Bellotti running from the Director's box

[aftershavedave]

i was there

 

[NewtownRoad]

Bellotti had closed part of the north west terrace to distance himself from the angry mob. It did not work and he legged it as soon as 50 came across the pitch from the North Stand.

After that the atmosphere was amazing for such a small crowd.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

'Grit believes Belloti bulshit' (sic) wasn't it?

So it could have been you, Dave.

I wish I would have thought of it!!

LOL

 

[Publius Ovidius]

Bellotti had closed part of the north west terrace to distance himself from the angry mob. It did not work and he legged it as soon as 50 came across the pitch from the North Stand.

After that the atmosphere was amazing for such a small crowd.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

Rusco who posts on here, knows who painted the "Gritt Believes Bellotti's Lies" on the wall of the West Stand


As I believe Bozza does.

It was, if I recall: "Grit beleives Belotti bullshit" (sic)

I before E except after C!

Anyway, I was there, on the portion of south-west terrace along which we were still allowed to stand. It was hilarious!

 

[Moshe Gariani]

I was there... amazing memories - "Case out" provocateurs in the Seagull Tavern (they got their way that night and changed the history of the club...); the charge of the few who broke out of the North Stand and invaded Bellotti's exclusion zone; the stonethrowing protest outside the West then cries of "round the East!" and a stampede round there where a thin blue line held firm...

not sure if that was the night a bonfire was lit at the Sackville Road crossroads or maybe that was another occasion... one of my non-Albion friends who I dragged along that night still takes the piss out of me for using cigarettes to bribe a couple of kids into also lying down in the road..

Build a Bonfire has some good quotes:

"That was absolutely brilliant. They talk about the youth of today but those lads who ran across, they were marching in quickstep - it was superb. It was so efficient and clinical and that was the end of David Bellotti being allowed in what ostensibly was his own football ground. Quite extraordinary."

"That was the most volatile crowd I have seen. I mean, people mention York, Carlisle and Lincoln but after the Darlington game everyone went a bit mental".

"... we took the lead 2-1 and we then conceded a goal in the last minute to lose 3-2 and the atmosphere afterwards was just bordering on the revolutionary."

STEVE GRITT APPOINTED - WHISTLE PROTEST, 14 DECEMBER 1996.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Truly a moment that leant meaning to the term

"Marvellous scenes"

 

[Harold]

Darlington was an angry impulsive reaction. Far more instinctive than other well planned and better known Goldstone incidents. After Bellotti's hounding from his 'safety zone', the North Stand atmosphere was absolutely fantastic, vocally victorious in achieving its aim of seeing the hated Chief Exec flee like a frightened cat. The support was rocking but the disappointing events on the pitch turned the collective mood into one of abject frustration at the end. Culminating in fans circuiting the Goldstone in mobs and causing the OB a big headache with sit down protests, running chases, etc. To be fair to them, they were pretty decent that night. I remember a fair few lumps of brickwork from a crumbling property wall down Goldstone lane being lobbed at them in one incident. Yet they didn't steam into the perpetrators. In fact they were fair towards us during most of the fans initiatives/incidents that occurred during the destructive tenure of Archer/Bellotti/Stanley. They could easily have taken a much firmer line throughout without recrimination from the authorities/media (especially as Bellotti was on the board of Sussex Police at that time). Those were the true bad times, something a few could well do with remembering.

 

[Mick Beard BHA]

Yeah, it all went a bit mental that night. Best bit for me was seeing my mate's dad (who was no spring-chicken) trying to leg it across with the mob, but pulled his hamstring halfway and got nicked!

I think they let him go outside though. Truly marvellous scenes, although at the time it was no consolation for me as we were 12 points adrift at the bottom.

 

[Caveman]

Remember being snapped on the front page of the Argus as I was climbing into the directors box. Must admit the old pooper was going for a few days after that.

How Bellotti and Archer never got charged or seriously injured is beyond me.

 

[Storer68]

I was there.

As a season ticket I had virtually the whole of the NW terrace to myself.

and I've got the Independent's coverage of it at home.


With the big picture of Bellotti fleeing

 

[Caveman]

I know the picture you're talking about I think, loads of lads standing up waving at him as his legging it out of the West.

 

[Albion Rob]

So many of those games were characterised by what was going on off the pitch rather than on it.

In no particular order from a (then) 15/16 year old from Eastbourne:

Hereford - Walked out 15 minutes before the end at the signal of fireworks. Then Jason Peake hit the bar for us but hardly anyone saw it! I believe Frank Lampard played that day for Hereford on loan.

Hartlepool - Fans United. No need to say more, it's chronicled very well on various threads you could search.

Mansfield - Didn't go because of the boycott. Listened on the radio, the halftime commentary of the break in was far more exciting than the match.

Darlington - Remember the pitch invasion, haranguing Case outside, running battles with the coppers and breaking in to the East Stand. Also think it was one of the many games with protests at the crossroads.

Doncaster - Obvious reasons.

Cardiff - Not really Bellotti related but remember a massive scrap outside.

Orient - One of the most amazing atmospheres I've ever been part of. Also those guys who invaded the pitch and attacked Wilkins.

Fulham - Firework set off at directors' box. Think Bellotti used it as propaganda saying a kid got hit. A load of Fulham fans in the North Stand got a good coining that day too. They brought thousands.

Lincoln - Pitch invasion. May have cost us two points but kept the club's problems in the media eye.

Protests after virtually every game, remember hiding behind a wall to get away from the police after some misdemeanour or other.

Was reading through some old Gulls Eyes from that season last week - truly amazing that the club survived and frightening at how close to the brink we were

There was an excellent strapline on one leaflets calling people to arms:

"Do you want to spend your Saturday afternoons beong dragged round the shops wishing you had done more" - that should galvanise us all in times of trouble.

 

[jonny.rainbow]

Was there.

Wouldn't have missed a game that season.

Every week was exciting off the pitch and then when we started performing on it they were some of the best days at the Albion ever.

 

[Albion Rob]

Oooh, forgot Hull, the whistle protest. That was amazing, like being at a Serie A match.

 

[Billy the Fish]

There was an excellent strapline on one leaflets calling people to arms:

"Do you want to spend your Saturday afternoons beong dragged round the shops wishing you had done more" - that should galvanise us all in times of trouble.

I've still got a box full of newspaper articles and varoius leaflets from around that time, if anyone's interested I coud scan them and post on here when i've got a bit of spare time.

 

[Statto]

I was also there. Never forget that night. Bellotti legging it was defenetly the highlight of the evening. The only time i've ever left a match early. The ref blew the whistle as I was on my way down the stairs to the turnstile

 

[Bozza]

It was, if I recall: "Grit beleives Belotti bullshit" (sic)

I before E except after C!

It was indeed. I'd been working in Australia for 3 months - I left on the 7th September - we beat Scarborough 3-2 at home that day. We didn't win another game until I was next on the North Stand on the 14th December having touched down that morning from Melbourne. This included a draw (and defeat on penalties) to the mighty Sudbury Town.

Whilst my then girlfriend was getting up in the middle of the night to head up to Heathrow to pick me up, her sister and father headed for The Goldstone. Whilst Rusco's better half stood watch on Old Shoreham Road, my future father-in-law, with a can of spray paint, made what is probably the most famous spelling mistake in the history of the Albion.

He gets less mentions in relation to the 'Fish Out!' he sprayed in the South-West corner, recognising the problems that day's visitors Hull were having with their chairman of the time.

He also superglued the locks into the ground on the outside of the West Stand (my future father-in-law that is, not the Hull chairman).

We beat Hull 3-0 that day and went on an amazing home run that preserved our league status that season and, I believe, probably saved the Albion.

 

[Albion Rob]

I've still got a box full of newspaper articles and varoius leaflets from around that time, if anyone's interested I coud scan them and post on here when i've got a bit of spare time.

Personally, I would like that.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

YES PLEASE