‘Nothing about that game felt safe' – The 2009 Upton Park riot retold by those who were there

New York Times

14-02-2025

Rob Green could not believe what he was seeing.
The then-West Ham United goalkeeper was aware of the hatred between West Ham and Millwall supporters — but not to this extent.
'I was in front of the Millwall fans, they'd ripped up the chairs and started throwing them on the pitch. But then they started pulling out the metal framework that held the seats in. That's when I realised, 'S***, this is going to be a long night.' It was venomous hatred.'
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Green, who played for West Ham between 2006-2012, is reflecting on the 2009 League Cup tie against Millwall, a game labelled 'the Upton Park riot'. West Ham won 3-1, but the match was marred by violence outside the ground and pitch invasions by fans during it. There were arrests and a Millwall supporter was stabbed in the chest before the match.
'The heavy police presence made it a different kind of game,' Green tells The Athletic. 'On paper, we (West Ham) had enough to beat them, but they scored an early goal and that just heightened the tense atmosphere. It went to extra time and that was the last thing the game needed. The pitch invasions delayed it even further.
'The game finished late and we couldn't leave the ground until it died down outside. Nothing about that game felt safe.'
Green's counterpart in goal for Millwall, David Forde, felt similar and says West Ham fans threw objects at the Millwall bus as they arrived for the game. 'That night was just extreme hooliganism,' he tells The Athletic.
Both clubs were charged by the Football Association for failing to control their supporters that night. The FA later fined West Ham £115,000 ($142,600 in today's exchange) while Millwall, the visiting team, were cleared of the charges. 'Everyone at the club is shocked and appalled at what happened and we will leave no stone unturned in identifying the perpetrators, rooting them out and then taking the proper action from both the police point of view and the club's,' said West Ham's then-chief executive Scott Duxbury at the time.
The Athletic has spoken to supporters, players and officials who witnessed firsthand how the day and evening unfolded.
The 2005 film Green Street, starring Elijah Wood and released four years before the Upton Park riot, tapped into the rivalry between West Ham and Millwall, which dates back to the early 1900s.
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Back in the early 20th century, Millwall were a club based on the Isle of Dogs in east London. But they moved over the River Thames in 1910 to The Den in southeast London and then, 83 years later, to The New Den (just up the road) where they have remained since.
Founded as Thames Ironworks in east London in 1895, West Ham reformed in 1900 under their current name and moved to the Boleyn Ground, also known as Upton Park, where they remained until moving to the London Stadium in 2016.
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Mark Baxter, a 62-year-old Millwall season-ticket holder, says his club's initial relocation is a huge part of the rivalry.
'The best way to describe it is like two brothers who just don't get on,' Baxter tells The Athletic. 'They are similar in many ways but just can't see eye to eye. Both were initially based in east London, but Millwall crossed to the south. That division started it off.'
But even before Millwall's move south, the clubs were drawn together in the 1899-1900 FA Cup and it was coined the 'Dockers derby' as many of the clubs' supporters worked at shipyards on the River Thames. Baxter says political events a few decades later heightened the animosity between the two fanbases.
'There was a general strike in 1926 and West Ham fans who were dockers accused the Millwall dockers of staying open,' he says. 'That might have been over 100 years ago but it's been ingrained in us to never forget.'
'Forged From The Docks', written by James Sarfas, was published in October 2021 and details the origins of the rivalry in the Victorian East End. The West Ham dockers were based in the Royal Docks while their Millwall counterparts were based in the Surrey Commercial Docks in Rotherhithe.
The first reports of violence took place during a game in the 1906-07 season when Millwall had two players sent off and fights broke out in the crowd, and there have been varying degrees of trouble at games since. Baxter has been present at many hostile games since the 1970s, though could not make the 2009 tie. He says the rise of hooliganism in English football in the 1970s and 1980s, and the two clubs' 'firms' — the Inter City Firm (ICF) of West Ham and the Millwall Bushwackers — only heightened the feud.
'Firms' are groups of hooligans that associate themselves with football clubs and are intent on violence, typically clashing with rival firms that wish to represent other teams. These hooligans have been depicted and glamourised in cult British films Green Street and The Football Factory.
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Hooliganism was a growing problem in the 1980s. Following the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985, in which 39 people died and 600 were injured after a wall collapsed as they tried to escape clashes between Liverpool and Juventus fans, all English clubs were banned from playing in European competitions for five years.
'The 1970s was a violent time,' says Baxter. 'I saw the rivalry firsthand when I was 10 in 1972.
'Me and my old man went to a testimonial game for former Millwall defender Harry Cripps — and that was nasty. Cripps played for West Ham in his youth but after the game, there were cars turned upside down. It was just a crazy scene. It wasn't about enjoying the games but instead getting closer to opposing fans.'
Several players have had spells at both teams and West Ham legend Billy Bonds even had a brief managerial spell at Millwall between 1997-98. Goalkeeper Forde made over 300 appearances for Millwall but had previously been at West Ham without making a first-team appearance.
'I signed as a young professional at West Ham for three years,' Forde tells The Athletic. 'I was aware of the rivalry. It felt weird joining because of the hatred between the sides.
'It was a big obstacle I had to overcome. Everyone would have been aware of my previous spell at West Ham but my saving grace was the fact I didn't play in the first team. That saved me and gave me a longer career at Millwall.'
On Wednesday, August 12, 2009, the two clubs were drawn to face each other in the second round of the League Cup. West Ham held an emergency meeting with their safety advisory group later that day to discuss how to minimise violence. The match was classified as all-ticket.
The Metropolitan Police cut Millwall's ticket allocation from 3,000 to 1,500, with Andy Ambler, Millwall's chief executive, criticising the decision. 'It would seem to us to be far more sensible to give as many Millwall supporters the chance to watch the match safely and securely within the visitors' section at the ground,' he told the London Evening Standard.
The officials for the game, held two weeks later on August 25, were referee Paul Taylor, assistant referees Mike George and Gavin Muge and fourth official Neil Hair. Muge still remembers the precautions that were put in place for him and his colleagues.
'Normally, we would make our own way to the stadium. I'd been to Upton Park many times but the day before, the Football League told us we wouldn't be allowed to make our own way there,' Muge tells The Athletic. The official, now 55, at the time also worked as a trainer for teaching personnel in Welwyn Garden City, an hour's drive north of London.
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'We were told to meet at the Dartford Hilton hotel (16 miles south east of Upton Park) at 4pm and we were put in a minibus and driven in. The World Cup statue on Green Street of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters and Ray Wilson was boarded up. We could also see the shops with wooden boards — so at that point, we knew how serious it was. We were there for a game of football but special measures were in place to protect the area.
'We went out to inspect the pitch and I remember a police officer coming up to us to say, 'Please keep it peaceful on the pitch guys, we have enough going on outside.' Then he said the first bit of trouble started at 10am at Canning Town station (a 10-minute drive from Upton Park).'
West Ham started the 2009-10 season with an opening day win against Wolverhampton Wanderers but lost their next game against Tottenham Hotspur.
Jack Collison's father died while travelling to that game on his motorcycle to see his son play. Collison, 20 at the time, played for 89 minutes against Tottenham and made the brave decision to play against Millwall. His team-mates had extra incentives to do well: centre-back Calum Davenport was stabbed in his home and almost lost his life the day before the Tottenham match.
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'I knew about the rivalry because I lived five minutes from Millwall's stadium,' says Frank Nouble, who played for West Ham between 2009-12, and was 17 at the time. 'When the draw was made, most of the senior players told the youngsters this game would be chaos.
'The planning we did for it was insane. We had to leave our cars in Canary Wharf the day before, then a coach drove us to the stadium.
'But a few days before, Jack's father passed away. Most of us found out in the changing room while we were preparing for the Tottenham game. We knew we had to do it for Jack and his family.'
Over 500 police were deployed to patrol outside Upton Park stadium, but there was a tense atmosphere long before kick-off. Supporter Louis Baker remembers the route to the game.
'My mum had booked a family holiday to Turkey so my dad was devastated he couldn't go to the game,' Baker, 32 (18 at the time), from Wanstead in east London tells The Athletic.
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'It was absolute chaos getting there. I said to my mates I'd get on the District Line and meet them at the ground. But at every stop, the driver kept saying on the Tannoy, 'Grow up and stop fighting.' He got to Bromley-by-Bow, which is three stops away from Upton Park, and said, 'Right, I'm not driving this train any further. Everyone get off.'
Bromley-by-Bow is a 16-minute drive to Upton Park, an hour walk and 12 minutes on the District Line.
'I walked out of the station and thought, 'How the hell am I going to get to the ground?'
'I saw these guys pull over a black cab and they said I can jump in with them. I got in, the driver had just pulled away, they looked at me and asked who I supported. I thought, 'Oh s***, this can go one or two ways.' I told them West Ham and they told the driver to stop the cab. They told me to f*** off. They were Millwall fans.
'I got out and walked back to the station (Bromley-by-Bow). Thankfully, the trains were running again and I got to Upton Park station. It was pure madness and the train situation made it worse. Some people were throwing bricks. It's a day I will never forget.'
Nearer to kick-off, the police struggled to contain the violence, largely from West Ham fans, outside the ground.
A 44-year-old Millwall supporter from Eltham, south east London, was stabbed in the chest at 8pm and was found collapsed in Priory Road, a few minutes from the stadium, by his sons, aged 17 and 18. He had been separated from them and attacked by a group of fans. He was later discharged from hospital.
'This incident was not a pre-arranged act of violence between two sets of rival supporters,' said Detective Inspector Lee Barnard, from the Newham violent crime unit in the aftermath of the game. 'This was an innocent family man who was subjected to a senseless attack by people intent on causing violence. If not for the swift intervention of paramedics, the man would have lost his life.'
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Forde recalls visiting the man in hospital with his Millwall team-mates and the shock of seeing his injuries.
'I just kept thinking of his young family,' Forde says. 'His son told us his father protected him and the heroism he showed. Millwall invited him and his family to a game when he fully recovered. He showed us his stab wounds and it was all the way down his stomach. He was lucky to survive.'
In April 2010, West Ham said that as part of a joint investigation with the Metropolitan Police into the events that night, 85 people had been arrested, adding 'the majority of whom have been charged, convicted and received banning orders preventing them from attending any football matches for three years or more'.
For West Ham supporter Rick Galer, attending this fixture with his partner proved to be an ill-advised decision.
'That match was my first date with my girlfriend,' the 35-year-old from East Ham, who was 19 at the time, tells The Athletic.
'I told her parents it wouldn't be that bad. But we got to Upton Park station and straight away I knew it was a mistake. There were loads of police and all sorts were being chucked from The Queens pub. I took all the back roads around Priory Road to avoid the trouble.
'Her mum watched the game and heard Phil Thompson (the former Liverpool midfielder and pundit for Sky Sports) say, 'If my kids were at this game, I'd feel terrified.' So she started to worry even more. Her father is a cabbie and he said he'd pick us up near Forest Gate station (a 38-minute walk from Upton Park stadium).
'When we saw him, I said, 'I'm really sorry, I didn't know it was going to be that bad.' He just gave me this look and didn't say a word during the journey back. I wasn't on his Christmas card list that year!'
There was chaos outside Upton Park and tension inside the ground.
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It should have been a proud day for supporter Lee Murray's family, but they were consumed with fear. 'My son (Ronnie, who was seven) was a mascot for the game,' the 54-year-old, from Canterbury, Kent, tells The Athletic. 'When we found out, I remember saying to his mum, 'Ronnie has been chosen to be a mascot.' She said, 'Oh great, when is it for?'
'I said, 'Tomorrow night against Millwall.' Let's just say she wasn't happy.
'It was a very frosty atmosphere and tensions were very high early. I had an element of care being with my son and wife. I couldn't really relax. Ronnie went out with Carlton Cole (the West Ham forward) and his dream came true, but I wish we could've enjoyed it more.'
The layout of Upton Park comprised four sections: the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand (renamed in honour of the club legend in 2009), the East Stand, the Sir Bobby Moore Stand (named after England's 1966 World Cup-winning captain in 1993) and the Alpari Stand.
Away fans were seated in the lower tier of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand.
Kick-off was at 7.45pm and, before both teams walked onto the field, Millwall players tried to show they would not be easily cowed.
'In the tunnel before the game, they played 'Forever Blowing Bubbles' over the speaker,' Muge says of the West Ham anthem. 'One of the Millwall players belted out, 'We'll shut that f***ing lot up, won't we? Come on, boys'. That's something I've always remembered.'
Millwall forward Neil Harris — who would later manage the club twice — scored his side's opener. Junior Stanislas equalised in the 87th minute, which led to a pitch invasion by roughly 50 home fans. More West Ham supporters ran on the pitch after he converted a penalty in the first half of extra time.
'I was in front of the old chicken run (the East Stand) and saw loads of fans coming on the pitch,' says Muge. 'Me and the officials went to the centre circle. The referee told us, 'If we come off this pitch, we won't be coming back on. We need to get this game finished.'
'I didn't get home (to Bedfordshire, an hour and 20 minutes drive from London) until 3am. My partner woke up and asked, 'How was the game?' I told her it was quiet and gave her a kiss.
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'When I got to work, my boss pulled me into his office and said, 'What the f*** went on last night?' Then around 9am my phone rings and it's my partner. She asked, 'Were you at the West Ham game last night? I've just come to work and people are telling me all about it.' I didn't want to scare her so I didn't tell her that I was officiating that game.'
Nouble was one of six substitutes and had difficulty maintaining concentration during the match.
'I saw all sorts going on in the stands,' says the then-West Ham forward who now plays for non-League side Yeovil Town. 'Some fans had bloodied faces, it wasn't a good sight.
'The gaffer (Gianfranco Zola) brought me on, and one shirtless fella came up to me. He had the West Ham badge on his leg. I had to analyse everything so quickly. This fella wanted to hug me so I gave him a partial one and told him to get off the pitch.'
Forde, the Millwall goalkeeper, also had an encounter with supporters. 'When the team coach arrived, West Ham fans started throwing stuff at our coach,' he says.
'Thankfully, the windows were strong! I remember I went to collect a ball during the warm-up and a steward said to me, 'It's carnage outside'. There was something in the air that night. You could just tell it was going to be different.
'A seat went flying across my head during the match. It was a struggle to focus on the game. We were a couple of minutes away from winning, which would've been a massive shock. They scored and it led to a pitch invasion. I'll never forget a West Ham fan coming up to me shouting, 'You Millwall scum, West Ham reject.' That stays in my mind for not the best of reasons. That night was just extreme hooliganism.'
Police closed several roads for vehicles surrounding Upton Park after the match. It was not until many tuned in to the radio that the gravity of the violence outside became apparent. But West Ham supporter William Wren's father, Peter, 52, from London was not pleased with the opinions of some of the presenters.
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'I was seven and it was just bonkers,' he says. 'When me and my dad left, a police officer told us to keep our heads down and run. There were bins and cars on fire. It was like running through a war ground. We saw someone trying to punch a police horse. There was a lot of traffic on the way home so we sat in the car for quite a while.
'My dad was listening to BBC Radio 5 Live and someone said something along the lines of, 'If you brought your kid to that game, you're an irresponsible parent'. My dad phoned, gave his point of view and the precautions he took.
'The next day we got a call from CBBC Newsround (a children's news programme). They did a quick interview with me and I didn't think too much of it after. A few days later, my dad received a call. It was someone from West Ham asking, 'Is this Peter? Can we speak to your son, William?'
'It turns out Gianfranco Zola saw my interview and reached out to thank me and my dad. Gianfranco had personally reached out to Newsround to get my dad's number. He also sent me a signed pennant.'
The following month, West Ham and Millwall were charged by the FA for the on-field incidents. The fixture received acres of negative media coverage and West Ham's Cole and Millwall's Jason Price also said they suffered racial abuse from fans.
'Millwall FC condemns racist abuse by supporters of both sides on Tuesday night,' read a club statement. 'There is no place for racism in society and both Millwall and West Ham work tirelessly in our respective communities to tackle this problem.'
'I heard it but it's football,' said Cole, who was 25 at the time. 'I don't care. I know I'm not a monkey. I might be as strong as a gorilla but I'm not a monkey. I've never been involved in such a turbulent game like that. Passions were running high and it was a unique experience.'
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In September 2011, both teams played a goalless draw in the Championship (the division below the Premier League) at The Den. There were police with truncheons and tear gas outside the ground.
'If this match happens now, I don't see how you could do it at Stratford,' says Green of West Ham's new stadium, just 3.4 miles from Upton Park. 'It's just an open ground.'
Before their league encounter in 2011, the police decided to put in place precautions to minimise the risk of violence.
'When we played in the league in 2011, it had to be played midday on Saturday,' Green says. 'No pubs were allowed to open. The police wanted little trouble and I don't recall there being any violence. They learnt their lesson from 2009.'
(Photos in top design: Getty Images; designed by Eamonn Dalton)