rocker

I do remember Gerry Sweeney getting a certain amount of stick, light-hearted I thought, owing to his reliance on punting it hard and long in the vague direction of Tom Richie. One wag would shout out when Gerry got hold of the ball down in front of us in the Enclosure: "Oi Gerry! Try the long hopeful ball, you know the one!". At which moment, Gerry would obligingly swing his boot through the ball and welt it up there...."THAT'S THE ONE!!"

It's what they do.

Indeed, more like the old lights at Eastville if anything.

#goosebumps Huge thanks to ciderspace99. So happy to see the Embrace track, Gravity, has rightfully been reattached to this brilliant video. I watched this over and over again back in the day.

Totally mate, it doesn't take long to lose the West Country LaLaLa twang when you live and work with 'foreigners'. My missus grew up in the North East of England and went to Oxford Uni, but now considers herself Bristolian and has been a season ticket holder at City for over 20 years. But the first time I took her to a City game in the 90s, we went in the Wedlocks for a pre-match pint and I bumped into an old mate from school and I started talking, to her ears, a foreign language. Also I was for a few years signed to a London-based record label where you just wouldn't and couldn't speak with a West country accent. Yet they still regarded us as thick yokels I humbly and genuinely apologise to my Bristolian brothers and sisters for betraying you.

Likewise I remember taking the CATS coach to Cambridge, probably about 81/82, when there were less than 50 of us there. We had a little pitch invasion to celebrate our consolation goal and I recall asking the very friendly old bill in our end if they would mind if we ran over and took the home end. They said "nah, go for it lads!". Our coach also got attacked by a mob of Cardiff at the services on the M4 on the way home. Happy days!

Yes I was able to watch all of the first half and five minutes of the second half, then it's decided user is 'unauthorised' and I can't get back in. Even after restarting and, er, 'relocating'.

Very harsh calling Charlton Athletic 'random minnows'. All the other clubs named in the article are much of a muchness though, to be fair.

Yes, but it patently isn't. For the numerous reasons mentioned above, the photograph was taken in 1970.

Yep, it's definitely 1970 and those are the old wooden seats just going in. Remember they also started re-cladding the East End roof with red panels around the end of the 70s, so it's earlier than that.

Yes the Dolman is clearly nearing completion, which dates it to about 1970. Advertising hoardings were added to the front of the Dolman stand brick wall after that. IIRC the block of red seats in the middle was installed in the mid/late 70s following promotion (though they couldn't afford to finish the job, in more ways than one).

That's where I normally get my medical diagnosies confirmed. Sounds pretty much definite then!

Isn't it like that thing where famously, if everyone who claims they were at the Sex Pistols gig at the 100 Club in 1976 was really there, they would fill the away end at Mansfield? Or vice versa?

Takes me back to school days. We lost 13-9 most weeks.

No keeper then. Disappointing!

I know! Pretty certain George caught it.

Part exchange for Carl Shutt wasn't it?

My favourite ever piece of live music footage. Prince's solo is just insane. Apparently it was unrehearsed and the rest of them had no idea what he was going to do. Dhani Harrison was loving it! Priceless.

I was stood at the top of the terrace behind you, watching it all going off. The image that has stayed in my memory ever since is pretty vivid... a massive chunk of concrete slung over from our terrace and landed on the head of a copper. Just broke over his head. So shocking. I hope he was OK. Good times though

I know what you mean Ralph. I have literally never had a fight with anyone in my life, but I was always there or thereabouts, in the thick of it at Reading, Dulwich Hamlet, Millwall, Hereford, Cardiff, Aldershot, Torquay, Rovers, Swindon, Walsall, and right there in the Enclosure when West Ham came and had a go. Over the years a few of my mates got involved and at times a couple of them got arrested. But not me, I'm a lover, not a fighter...

Oh, details please? Don't worry it won't go any further, we're quite discreet.

Hence the once-popular ditty "You used to be blue, but now you're red, and you look like c nts when you tap your head!"

I hadn't heard this, what did he say then?

Ooh! What did he say?! I've never been to the politics forum and never will, because well, you know, 'tis a place for sad hateful cu nts innit