THE creaking and crumbling of the wall was barely audible at first above the violent din of baying mobs of rival hooligans bent on trouble. Within seconds, an almighty rumble was to shake Birmingham City's St Andrew's stadium as a 12ft high wall crashed to the ground below, sending a cloud of dust and debris into the air. Cars that had been parked beneath the structure were left bent and twisted by the destructive force of the rubble that crashed on top of them. Tensions had been running high throughout the final day clash between Birmingham City and Leeds that overcast May day in 1985. Birmingham City faced Leeds on the final day of the season knowing that victory could see them top the old Division Two table if Oxford lost. Both clubs had a history of crowd trouble and tensions had been high throughout the match. "Although little in the way of promotion or relegation hinged on the result violence erupted on the terraces resulting in several police officers being injured," wrote the then Chief Constable Geoffrey Dear in his annual report for 1985. But no one could have envisaged the ugly scenes of violence that followed the final whistle. The fighting was described by Justice Popplewell, during the Popplewell Committee investigation into football in 1985 as more like "the Battle of Agincourt than a football match". A thin blue line of police officers, in little more than their tunics and helmets and armed with just a wooden truncheon, faced the baying crowds ripping down fences. It was just their charges and the work of the police mounted branch that kept the fans apart as the battle ebbed and flowed. Seats were also torn up and bottles hurled at police and a refreshment bar was set on fire and wrecked. Retired Detective Chief Supt Mick Treble, who left the force earlier this year recalled: "We were standing in a line in the middle of the pitch facing the stand as the crowd tried to break down the fences. "It was the most terrifying experience I had in my police career. "The intensity, the anger, the violence shown by Leeds fans was something else. "They were throwing coins at us, officers right next to you were getting slashed over the face when they hit. Officers questioned their own moral fibre, but we all knew we had to stand firm and hold the line." Former mounted branch officer Doug Smith was in action, too, on his horse Lochinvar during the infamous pitch riot. "It was testing for both of us," he said. "I'd been trained. So had Lochinvar. "My mouth went dry, I felt the anticipatory butterflies in my belly. "That's the time you start wondering if the pair of you will make out together. "The the trouble starts and you forget everything except breaking up the crowds into small groups and keeping them moving. "A horse in a riot, don't forget, is the nearest thing to a tank you can find." Ian was to be fatally injured when police pushed the Leeds fans away from the pitch and the wall collapsed under the pressure of the crowd. In total 145 policemen were injured and 125 fans were arrested. At least 40 fans were treated at East Birmingham Hospital and about a dozen at Birmingham Accident Hospital. Writing in his annual report for 1985, the then Chief Constable Geoffrey Dear described it as "possibly the worst crowd disorders ever seen at a football ground in this country". He went on: "The trouble at the St Andrews Ground led to a reappraisal of the scale of protective clothing for issue to officers in this Force together with other equipment to assist in dealing with severe public disorder, and the force is now much better prepared in this respect." His annual report had been full of the heartache of two major outbreaks of trouble. In an effort to finish on a optimistic note, he continued: "Many of the casualties, both police and civilian, were taken to East Birmingham Hospital that day and the consultant in charge of the Accident and Emergency Department later had this to say, 'One of the things which impressed me most was the stoicism and the calmness of the injured policemen. Their behaviour was remarkable. 'They were less concerned with their damaged heads, crushed feet and other injuries than with trying to help other people, and if this is the typical British bobby we have every reason to be proud.' "I believe he is right," the Chief Constable added, "and I believe that the spirit of the service that he identified augurs well for the future of the force."

• published: 07 Aug 2011
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