A little clarity on the Ibrox Disaster

Bearsden Bear

Bearsden Bear

Well-Known Member
This was my first-ever Old Firm match, and I actually exited via Stairway 13 shortly before it happened.

In view of some of the vile posters and slogans and chants which we have witnessed over the past few years, I would just like to state the following.

In the period immediately following the Disaster, there was genuine and sincere sympathy extended towards the victims, and our Club, by supporters of other teams, including Celtic, who also donated to the Ibrox Disaster Fund. I remember there was even a girl in my class at school who was a Dundee Utd fan who sent off a donation.

So although there was fierce rivalry between fans in those days, folk seemed to conduct themselves with far more dignity following such an appalling tragedy, and I think anyone who attended that fateful day, including the 20-25,000 Celtic supporters, would be utterly appalled at some of the shameful celebrations coming from folk who weren't even born then.
 
I don't know if its an apocryphal story but wasn't one of those who lost their lives that day a Celtic fan who was in the Rangers end as he lived just a few streets away ? It also always appalls me that both the SFA and SPFL never have a minute silence at every game on the anniversary of that week in 1971. Does this not happen in England for Hillsborough. ?
 
That lot have no respect look what they do to people who have been sexually assaulted by their clubs employees YES THEY WERE PART OF THE SAME CLUB , no matter how much they deny it, like Cairney, Torbett, McCafferty King, Cullen, and a host of others soon to be uncovered ask Gerry McSherry he had uncovered 14 what a disgraceful club with even worse supporters.
 
Bearsden Bear said:
This was my first-ever Old Firm match, and I actually exited via Stairway 13 shortly before it happened.

In view of some of the vile posters and slogans and chants which we have witnessed over the past few years, I would just like to state the following.

In the period immediately following the Disaster, there was genuine and sincere sympathy extended towards the victims, and our Club, by supporters of other teams, including Celtic, who also donated to the Ibrox Disaster Fund. I remember there was even a girl in my class at school who was a Dundee Utd fan who sent off a donation.

So although there was fierce rivalry between fans in those days, folk seemed to conduct themselves with far more dignity following such an appalling tragedy, and I think anyone who attended that fateful day, including the 20-25,000 Celtic supporters, would be utterly appalled at some of the shameful celebrations coming from folk who weren't even born then.
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In those days respect was always there by all

The Scottish government and sfa has caused most of the hatred within our country

It’s a shame the way it has turned out

I’m 57 and still call old neighbours by There second name

Respect was always there
 
Craigie said:
Times have changed Bearsden Bear and not only in the football world.

Sadly, not for the better.
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I think most sane folk who support clubs across Scotland won't revel in the disaster. Sadly you now have a vocal crowd who do and with social media, values changing through the decades and them not giving a %^*& in general they are easily heard.

It's pretty tragic how low some will stoop, say and do for a reaction.
 
I also left by the so-called Stairway 13. I'm sure the vast majority of folk would not indulge in jibes about the Disaster but sadly there are some people who have no respect for themselves or others.
 
I am of the same era, and I remember there was nowhere near the same amount of animosity between fans who knew each other back then. There were always battles at games of course, but there was a tolerance of each other in everyday life. Everyone was a 90 minute bigot, but away from football you could have a bit of banter and fun with the opposition.

Where I lived, when Scotland played England and it was on TV rangers fans and celtic fans used to gather at some ones house and we would all cheer on Scotland.

Celtic fans considered their team as Scottish, albeit with strong Irish connections. The rise of faux sectarianism has had a huge effect, it has widened the gap between fans and has played into the hands of those who revel in the divide.
 
What annoys me most is the fact that no one in politics, football or the media are willing to condemn these things- I mean it is utterly reprehensible
 
Scooby said:
I am of the same era, and I remember there was nowhere near the same amount of animosity between fans who knew each other back then. There were always battles at games of course, but there was a tolerance of each other in everyday life. Everyone was a 90 minute bigot, but away from football you could have a bit of banter and fun with the opposition.

Where I lived, when Scotland played England and it was on TV rangers fans and celtic fans used to gather at some ones house and we would all cheer on Scotland.

Celtic fans considered their team as Scottish, albeit with strong Irish connections. The rise of faux sectarianism has had a huge effect, it has widened the gap between fans and has played into the hands of those who revel in the divide.
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I know some cretins from around the same era who always considered themselves Scottish until just a few years ago. Laughable idiots.
 
muttley said:
I don't know if its an apocryphal story but wasn't one of those who lost their lives that day a Celtic fan who was in the Rangers end as he lived just a few streets away ? It also always appalls me that both the SFA and SPFL never have a minute silence at every game on the anniversary of that week in 1971. Does this not happen in England for Hillsborough. ?
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It does mate aye
 
It’s folk hiding behind social media accounts, they wouldn’t dare say such things to people’s faces. It’s all about people wanting to be as “edgy” as possible so they get likes and attention.
 
Very much changed days, celtic fans, and others now happily state those 66 Rangers fans were murdered by Rangers fc and will happily paint walls and produce stickers and even sing songs rejoicing in the fact Rangers fans died.
That's the level of hatred we deal with now.
 
muttley said:
I know some cretins from around the same era who always considered themselves Scottish until just a few years ago. Laughable idiots.
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I always tell people my Dad was at the 67 Wembley with the Castlemilk Celtic SC my Dad always said they were sound guys and he wasn't the only Rangers fan on the bus
 
Society in general has deteriorated.

Years ago, most people had respect for people in uniform, for teachers, for people in authority, for public places.

Since they did away with the belt in school (I'm not saying it was right necessarily), behaviour has got worse and worse. The lack of punishment fitting the crime has caused an increase in all sorts of crimes.

The easy availability of drink and drugs may have something to do with it.

If people from the past could see society now, they would be shocked.
 
gordon_blue said:
Society in general has deteriorated.

Years ago, most people had respect for people in uniform, for teachers, for people in authority, for public places.

Since they did away with the belt in school (I'm not saying it was right necessarily), behaviour has got worse and worse. The lack of punishment fitting the crime has caused an increase in all sorts of crimes.

The easy availability of drink and drugs may have something to do with it.

If people from the past could see society now, they would be shocked.
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And the ones from the 40's to people in the 60's etc
 
Bearsden Bear said:
This was my first-ever Old Firm match, and I actually exited via Stairway 13 shortly before it happened.

In view of some of the vile posters and slogans and chants which we have witnessed over the past few years, I would just like to state the following.

In the period immediately following the Disaster, there was genuine and sincere sympathy extended towards the victims, and our Club, by supporters of other teams, including Celtic, who also donated to the Ibrox Disaster Fund. I remember there was even a girl in my class at school who was a Dundee Utd fan who sent off a donation.

So although there was fierce rivalry between fans in those days, folk seemed to conduct themselves with far more dignity following such an appalling tragedy, and I think anyone who attended that fateful day, including the 20-25,000 Celtic supporters, would be utterly appalled at some of the shameful celebrations coming from folk who weren't even born then.
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Like you I went down Stairway thirteen,I never noticed anything,but I left after the final whistle,I lost a friend that day,these were the days when Rangers and Celtic players used to be friends,they used to socialise together,(Henderson and Gemmell come to mind)I came front Cardonald and my circle of friends were mixed,we would go to the game together and split up at our ends and meet back in the Quo Vadis for drinks after the game,that day I remember having a drink, well past 7 o'clock and someone said there's been trouble at Ibrox,I never really listened as there was always the afters after the game but then the news started filtering in,I don't think I've made it home so fast from there,my mother and father were frantic with worry,not knowing was the worst,every New Year still chokes me,the difference nowadays is the hatred is something we never knew then,yes we sang our songs,they sang theirs,but it finished,there,we went back to being normal the next day,the low life's now would never have been accepted,they would have been ostracised and made to stay within the same band of cretins,like for like,I just wish we could go back to those days again.
This is the first time I've actually posted something like this,but the hatred has to stop.
 
frankieboy said:
Like you I went down Stairway thirteen,I never noticed anything,but I left after the final whistle,I lost a friend that day,these were the days when Rangers and Celtic players used to be friends,they used to socialise together,(Henderson and Gemmell come to mind)I came front Cardonald and my circle of friends were mixed,we would go to the game together and split up at our ends and meet back in the Quo Vadis for drinks after the game,that day I remember having a drink, well past 7 o'clock and someone said there's been trouble at Ibrox,I never really listened as there was always the afters after the game but then the news started filtering in,I don't think I've made it home so fast from there,my mother and father were frantic with worry,not knowing was the worst,every New Year still chokes me,the difference nowadays is the hatred is something we never knew then,yes we sang our songs,they sang theirs,but it finished,there,we went back to being normal the next day,the low life's now would never have been accepted,they would have been ostracised and made to stay within the same band of cretins,like for like,I just wish we could go back to those days again.
This is the first time I've actually posted something like this,but the hatred has to stop.
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The toxic mix of Scottish / Irish Republicanism encouraged at that terrorist theme park in the East End has changed Glasgow forever.
 
gordon_blue said:
Society in general has deteriorated.

Years ago, most people had respect for people in uniform, for teachers, for people in authority, for public places.

Since they did away with the belt in school (I'm not saying it was right necessarily), behaviour has got worse and worse. The lack of punishment fitting the crime has caused an increase in all sorts of crimes.

The easy availability of drink and drugs may have something to do with it.

If people from the past could see society now, they would be shocked.
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Your words ring true . Was in Glasgow a year or so ago with my elderly parents and when we got on the subway a group of young girls got on , steaming drunk . The language and shouting and crude remarks were horrible, and to have to see the visible shock on my parents face is something I won’t forget .

My parents aren’t prudes or snobs they were brought up in tough areas of Glasgow but they were physically in shock when we got off the tube . God help your kids son if this is what youngsters are like these days they said . All I could muster was hopefully they don’t all end up like that .

It’s a truly horrendous , hate filled , money grabbing , violent and disrespectful world in which we now live . I rarely go out because of it .
 
I was in the Rangers end that day but exited via the main stand side after the match finished. Didn't know anything about it till I arrived home an hour after the game.
A few weeks after the disaster an Old Firm select played at Hampden v Scotland for the charity.
Over 81 thousand attended, including Celtic fans.
George Best and Bobby Charlton played that night for the old firm.
In the seventies I cannot remember any side singing about the disaster, Aberdeen fans were probably the 1st to start it after Souness arrived.
 
And I’m sure there’s still many, many Celtic fans who feel the same. There are more these days than there used to be, however, who do feel the need to mock the dead.
 
I was in the Rangers End that day.

I had been on Stairway 13 two years earlier when there had been a nasty incident with a few Bears injured and I still remember the crush. For that reason, I avoided it and exited under the Derry. Leaving the ground I could see that something had happened but had no idea what until I got home about an hour later to find my mother in a state.

That stairway was dangerous and Rangers knew it was dangerous. There is culpability for not making it safe when, two years earlier, they had a real warning of what could happen.
 
Scooby said:
I am of the same era, and I remember there was nowhere near the same amount of animosity between fans who knew each other back then. There were always battles at games of course, but there was a tolerance of each other in everyday life. Everyone was a 90 minute bigot, but away from football you could have a bit of banter and fun with the opposition.

Where I lived, when Scotland played England and it was on TV rangers fans and celtic fans used to gather at some ones house and we would all cheer on Scotland.

Celtic fans considered their team as Scottish, albeit with strong Irish connections. The rise of faux sectarianism has had a huge effect, it has widened the gap between fans and has played into the hands of those who revel in the divide.
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As soon as I hear someone talk about, “sectarian problems” with Rangers & Celtic, I wonder how that person is seeking to get something off the back of it.

Journalists & politicians have built careers from talking this up and presenting themselves as crusaders wanting to put an end to it. In truth, they are desperate to perpetuate and create and/or maintain any tensions they can as it is their meal ticket.

Like you say, most supporters were able to treat the matches as a safety valve 4 or 5 times a season but manage reasonable relations for the rest of the time.
 
muttley said:
I don't know if its an apocryphal story but wasn't one of those who lost their lives that day a Celtic fan who was in the Rangers end as he lived just a few streets away ? It also always appalls me that both the SFA and SPFL never have a minute silence at every game on the anniversary of that week in 1971. Does this not happen in England for Hillsborough. ?
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Liverpool have but the only time it happens I think at every game when it a certain anniversary i.e 10th, 20th, 30th?

Also I don't think it been every year at Rangers either until recently

20th is the 1st one for me followed by 25th and 30th after that there has been something every year?
 
egtjpy.jpg
 
Like the OP I entered the ground at stair 13 as was normal for me, I was with a mate and we were late in so we were at the back of the crowed, so when the game ended it was a quick about turn and on to the top of stair 13 and then down and away, did not know anything till we reached the Dom in Brigton I was on my second pint when the owner a Tim by the way, asked what happened at Ibrox, we never seen a thing, I was only married two weeks at that time, dived home to find her in floods of tears, sad thing was we were going over to the Vicky Inf, that night to see my old man, the place was like a war zone, I have never forgot that day or night till the day I die.
 
It’s indoctrinated from Schools as well by SUPPOSED TEACHERS who openly decry Rangers and what do the EIS just say don’t do it again. Is their something about get them young that breeds this type of Scum?
 
Bearsden Bear said:
This was my first-ever Old Firm match, and I actually exited via Stairway 13 shortly before it happened.

In view of some of the vile posters and slogans and chants which we have witnessed over the past few years, I would just like to state the following.

In the period immediately following the Disaster, there was genuine and sincere sympathy extended towards the victims, and our Club, by supporters of other teams, including Celtic, who also donated to the Ibrox Disaster Fund. I remember there was even a girl in my class at school who was a Dundee Utd fan who sent off a donation.

So although there was fierce rivalry between fans in those days, folk seemed to conduct themselves with far more dignity following such an appalling tragedy, and I think anyone who attended that fateful day, including the 20-25,000 Celtic supporters, would be utterly appalled at some of the shameful celebrations coming from folk who weren't even born then.
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You’re correct mate. 100%. A lot of Celtic players went to the funerals IIRC.
 
Social media allows shitebags to hide behind the anonymity of the internet and say things they would be frightened to in real life for fear of a hiding.
I don't say anything online that I wouldn't be prepared to say to anybody's face (I am a cheeky fucker though and have the marks to prove it :) )
 
Let's not kid ourselves that it's down to the social media age and gangs of teenage keyboard warriors.

I'm sure most of us remember Aberdeen fans singing about it and Celtc fans being unable to respect minutes silences on numerous occasions.
 
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Dempster said:
Your words ring true . Was in Glasgow a year or so ago with my elderly parents and when we got on the subway a group of young girls got on , steaming drunk . The language and shouting and crude remarks were horrible, and to have to see the visible shock on my parents face is something I won’t forget .

My parents aren’t prudes or snobs they were brought up in tough areas of Glasgow but they were physically in shock when we got off the tube . God help your kids son if this is what youngsters are like these days they said . All I could muster was hopefully they don’t all end up like that .

It’s a truly horrendous , hate filled , money grabbing , violent and disrespectful world in which we now live . I rarely go out because of it .
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There’s a lot of truth in both of these posts. It’s sad to see the way this country has changed. I
was 8yo at that game, so was in the Main Stand, and being from a pretty poor area in the east end, I saw a lot of mad stuff growing up back then in a very tough city.

Yet despite that I get really pissed off with the deterioration in values, and of course the way people’s behaviour & attitudes have changed towards my culture.

Despite that though I’ll not be bullied but will stand against our haters. This is my city, and THEY can %^*& off.
 
ScotiaPapac said:
Unfortunately these days people with public profiles who can influence behaviours (politicians, journalists) excuse vile behaviour to help advance their careers.
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The complete race to the bottom of standards in public life really has speeded our descent.

Public figures and politicians used to set an example, not lead the rabble.
 
Arminius said:
The complete race to the bottom of standards in public life really has speeded our descent.

Public figures and politicians used to set an example, not lead the rabble.
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There are a good few SNP MPs / Councillors that would already be fired for their behaviour towards us in recent years mate.
 
Craigie said:
Let's not kid ourselves that it's down to the social media age and gangs of teenage keyboard warriors.

I'm sure most of us remember Aberdeen fans singing about it and Celtc fans being unable to respect minutes silences on numerous occasions.
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It's a similar thing though, idiots hiding in groups of Rangers haters singing this shite were the keyboard warriors of their day.
 
These are indeed changed days. I was born in 67 and cannot remember the events of stairway 13. Both of my uncles ( mum's side) would have attended, at that end. It was they and my father who would subsequently take me to Ibrox and forge my love for our club.
Never once did I here them openly espouse hatred for anyone, any club, any religion in front of me, or any of my sisters and cousins. We had relatives that married 'over the fence' , but that was simply a source of banter and humour.
I now take my own kids to Ibrox, they are 13, 11 and 8. The same views of tolerance are instilled in and expected of them. As a result I can present my children anywhere.
I am not unique in this. There are many, many good people out there, from both sides of the old firm divide, who find this ongoing, abhorrent yet relatively modern tit for tat hatred, truly bemusing. I don't hate Celtic supporters. I do not like Celtic.
What I hate is the anonymity that the platforms on which we all now post gives us.
Back in the day you had to be a pure mad mental bastard to go into the lions dens and confront the enemy. Not now. You can just get a smart phone, post as a 'username ', all incognito and tell yer mates what a big noise you are.
It happens here, it happens in Kerryfail St. It happens on every fans forum in the world. It's the same with the 66haha graffiti and the KAH stuff. Incognito. Shitbaggery.
Values of human decency are being eroded even as we type our worthless opinions on this site. And we're all to blame.
If you call the police 'yer a fuckin grass'. If somebody disrespects you at the soup kitchen, you demand that cops intervene *.
Social media? What a crock of pish. Promotes vanity, insecurity, hatred, and a perceived sense that any fucker actually cares what the %^*& you or I have to say.

Back on point. God bless all who sadly lost their lives on that sad day. It was a human, not just a football tragedy. Like Munich, Heysel, Bradford, and coumtless others.
It's football. Supporters with no empathy have no right being supporters. IMHO.
WATP.
 
It was my first Old Firm match as well and I walked past the foot of Stairway 13 a few minutes after the final whistle not realising what was taking place.

Bearsden Bear is right in saying that there was genuine shock and sadness throughout Scotland and it is only in the past couple of decades that some people have tried to use the tragedy to antagonise.
 
Bearsden Bear said:
This was my first-ever Old Firm match, and I actually exited via Stairway 13 shortly before it happened.

In view of some of the vile posters and slogans and chants which we have witnessed over the past few years, I would just like to state the following.

In the period immediately following the Disaster, there was genuine and sincere sympathy extended towards the victims, and our Club, by supporters of other teams, including Celtic, who also donated to the Ibrox Disaster Fund. I remember there was even a girl in my class at school who was a Dundee Utd fan who sent off a donation.

So although there was fierce rivalry between fans in those days, folk seemed to conduct themselves with far more dignity following such an appalling tragedy, and I think anyone who attended that fateful day, including the 20-25,000 Celtic supporters, would be utterly appalled at some of the shameful celebrations coming from folk who weren't even born then.
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Like you I was at the game but I came down the path to the left hand side of stairway 13.
To this day I can still hear the screams,it was awful and any human being can mock the disaster is beyond me.
I have noticed the hatred has intensed when we went down the divisions, it seems our club became weaker and the haters jumped on this?
 
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