My actual experience of being in the stand with notorious italian ultras is as follows.
If the ultras don"t like the way things are they physically attack who they do not like.
The ineffective security do sweet **** all until they decide to go in very hard with vast numbers.I have been a victim of gas grenades from police in a crowd of 6,000 with about 200 away fans at the far end of the ground.The quarrel was between the ulras and the police.
We were then subjected to a second round of grenades before all ****ing hell broke out outside the stadium where the police tried to create a space by driving a 4 wheel drive vehicle in a circle at top speed.Had someone fallen into its path they would prob have been killed.Fortunately it stopped.This was when a lad picked up a sec tion of crash barrier and threw it at the windscreen .The vehicle was then attacked-mainly by non ultras.
A few games later a rocket flare(I do not know what it was actually called) was fired from our end at the Sampdoria end.It hit a step on the terrace and burnt a female fan.
The kid who fired the flare was handed in to the police by the ultras.
At York one boxing day a flare(rocket type-I think they are distress types was fired from Hull fans(on side of pitch and it hit the opposite advertising board.I am convinced it could have killed someone had it hit directly.
I agree with Scarbs sentiments BUT you have to consider not everyone is blessed with the nouse to realise the massive difference between a flare and a flare(was it at cardiff that a guy was killed by one whilst sat with his lad?)I stand and sing every game but I am aware of the need to restrain some of the dick heads.
In summary the foreign version of ultras are(despite their rhetoric) a group of thuggish bullies seeking a simple solution to difficult problems.
Young kids trying to big themselves up will do stupid things with no malicious intent which can cause terrible problems.
Standing,flags singing yes.Yob mob rule -no,imo
If the ultras don"t like the way things are they physically attack who they do not like.
The ineffective security do sweet **** all until they decide to go in very hard with vast numbers.I have been a victim of gas grenades from police in a crowd of 6,000 with about 200 away fans at the far end of the ground.The quarrel was between the ulras and the police.
We were then subjected to a second round of grenades before all ****ing hell broke out outside the stadium where the police tried to create a space by driving a 4 wheel drive vehicle in a circle at top speed.Had someone fallen into its path they would prob have been killed.Fortunately it stopped.This was when a lad picked up a sec tion of crash barrier and threw it at the windscreen .The vehicle was then attacked-mainly by non ultras.
A few games later a rocket flare(I do not know what it was actually called) was fired from our end at the Sampdoria end.It hit a step on the terrace and burnt a female fan.
The kid who fired the flare was handed in to the police by the ultras.
At York one boxing day a flare(rocket type-I think they are distress types was fired from Hull fans(on side of pitch and it hit the opposite advertising board.I am convinced it could have killed someone had it hit directly.
I agree with Scarbs sentiments BUT you have to consider not everyone is blessed with the nouse to realise the massive difference between a flare and a flare(was it at cardiff that a guy was killed by one whilst sat with his lad?)I stand and sing every game but I am aware of the need to restrain some of the dick heads.
In summary the foreign version of ultras are(despite their rhetoric) a group of thuggish bullies seeking a simple solution to difficult problems.
Young kids trying to big themselves up will do stupid things with no malicious intent which can cause terrible problems.
Standing,flags singing yes.Yob mob rule -no,imo