Why am I surprised at this topic?
I posted this below from C Cup final 2010[i][i]I've said this before but until the authorities ban sale of alcohol during the games this will continue to happen and, god forbid, scenes only previously seen with soccer.
RL C.Cup final - speccies typically leave 7am and start on the beer; Grand Final even worse - speccies get to drink all day and by 6pm ko are well and truly bladdered!
Next - continue to be served and recipe for aggression.....

I have seen this at recent GF games with Saints and Leeds and also at Wembley with Saints and Hull fans (yes - I am Saints fan). I'm not picking on any named team either, all clubs have their idiots especially when beer is freely available - Saints more than many![/i][/i]]
Sad day when I say that alcohol shouldn't be sold at matches but I really fear for the day when it all kicks off and, for once, we as RL sport finally appears on the BBC News and front pages in the press for all the wrong reasons.

Shocking behaviour at a Rugby League game, find that hard to believe it being such a family sport and all that

Cracking day out at Peterborough today.

***This is not a let's have a go at Leeds we've been bad enough with Warringtonnfans***
3 Leeds adult fans in their 30's - 40's were in block 111 row 3 or 4 when you scored the fan in the middle tured around and stick 2 fingers in the face of a 15-16 year old lad and started shouting fu know the rest. Stewards stood and watched until a group of fans entered the row to advise him of his conduct. Good enough he left after 65 mins. Wish I took his photograph. Will take the matter up with the RFL.
Great game and played to the end. Good luck for the rest of the season.

Warrington fans were bad where I were sat.

Had a dig at 2 young kids enjoying the day with thier parents cos they had rhino's shirts on, then 2 of them challenged a lad in his late-teens to a fight, credit to the lad, he ignored them, another pint went flying, and finally of the idiots fell down across 2 rows of seats.

The answer, ban alcohol sales altogether.

This is clearly not an issue for one club. It's a huge problem for the game and society in general. Too many fans of all clubs are more interested in getting drunk and making tits of themselves than they are in the game or the enjoyment of the people around them.

It's very easy to blame stewards but if people had a bit of common sense the stewards wouldn't be necessary.

On a positive note I saw lots of RL fans in central London today doing the game proud - spoke to some lovely Leigh fans in Trafalgar Square!

The whole thing has turned full circle. I am a person in my 30s who has a season ticket at my club but also regularly attends football matches (and now prepares to be shot down in flames). Ive heard for so long about our sport being a family game. Those days are gone, I can honestly say that behaviour in the ground at football is far better than in RL games (moreso for big games). I have personally encountered problems at International games, Grand Finals, and CC Cup finals. Ive seen supporters of the same club fighting amongst themselves at Wembley last year, and Ive been threatened in the toilets at a GF. This sort of behaviour does not go on inside football grounds nowadays. The sport has taken action in terms of policing, stewarding, and alcohol sales.

If this is a family sport, why would people now choose to either not take their kids, or not bother going at all?

Is it possible that Leeds fans have got so used to winning they have forgotten how to lose? I know its been a while but the last final I went to nonLeeds was Catalan v Saints, and it was a very happy day all round.

my lad wanted to go yesterday, but changed his mond after i reminded him of why i didn't want to go after our last experience in CC finals, exactly as Taf described.

We're looking forward to going to some of the non England games at the World Cup next year. Hopefully great RL without the morons

Lot of worse for wear cricket fans at the t20 yesterday but not one ounce of trouble. Party atmosphere. All the Sussex fans stayed even though we'd knocked em out and had a ball!

Gutting to read this thread but No doubt that ale should not be sold during the game in my view. Whether it will make any difference is another matter as how some make it through the turnstile is a scandal in itself

No think your completely wrong.

Leeds have had plenty of practice losing in the challenge cup final.
It isn't just a Leeds problem it's a game problem. Saw and heard fans of Leeds, cas, saints, wire all drunk and swearing. I think it's luck of the draw where you sit if you have a decent game. 2007 sat in Leeds end when we won was one of the worst experiences of Chavs at rugby.

I really don't know why some waste their money coming to the game. On wembley way before the game there were for example 3 Leeds blokes who could hardly string words together that drunk. And 4 Warrington women (using the word loosely) drunk and one of them was behind one of the food stalls with a tent round her ankles (don't think they do knickers that big) having a pee infront of everyone.

As for the football fan. I am also a Leeds utd fan, but rugby and football are completely different. Don't see many bricks being thrown after games at headingley. You just have to look at the amount of police at football grounds as appose to the amount at rugby to see which game has the more problems.
Foul and abusive chanting is more normal at football for me than rugby

It is very easy to blame stewards because...

...what else are they there for ?



The only reason that they are part-time, casually employed staff is because thats a much, much, cheaper way to fulfil H&S requirements than to contract police officers, but they are totally infective against the sorts of issues we see highlighted after EVERY major final, Challenge Cup or Grand Final, it happens EVERY time and its only through a stroke of good luck and the fact that the mainstream press ignore the sport that we don't get spread across the front pages of the newspapers and BBC News.

As long as the RFL can keep the lid on it and as long as the media ignore it, then it will continue.

Watched the games yesterday, and last night watching final wished I'd gone. Looked a great atmosphere. Thought Miller was going to single handedly bludgeon Yorkshire to victory....but not to be.

that might help short term within the stadium but they will always get tanked up further outside in the pubs. but why should it spoil other peoples enjoyment that can enjoy a drink and watch the game without being disruptive

the only way is a hard line, your out of the ground and if it continued when ejected in a cooling cell for the night simple

Agree but would also ban drinking on terraces and if your drunk when you get to the game your not coming in. There is legislation already in place that can be used

One of the reasons is that people can't pace themselves. A long day on a coach and people start drinking at 8 or 9 am.

I don't see the point of being so drunk you don't enjoy and remember the game