Police at Stoke - Disgusting Behaviour

We wanted to dash off quick to catch a train, but were met by police stewards preventing exit .
A crowd built up behind us and after 5 minutes or so the inevitable happened.
There was a surge and I was bundled into 2 Coppers who barely kept their feet.
Everyone spilled through the closed doors.
Not well thought out.
Not sure what went on after as we jumped on a bus for the station. Did not leave till after 5.25 and we only made our train because it was delayed.
Heard reports of bother in the car park but did not witness.
 
Seemed to want to justify the hundreds of coppers there. All appeared freindly until they corralled us on the way out.Held everyone back for 25 minutes crambed together in freezing weather then only let 2000 fans leave in single file glaring at us.....
 
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While we were waiting to be let out, a lad near me asked one of the coppers what it was all about. He replied, politely to be fair, that they believed a minority of Boro fans were going to start fighting with a similar minority of Stoke fans. Quite what this was based upon, I have no idea. Stoke isn't usually the sort of place where the local crew hang around outside the away end for a post-match punch up. In fact, thankfully, not many places are in 2021. Of course, I may have missed a bunch of young Boro fans charging out of the ground at full time, oblivious to the fact that the car park behind the away end had a lot of police officers, police vans and police cars in it, so if anyone did see what would have been rather foolish (and unlikely) behaviour, I stand corrected. But I am probably with the majority of us there today, wondering why Staffordshire Police found such a 1980s approach to visiting fans so necessary.
 
Some views from the stoke fans forum..
'Outside the away end and on the island after🤔
Not seen that many since the old days of Millwall and Cardiff visiting.Had there been some trouble beforehand?'

'What was with all the police outside away compound? Haven't seen that many for years. As some of you might know I work away turnstiles boro fans were really polite and had a good laugh with them over zealous policing again. My mate who I work with on away ends stepson and his mates got pepper sprayed 25mins after game just for trying to leave the ground which in this day and age is mad. Police seem to think we are back in the 80s.'
 
r00fie1 said:
I`ve witnessed the same behaviour from Staffordshire Police previously at Stoke`s ground.
The biggest thug problem at Stoke home games are the Police.
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To be fair the rank and file seemed freindly enough smiled and welcomed us on the way in,,,but poor crowd management nearly created an issue on the way out.
 
Just got back to York now. I guess they were trying to let the home fans disperse. But why not tell us? No communication and just rank bad policing. Glad I didn't take my son.

Seeing people try to explain to other police that they had been pepper sprayed and them giving no sympathy was very sad.

Heard one Policeman tell one fella his colleague, sitting in a Van, felt threatened by him and his 15 year old - with a broken ankle next to his van. Terrible.

@fmttmadmin it's worth asking the club for their thoughts I think. I think Rob was taking photos of it all.
 
It sounded a bit like Coventry, when they wouldn’t let us walk towards the station and the car parks but all they ended up doing was moving the trouble further down the road.
 
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