Anyone seen the photo of what could have been a disaster at LR in Feb 1948. It is on QPR Report. Sorry not sure how to link it here. With apparently over 30,000 in the ground a fence collapsed and kids were sent tumbling onto the pitch but luckily the men behind seem to have held firm. Thank goodness we have not got a memorial at LR dedicated to people killed that day.
That was the season we won Divison Three South so obviously must've been a key match that season. I've never heard anything about it and maybe it's just as well...
It was actually a 5th round cup match. QPR 3 Luton 1 It mentions a 30,000 + crowd but in those days I understand reported crowds were understated by clubs. I wonder where the undeclared income went? I am not sure when the boys pen in the Loft end was put in but i am sure it was there 3 years later for my 1st visit. perhaps it was the reason it was built. Anyway the pen was not that safe with wayward shots hitting kids. i stood behind the net, safer there.
Yes, it doesn't look that dramatic, a few kids falling over a picket fence (apologies if you were on of those kids!). Sadly, after Bradford, Heysel, and Hillsborough, the present generation knows what a true drama is.
Goldhawk Look at the picture again. If the men behimd had not had stood firm it could have been a disaster. I remember often being catapulted forward in both the Loft and School ends by crowds pushing from behind when we or the oposition scored often causing injuries. some away so called supporters often pushed from the back on purpose. dont want to point fingers but there was one particular match against that team from Wales that was very scary. if only there was a way to bring back standing with safety. Although i have never experienced it do you think the people standing in seated areas is just as risky?
I guess you're right. The crowd all look so orderly and well behaved. Even the school boy in the foreground has put his cap back on! But you're right about being catapulted forward in the Loft, and being at the bottom of a pile after something gave way would indeed have been serious
To be fair, i'm in my late 20's so haven't experienced days of terracing etc properly but from what i know that doesn't seem too over the top for those days when i was sure things like that happened often, in fact, the very thing that allowed hillsborough to host the semi final was what caused the whole thing!
I didnt say it was a disaster , I said it could have been. Loveit read before you make stupid comments.
Standing in really packed terracing is a real experience, not necessarily pleasant. Especially in the Kop at Anfield, where it was impossible to go for a slash, so the terraces were like a waterfall of piss. But it was really cheap.
