I know it wasn’t abandoned, but the antics at Old Trafford on Sunday got me thinking on some of the football fracas I’ve witnessed over the years.
Three red cards in 40 seconds was Fulham’s fate sealed, the most glaring example for some time of a team committing football suicide.
The first time I was involved in anything like that the match was abandoned.
But the problem at Prospect had started among the spectators.
Deer Orchard were playing there in a Junior Derwent Valley League game in the 1960’s.
Going up to Prospect from the Maryport end the pitch was in a field on the right just before the village.
It was on a slope with the incline from touchline to touchline rather than goal to goal.
Everything seemed to have gone quite well in front of a good crowd who were virtually all on the top side touchline.
Now I was on the lower touchline playing on the right wing and it was becoming obvious, even on the other side, that the home fans were starting to get rather hostile.
Suddenly our left winger Joe Jackson was stopped in his tracks and the reason gradually became clear – he had been hit by an umbrella brandished by an agitated lady on the touchline.
Needless to say there was a melee, it wasn’t just handbags, and eventually the referee had seen enough and simply abandoned the game.
There is a sequel to that. We were due to host Prospect at Wakefield Road in a mid-week fixture towards the end of the season.
I recall being changed and kicking about awaiting our opponents with a sizeable crowd lining both touchlines. The game never took place as Prospect never arrived.
There was another Orchard game at RNAD against Broughton where I was more involved in the referee calling an early halt.
There wasn’t long left and I was brought down in the box – stonewall penalty – but suddenly players were at each other’s throats with different views on the referee’s decision.
In actual fact quite a lot of the two teams were mates from Cockermouth Grammar School but it didn’t stop them getting into gear on this occasion.
There was a later game, a President’s Cup final on the old Marsh Boys Club pitch, involving Cumberland Star and Distington.
At some point one of the Distington supporters took exception to a refereeing decision and ran on to kick-out at him.
It was a serious flashpoint moment but it did not end the game and the Star team went on to win one of their first trophies in the Sunday League.
Fortunately these type of incidents have been rare over the years and long may that continue.
