Can't remember a wall collapsing But Exiled In Toronto has a better memory than me - he was probably at that game - could have been with me in fact in the Darwen End with the Dingles. We went to school with a number of them as the catchment area included Rossendale and Hyndburn as it was later known. The Dingles were charged twice by the Rovers lot - once from the Riverside and once when the gates opened when they surged in from Nuttall Street. Nearest I've ever come to getting a good beating - and that from my own lot! My first taste of a white hot East Lancs Derby - surprise, surprise, Rovers won that one as well.

Probably the same one GAV - in Burnley she'd be a highly respected member of the Womens Institute!

well I got a shag in crete on the strength of the shirt lol...a 17 year old norwegian bird thought i was a pilot in the blackburn flying club....hee hee what a night that was. Class!!

Just looking at the inbreds whilst driving to Turf Moor through Burnley last time. I swear it could have been a scene from One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. The Burnley slapper right up against the fence to no mans land circa early 70's (could have been 1977). Flashing her tiny ones. She thought she was being cool. Not a pretty sight. Fifteen of us walking down Brunshaw Road prior to a Lancs/Manx Cup game 20 odd years ago. Thirty or so of the famous Suicide Squad coming up Brunshaw Road. Other than us and them the place was deserted. They crossed over and scurried off away towards Eastern Avenue. Not a troublemaker, although some of our lot could look after themselves, but we all found it highly amusing. Orcan in Ankara, at the roof top bar, singing Burnley Fans Eat Bananas With Their Feet.

Aye, and all 8,000 of us (in that part of the ground) had a smile as big as yours when the third went in. Couldn't stop smiling when the second went in at the 2-0 home friendly win in 1970. What did you think of that game?

To be fair, Burnley's trophy cabinet is full..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................OF DUST!!

Correct - we beat you home and away that season with Garner (remember him? ) scoring all our goals.

I hope not, but if selected I hope he takes his slippers off and plays in football boots this time!

Hmmmm, I think CLB is broadly right. It was a hell of a crush, impossible to move away from the barrage of missiles that came over, so got hit on the back of the head by a chunk of brick. However, a kindly gentleman in front of me responded by sh!tting into his plastic beer glas and lobbing that over. I stand (slightly ) corrected. I've just looked at the Football Grounds Aerofilms Guide which shows a photo of the Longside from the Martin Dobson stand. The away section with no mans land comes to the halfway line. Not half as I thought but more than a third. With the Longside holding around 20,000+ our 8,000 following in that part of the ground, as reported in the LET, is about right. Jim - your reference to Deliverance - spot on. Exiled - classic!

Well I've been going on the Turf longer than you pal. I'll give you a maths lesson. The figure of 8,000 in the away section was taken from the LET. I was lucky - in leaving the pub and getting on at just before 2pm. I had no idea they locked the gates on the day, just read about it afterwards. Otherwise I'd have ben on the Bee Hole. During the early 70's - around 1972 & 1973 I was on for two games against Liverpool in the FA Cup and Leeds in the league. The stand opposite the Longdide was no longer there as they were preparing to build the Martin Dobson Stand (you might get that one). Therefore there were only three sides to the ground and both matches were 38,000 capacity. The Cricket Field Stand held 4,000 so the remaining 34,000 were on the Longside and Bee Hole End. Off the top of my head I would say 20,000 Longside and 14,000 Bee Hole? Bearing in mind the Longside runs the full length of the pitch I would say that's a fair estimate, perhaps even conservative. Those two games were before segregation but when the away fans were plonked on the Longside a few years later, the away section of it came right up to the halfway line, in other words roughly half of the terracing. By then the capacity of the ground had probably fallen a bit (maybe not) so a figure of 8,000 away, 8,000 home and an area of no mans land is just about spot on. If you remember on the day, hundreds of Rovers fans were ejected from the Bee Hole due to the fighting and/or safety reasons. These made their way into the Longside despite it being packed. So not my figures then, they were taken from the LET, but unless you can argue that the Bee Hole was much larger than the Longside, they are correct.

Just reading the Henning Berg biography where Henning and his wife say the social side of things at Rangers (away from the football) ie things for the players' wives and families etc was non existant......"there was nothing to do........" Apparently there were no such problems at Rovers and United. Think he chose the wrong side of Glesga!

Bloody Hell USA, I think you want to come home.

At the famous 3-2 Boxing Day Derby in 1977 there were around 12,000 Rovers fans at the game. Away section of Longside, gates locked at 2pm with 8,000 in. Beehole End another 2,000+ with others in stands. During the latter part of that season we averaged 10,000+ ie we took more than our home average. Just goes to show what we can do when we try and more importantly when the Dingles are there for the taking. That day was the best ever for atmosphere.

We had a week in the Canaries booked for January. My wife, due to work commitments, wanted it moving. It was moved to later in January. She then wanted it moving again. So it was moved to March. She then wanted it moving again, so it was moved to February. We then paid up. NOT JUST ANY TIME IN FEBRUARY - THE ******* 19 TH FEBRUARY!! Gutted - I haven't missed an East Lancs Derby since I saw my first in 1970, all competitions, league, Lancs Cup, home or away. Great to see we have sold out, as expected. Give them hell, have a great day out and make sure we WIN.

Not sure what you mean. They haven't gone anywhere. They're with us now and have been for a decade. Very welcome if you ask me but they are the ones who would back out of a game like this and prefer to watch it on tv.

Damn, I am going to have to post. Wonder how long it will take for Golden Boy to criticise? Still, never mind. USA (I'm not referring to you by the way) perhaps some of them sing it incorrectly also. During the 80's and 90's I worked in Burnley, Nelson and Accrington and had many friends who were Dingles, although they were simply known as Bastar*s then. Even back then we had this same debate. All those I talked to sang WILL we play etc. Now at the time we were old Second Division and they were generally Third and Fourth. I asked a good mate as to why he sang WILL because that meant (in their eyes) they would never play us again, in effect acknowledging our superiority. (No, nay, never no more, WILL we play Bburn Rovers, no, never, no more). He used to give an embarrassed laugh and say he didn't know as it didn't make sense. Virtually every Rovers fan around me in the Bburn End sings Till we play etc but why Till? We are Prem League and they are Championship? We'll never play them again (the song isn't meant for the Cups). On a side issue, I was telling my lad last night about the trips to Burnley in the early 70's in the Lancs Cup games and friendlies. Blackburn railway station was awash with hundreds of Rovers fans making their way to Burnley. If you imagine the number of people in the concourse under the Bburn End last night 15 mins prior to kick off, that was what the station was like. None of this "I'm going to sh!t myself so I'll go on the coach" rubbish. You just turned up in numbers and went. Service train or car. Never the coach. In those days, however, there were no "Nouveau Rovers fans" just local lads for whom the Burnley game meant everything.

Dickov suspended.

Scotty - Ask your mate about El-Hadji Diouf - I work with a Bolton fan who a week or so ago went for a pint with a friend of his who works at the Reebok. He (my work colleague) was told that the "spitter" was gay and he had taken a shine to Kevin Nolan. Rumoured that Liverpool are unwilling to take him back because of his "persuasion." Can most probably be taken with a pinch of salt but the story did come from a Wanderers fan who also works at the Reebok!

Very true - there is such a gulf between the PL and the Championship that once you are an established PL team, in theory all you need to do each summer is tinker with your squad to avoid relegation. Teams like Wolves, West Brom, Leicester etc are very good/too good for the Championship, but extremely poor in the PL. Once in a Blue Moon a team like Man City (like the pun?) comes along and stays up, but it's now becoming harder and harder to get promoted and stay up.

Exactly! Darwen, Accrington or Oswaldtwistle for starters.

Question for Mr Murray :- "Mr Murray, 18 months ago you (yes, you) valued Barry Ferguson at £6.5M. Since then he has enhanced both his CV and his reputation by performing quite well at English Premier League level, and against some of the best midfielders in the world. A notch or ten above that of the SPL. Could you please outline your reasons as to why you now value him at £3.5M less?

If it's Fergy out and Savage in, as someone has already said, I feel we will be shafted twice. Once on a reduced Rangers fee (I don't think we'll recoup) and then on paying over the odds for Savage.

It's about time the wee man opened his gob and said something one way or the other. His silence is deafening.

That may be your overall opinion but it's not the one the overall one of this board. Can't pass or create chances. Get on to the ticket office and ask them to get you a seat facing the pitch. These weren't Chris' observations - they were a summary of what other posters' views were.

Not sure how many we have sold but was told by the ticket office today that you can pay on the day. Coaches "sold out" but that doesn't necessarily mean 'owt.