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[Toff Apple]

Thanks for the statement and I appreciate all the hard work that goes into these games.
"Once the situation was noted ,swift action was taken to eject the Chester fans and escort them to the away end of the ground"  I alerted the stewards at 2.20 and again at 2.50pm I had hoped for a swifter response then.

[Darren]

There is still one of our stewards in hospital who was hit on the head he felt unwell after the game and has been admitted
overnight.
As for the rest i am not going to comment as i know what a hard job it is.
Wish them both a speedy recovery

[altyazz]

There is still one of our stewards in hospital who was hit on the head he felt unwell after the game and has been admitted
overnight.
As for the rest i am not going to comment as i know what a hard job it is.
Wish them both a speedy recovery

I totally agree

[62vintage]

There is still one of our stewards in hospital who was hit on the head he felt unwell after the game and has been admitted
overnight.
As for the rest i am not going to comment as i know what a hard job it is.
Wish them both a speedy recovery

Hopefully the steward has been admitted as a precaution and will be ok in the morning. Any news on the supporter who was injured?

[joe]

Appreciate the statement but swift action WAS NOT taken and why were the trouble causes just moved to the away end and not ejected?!

[Hulme Robin]

.  As for the older chester fans grouped near the front, they seemed to have made their way into the golf road end because they couldn't be bothered queing at the chequers end. 

No, they knew where they were and they wanted to be there, giving it the big un at Alty is classless  - they knew we're a small club with no firm and no reputation for anything like this but they still decided to copy their wrexham friends and go in the home end. I suppose its a dream come true for a ropey outfit that's spent too much time watching their green street DVDs. Still that ginger haired chester lad will have some explaining to do in work tomorrow - talk about a chinless wonder.

[mattalty]

A group of young- mid teens to early 20's Chester fans in the GRE, began chanting just before the teams came out- several stewards had already been told of there presence.
As the game was about to kick off there chants became louder promting two Altrincham fans to charge over and start exchanging blows with the Chester hooligans, in the fight an Alty hooligan had his head stamped on- this is completely inexcusable.
Stewards arrived and tried to keep the two fighting sides apart, one Altrincham fan shoved - not hit ! a steward.  St Johns attended the Alty fan and the Chester hooligans after much shouting were lead away to the correct end.  The other alty hooligan began shouting abuse at his own fans calling them sh**houses and threatening people who stared at him.
Ten minutes later just after Chester had scored,  two more Chester fans in their 30- 40's began celebrating and dancing this lead to a quick geographical debate on which country and which end they should be at.  This discussion lead to angry words being exchanged, the non hospital bound Alty hooligan ran and flattened from behind one of the Chester fans- this is completely inexcusable.
This lead to blows being exchanged, stewards being spat at , pushed and generally abused- again totally inexcusable.  By this stage many Alty fans were becoming concerned about safety we were told the police had been called ten minutes ago, at 3.01- we later learnt that they had arrivede but were observing the violence.
One female steward was lead away in tears and once the Alty chairman had walked round peace was restored and a larger group of Chester fans were lead away.  The rest of the game arrived without incident.
Concerns-
* The stewards lack of response to several fans reporting the Chester presence in the GRE,
* The police lack of presence, if it is financial I think we will have llost far more money today from people who may never go back to Moss Lane.
* Why the Chester fans were not removed as soon as they started singing.
* Why hooligans in non league do not receive banning orders- I am sure its not  it is not the hooligans first offence.
* The poor stewards no one deserves the level of abuse and violence that they received today- leave it to the professionals THE POLICE !

[Hulme Robin]

We don't have hooligans at Altrincham - just Alty fans paying £13 of their hard earned to watch their team in the safety of their own home end.

[62vintage]

A group of young- mid teens to early 20's Chester fans in the GRE, began chanting just before the teams came out- several stewards had already been told of there presence.
As the game was about to kick off there chants became louder promting two Altrincham fans to charge over and start exchanging blows with the Chester hooligans, in the fight an Alty hooligan had his head stamped on- this is completely inexcusable.
Stewards arrived and tried to keep the two fighting sides apart, one Altrincham fan shoved - not hit ! a steward.  St Johns attended the Alty fan and the Chester hooligans after much shouting were lead away to the correct end.  The other alty hooligan began shouting abuse at his own fans calling them sh**houses and threatening people who stared at him.,
Ten minutes later just after Chester had scored,  two more Chester fans in their 30- 40's began celebrating and dancing this lead to a quick geographical debate on which country and which end they should be at.  This discussion lead to angry words being exchanged, the non hospital bound Alty hooligan ran and flattened from behind one of the Chester fans- this is completely inexcusable.
This lead to blows being exchanged, stewards being spat at , pushed and generally abused- again totally inexcusable.  By this stage many Alty fans were becoming concerned about safety we were told the police had been called ten minutes ago, at 3.01- we later learnt that they had arrivede but were observing the violence.
One female steward was lead away in tears and once the Alty chairman had walked round peace was restored and a larger group of Chester fans were lead away.  The rest of the game arrived without incident.
Concerns-
* The stewards lack of response to several fans reporting the Chester presence in the GRE,
* The police lack of presence, if it is financial I think we will have llost far more money today from people who may never go back to Moss Lane.
* Why the Chester fans were not removed as soon as they started singing.
* Why hooligans in non league do not receive banning orders- I am sure its not  it is not the hooligans first offence.
* The poor stewards no one deserves the level of abuse and violence that they received today- leave it to the professionals THE POLICE !

As previously stated I was sat in the main stand, so far away from the trouble. I would take issue with your second paragraph where you say 2 Altrincham fans ran over to trade punches with the Chester people, I hope they are not Alty fans as I would be ashamed to be associated with them. Hopefully we will have photograhic evidence of this incident and they can be charged and banned from our club for life.

[Mick]

A group of young- mid teens to early 20's Chester fans in the GRE, began chanting just before the teams came out- several stewards had already been told of there presence.
As the game was about to kick off there chants became louder promting two Altrincham fans to charge over and start exchanging blows with the Chester hooligans, in the fight an Alty hooligan had his head stamped on- this is completely inexcusable.
Stewards arrived and tried to keep the two fighting sides apart, one Altrincham fan shoved - not hit ! a steward.  St Johns attended the Alty fan and the Chester hooligans after much shouting were lead away to the correct end.  The other alty hooligan began shouting abuse at his own fans calling them sh**houses and threatening people who stared at him.
Ten minutes later just after Chester had scored,  two more Chester fans in their 30- 40's began celebrating and dancing this lead to a quick geographical debate on which country and which end they should be at.  This discussion lead to angry words being exchanged, the non hospital bound Alty hooligan ran and flattened from behind one of the Chester fans- this is completely inexcusable.
This lead to blows being exchanged, stewards being spat at , pushed and generally abused- again totally inexcusable.  By this stage many Alty fans were becoming concerned about safety we were told the police had been called ten minutes ago, at 3.01- we later learnt that they had arrivede but were observing the violence.
One female steward was lead away in tears and once the Alty chairman had walked round peace was restored and a larger group of Chester fans were lead away.  The rest of the game arrived without incident.
Concerns-
* The stewards lack of response to several fans reporting the Chester presence in the GRE,
* The police lack of presence, if it is financial I think we will have llost far more money today from people who may never go back to Moss Lane.
* Why the Chester fans were not removed as soon as they started singing.
* Why hooligans in non league do not receive banning orders- I am sure its not  it is not the hooligans first offence.
* The poor stewards no one deserves the level of abuse and violence that they received today- leave it to the professionals THE POLICE !

Your first post in almost 8 months !
Some of your observations and opinions may have some merit, but at the same time you, like many others will have only seen things from one physical position.

Whatever is said about our volunteer stewards, the club, the home supporters, the volunteer gatemen and the police, if you decide to watch a (segregated) football match in the opposition teams end and then start singing / gesticulating / mouthing off, then you are to blame for all that occurs and follows.
Nothing more to add.

[WiganAlty]

Thanks for the statement and I appreciate all the hard work that goes into these games.
"Once the situation was noted ,swift action was taken to eject the Chester fans and escort them to the away end of the ground"  I alerted the stewards at 2.20 and again at 2.50pm I had hoped for a swifter response then.

As noted, it was NOT a swift response - and as I pointed out in my earlier post, the idiots who were involved in the violence were allowed to walk away and were actually escorted by our stewards back to the Chester end DESPITE MANY PEOPLE ADVISING THE STEWARDS THAT THEY WERE THE PERPETRATORS.

Also with regard to Graham's statement:

"Correspondence was entered into with the opposing club as well as the intelligence unit at Greater Manchester Police. Steward numbers were reviewed and intelligence on previous away fixtures for the visiting club was also sought. After a comprehensive review of all the participating parties views it was agreed that the fixture required increased stewarding and 10 extra stewards from Chester were arranged as well as the complement from Altrincham FC.

Police presence was not requested but the local constabulary were alerted to the potential problems that may arise if the anticipated crowd arrived."

As was pointed out in an earlier post, previous visits by Chester and also Millwall passed off without any incidents, but there appears to have been specific intelligence gained that for this game there would be problems and that Chester stewards had been arranged, yet the club decided not to have police involved?

As also noted above, there will be quite a few people who will refuse to come back to Moss Lane after todays "problems".

I would also suggest that "The incident pre-match was caused due to a small number of Chester fans entering the home end of the ground and provoking resistance to their presence from the home fans" is somewhat more than just an oncident given that two people have ended up in hospital as a result - more than just a couple of cuts and grazes, and lets hope that both make a swift recovery.

[wayno]

Agree totally this would not have occured if they were not in our end

God forbid if we have camped in there end and starting singing boyzone songs

[wayno]

Also wish both injured parties a swift recovery

[JDN]

The club let its supporters down big style today

And to think someone was telling me the club has never been run so well as at present

In decline on and off the pitch

Disgracefull

[arnald]

The club let its supporters down big style today

And to think someone was telling me the club has never been run so well as at present

In decline on and off the pitch

Disgracefull

at last a real man : why shud we the fans be double victims yet again