Millwall Bushwackers
Founding location | fighting and arson |
---|---|
Allies | Utrecht Bunnikside, Glasgow Rangers ICF |
Rivals | Inter City Firm, Soul Crew, Service Crew, Chelsea Headhunters, MIGs |
The Millwall Bushwackers are a
Background
Beginnings
The stigma of violence attached to Millwall can be traced back over 110 years. Millwall played local rivals
Hooliganism becomes rife
In the 1960s, hooliganism in England became more widely reported. On 6 November 1965 Millwall beat west London club Brentford 2–1 away at Griffin Park and during the game a hand grenade was thrown onto the pitch from the Millwall end. Brentford's goalkeeper Chic Brodie picked it up, inspected it and threw it into his goal. It was later retrieved by police and determined to be a harmless dummy. There was fighting inside and outside the ground during the game between both sets of supporters, with one Millwall fan sustaining a broken jaw. The Sun newspaper ran the sensationalist grenade-related headline "Soccer Marches to War!"[10][11] Trouble was reported at Loftus Road on 26 March 1966 during a match between Queens Park Rangers and Millwall, at a time when both sides were near the top of the league table pushing for promotion to Division Two, but the London derby was won 6–1 by QPR. In the second-half, a coin was thrown from the terraces, which struck Millwall player Len Julians on the head, drawing blood. The stadium announcer warned that the game would be abandoned if there were any more disturbances from the crowd, prompting some Millwall fans to invade the pitch in an unsuccessful attempt to get the game abandoned.[12] When Millwall's unbeaten home record of 59 games came to an end against Plymouth Argyle in 1967, the windows of the away team's coach were smashed. In the same year, a referee was attacked and the FA ordered the club to erect fences around The Den's terracing.[4]
The BBC documentary
On 11 March 1978 a riot broke out at The Den during an FA Cup quarter-final between Millwall and Ipswich Town, with the home team losing 6–1. Fighting began on the terraces and spilled onto the pitch; dozens of fans were injured, with some hooligans turning on their own team's supporters leaving some innocent fans bloodied. Bobby Robson, then manager of Ipswich, said of Millwall fans afterward, "They [the police] should have turned the flamethrowers on them".[12] In 1982 Millwall club chairman Alan Thorne threatened to close the club because of violence sparked by losing in the FA Cup to non-league side Slough Town.[4][9]
Kenilworth Road riot
The
Birmingham play-off riot
In May 2002, hundreds of hooligans attaching themselves to Millwall were involved in disorder around the ground, after the team lost a play-off game to Birmingham City. It was described by the BBC as one of the worst cases of civil disorder seen in Britain in recent times. A police spokeswoman said that 47 police officers and 24 police horses were injured, and the Metropolitan Police considered suing the club after the events.[16] The then chairman Theo Paphitis responded that Millwall could not be blamed for the actions of a mindless minority who attach themselves to the club. "The problem of mob violence is not solely a Millwall problem, it is not a football problem, it is a problem which plagues the whole of our society", he said. Paphitis later introduced a membership scheme whereby only fans who would be prepared to join and carry membership cards would be allowed into The Den. Scotland Yard withdrew its threat to sue, stating: "In light of the efforts made and a donation to a charity helping injured police officers, the Metropolitan Police Service has decided not to pursue legal action against Millwall F.C. in relation to the disorder".[17] Some legal experts said it would have been difficult to hold a football club responsible for something that occurred away from its ground and involved people who did not attend the match. The scheme introduced by Paphitis now only applies to perceived high-risk away games. Many fans blame the scheme for diminishing Millwall's away support, such as at Leeds United where fans are issued with vouchers which are then exchanged for tickets at a designated point of West Yorkshire Police's choosing on the day of the game. Also, early kick-off times arranged by the police often result in only a few hundred fans making the trip.[18][19]
Upton Park riot
The most infamous recent example of the rivalry between Millwall and West Ham flaring up was when, in the
On the evening of 25 August 2009, clashes between some Millwall and West Ham fans outside Upton Park resulted in 20 people being injured, including one Millwall fan who was stabbed. The game itself saw about fifty West Ham supporters invade the pitch on three occasions, forcing the game to be temporarily suspended once. The police later said the violence, because of its large scale, was organised beforehand.[22]
The Football Association later handed Millwall three charges and West Ham four. Millwall were cleared of all charges while West Ham were found guilty of two: violent, threatening, obscene and provocative behaviour and failing to prevent their fans entering the field of play. The Hammers were fined £115,000 by the FA.[23]
Sporadic incidents
In January 1988, when Millwall were knocked out of the FA Cup by
In October 2004, during a
In January 2009, hundreds of Millwall fans perceived as "high risk" individuals gained access to an FA Cup fourth-round match away at Hull City. The game, won 2–0 by Hull, was overshadowed when seats, coins and plastic bottles were thrown by some away supporters. There were conflicting reports in the media as to whether missiles were initially thrown by Hull supporters following chanting and jeering by Millwall fans at Jimmy Bullard (an ex-West Ham player) just prior to the fixture.[27] On 25 August 2009, Millwall played away at West Ham United in the Football League Cup, losing 3–1 after extra time. One Millwall supporter was stabbed during clashes between the two sets of fans outside the ground. The game saw hundreds of West Ham fans invade the pitch on three occasions, forcing the game to be temporarily suspended once. The police later said the violence, because of its scale, was organised beforehand.[28][29] In the aftermath of the disorder, Millwall were handed three charges by the FA and later cleared of all of them; West Ham received four charges and were found guilty on two counts: violent, threatening, obscene and provocative behaviour, and entering the field of play. West Ham were fined £115,000, an amount seen as an insult by Millwall, which staunchly defended the actions of its own fans and the club's inability to do any more than it had for a match at a rival's ground.[30]
Former club chairman Reg Burr once commented: "Millwall are a convenient coat peg for football to hang its social ills on",[31] an example being the reporting of convicted murderer Gavin Grant. Although he had played for eight different clubs, playing his fewest games (four) for Millwall, and was signed to Bradford City at the time, the BBC used the headline, "Former Millwall striker Gavin Grant guilty of murder".[32]
After a game against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road in September 2010, manager
In April 2013, Millwall met Wigan Athletic in a semi-final of the FA Cup. Millwall lost the game 2–0.[37] Towards the end of the match, violence broke out in part of the stand allocated to Millwall, with individuals fighting amongst themselves and then against police, resulting in 14 arrests, of which two were Wigan supporters.[38]
See also
Notes
- ^ "Undercover with 'the firm'". BBC News. 2002-05-10. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
- ^
ISBN 1-903854-41-5.
- ^ "Millwall Bushwackers Hooligans". Football Hooligans. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- ^ a b c d e Nick Hart (1 October 2010). "The First 125 Years". South London Press. p. 46.
- ISBN 978-1782198970.
- ^ "Millwall F-Troop". Top Boys TV. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
- ^ "No one likes us – but we don't care". The Journal, Newcastle. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- ^ Dunning. The Roots of Football Hooliganism: An Historical and Sociological Study. p. 68.
- ^ a b c d Davies, Christopher (21 May 2004). "Millwall hopes to leave dark history behind in F.A. Cup final". The Japan Times. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
- ^ Dunning. The Roots of Football Hooliganism: An Historical and Sociological Study. p. 150.
- ^ "Millwall 1964–1966 Back to Back Promotions". The Millwall History Files. 30 September 2010. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "Millwall vs the Mob". The Millwall History Files. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
- ^ "Panorama". BBC's Panorama. Archived from the original on 22 June 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
- ^ "FA lift penalties on Luton and Millwall; Successful appeal against riot decision". The Times. UK. 19 July 1985.
- ISBN 1-85973-463-4.
- ^ "Four charged over Millwall violence". BBC Sport. 4 May 2002. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ "Met drops threat to sue Millwall". BBC Sport. 13 November 2002. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ "Leeds United v Millwall: Police mount anti-hooligan operation". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- ^ "Millwall v Leeds United: Police issue behaviour warning". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- ^ Millwall angered by Carling Cup ticket decision (2009-08-20). "Millwall angered by Carling Cup ticket decision". Wharf. Archived from the original on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
- ^ Gibson, Owen (2010-01-05). "West Ham and Millwall mount defence over Carling Cup violence". London: Guardian Sport. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
- ^ "FA to probe Upton Park violence". BBC Sport. 2009-08-25. Retrieved 2009-08-26.
- ^ "West Ham fined £115,000 over violence against Millwall". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 15 January 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
- ^ "Millwall versus the mob".
- ^ Haylett, Trevor (1994-05-20). "Football: Crowd trouble may lead to closure of New Den: FA charges south London club after disturbances at play-off match". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 2022-05-14.
- ^ "Liverpool fans jailed over Hillsborough taunts riot. - Free Online Library".
- ^ Jon Culley (26 January 2009). "Hull to bill Millwall for damage to stand". The Independent. UK. Archived from the original on 2022-05-14. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ "Mass violence mars London derby". BBC Sport. 25 August 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ "FA to probe Upton Park violence". BBC Sport. 25 August 2009. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
- ^ "West Ham fined £115,000 over violence against Millwall". BBC Sport. 15 January 2010. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
- ^ pr: Norma Spence (1989). No One Likes Us – We Don't Care. Working Pictures Ltd, for Channel 4 (VHS).
- ^ "Former Millwall striker Gavin Grant guilty of murder". BBC Sport. 23 July 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- ^ Tobey Porter (1 October 2010). "This Crosses the Lion". South London Press. p. 84.
- ^ "The Book of Football – The Start of No One Likes Us". The Millwall History Files. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ Walker, Michael (5 April 2004). "FA Cup semi-final: Sunderland 0 – 1 Millwall | Football | The Guardian". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ "Scotsman.com Sport". The Scotsman. 13 January 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- ^ Phil Mcnulty (13 April 2013). "Millwall 0-2 Wigan". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
- ^ "FA Cup: Fans arrested after Millwall violence". BBC News. 14 April 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-14.