[Albion] Bring back the 80s and 90s please.

[rebel51]

For the whole football experience, no glory hunters, train travel was good, standing, good old fashioned songs, more tight knitted mates, younger, more stamina for the all day benders, coming out of coasters and getting the 4am train to Oldham etc. I'm an old bastard now but those were the days for me and we knew we were shite and we knew that reality, but there were great games in between. Getting chased down an alley in grimsby on a Tuesday night and welcomed into an old ladys house with a broom to save me from a pounding. Forgive me for this mini rant, but that's how I feel and love reminiscing about those eras. Happy days

 

[Braggfan]

For the whole football experience, no glory hunters, train travel was good, standing, good old fashioned songs, more tight knitted mates, younger, more stamina for the all day benders, coming out of coasters and getting the 4am train to Oldham etc. I'm an old bastard now but those were the days for me and we knew we were shite and we knew that reality, but there were great games in between. Getting chased down an alley in grimsby on a Tuesday night and welcomed into an old ladys house with a broom to save me from a pounding. Forgive me for this mini rant, but that's how I feel and love reminiscing about those eras. Happy days

I genuinely think that "football experience" (minus the violence) can still be found by watching non league football. I go watch Lewes regularly and the main reason is because I go with my mates and it feels like how football used to be watching it in the 80's and 90's.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

For the whole football experience, no glory hunters, train travel was good, standing, good old fashioned songs, more tight knitted mates, younger, more stamina for the all day benders, coming out of coasters and getting the 4am train to Oldham etc. I'm an old bastard now but those were the days for me and we knew we were shite and we knew that reality, but there were great games in between. Getting chased down an alley in grimsby on a Tuesday night and welcomed into an old ladys house with a broom to save me from a pounding. Forgive me for this mini rant, but that's how I feel and love reminiscing about those eras. Happy days

So basically, you wish YOU were 40 years younger.

 

[rebel51]

So basically, you wish YOU were 40 years younger.

Maybe 30ish

 

[el punal]

For the whole football experience, no glory hunters, train travel was good, standing, good old fashioned songs, more tight knitted mates, younger, more stamina for the all day benders, coming out of coasters and getting the 4am train to Oldham etc. I'm an old bastard now but those were the days for me and we knew we were shite and we knew that reality, but there were great games in between. Getting chased down an alley in grimsby on a Tuesday night and welcomed into an old ladys house with a broom to save me from a pounding. Forgive me for this mini rant, but that's how I feel and love reminiscing about those eras. Happy days

You do realise that you might be able to buy a Time Machine on Amazon to take you back to your glory filled days. Personally, I prefer to watch our free flowing, Europe chasing, skilful football of the 21st century. Added to which I can take my grandson to home and away games, without fear of being chased down alleyways or getting a brick smacking my head. Each to their own eh?

As for songs, I enjoy the current hits of ‘We’re on our way . . ’ , ‘We’ve got super Rob de Zerbi’ - it sort of shows a sense of achievement doncha think?

 

[Simster]

As long as you're not burnt alive in a wooden stand, squashed to death behind a pen, or caught outnumbered by 20 skinheads at Millwall and have the shit nearly kicked out of you and spend the day in a hospital bed. (I remember that happening to an Albion fan in 1984, and it didn't even make the headlines)

I'm being a bit facetious here as I grew up loving football in that era, but people get very misty eyed about that period in time. Crowds were shockingly crap for all but the biggest games - the biggest 2 clubs in the country averaged 6,000 more than we do now! When Palace lost 9-0 at Liverpool, the gate was 35,000. The refs were still shit, defenders could pass back to the keeper when under any pressure, world cup groups were fixed, so were promotion/relegation fixtures, and half of clubs had nothing to play for with 15 games to go.

Apart from atmosphere (and that's debatable), the only thing that was genuinely better was the FA Cup. As for atmosphere, I remember games at the Goldstone where the place was a morgue - and that was in 84, 85 when we were still quite good and vying for promotion back to division 1.

 

[jcdenton08]

 

[hart's shirt]

...more tight knitted mates...

 

[Guinness Boy]

View attachment 173495

Ohh, suits you sir.

 

[Yes Chef]

Hmm, isn't it?

 

[rebel51]

As long as you're not burnt alive in a wooden stand, squashed to death behind a pen, or caught outnumbered by 20 skinheads at Millwall and have the shit nearly kicked out of you and spend the day in a hospital bed.

I'm being a bit facetious here as I grew up loving football in that era, but people get very misty eyed about that era. Crowds were shockingly crap for all but the biggest games. You talk about atmosphere but I remember games at the Goldstone where the place was a morgue - and that was in 84, 85 when we were still quite good and vying for promotion back to division 1.

But you didn't have to sit in the middle of people on there phones and you could move about freely and pay on the gate. Surges in the North,away fans in the chicken run corner, the list goes on. Watching bernie gallacher running down the flank.Clive walkers silky runs.We could do with him now.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

As long as you're not burnt alive in a wooden stand, squashed to death behind a pen, or caught outnumbered by 20 skinheads at Millwall and have the shit nearly kicked out of you and spend the day in a hospital bed.

I'm being a bit facetious here as I grew up loving football in that era, but people get very misty eyed about that period in time. Crowds were shockingly crap for all but the biggest games - the biggest 2 clubs in the country averaged 6,000 more than we do now! The refs were still shit, defenders could pass back to the keeper when under any pressure, world cup groups were fixed, so were promotion/relegation fixtures, half of clubs had nothing to play for with 15 games to go.

Apart from atmosphere (and that's debatable), the only thing that was genuinely better was the FA Cup. As for atmosphere, I remember games at the Goldstone where the place was a morgue - and that was in 84, 85 when we were still quite good and vying for promotion back to division 1.

Away games were particularly bad at times. I remember some away days where we took a hundred max on a windswept, bleak and open terrace at some nothern shit hole.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I do get the OP. Late 80s and the 90s was my prime away days going to most games in a season till the terrible two started banning everyone. We had some good days and some shit days but a lot of laughs. Like him did a few early trains after a night out in town. I also wish I was 30 years younger!

No Time Machine though and I love our new ground, brilliant football, trips abroad to watch the Albion and still manage some boozy away days with mates so can’t complain.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

But you didn't have to sit in the middle of people on there phones and you could move about freely and pay on the gate. Surges in the North,away fans in the chicken run corner, the list goes on. Watching bernie gallacher running down the flank.Clive walkers silky runs.We could do with him now.

there phones?

 

[Simster]

But you didn't have to sit in the middle of people on there phones and you could move about freely and pay on the gate. Surges in the North,away fans in the chicken run corner, the list goes on. Watching bernie gallacher running down the flank.Clive walkers silky runs.We could do with him now.

But there weren't big fan zones or concourses where you could meet up either. I too miss moving about freely and crowd surges, but you can't pretend it didn't come at a price - some dick could throw a punch or a coin and then melt away, and it happened all the time.

 

[Chicken Run]

For the whole football experience, no glory hunters, train travel was good, standing, good old fashioned songs, more tight knitted mates, younger, more stamina for the all day benders, coming out of coasters and getting the 4am train to Oldham etc. I'm an old bastard now but those were the days for me and we knew we were shite and we knew that reality, but there were great games in between. Getting chased down an alley in grimsby on a Tuesday night and welcomed into an old ladys house with a broom to save me from a pounding. Forgive me for this mini rant, but that's how I feel and love reminiscing about those eras. Happy days

Train travel you say…. I can remember at least 2 away days in the late 80’s where the trains broke down and we didn’t even get to the game, Ipswich was one where the train and replacement broke down an we all bailed off to the sidings and walked up the embankment to Colchester, never got to the game!!

 

[boik]

But you didn't have to sit in the middle of people on there phones and you could move about freely and pay on the gate. Surges in the North,away fans in the chicken run corner, the list goes on. Watching bernie gallacher running down the flank.Clive walkers silky runs.We could do with him now.

If you think that Clive Walker was better than ANY of our current squad then you need to see a doctor. He wouldn't even get in our u21s nowadays even at his peak. Nostalgia is deluding you.

 

[A1X]

 

[Official Old Man]

I'm off to Sheffield this weekend, that's the whole weekend of 3 days drinking and having fun (to the extent two old men can have fun).
In 1978 & 79 I went to Sheffield on the Seagull Special train. Almost strip searched at the station, treated like criminal hooligans, frog marched (kettled now) to the ground and left to fend for ourselves back to the station.
Talking of Sheffield, Sheffield Tap brew pub on the platform at the station and the Triple Point Brewery are the two must visits. Look for two old geezers sat in the Tap from 12:00

 

[el punal]

I do get the OP. Late 80s and the 90s was my prime away days going to most games in a season till the terrible two started banning everyone. We had some good days and some shit days but a lot of laughs. Like him did a few early trains after a night out in town. I also wish I was 30 years younger!

No Time Machine though and I love our new ground, brilliant football, trips abroad to watch the Albion and still manage some boozy away days with mates so can’t complain.

Well you summed it up. Everything that happened in your late teens and twenties always seems more exciting. Everything’s a laugh even if it probably isn’t. Football wise, I always remember with affection the great night games of the 1970s. The promotion games of 72 against Rotherham and Rochdale, THAT night in 76 when we beat Palace 2-0 in front of 33,500+ crowd, the League Cup draw against Derby again in front of a massive crowd.

I also remember some shit times and events - Spurs fans smashing everybody and everything up in 1978, ditto Chelsea in 83. The Goldstone, despite being our home, was an absolute dump. From the time I started watching the Albion back in 1965 to it being demolished there were no improvements made to the ground. Okay, the Lego stand put up for our Division One entrance in 1979, the South Stand rebuilt because it burned down, the North Stand roof having to be replaced - and that’s it.

My point is that everyone looks through rose tinted glasses at their past thinking how wonderful it all was. The reality, though, is quite different.