David Pleat, Luton manager, both sets of players, all the coaching staff, officials dashed for the "tunnel", leaving behind them, violent chaos. Pleat said that he looked back on the violent chaos, 100% scared, the tunnel was like a war field hospital, cuts and bruises, probably "breaks", it was horrendous.
This was the "darkest Spring" in English football history, following the FA Cup semi-final at Goodison Park, when Manchester United and Liverpool played a match "pockmarked" with violence. On May 11 came the Bradford Fire at Valley Parade; do you remember where you were when that came over the radio? I do!!! 54 died in an inferno, started by a discarded cigarette butt. On the same day, in a match between Birmingham City and Leeds United, hooliganism killed a fan and then came Heysel; 39 fans crushed in a stampede by Liverpool supporters.
Football fan and politician, David Mellor said "That Spring became very difficult, for those of us who enjoyed the game of football, to defend it against those who regarded it as some kind of abberation." Evening kick offs gave fans more time to drink. In the Luton case, the timing of the match prevented it from being all ticket and a pay at the turnstiles was the only way to control the crowd.
George Graham, the Millwall manager tried to plead with "his" fans to return to their section but they were hyped up and clearly going to be a nuisance from the start from their alloted seats, spilling onto the pitch and into the opposition areas. As the match started, Millwall fans spilled from the overcrowded away stand and onto the pitch, leaving the officials no choice but to take the players away to the changing areas. Despite messages about clearing the pitch and the threat of abandoning the game, although things seemed calmer, Luton scored the first goal (and the only goal!)...the referee blew the finals whistle and the players, staff and officials dashed for cover down the tunnel. Millwall fans were determined to confront the police, who in those days did the crowd control "job" that club staff do today. The crowd was determined to challenge them and concrete pieces were thown at them.
On March 14th 1954, Brazil wore their new kit, following on from their uninspiring all white, which was blamed for their poor performance in the 1950 World Cup. The next colour of all-blue wasn't regarded as inspiring either, so in 1953, a competition in the Rio newspaper, Correio da Manha, in association with the national Sport Confederation, published that they wanted a new kit which must contain colours of the national flag; yellow, blue, white and green! Easy. Second prize was produced by the man who created the 1950 Brazilian World Cup "poster", which had it won would have had Brazil running around in green shirts, white shorts and yellow socks!
BUT.... thank goodness, the newspaper chose a style from Aldyr Garcia Schlee, a 19 year old newspaper illustrator, from the south of the country-he offered a yellow shirt, green trim, blue shorts, white socks!
The kit had a happy debut at the Maracana on March 14 1954, against Chile, in a World Cup qualifer, which Brazil won 1-0. Baltazar da Silva scored the winner; the Selecao's first ever goal in yellow.
Schlee, a Brazilian, lived near the Uruguayan broder, which brought back memories of Brazil losing to the Uruguyans in the 1950 World Cup, a moment laced with irony.
When Brazil won the World Cup in 1958, the irony was that they had to change colours as Sweden, their opponents that day, wore yellow and blue-a clash! The blue kit came from a local shop in host city, Stockholm! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vUpZgzj-3I Sweden in "light" shirts!!! 2-5 WIN
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