[0762]

Good comments but there's an alternative view re such a possible England unilateral withdrawal - it would be effectively conceding to the English yob and others! Also there's no doubt the English FA has an element of self-interest in media coverage and the needs of their sponsors as well as their players being involved in these kinda big tourneys in order to gain good experience.
I notice UEFA officials will be taking 'severe action' against the Russian FA after that senseless attack inside the stadium last night! The punishment will be announced on Tuesday and I suspect it will be a cursory fine, poss €100k! As usual UEFA acting on incidents within the stadia and never doing enough re the external shenanigans!

[Fredstersafool]

FIFA might impose worse I.e taking the World Cup off them

[HerefordBull]

Much as I love tournament football, and much as I'd hate to disappoint lovely, decent Roy Hodgson who is doing his best to give us a team we can watch, genuinely support and in which we can feel a little silly nationalistic pride, I'd like to see us unilaterally withdraw from the tournament and issue an apology to the French people.

If some of our fans weren't acting like pricks Russian Ultras wouldn't feel there was anything to gain by attacking innocent fans.

Other countries might even follow our lead. After all they seem pretty quick to adopt the same ludicrous behaviour patterns.

And I'm heartily sick of seeing that stupid ******* advert that FOOTBALL IS NOTHING WITHOUT FANS. That is exactly what these idiots throwing bottles in cafes want to believe. They want to believe they are significant because in no other way have they been able to achieve. If they could play the bloody game they wouldn't be smashing up Marseilles. Football absolutely IS something without fans - people play it all over the world with hardly a soul to watch. You just need a few mates and a ball and you're off.

IT'S A GAME YOU BRANDED FcKU-PiG piss-ant advertising lard-arses. It's a lovely, lovely, poetic game ........ and it has no more to do with lumbering dumb-ox Russian Ultras than it is the property of the belching farting turnips we spew across the continent. It's our game. Those of us who love it - it's ours. It doesn't belong to Rupert Murdoch, Greg Dyke or some tit selling Jamie Vardy to Arsenal for a fee he can never justify. Get your cold capitalist hands off it ...... and you with the tattooed fingers, yes you drinking straight from bottle, it's not a video game, this is real life, so ***K OFF and STAY ***Ked OFF.

Sums my view up brilliantly Devongone. Well done.

[WakeyTerrier]

I haven't even read the 7 pages. I don't need to because by page 4 I'd read enough shit on here.
Speaking as someone who arrived in Marseille at 12:30 yesterday I can only tell you what my experience has been like.
Thousands of England fans were milling about, some walking about some enjoying the fan zones and some having a beer, admittedly I didn't go to the Old port but from I saw there was no violence,no hint of trouble and no problems what so ever. The police,the locals and the bar workers were all in good spirit.
Security at the ground was lax to say the least, a quick pat down and a walk through, they didn't even search Mitzis handbag which shows how poor security was. The only trouble in the ground from what I could see was from the Russians who stormed the English fans at the end

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Hung drawn and quartered judging by some of your views, as bad as the English media

[jjamez]

England and russia face disqualification if the violence persists

[HerefordBull]

No smoke without fire . We have seen enough footage , some official and some you tube to show there was a lot of trouble and not everyone has had your enjoyable experience Wakey.

Unfortunately, England fans reputation goes before them and so will always be a target for continental ultra groups. I'm glad the only trouble you saw was at the end but that would have been terrifying for the men, women and children fleeing to escape and jump walls.

In the UK we have become used to little or no violence at or around grounds we have forgotten what a problem it is in Europe especially in the East. Northern Ireland fans are now facing a similar problem against Polish ultras with French ones getting involved as well!  The England fans wouldn't be used to the Police tactics when it does kick off. The trouble last night wasn't down to England fans but Russians but footage shows some idiots supporting England not helping the situation.

As Hibs fans we know what it is like to have a situation blown up, largely falsely, by the press after the pitch invasion at Hampden but again all the mobile phone footage does not lie and it is now being used to bring anybody responsible to justice and show that Rangers were not 100% innocent as they first claimed. However from the footage we have witnessed the violence in Marseille makes Hampden look like a 4 year olds tea party.

Enjoy the rest of your time there Wakey and stay safe.

[Imre varadi]

Actually its been reported that the Northern Irish and polish where fighting together against nices french ultras  it seems these ultras are well out of controll and the french police have done nothing about the situation  same will happen when England play wales ultras will be involed i just cant see the majority of the English and welsh fighting each other ? but off course there is millwall leeds and cardiff city involved here    to me its just insane that England where sent to play in marsellie just because the ball was drawn out of a hat 
  in future venues need to be picked properly to keep rivals apart . maybe the english should have been put in camps like the Italia 90 WC but this didnt work either as the camps where attacked   

 anyway most of Englands fans will be coming Home after thurdays game so no need to ban them   but im all for being banned for the WC because quite frankly i cant take much more of WOy feffing hodgson and the dinasaurs from the FA 

[St Charles Owl]

Much as I love tournament football, and much as I'd hate to disappoint lovely, decent Roy Hodgson who is doing his best to give us a team we can watch, genuinely support and in which we can feel a little silly nationalistic pride, I'd like to see us unilaterally withdraw from the tournament and issue an apology to the French people.

If some of our fans weren't acting like pricks Russian Ultras wouldn't feel there was anything to gain by attacking innocent fans.

Other countries might even follow our lead. After all they seem pretty quick to adopt the same ludicrous behaviour patterns.

Sorry Devon, I think that's nonsense regarding withdrawing from the tournament!!  That is just playing into the hands of the trouble makers and gives rival teams fans a perfect way to get a country banned.

And no country would follow our lead, they would then be saying thank god the English are taking all the blame for this and sit by holding their hands innocently in the air!!!

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I'm guessing the first event in Nice is an isolated incident that can happen at any venue - apparently a bottle thrown by a local youth and that 'sparked' the prob with this gang of local youths in Nice. I'm not reading about ensuing violence through the night and will be very surprised if this scenario arises. The other incident was again an isolated one but, as hibeejim says, there is some previous bad blood between factions of extreme RW Polish fans and elements of NI 'prody inspired' fans who I hope are in a minority within the mix of NI fans who wanna see their team doing well for a change.

So now trouble elsewhere, surely this too is the fault of the England fans isn't it???  Obviously I am being flippant but now you say this one is an isolated incident that can happen anywhere, politically motivated but it's ok because unlike England fans, most NI fans wanna see their team do well!!! In actual fact the common denominator seems to be the local French ultras and youths, been involved in both cities now. We will see more of this going on, now let's see how it gets reported, if at all.

[Fredstersafool]

Yer England and yer thugs

[theo_luddite]

Deary me