I'd love to hear Sally's memories of Wilderspool, pre-internet I may add.

Not like you to play Super Fan....

When you have 30 years in, PM me.

30 years in what?

Fuck off I'm not in the mood.

Wire beating the Aussies in 78, played them at their own game, didn't like it did they

New Zealand v Tonga in 95 world cup, what a game that was.

Oh the memories, I could go on.

random Wilderspool memories

first ever game, at home to Wigan in April 1991 (league game), everyone giving Steve Hampson a load of it. And a train driver stood on top of his loco watching the game for a few minutes before reversing the coal trucks back out again. being accused of smoking when i got home... when it was just the smell on my clothes from everyone else. We hate Wigan, we hate Wigan.

91/92 v Leeds, Regal Trophy. The first time I heard 'Wires on the telly...' Fozzie getting sent off for a high tackle on... ?marvin golden?

91/92 - v Hull - changing ends a few minutes earlier than usual. We all filed into the Railway End behind the Hull fans, who were leading at the time... they were singing, we started signing, they all turned round... and it kicked off. Climbed up the back of the stand (there was a support you could just about stand on) and being bollocked by a cop. 'If you hate Greg Mackay clap your hands...' for the whole of the second half. (they beat us in the end). The 'disgraceful scenes' were mentioned in the Guardian. Going to Wire v Hull in 92/93 expecting it to kick off again - it didn't.

91/92 - Blackpool Gladiators as mentioned by OP - Lee Penny's debut.

91/92 beating Swinton by loads. I was surprised to see that the Tries column on the scoreboard could go above 9...

92/93 Indie nights at Legends on Friday night - MD 20/20, Jane's Addiction, Pixies, Nirvana etc, knowing I'd be back again on a Sunday afternoon.

£60 season ticket 92/93

'Warrington Guardian Series' advert atop the Railway End. Massive 'Leigh Concrete' sign in the Main Stand/Railway End corner (where the terracing was really narrow)

The subs/coaching staff sat on benches underneath Snookers (after the terracing there had closed). It was unsafe for us, but ok for them...!?

The little TV gantry on top of Snookers. Always wanted to go up there.

Buying 'House of Pain' in the shop.

The sights, smells and sounds of Wilderspool as documented by previous posts - god I miss it so much.

HJ is great but it's not the same.



slightly O/T - a random memory from a Boxing Day game at Naughton Park December 1991 - we were 8 - 4 up at half time. Then there was a fire alarm, and the main stand was evacuated, so everyone went on the pitch. A fireman went into the stand, and started hacking at the seats, to great cheers from the Wire fans ! we lost though after kevin Ellis was sent off in the second half. Russel Smith was ref IIRC.

Watching players try to pass an inflatable sheep in Chambo's testimonial!

my first post so excuse errors-memories, boys pen at the railway end,10/6 for a lads season ticket,25bob for an adults(I think), seeing ray price duggie greenall, a touch judge, and about four speccies fighting , and of course seeing the greats ,BEV, harry bath moggy palin, later bobby fulton,john bevan, playing for a certain school in st.helens in the morning then catching the 140 to bridge foot and straight to the ground . later in life, watching with despair as we descended almost into oblivion,and my dad and me joined in the demo against the board and ossie davies cobbling a last minute solution together, then the great days of les boyd tamati jackson,phil blake (pure class), the late great mike gregory, meat pie and gravy (a salmonella meal) trying to get in the shallow end in the lavvies -lots of memories but after many false dawns and even more poor managers,its is great to go once again to wembley.there is light at the end of a long tunnel.like my dad there has been only one team for me through good times,bad times, change of grounds, change of name. i am a wire supporter and have been for many many years,

He was a clever bloke as a youth, fell out of a tree, never the same.

then got found not guilty at the hearing .......we rarely had any luck against the smellies in those days

for a while he almost ruined my 1986 premiership final day.
for some reason Graham west of Wigan Was Stood near us just behind the sticks johnny Warbo came down stood right in front of me waving a big flag blocking my view.... "and started singing are you watching Graham West".......

West totally ignored him (he was busy watching the game) and Warbo went back to his spot and I got my view back...... quite a character

The pound entry voucher for kids in the guardian. Then finding out that a wolfpack is a tenner at the start of my first full season.

Mark fosters double testimonial against Wigan, it was a freezin midweek night KO and hardly anyone was there.

Danny nutley and stevie mac owning the other packs in SL


All the players in the VDV era going to the village after EVERY game Nd gettin my shirt signed by all of them. Some days playing off ground tag with the players who had had a wee bit too much

Watching Paul wood, chris cambell, nooney, hula and others coming through the ranks( these were the first academy players is remember)
The confetti cannons the starlights had
The half time game when people had to catch a ball after it went through the ' bomb machine'

I remember the tannoy announcement was cryptic in an attempt not to initiate panic amongst the crowd.

"A message for all stewards. Mr Fox is under the main stand. I repeat. Mr Fox is under the main stand."

Our group all turned to another and almost in unison announced, "there's a fire".

Anyone who wasn't around at the time and not old enough to remember crap films starring The Bionic Man hot-wiring Migs and avoiding the entire might of the Soviet military single handedly shouldn't be expected to understand the reference.

Actually, two other announcements at Widnes also now come to mind.

When the idea of Super League was still but a damp patch in Maurice Lindsay's silk underwear the original plan was for Warrington and Widnes to merge and form The Cheshire Cats. Yep, that would have worked.
Anyway, a few days passed and Warrington somehow managed to convince the authorities they were worthy of a place on their own, whilst it looked as though Widnes would be kicked out. Who says lightning doesn't strike twice?

The day of Widnes vs Warrington came around soon afterwards and it was a due to be a day of unbelieveable social disorder - something akin to the fall of the Berlin Wall had the gossip in the pubs of Warrington and Widnes been believed. Just before the game Big Jim Mills (it's illegal to write his name without Big at the beginning) appeared on some scaffold with a mic in his hand and made an announcement to the effect that only that morning the authorities had agreed that both Warrington and Widnes would have places of their own in this new-fangled Super League conception.

It worked. Well, Widnes didn't actually get in to Super League but at least there were no demos and the game went ahead.

In another game at Widnes there was a bit of crowd trouble that spilled on to the pitch at half-time.
The police, stewards, pacifist drunks couldn't sort it out so a voice appealed on the tannoy, "...please leave the pitch and stop the trouble. It's the referee's last game and he's very upset."

Surprisingly that didn't hold much weight with the clowns on the pitch but a valiant, yet naive, attempt all the same.

Correct Riddler, i had forgotten all about the 'not so cryptic' Mr Fox reference...! well remembered.

I also remember the pre-Super League game (Good Friday 1995?) where we all turned up expecting to do a joint Wire-Widnes protest about how much we hated each other and didn't want to become 'the Cheshire Cats, the Cheshire Cheeses, or anything you might want to call it' to quote 'Disgusted of Dudlows Green' in a letter in the Warri Guardian at the time.... Then it being announced on BBC Merseyside and in the ground that it wasn't happening, as you mentioned.

I don't remember the third game you mentionend (crowd trouble and ref's plea), was that at an earlier one? (ie prior to 1990 ? )