This may or may not get moved to another thread
I believe all fans should be in seperate stands away from each other at all times. Yes years ago there may of been mixed crowds with banter between fans but thats the past this is the present. Where theres ale theres trouble full stop, segregation ends trouble before it starts. Thats why football has away fans in their own stands to stop crowd trouble.

If Rugby League fans cant go to a game, drink and behave responsibily then they shouldnt go at all!

One of the main reasons for RL being a family game is because fans can get together from all teams and get along. We shouldnt be segregating crowds because of a few minor incidents. Just simply kick out these people who misbehave and people will learn.

You find your own spot's to stand etc. can't imagine many wigan fans going to the scoreboard end at Wilderspool, nor in the South Stand at Headingley, or threepenny stand at Boulevard.

Segregation would be the death of the game, all seaters make the old fashioned banter and mingling much more difficult, if you were standing next to a you simply moved, now you don't have that option. There will always be those from all clubs who want some bother, I've sadly seen a few from Wigan who fit the description as well. They will find it wherever if they want to.

If people go to cause trouble they will kick off when everyone leaves.

The one thing Rugby League can be very proud of is the way everyone mixes and we should NEVER do away with that.

I would rather they stopped selling ale than segregate the fans.

Walking back to the car on Saturday I spoke to many Wigan fans, had a laugh and a joke and wished them well, no trouble in sight other than a female wigan fan clouting a wire speccy round the back of the head but nowt serious the Wigan fans told her to behave and pushed her away.

I remember meeting a Wire fan on the M6 services at Nuneaton a few years back.
He had his 'colours' on, as did i.
For both of us, it was just brilliant to meet another RL fan in that part of the country. Plenty of banter and p*sstaking......But still a comradeship for the game that surpassed loyalties, and a million miles from how football 'fans' might have viewed each other.

Unfortunately, we do have a d*ckhead element at match time these days, and it cant be ignored.
Not sure what the answer is exactly, but RL is known throughout the world as a family-friendly sport and we must do everything possible to maintain that reputation.

Absolutely, I have watched RL in many places abroad with Wigan/St Helens/Leeds supporters and had good chats with them all... RL is not like football, when away from an actual game everyone (generally) gets on.

And thats what makes our game great.

In some grounds segregation would be pretty much impossible anyway and even where it is possible the nature and severity of incidents (at league games anyway) is generally pretty minor and pretty rare anyway and should be able to be dealt with by the stewards getting rid of the idiots.


I do think there is now an argument for more segregation at semi finals/finals as that is when the problems tend to occur more.

Agreed. That's when everyone's camp followers show up.

Problems occur at Warrington games and finals in which St. Helens are losing. No need for segregation at any other games.

Not even Hull/Hull KR?

People seem to think this is fairly new at rugby. One of my first games watching Wigan in the early 80s was against Leigh at Central Park and there was fighting outside the ground. It was quite scary for a primary school kid I can tell you. I have also seen trouble at Wembley when we played Wire. Also at Saints - but the 'Wigan' fans fighting had old Latics tops on - so I don't really count that. Luckily though this kind of thing is few and far between - and I would say most clubs have got their 'idiotic' followers.

No Thanks.

I think unfortunately it will get worse as the new grounds give fans much less chance to mingle.

We have also lost a certain family atmosphere in the summer era with later kickoffs.

But Its not anything like the eighties yet - I can remember a particular challenge cup tie at warrington that was bad in and out of the ground.

I can also remember fighting between leeds and saints fans on the pitch at the JPS final.

All fans have their element. But most fans like the banter.

When I start to see things like forming ULTRAS in RL thats a concern.

If you did a bit of a search on youtube you will see a lot of "bravado" from fans on tour - an example

[urlhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFlbvLBQKCE[/url

I`m sure this always happened BUT it wasn't celebrated in the public domain.

If you honestly want what you are requesting you are then going to see the death of the CC Final and the GF. Both of these Finals rely upon the thousands and thousands of neautrals that go the games. How can neutrals be segregated? I am going to the CC Final and we are sitting in the Hudds end - does that mean as Wigan fans we should have to be moved?

The only way it could possibly work is if tickets for the event only went on sale after the two teams were decided and when ordering tickets fans of those clubs were "forced" into the allocated blocks for there club with the other blocks being kept for neutral fans - but realistically that probably wouldn't work, especially as a lot of people go to major games with friends who are fans of different clubs.

Recognise a couple of them...........

We do not need to separate supporters, by all means have family areas and stuff but lets have everyone together not as wire, saints, wigan, hudds but as fans of Rugby league, it is one of the main things that is great about our game. The magic weekend although it has not fully taken off yet should carry on because of that sort of atmosphere it creates.

DO NOT LET THE MINORITY RUIN SOMETHING GREAT!

Terrifying!!

Just watched that clip and I can't see your point, if that 's your illustration of "bravado on tour", I didn't find the couple holding hands in he midst of it all particularly threatening, I'm sure the folk of St Helens didn't either.

As for the forming of "ULTRAS", this will not or should not pose any threat of violence, either. Its about raising the volume of the support, injecting a bit of colour and enthusiasm into things and giving like minded fans a bit of organisation to help do so. The club are aware of the efforts being made and its assistance is being sought to get things going. "ULTRAS" will not, I suspect, be a name that is retained in the long term.

WAY-HAY, another one who has automatically linked the word Ultra with the British press attempt to scapegoat someone for English thugs abroad at Football!

I thought ULTRAS was the name the Roma hooligans have given themselves??

Cheers

Chris

No, the Ultras are a movement to passionate visual and vocal displays of support at matches. There are Ultra groups for different clubs across Europe, and especially Eastern Europe.

They follow the South American Torcida (a term adopted by some fans in Eastern Europe like the Torcida Split for Hadjuk Split) movements, torcer being Brazilian for "to support."

Yes, there are d-head elements who come under the umbrella of the term ultra, like the are d-head elements who cause trouble at Grand Finals. But Ultras in the main support their side passionately, sometimes they appear intimidating, but it makes the atmosphere intimidating.

The British media need to paint the British fans whiter than white, when they aren't. I was in a pub in Derby last season when United fans turned it over while families ate. Was it reported, was it hell, because the British hooligan is dead to the British media. When trouble kicks off abroad, it is invariably the fault of British fans asking for it. The Ultras are an easy target because of what they stand for.

See my sig, "Ultras Botev - Hooligans." The term hooligan is a term they have attached to themselves to appear intimidating, yet I met a group of Botev Ultras in Bulgaria, and they were as great to talk to as RL folk, and I'll be heading out in the season to watch Botev with them.

I know this is going to open a can of worms but personally I don`t need to have a drink to enjoy the atmosphere at at match, I go to watch the rugby and not to drink if I wanted to do that I would go to the pub.
I understand everyone has there own reasons for going to watch a match but personally I cannot think anything more annoying that having someone four seats down from you who cannot go 40 mins without having a drink and secondly the guy who decides to stand on the steps with his two pints in his hands to watch something that is happening on the pitch.
I know it`s not to eveyones taste but i wouldn`t miss alcohol being sold at matches.

So there you go! If anyone is interested in being noisy, and passionate in their support of Wigan, in the Ultra stylie there is a recently formed Facebook group called "Th'Ultras" which you can join to register your interest, with a view to getting something organised for next season.

Cheers.

[urlhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVbhIjitxhw[/url



Ski, I`d think twice about that visit.



Like I said its in the public domain - It only takes a d-head from st.helens to think I`m going to top that. Look at some of the responses.

I certainly would not want to get to the point were those fans would have to be escorted to and from the train station like in football.

Secondly, I`m very much against any factionalism of fans especially those elevating themselves to "ultra" status. Its divisive in the long term and NOT condusive to a friendly game no matter how well intended in its formation some people will always get the wrong idea.

I work all week, go the game, meet friends, like a bit of banter with the opposition, chat a bit of RL on these boards.

What happened to that being enough!

as a wire fan i went the other semi on the hj after the game myself and other wire fans had a great time with hudd fans and saints fans no malice just good old banter