Hibs Boy The Life and Violent Times of Scotland's Most Notorious Football Hooligan

Product Information

On the pitch, the 1980s were a decade to forget for the Hibernian faithful as the club flitted between mid-table finishes and occasional flirts with relegation. The incident, recounted by former CCS leader Derek Dykes in his book ‘These Colours Don’t Run, saw the firm gain a measure of revenge after one member of the group was put into a coma during a previous fight. After mismanagement during the late 1980s, Hibernian were on the brink of financial ruin in 1990 and in June of that year, Wallace Mercer, the chairman of Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts, proposed a merger of the two clubs. [84] The Hibs fans believed that the proposal was little more than a hostile takeover and they formed the Hands off Hibs group to campaign for the continued existence of the club. Walker, Andrew (5 May 2003). "Axeman boss of Hibees casuals". Daily Record . Retrieved 24 August 2011. Giulianotti, Richard; Bonney, Norman; Hepworth, Mike (1994). "Taking liberties Hibs casuals and Scottish law". Football, violence, and social identity. Routledge. ISBN 9780415098373.

Secondly, we can consider the more recent evidence, his magnum opus, "Hibs Boy" a heady brew of lies, imagination and downright fantasy cobbled together in a manner sure to please semi illiterate hibs 'boys' and celebrity patron alike. Indeed the foreword is written by a man who surely sees this book more as erotic fiction than historical document, the essential bedtime reading for a mid 40s hibs fan who now wishes they were there first time round, but missed out as they were too busy doing a bit of bi-curious experimentation around the club scene while their club got an equal roasting on the field with 22-in-a-row. Brimson 2003, Scotland p. 79 "The Hibs lads had gained a reputation for themselves in England after they ran riot at various friendlies in England"Finn, G. (1987). Casual Talk and Casual Observation: The Phenomenon of the "Soccer Casuals". Invited paper to the Annual Scientific Meeting of the Scottish Branch of the British Psychological Society, Glasgow. Once the slot had aired and the dust had settled, it was later revealed that Sky Sports had been inundated with more complaints about Soccer AM than they'd ever received before. Giulianotti, Richard; Armstrong, Gary (2002). "Avenues of contestation. Football hooligans running and ruling urban spaces". Social Anthropology. 10 (2): 211–238. doi: 10.1017/S0964028202000149. ISSN 1469-8676. Pennant 2006, Jim 'Jinks' Mctaggot, Glasgow Rangers pp. 134, 137 "Craziest set of fans in Scotland late 80s early 90s" "In Scotland one of the top five firms of importance today" Smith, Mark (8 November 2002). "Anger at ambush by Hibs casuals". Edinburgh Evening News . Retrieved 9 July 2011.

The book is about my time with the Hibs casuals and everything that went on - but I have to say that is all in the past now." In 1990, a pre-season friendly was organised between Hibs and Millwall, whose casuals were among the largest and most vicious in Britain. An absolute sheetbag of a man if you ask me. Weapons. Use your fists you lardass! Or do you know you'd end up 2nd best.

It happened in the heart of Princes Street, right in front of the Aberdeen fans. At first I had no idea what it was. Section B, Inter City Firm, Aberdeen Soccer Crew, Saturday Service, The Utility, Casual Soccer Firm Membership wasn't even restricted to only Hibs fans. Over the years casuals from Hearts and sometimes Old Firm fans who lived in Edinburgh were integrated into the mob. These individuals usually had a more rigorous initiation than normal as asides from the reservations of some CCS members they also had to prove their worth against the team that they were originally associated with. [9] [41] The hibs support themselves at that time had no spine and were just grateful that they had a hooligan mob that stopped them from getting grief from Hearts, Rangers and Celtic fans. I followed Hearts from 83-89 and never ran into the CCS at Easter Rd, maybe they jumped Hearts fans in the city centre. But Hearts used to take over 10,000 fans to easter Rd, Hibs support at Tynescastle was a disgrace, to the point where in 89 I think Hearts split the gorgie rd end to allow more Hearts fans in. The Hibs casuals were out-numbered three to one and took a pasting in the fight near the resort’s Ibrox Bar.

According to Blance, fellow CCS member Bobby Lipscombe managed to get through to Soccer AM's other co-presenter Tim Lovejoy and managed to persuade him that the Hibs fans would be worthy of making an appearance.

Brimson 2003, Scotland p. 77 "some would claim that the Hibs firm did rule the roost in Scotland in the latter part of the 1980s" Since his starring role in the TV show, his profile is even higher. He is the boss around here and ­everybody knows it.

Ungentlemanly Conduct:Football Hooligans, the Media and the Construction of Notoriety, Richard Giulianotti Department of Sociology University of Aberdeen Gary Armstrong Department of Sociology University of Reading Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh is helping one of Scotland's worst football thugs cash in on his violent past - describing him as a "good pal". If practicable, the venue for the brawl to take place had to be sufficiently far away from the anticipated area of police surveillance on the day. For example, during the 1994/95 season, for a visit of Dundee hooligans, it was a public house in a quiet white collar part of the New Town area [53] and against the Rangers mob it was at a suburban railway station in Slateford, which was regarded as deep within Hearts fans territory. For the 1996 Euro Championship game between England and Scotland a pub with a suitably sized car park for a mob fight was opted for in the London area of High Barnet, ten miles away from the usual battleground of Trafalgar Square. [41] This mode of confrontation was still evident in 2011 for a match against Celtic in Edinburgh but with the added twist of taking place while the game was being played three miles away from the fight. [60] Scott Lawson, 28, from Doncaster, was also jailed for two years for assault to severe injury after he bit off part of Hibs fan Ian Taylor’s ear. The Hibs Baby Crew (HBC) were youngsters who, in 1987, were involved in hooliganism and seeking full membership.Pearson’s Tory counterpart Margaret Mitchell pointed out that the SNP pledged in their 2007 and 2011 election manifestos to abolish automatic early release. McCall & Robb 2007, Edinburgh's Hibernian CCS, who were for a long time one of the most feared mobs in Europe Rivers, Dan (2007). Congratulations, You Have Just Met the Casuals: The True Story of Aberdeen's Staunchest Fans. John Blake Publishing, Limited. ISBN 9781844543076. The concept of going to the football to fight and enjoy the fighting is an alien one to me. Andy Blance was a member of the CCS the Hibernian casuals who go to follow their football team but feel the need to have a brawl with casuals of other Scottish, English and European like minded people who want to fight.