Category: Football

War off the Terraces: Football and Violence in Amsterdam

For what is probably the first time in the history of football hooliganism, a head of state is sending special aeroplanes to bring a group of ultras who drew the short straw back home safely. I’m talking about the fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv, of course. Over the last couple of days, these poor dears have assaulted taxi drivers, attacked pro-Palestine protests, and threatened Muslims in the streets of Amsterdam. They chanted, “Let the IDF win and fuck the Arabs”, “There’s no schools in Gaza because there’s no children left”, and booed a minute of silence for the Valencia flood victims. Then they got their arses handed to them. The mainstream media now describes this as an “anti-Jewish pogrom”. However, Netanyahu, who is something of an expert when it comes to pogroms, has been quick to assist… A Dutch skinhead mate of mine who is an Ajax supporter attended the match, so I asked him what went down last night.
Matt Crombieboy

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‘Skinheads’ by Davide Skin from Genoa, 1988

This is a short article by Davide ‘Skin’ that originally appeared in Italian Gradinata Nord, a zine providing “culture and free information for the Fossa dei Grifoni”, the ultras of Genoa CFC, in 1988. We would like to thank Guendalina Buonavita for sending us this little gem.

Photo by Fabrizio Barile
Translation by Francesca Chiari

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by Categories: Football, Skinhead historyTags: , , 3 Comments

The faces of a football hooligan

Nowadays it’s all prawn sandwiches and latte, but there were times when people went to football carrying meathooks… Interview with ‘Peter’, a 17 years old Park Lane boy from a “housing estate in the heart of the East End”.

From the Sunday Times, 21 September 1969. Continue reading →

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The Gentleman Footballer: John King on Alan Hudson

Footballer biographies are two a penny these days, but this wasn’t always the case. First published in 1996, Chelsea, Stoke and Arsenal legend Alan Hudson’s The Working Man’s Ballet was unusual in its time of being a non-ghosted tale of battles on and off the pitch, demons fought and, yes, Ben Shermans worn. London Books, run by John King (Skinheads, The Football Factory) and Chelsea Shed boy Martin Knight, are now republishing Alan’s biography, which John says is an account of “shared rebelliousness” between the dressing room and the terraces. 

A Creases Like Knives exclusive, John King’s intro to the new edition is below (with thanks to Stevo). Read also our interview with John if you haven’t already. Continue reading →

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Literary hooligan: an interview with John King

Headhunters, White Trash, Skinheads and, most recently, The Liberal Politics of Adolf Hitler – as the titles of John King’s novels alone suggest, the godfather of hoolie lit is not one to dodge controversy or trouble. Living it as he’s writing it, the same has certainly been true for his real life persona.

King is something like British literature’s face of Oi. As many Londoners will know, this connection extends to the live events he puts on at the 100 Club. Named after his fourth novel, Human Punk, King’s night frequently features prole punk icons such as The Last Resort, Cockney Rejects, Ruts DC and Sham 69. Continue reading →

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Come on Boro! An interview with Tom Loizou

As long-standing readers will remember, Creases Like Knives is based in north London’s Haringey borough – Spurs territory, but also where Coles Park Stadium, home to Haringey Borough FC, is located. Haringey Borough FC has been knocking about under that name since 1973, although its pre-history goes all the way back to 1907.

After last Saturday’s match against Brentwood FC, which Borough won 3–2, we had a chat with their hard-working manager, Tommy Loizou. He told us how hard it is to run a non league club, who his key players are, and about his transfer policy. Continue reading →

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