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ОглавлениеMARTIN KING MEETS
STEVE ‘HICKEY’ HICKMOTT
THE MEET
I’ve known Hickey for years and was well pleased when he agreed to do his bit in the book because he’s a real character, and he can have you in stitches with some of his tales. I met him in Brighton when he was on one of his brief visits to the UK to play a cameo part in the new Football Factory film. Take it away, Steve.
BACKGROUND
My first game was Chelsea v West Ham in the 1965/6 season and it ended in a 5–5 draw. I was eleven years old and I went with some mates from Tunbridge Wells. I’d always followed Chelsea, just like a lot of kids from around my area. A few years later I began to notice the main faces in the Shed End, like Eccles, Jesus and Premo. From then on I wanted to be just like them – they were heroes. I left school at fifteen and went into engineering and I’m now retired and live in South-East Asia.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE TERRACE FASHION?
From 1969 to 1972 I wore Sta-Prest Levi’s, boots, braces, Crombies and Harringtons. This was, and still is, my favourite fashion. I’ve never been without a pair of Dr Martens. I’ve only ever worn trainers once to football and I broke my foot after kicking a geezer out in Copenhagen – I never wore them again.
WHAT’S THE WORST FASHION YOU’VE EVER SEEN ON THE TERRACES?
The worst has got to be budgie jackets and high-waistband trousers with side pockets, with stack-heel shoes. Our lot had this gear on in 1973 at Derby away, and the Derby lot were still skinheads. I’ve still got the pictures and it’s fucking embarrassing.
DESCRIBE YOUR WORST FEELING AT A GAME.
My worst feeling has to be coming out of Millwall’s ground in 1976. There was none of our mob left at the end of the game. I’d been in the ground once and came out, and went back into the CBL (Cold Blow Lane) with another Chelsea firm. I was stood on my own halfway through the second half and just kept my trap shut. I was surrounded by Millwall. Outside a bloke pulled a huge diver’s knife out and was shouting, ‘Where’s all these Chelsea cunts?’ I just carried on walking with my head down.
HAVE YOU EVER INCURRED ANY SERIOUS INJURIES OR BEEN BADLY BEATEN UP AT A MATCH?
I was injured at Bristol City. We’d just come out of a pub and four or five geezers walked towards us carrying a sports bag. They hit me over the head and I was taken to hospital to have my head stitched up.
HAS YOUR OWN SIDE EVER BEEN INVOLVED IN A FULL-SCALE RIOT?
Derby v Chelsea in 1973 when there must have been 3,000 fans fighting on the pitch. Newspaper reports said there were twelve policemen on duty inside the ground and they were unable to contain the trouble – it was hand-to-hand combat.
DESCRIBE THE BEST TAKING OF AN END YOU’VE EVER WITNESSED.
Villa in the late ’70s. I ran two coaches and Colin Daniels (a child actor who became a Chelsea face) ran a couple. We came in from the north of Birmingham to avoid the Old Bill. The first pub we came to was The Tennis Court. We smashed everyone in there and moved on to The Crown and Cushion, which was Villa’s main boozer, and we had a huge row before going into the Holt End, which is where all Villa’s boys stood. We came in from one side and Villa scattered everywhere, and, like a pincer movement, another mob of Chelsea came in from the other side, and we murdered them. Plus I’ve had good days out at Stoke in ’73 and Sheffield United. Rumour had it they’d joined up with Leeds but we still took their end. The thing was, with Chelsea in them days we had a big following from up north. We had lads with us from Wolverhampton and loads from Leeds. Some games we’d have more fans from up north than had travelled up from London.
WHICH WAS YOUR OWN TEAM’S POPULAR END?
I enjoyed standing at the North Bank at Arsenal after we’d cleared it.
WHERE DID YOU STAND OR SIT IN THE GROUND?
I stood at the Shed End up until about ’76 and then I moved up the other end to the North Stand, simply because there was more action.
CAN YOU RECALL THE BEST EVER MOB YOUR TEAM HAS PUT TOGETHER?
Boxing Day, when we took the Arsenal North Bank and the ’76 game over at Millwall.
WHO’S THE BEST RIVAL FIRM YOU’VE EVER SEEN?
West Ham at Upton Park. We’d gone into the South Bank armed with baseball bats and we got properly ironed out – we were well and truly murdered. That’s where the song ‘Hit them over the head with a baseball bat’ came from.
WHO ARE YOUR BIGGEST RIVALS TEAM-WISE?
Tottenham. I get more pleasure from them losing than I ever could Chelsea winning. I fucking hate them.
WHO ARE YOUR BIGGEST RIVALS FAN-WISE?
Tottenham. I despise them.
HAVE YOU EVER JOINED UP WITH ANOTHER TEAM’S FIRM?
I used to run the EFK Gothenburg’s mob out in Sweden. I was working there selling T-shirts and tickets, and there was loads of good birds out there. The EFK boys were regularly getting turned over by the Black Army mob from Stockholm. That all changed when myself, Danny from West Ham, Nobby and Tom, and a couple of Yugoslavian geezers joined up with about eighty of the locals and smashed the Stockholm firm everywhere. That was a first for their boys and they’ve not looked back since. I also used to follow my local team, Tunbridge, who in the ’70s had some right battles with near neighbours Maidstone. We even had a right row with Millwall once in a pre-season friendly.
DID YOU EVER FOLLOW ENGLAND AND WOULD YOU PUT ENGLAND BEFORE YOUR CLUB?
Yes, I’ve always followed England but I wouldn’t put them before Chelsea.
WHICH WAS THE BEST ENGLAND ROW?
Hungary, when Trevor Brooking scored two goals in an England victory. I think it was ’83 and we won 3–1. There was trouble in the ground and a big street battle after the game, and on the trains the Old Bill fired gas inside and we jumped off and steamed into them, running them everywhere. It went on for an hour and a half. Another time was at an Under-21s game in Greece, when we were taken from the ground and put on armoured buses for our own protection. We were attacked with bricks and bottles, and surrounded by the hostile locals. The buses drove us from the stadium to the port in Piraeus and left us there. A mob of Greeks a couple of hundred strong attacked us again and we had to fight for our lives.
HAVE YOU EVER SUPPORTED OR LOOKED OUT FOR ANOTHER TEAM’S RESULTS?
Gothenburg and Glasgow Rangers. Rangers because I once went to watch Celtic play Chelsea, which was part of the deal that took Scottish international David Hay to Stamford Bridge, and I’ve never received so much abuse in my life. They fucking hated us. But when I watch Rangers it’s a different story. They love us and make us more than welcome.
NAME YOUR TOP FIVE FIRMS, IN ANY ORDER.
Millwall, West Ham, Man. City in the early ’70s, Everton in the ’70s and Newcastle.
WHICH IS THE WORST GROUND YOU’VE EVER BEEN TO AND WHY?
Man City, Maine Road – it’s a terrifying place to go. One hundred and twenty of us travelled up only to see the game called off with just ten minutes to go to kick-off. My mate had been stabbed and had his sheepskin coat nicked off him. I was saved by Kojak, a big black Chelsea lad who sadly is no longer with us. We were chased all the way back to the station and on to the train. The fighting was still going on as the Chelsea team boarded the train for the journey back to London.
WHICH IS THE BEST STADIUM YOU’VE BEEN TO?
Charlton because they sold Stella Artois.
WHO ARE THE FAIREST COPPERS YOU’VE COME ACROSS AT A MATCH?
Plymouth Old Bill were very fair. If they caught you fighting they’d tell you to fuck off and kick you up the arse. Even though I was bit on the arse by a police dog, I’d say they’re one of the best set of coppers I’ve come across.
AND THE WORST OLD BILL?
The Scousers. They were horrible cunts, especially their sergeants with them canes they carried.
WHAT WOULD HAVE STOPPED YOU GETTING INVOLVED WITH THE BOYS AT MATCHES?
Nothing, I liked it. I looked forward all week to going to football – it was a laugh. It was the best days of my life. My reputation exceeded me and that’s why not many people ever had a fight with me. I could walk into a ground, stand in front of a mob of rival fans, not say a word, and they would flee in absolute terror. I loved it. The only time it never worked was at my court case when I received ten years from the Right Honourable Sir George Schindler.
DESCRIBE SOME OF THE METHODS AND TACTICS USED BY THE POLICE AND AUTHORITIES TO STOP FOOTBALL VIOLENCE, AND DO YOU THINK THEY WORK?
CCTV. You can get caught on camera doing something and a week or six months later you can be arrested.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN SICKENED BY SOMETHING YOU’VE WITNESSED AT A GAME?
I don’t know about sickened, but I was a bit pissed off when someone threw themselves on the tracks and committed suicide on the Circle Line [London Underground] and I missed the beginning of a match. I was sickened by that.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE FOOTBALL SONG OR CHANT AND WHICH IS THE WORST YOU CAN RECALL HEARING FROM ANOTHER TEAM?
My favourite is ‘You’re going to get your fucking heads kicked in’ and the worst has got to be ‘One man went to mow’.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVOURITE BAND/RECORD DURING YOUR FOOTBALL DAYS?
‘Ballroom Blitz’ by The Sweet, Elton John’s ‘Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)’ and Gary Glitter’s ‘I’m the Leader of the Gang’ (Come on, Come on …). I remember in 1974 Jimmy Hill saying, ‘and they’re still fighting as they sing the new Gary Glitter song “Come on, Come on” and they’re all on the pitch’. That was a piece of classic Match of the Day broadcasting.
WHO WAS YOUR ALL-TIME FAVOURITE PLAYER?
Peter Osgood – he was fantastic. I loved him and still do. I’ve met him and he’s a gentleman.
WHERE DO YOU THINK THE NEW ENGLISH NATIONAL STADIUM SHOULD BE BUILT AND WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS REGARDING THE WEMBLEY FIASCO?
It should be at Wembley and should just have been revamped and modernised. We should have our national stadium in the capital city, which everyone knows is London.
