Places on the Royal Oak......

[Voice from the Braemar]

remember back in the late 70's when everyone had their favourite position on our much missed old end??

punks at the back, sitting on the floor AN HOUR before kick off:eek:

rockers and hairy bastads right on the barrier in the middle overlooking the big entrance at the front:rolleyes:

and the hardnuts turning up 5 mins before kick off, checking out if any away fans had infiltrated the oak.........mainly the skins, mods and soulboys...........great days:)


also, the walk round from the back of the oak towards the end of the new rd, which really use to put the wind up any away fans on the ealing(depending on which way we were kicking, you use to get 100-200 all leaving at once;) )

[237bee]

voice were you a punk in those days. or perhaps a rocker?

[Paul USA]

Whay great days !

When you are 17 it' was the 1.15 train from Feltham with 5, 6 7 mates depending on who had money - Shouting and singing from the station to the Royal Oak - Pushing your way thru the ageing turnstile (No idea how anyone with a waistaband bigger than 34 got thru) - Check out the next home fixture from the poster on the wall to the right of the turnstile as you came thru - Get a proper cup of Scalding hot tea (From a proper Urn) from the old dears beihind the Te bar - Grab a program from the seller just in front of the tunnel - Take up your position on the first set of crash bars just left of the goal post's - Take a half time leak in the leaking / smelly excuse for a gents toilet - Enjoy the crush as you left down the tunnel and listen to those with a radio giving out the full times

And the bastards tore it down !!!!!!!!!!!

Such great memories

Paul USA

[Amsterdam Bee]

Doesn't sound like there'd be any room for me to pitch my hamper, so Im glad things have moved on...

:sneakoff:



joking......

[gj]

sheff united evening game lost 2-1 but what an atmosphere on the royal oak

[Luton Bee]

Originally posted by gj
sheff united evening game lost 2-1 but what an atmosphere on the royal oak

That clucking **** Alf Grey, twice taken penalty and didn't Douggie (couldn't punch his way out of a wet paper bag) Alder get sent off?

Great days.........but nostalga ain't what it used to be you know!!!

[Savannah Bee]

I remember it through most of the seventies being pretty empty, except for the promotion years. There was the rumour in 1972 (I think) that the stand was unsafe and could collapse at any time. During one game against Barrow it was completely empty.

Also remember a lot of dodgy jumpers, that Val Doonican would've been proud of, appearing every boxing day.

[Mikey Bee]

Originally posted by Savannah Bee
Also remember a lot of dodgy jumpers, that Val Doonican would've been proud of, appearing every boxing day.

lol ! Christmas jumpers....happy days....

[Voice from the Braemar]

Originally posted by gj
sheff united evening game lost 2-1 but what an atmosphere on the royal oak

one of the greatest games ever played at GP(apart from the result, obviously!)......cued for 30 mins at the turnstiles:eek:

unbelievable atmosphere in the ground, with nearly 14,000(looked a lot more though) there - had everything u wanted:

noise
sheff utd getting evicted from the oak - by huge numbers of bees
goals
players rucking
dodgy refs
penalty saves
retaken penalties:mad:
brentford must have had 20 great chances and should have buried them long before the end............an incredible night of football;)


spoilt only by sheff utd thug throwing brick after and killing an OAP......:sad:

[steve bee]

I remember being in the oak end for the Sheff Utd match, also being in there for the Freight rover southern final 6-0 v Newport. We took an irish work mate to that match with us and he lay on the terrace off his face, didn't see any of the goals and at half time he F**ked off to the Royal Oak. Before we let him back in the car after the match ,he was :drunk: honking up in some garden in the half acre. Happy daysrofl lol lol

[steve bee]

Anyone else remember the episode of Minder when Arthur and Terry are standing on the empty Royal Oak end. It was an episode when they were minding a footballer and it was filmed on what looked like a freezing winter day.

[Nigel Brooks]

Originally posted by Paul USA
Whay great days !

When you are 17 it' was the 1.15 train from Feltham with 5, 6 7 mates depending on who had money - Shouting and singing from the station to the Royal Oak - Pushing your way thru the ageing turnstile (No idea how anyone with a waistaband bigger than 34 got thru) - Check out the next home fixture from the poster on the wall to the right of the turnstile as you came thru - Get a proper cup of Scalding hot tea (From a proper Urn) from the old dears beihind the Te bar - Grab a program from the seller just in front of the tunnel - Take up your position on the first set of crash bars just left of the goal post's - Take a half time leak in the leaking / smelly excuse for a gents toilet - Enjoy the crush as you left down the tunnel and listen to those with a radio giving out the full times

And the bastards tore it down !!!!!!!!!!!

Such great memories

Paul USA

Brought a tear to my eye Paul.

Used to stand on 'The Oak' with both my grandfather and father. Always just behind the goal, so we could get the Percy dalton peanut seller early before he got to the manky bags at the bottom of his 'satchel'.

Later when grandad had passed on and dad was too ill to come regularly used to turn up early with Wise Old Bee, sell goal time tickets most weeks and then take up my 'reserved' position either on the barrier behind the goal or on a really sunny day in the gap between the Oak and New Road by the foot of the floodlight pylon.


As you say mate, proper tea, proper pies, the badge and programme shop, real match posters. What's left? Thankfully, real fans with a passion the Premiership clubs can only dream of.

Where have all the fans gone, did they 'grow out' of football? Time for the casuals to return, the Bees need your support like never before.

[chippendale]

With the fast changing face of Brentford (the town) I wonder if the club will attract a dwindling number of locals. I cant see the new arrivals turning up at GP week in week out.

Then again how many of the people on the GPG live in Brentford.

[237bee]

I'm sure there are a few refugees who like football. Given ken livingstone claims 5% of londons population is asylum seekers/refugees and most of them live in west london maybe we should be targetting them. Also we could make a killing on swanburgers at half time

[WarrenBee]

Great memories.I can still hear the running battle with the 6.57 boys even to this day.

[hants in my pants]

Originally posted by WarrenBee
Great memories.I can still hear the running battle with the 6.57 boys even to this day.

i`m still having them eh lol

[Brain-dead Bee]

Very sad time when they demolished the Royal Oak end.

Before then, and before crowd segregation was enforced, I remember changing ends at half-time to stand behind whichever goal we were attacking. Before the kick-off, you had to stand near an exit on Brook Road and as soon as it became clear which way we were kicking, dash to that end.

I also seem to remember a jinx on us attacking the Royal Oak end after they demolished the stand. We must have played 8 or 10 games with no accommodation there, and I don't think we scored a single goal in that end... mind you, apart from Robbie Cooke, we were short of strikers at the time

[Wise old Bee]

Nigel's post brings back so many memories I can hear "The Power Game" playing now. Does anybody remember the old London Challenge Cup? We played Chelsea in 67/8 Osgood and all in front of nearly 8,000 and the Royal Oak kept up a non-stop barrage of anti-Chelsea abuse for much of the game(0-2 I'm afraid) The week before Chelsea had lost 7-0 to Leeds and got some right stick. It always surprised me that away supporters were allowed onto the Royal Oak and the police often used to disappear at half time, probably for tea and biscuits, and it all used to go off.

[Palace77]

Hi, I remember going to a Bees v Watford game and the fence by the entrance to the Royal Oak got ripped down by Bees fans trying to get in! It must have been about 1978 if I remember correctly. The queue outside was very long and the match had kicked off and Watford were in the Oak end. The Bees fans couldn't wait any longer and down came the wire fence.

from Dave in Teddington

[eghambee]

For the Watford game, my dad took me along, but hadnt remembered that my uncle had only bought two tickets.
So i get taken up into Braemar seats sampling coffee with a little drop of something or other to keep us warm.
My dad disapperaed off to join a queue and told us he ended up in the Watford end on Ealing Road, missing the first 20 minutes do to the crowd side.

Im also sure, there was a punch up on New Road between two people, that just carried on with every body just watching.


Sheff Utd game i remember standing in the Oak and seeing the SU fans being sent to the front followed very quickly by a sizeable contingent of'Bees' although some i recognised from school went to Chelsea normally!


Probably the last game my dad ever saw was the Liverpool cup tie.
Usual organisation, after queuing for hours to get tickets in the first place there were big queues to get in apart from the non ticket holders turnstyle!!!


Was it Wolves that threw the sharpened can tops?


Couldnt beat the sight of walking upto the ground and seeing the back of the oak.

ahhh