Unusual stories from our stadiums.

[Saint Billinge]

Taking our Stuart and his mate to Featherstone, they both pestered for something to eat. Coppering up, I just had enough money for the food and entry. Afterwards, they decided to go into the ground early while I took time out looking round the village. However, I was in for a shock because the club had upped the admission for adults on the day of the match hoping to rake in extra revenue. I was gobsmacked left short. In the end, I had to borrow from another supporter.

[yanto]

No urban myth, in fact if I'm not mistaken our very own Yanto played in the game in question.

At Alt Park,Huyton .. very true and also very very funny..

[Simon Templar]

Wigan versus Queensland in the early 80's.

A couple of gas cylinders had caught fire at the back of the main stand. It was almost the end of the game or maybe almost as the game ended that the fire was discovered as there was no announcement, and as I made my way off the ground at the Kop End I witnessed the following conversation ,between a Policeman trying manfully to guide people away from the burning cylinders, and a disgruntled fan who was a bit aggravated that he couldn't take his usual route out of the ground.

(In my best owd Lanky Twang).

PC: "Wee'er does thar think thar's gewin"?

Fan: "Ah'm gewin thee'er".

PC: "Wee'er"?

Fan "THEE'ER" !!

PC: "Thar's not gewin thee'er owd lad ".

Fan "Why not"?

PC: "Cos if thar does Ah'll lock thee up "!!

It was something and nothing,but totally cracked me up at the time,but left me thinking that we never really hear the owd twang nowadays. . . . . . . . unless your from Haydock I suppose !!

[Saint Billinge]

Taken from Rugby League in its Own Words

The ref is not a homer!

A final story for this decade from Reg Parker who recalls the scene in the early fifties as Barrow travelled to play York. Officiating that day was none other than Syd Abram, who you might recall from earlier as the first player to score a try in a Wembley final for Wigan. The lad packing down with Reg in the second row was Jack Grundy whilst at loose forward was Harry Atkinson.

As the game progressed and yet another scrum formed Harry made a request of the whistler, "Syd, make sure the York scrum half puts the ball in straight." After several repeats of this from Harry, Syd retorted that as a referee he should be addressed as 'Sir.' Somewhat bemused, Harry replied "but I call you Syd at work!" "No matter," came the reply from Syd, enjoying his position of authority "it is to be 'Sir.'"

You've guessed it, as the players packed down once again Harry pleaded to the ref "Sir Syd, please ask the York scrum half to put the ball in straight."

Our refs have always commanded respect, but it usually stops short of knighthood!

[steef]

In the centenary season at The Watersheddings. Oldham Bears V Warrington Wolves.

At half time the Oldham Bear (the most unbelievably ###### mascot costume ever) is taking kicks at goal on a pitch that is a total mud heap. While the bear is picking up a ball with his back to the crowd a fat warrington fan runs on the pitch and tackled the bear before running under the sticks to the applause of the warrington away fans. He's stood in a particulary muddy patch, arms aloft looking very smug until the Bear blindsides him into the dirt and the entire ground points and laughs. The guy was covered head to toe and the shower facilities at watersheddings weren't so good. Great thread.

[Kenilworth Tiger]

Wigan versus Queensland in the early 80's.

A couple of gas cylinders had caught fire at the back of the main stand. It was almost the end of the game or maybe almost as the game ended that the fire was discovered as there was no announcement, and as I made my way off the ground at the Kop End I witnessed the following conversation ,between a Policeman trying manfully to guide people away from the burning cylinders, and a disgruntled fan who was a bit aggravated that he couldn't take his usual route out of the ground.

(In my best owd Lanky Twang).

PC: "Wee'er does thar think thar's gewin"?

Fan: "Ah'm gewin thee'er".

PC: "Wee'er"?

Fan "THEE'ER" !!

PC: "Thar's not gewin thee'er owd lad ".

Fan "Why not"?

PC: "Cos if thar does Ah'll lock thee up "!!

It was something and nothing,but totally cracked me up at the time,but left me thinking that we never really hear the owd twang nowadays. . . . . . . . unless your from Haydock I suppose !!

Along the lines of this I heard a couple of old fellas circa 1987 talking..

Man 1 'As thy ever bin to Donny, it's a reet ground that is"

Man 2 "aye but I reckon they'll be reet"

Man 1while raising his pint to his mouth "ay tha's reet"

[steef]

Does anyone else think that in 10 years we will still be telling the same stories? I do and i find that slightly sad as its stories like these that make Rugby League so special.

[Saint Billinge]

In the centenary season at The Watersheddings. Oldham Bears V Warrington Wolves.

At half time the Oldham Bear (the most unbelievably ###### mascot costume ever) is taking kicks at goal on a pitch that is a total mud heap. While the bear is picking up a ball with his back to the crowd a fat warrington fan runs on the pitch and tackled the bear before running under the sticks to the applause of the warrington away fans. He's stood in a particulary muddy patch, arms aloft looking very smug until the Bear blindsides him into the dirt and the entire ground points and laughs. The guy was covered head to toe and the shower facilities at watersheddings weren't so good. Great thread.

That's so funny.

Our St Bernard once pinched a policeman's helmet and mockingly used it as a toilet. The face on the bobby was worth a thousand smiles.

Taking our Stu to his first match, age 7, he asked for a drink and a pie. Finishing off, he then asked for another drink. Ater a mere six minutes into the match, he said: "I'd like to go home now dad." "On yer bike son" I replied, or words to that effect.

Today, age 29, he is a diehard rugby league fan which makes me proud.

[Old Frightful]

Early Eighties at the Boulevard. The opposition had a penalty kick at goal from a good distance and nailed it, the ball landing near a suitably unimpressed Paul Woods, Hull's full back at the time. All the players then took their positions for the kick off as the PA announcer read out who had kicked the goal. After a few seconds of looking round the ground, it was soon realised that none of the ball boys were in posession of a ball for the restart and, indeed, the only one available was the one that had just sailed over the posts and was still behind the goal were it had landed with Woodsy having ignored it. The PA blokes had mistakenly left their microphone on and the following conversation was relayed to everyone in the ground...

"What's going on?"

"They haven't got a ball to kick off with"

"Where's the bloody ball he just got the goal with?"

"It's still behind the posts"

"Well why didn't Woodsy pick it up the lazy ba$tard?"

[Saint Billinge]

Early Eighties at the Boulevard. The opposition had a penalty kick at goal from a good distance and nailed it, the ball landing near a suitably unimpressed Paul Woods, Hull's full back at the time. All the players then took their positions for the kick off as the PA announcer read out who had kicked the goal. After a few seconds of looking round the ground, it was soon realised that none of the ball boys were in posession of a ball for the restart and, indeed, the only one available was the one that had just sailed over the posts and was still behind the goal were it had landed with Woodsy having ignored it. The PA blokes had mistakenly left their microphone on and the following conversation was relayed to everyone in the ground...

"What's going on?"

"They haven't got a ball to kick off with"

"Where's the bloody ball he just got the goal with?"

"It's still behind the posts"

"Well why didn't Woodsy pick it up the lazy ba$tard?"

Classics.

Here's another from Rugby League in its own Words.

Lion tamers

Colin Hutton, coach of the 1962 Lions, made me roar with laughter the other day.

"The first Rugby League A.G.M. I attended was held over a weekend at Blackpool. Most of the formal business was dealt with on the Saturday, so as to leave Sunday for 'any other business.' Salford was represented by Les Bettinson who complained about the condition of the Huyton pitch where his club had recently played a cup-tie.

Geoff Fletcher, who pretty much ran the Huyton club single-handed, was not too pleased at Les's outburst saying that vandals at the ground were the pain of his life. He argued that every game had to have a massive pre-match cleaning-up operation due to the constant damage.

Les replied back with the comment: "Why don

[Tommy The C5t]

Bradford vs Leeds at Odsal from 1998 in a game that saw three yellow cards and one red as Cummings lost control.

Late in the second half when there was a stoppage to play, Steve Long comes on the pa and says "would the father of Stuart Cummings please meet his son at the Rooley Lane lost children gate"

We on the popular side all shouted in unison "he hasn't ######ing got one" which makes me laugh every time I watch the replay of this game.