Absolute disgrace!

[carpee]

Back on topic, I was on Sport Ops day trip and our coach was the first to arrive back at the airport. We were right at the front of that queue and were literally ten feet from the smug grinning security guards in their pastel yellow pyjamas. The issue appeared to be that there was nobody around to check passports and boarding passes. That was a deduction, rather than anything more, because there was fuck all information anywhere. We passed info back through the crowd as more and more people joined the back (and pushed in round the side, the scamps!)

I have to say I was surprised that the harmony lasted as long as it did, a lot of hot, angry, weary, pissed/hungover English football fans stood stock still in near silence for at least 15 minutes before the first real mutterings of discontent arrived.

Then when there was a surge forward the locals realised they had to do something. In the end I think the people checking the passports were a security guard, the airport clerk (little lady) and a senior plod.

We were lucky to get through before it got really bad, but I'm a big unit of about 19st but I was sailing along under pressure from the people behind.

Could have been much worse and the thing is that if it HAD properly kicked off you know who would have been blamed, when the real blame should lie with the extremely poor organisation of what is supposed to be the main airport for a major international capital city, which felt more like an outlying Greek island.

Agree with this above.

I have an issue with the original post and have not read through the rest of them. The main issue that i and my group had was no information being passed to us as to what the delay was and being treated worst than cattle.

There were some of the police or whatever they were (def not airport staff) who were just looking for an excuse to get stuck in to us especially the tall one on the left.

They had no reason or cause to hit (which they did) several members of our trip which was a complete over reaction and they were lucky it didnt escalate as it so easily could have.

Common decency would have been for us to have been told why we were being held which i might add made no sense when more of us went to Milan twice and had no problem or issue coming back.

Whilst i agree to some extent regarding the language and women / children being around it was no surprise that it went that way and TBF in the stadium the same words were used and audible to all around.

Everyone jumping on the bandwagon saying our behaviour was wrong etc i suggest getting multiple versions of events would be more helpful to give a balanced view of what actually happened rather than just one persons opinion or take.

 

[brasil_spur]

WTF with this thread.

And Matt C - what an absurd way you have of looking at life, good luck with it.

 

[invictaspur]

The thing is, sometimes you have to wait around at an airport. Hungover? Tired? Pissed? Boo hoo. I've had to wait around in airports before. Sometimes for hours and hours. Sometimes you get delays, bad management, confusion etc. It's a fact of life. By all means, voice your discontent. Try and get some money back, whatever.

When pissed up/hungover football fans get angry and abusive and intimidating, this isn't acceptable. Don't think for one minute that it is. Most of the time the people getting the abuse (as has been said) are just doing their job.

Hey, I'm not defending the indefensible... no, staff shouldn't be abused or intimidated, of course not.

The problem is somebody somewhere clearly WASN'T doing their job. The fans kept their end of the bargain, to be at a certain place at a certain time, that's their job done. It wasn't their fault the airport was not prepared to process them as they might reasonably expect anywhere north of Senegal.

Yes, we've all had to wait hours on end at airports, but undoubtedly not in those circumstances (not in Europe anyway I'd hope!). In a/c gates and lounges with metal or plastic chairs fair enough, not stood upright, hot, sticky, smelly with your breathing constricted because you are pressed so closely into the people either side of you and no sign or indication of how long this situation may continue.

Someone allowed that to happen, and it's THAT person who complaints could reasonably be directed at (though again, intimidation is not on!). The only shame was that THAT person was not there to inform us all of what was going on which merely added to the frustration of an already frustrating few hours.

 

[Rout-Ledge]

That's kind of the point isn't it? That person (whoever that may be) isn't there. So you grit your teeth and accept that as some football supports act like animals abroad, all are treated like them on occasion. Unfair? Perhaps. But anyone with any sense will realise that this isn't the way to behave.

 

[MattyP]

That's kind of the point isn't it? That person (whoever that may be) isn't there. So you grit your teeth and accept that as some football supports act like animals abroad, all are treated like them on occasion. Unfair? Perhaps. But anyone with any sense will realise that this isn't the way to behave.

Thing is that one of the policemen who had previously been stopping people going through walked round the outside of the queue and when asked "What is going on" responded with "Not my problem, not a police issue".

He was then quite understandably (and not in the context of it being a threat) asked whether if this turned into a tear up it would then be a police issue and he would then be interested, he just shrugged and carried on his merry way.

A little bit of common sense on all parts would have prevented anyone talking about this today. And by all parts, I include Thomas Cook, Madrid airport, the Spanish police/border authorities and the fans.

But I will say again, the majority of fans did display common sense, in a greater proportion to any of the other groups I have mentioned.

 

[whatsappnin]

LOL! handbags

 

[Archibald&Crooks]

I can understand why MattC cops some for one or two of the threads he's started lately but who really gives a shit about his personal life? I couldn't care less about his domestic arrangements.

My mrs doesn't work. She doesn't have to. She goes out to bingo every night and the lucky bitch wins £400-£500 every fucking time. At least what she tells me.

The fact that she comes home every night with her hair matted with spunk is neither here nor there.

 

[jimtheyid]

I too was disgusted by some of our fans behaviour BBLG.

I have just got home and I will right an article of my experiences.

Some of our fans are ****'s. I was also disgusted with some of the players.

 

[jimtheyid]

I'll point out that I havent red this thread. Just BBLG's post.

 

[Glenn_Purvey]

Let's not forget the hundreds and thousands of well behaved yids!!!

Great atmosphere in the ground and the Madrid fans were top quality.

Keep the faith Coys!!!

 

[TheGreenLily]

I do not believe women who have children should work until that child has left school, single women working fine thats great but women with children should not work as when they get home from work all tired they can not spend quality time with the kids, cannot teach them values, the kids become latchkey kids or are palmed off to aunts or childminders so no a woman's job should be to bring up the home and be there for full attention of her kids.

I will not let my partner work, she has a part time business selling some things on eBay but that is from home and she concentrates on being a full time mother.

Totally agree, being a mother is the most important job in the world. Women (generally) are better communicators (better for the child's language development), better at multitasking, better at most things really.
I also hate the way children are also being shoved in front of the TV as many mothers are letting the TV bring the children up. It is just so wrong, I hate it.

 

[BringBack_leGin]

I skipped from first post to here so I don't know where it's gone but i'd have infracted them yobs for censor evasion. And then infracted BBLG for being gorgeous.

I'm always being punished for being beautiful

I won't respond to all in a Gibbs style defence of my OP, but I would like to point out that I'm aware that most of our fans behaved well, I'm aware (and said so in my OP) that the Spanish were useless as were Thomas Cook and I know that there is far worse, but that makes no difference to me. Just because there are murderers and rapists in the world, should we ignore the muggers and thieves? At the end of the day, a bunch of brute idiots felt sorry for themselves so decided to intimidate someone who was just doing her job, knock things over in the airport and, despite the presence of women and children, repeatedly use very foul language. Scumbags the lot of them.

 

[worcestersauce]

The thing is, sometimes you have to wait around at an airport. Hungover? Tired? Pissed? Boo hoo. I've had to wait around in airports before. Sometimes for hours and hours. Sometimes you get delays, bad management, confusion etc. It's a fact of life. By all means, voice your discontent. Try and get some money back, whatever.

When pissed up/hungover football fans get angry and abusive and intimidating, this isn't acceptable. Don't think for one minute that it is. Most of the time the people getting the abuse (as has been said) are just doing their job.

:clap:

The point is that the people who should have organized it better didn't and that is more than just negligent it is a downright deregation of duty by them to their staff and to other travelling public.

 

[jimtheyid]

Wow did I just travel back to the 1950's?

 

[Welshiespursboyo]

The point is that the people who should have organized it better didn't and that is more than just negligent it is a downright deregation of duty by them to their staff and to other travelling public.

Still doesn't excuse loutish behaviour. Sorry.

 

[MattyP]

I'm always being punished for being beautiful

I won't respond to all in a Gibbs style defence of my OP, but I would like to point out that I'm aware that most of our fans behaved well, I'm aware (and said so in my OP) that the Spanish were useless as were Thomas Cook and I know that there is far worse, but that makes no difference to me. Just because there are murderers and rapists in the world, should we ignore the muggers and thieves? At the end of the day, a bunch of brute idiots felt sorry for themselves so decided to intimidate someone who was just doing her job, knock things over in the airport and, despite the presence of women and children, repeatedly use very foul language. Scumbags the lot of them.

If I saw a mugger or a thief in action, I would confront them.

And yet I heard not a single voice last night objecting to any of the language that was being used.

Not aimed in your direction BBLG, more of a general point to those that are on here calling out a small proportion of our fans for being scumbags, but how many would actually suggest at the time to restrain using what they deem to be very foul language.

If someone was acting in a way that was deemed over the top and the Lane, there would be no shortage of people suggesting the dial it down a bit. I myself have been pulled up for swearing by those around me and rightly so.

 

[worcestersauce]

Still doesn't excuse loutish behaviour. Sorry.

Not trying to Welshie' really I'm not but when you get a whole bunch of guys who have no doubt been drinking and are no doubt tired they will make a fuss when they have been pissed off by some one and the problem with football fans is that you get hundreds of them all together, the authorities knew this and yet put nothing in place to deal with it; it's not like they were taken by surprise by hundreds of football fans all turning up together, they would have been expecting them surely.
Hopefully next time they'll do better and avoid the opportunity for loutish behaviour to ensue.

 

[jimtheyid]

Matty, With respect. It's very difficult to confront pissed up people being thuggish. I saw that for myself in the bernebeu when our own fans were threatening to "open each other up"

Yeah Nice. When my old man and me stepped in it all went very quiet and no one backed us up. I have no bones about stepping in but not everyone is as able to.

I know your talking about a bit of minor disorder, but it's not always black and white as you describe.

 

[Azrael]

If I saw a mugger or a thief in action, I would confront them.

And yet I heard not a single voice last night objecting to any of the language that was being used.

Not aimed in your direction BBLG, more of a general point to those that are on here calling out a small proportion of our fans for being scumbags, but how many would actually suggest at the time to restrain using what they deem to be very foul language.

If someone was acting in a way that was deemed over the top and the Lane, there would be no shortage of people suggesting the dial it down a bit. I myself have been pulled up for swearing by those around me and rightly so.

So you would go up to a bunch of pissed up louts and start remonstrating with them?

 

[MattyP]

Matty, With respect. It's very difficult to confront pissed up people being thuggish. I saw that for myself in the bernebeu when our own fans were threatening to "open each other up"

Yeah Nice. When my old man and me stepped in it all went very quiet and no one backed us up. I have no bones about stepping in but not everyone is as able to.

I know your talking about a bit of minor disorder, but it's not always black and white as you describe.

Sure Jim, I understand that and whilst I wasn't present at the incident you witnessed, I was in the queue last night and whilst it could have turned into something serious, I wouldn't call it anywhere near being thuggish.

Not a patch on Cardiff away. Or half the things I've seen whilst being away with England.

So you would go up to a bunch of pissed up louts and start remonstrating with them?

It was not a bunch of pissed up louts. It was a couple of people trying to look big, clever and funny to impress their mates. There were one or two shuffling about, but nothing more than that.

In the context of last night, had something been said or done that I thought was an absolute disgrace, I would have said something. And I use the word context deliberately - if it was me alone potentially remonstrating with 100 louts then maybe not, but whilst I was alone in the queue in the sense that no-one I knew was there, the vast majority were just normal, decent people just wanting to get home.