This has been taken from a rangers fans forum, which in turn taken from another football forum on last night - interesting reading...
Stewards point of view from last night (Picadilly Square screen not faulty!)
"Ive just got back from Manchester now. The firm i have just joined where doing event security for the game. Until we arrived this afternoon, we didnt realise that we where actually working on the fan parks in the city centre.
We got given high vis jackets then I was posted with 6 others to one of the gates at Picadilly Square Fan Park at around half 5. The crowds where unbelieveable, reminicent of Tacksim and Syntagma square for us, except in a much smaller area. Our job was to stop people entering with glass bottles. Bearing in mind this was my first ever shift, it was quite daunting. Alot of the people who i had to challenge for bottles where sound, had no objections because we provided plastic cups for them to enter their bottles in to. But there was alot of scum aswell, ***** out of their faces who had none of it. I asked one big feller to empty his bottle in to a cup, very politely, and i was told to *****. I then went over to him again, and he ***** me in the chest, i asked him again with a plastic cup in my hand for him and he threw me in to a fence. ***** this, i dont get paid enough for this ***** so i left him.
It was clear by then the sqaure was becoming dangerously overcrowded. Our gate was getting crushed, and we where pulled away by police for our own safety. We where moved further up to the entrance of the square, where barriers where accross preventing people from entering because it was too full. A lot of lads tried to get through, and the vast majority where sound about it and good natured with me. I had many a conversation with jocks when they noticed my scouse accent and realised i wasnt a manc. My advice to them was to find a pub before the rush, which went against what we where told to tell them which was to head for the fan park at the ground. I knew theyd have ***** there so i didnt tell them that. No problems whatsoever at this point.
Then about 20mins before kick off, an older scots feller came over to me and said hoow dangerously crowded it was in the square, he said "someone was going to get killed", and thats why he left. He also said to me "mark my words, there will be a riot in there". I had those suspicions myself. From my experience of Istanbul and Athens, you can tell when something is not right, and i definately sensed that then.
We then hit quarter to 8, and the square is rammed with Rangers fans, singing and watching the big screen for the adverts to end and the game to start. By 5 to 8, still no game. Then a supervisor gets it over his radio that they werent showing it. I couldnt believe it. My words to him where "there will be absolute ***** murder here, its ***** suicide". Jocks where coming over asking us what was going on, and we had to tell them. They where understandabely ***** fumin. I tried to tell them that i totally agreed with them, and that it was a ***** disgrace. Some where sound with me, recognising it wasnt our fault as event stewards. But then as people started to twig on what was going on, it started getting nasty.
There was about 15 of us on this gate with a few police near by, and the scots where fuming with us. Coming over, pushing us, screaming in our faces. What could we do? I agreed with every word they said, id be ***** fuming aswell, but it had ***** all to do with us. Then it got quite serious, bottles where being thrown, passing just past my face and lads where getting really aggresive with us. It was then when our head office told us to pull out, and the police moved us down a side street. We where getting dogs abuse, bottles thrown down at us, everything. Obviously the fact we where in uniform attracted it.
Then our supervisor said they had to try and move us in to one of the portacabins back in the middle of the sqaure. We walked through as a group, through thousands of scots who where going crazy, throwing all kinds, screaming in our faces. We eventually had to take our jackets off and run. When we made it to this portacabin, all hell was going off around us. Riot police where coming from everywhere, and hundreds of rangers fans where charging them. Bus shelter where ripped down, and metal and wooden poles used as weapons to charge the police. The place was totally trashed. A bottle landed right next to me which had been thrown from someone. This went on for 3hours solid until 11 oclock. We had to take off all jackets and ties, and when it quietened down about half 11 we where able to make way to our coach at the GMex. Back at the coach we heard a Russian had been stabbed aswell.
People have said that the big screen in our square had a technical fault and thats why the match wasnt shown. I know for a fact that is *****. It wasnt shown because of the shear numbers in the sqaure. The reasoning was that if Rangers scored, there would be bedlam. But whichever thick ***** makes these decisions obviously didnt realise the implications of not showing the game. If they wherent going to show it, they shouldve informed everyone at 6 o clock and give people time to fine somewhere else, not at ***** kick off. Its an absolute disgrace, and so typical of UEFA event. I couldve organised it better, it was a sham. They totally underestimated the amount of scots that would travel. Logical thing to do would be to put a big screen in old Trafford and let people watch it there, then there wouldve been no bother. 2 ***** ***** fan parks was never going to be enough. I could see it, everyone else could, why cant the ****** organisers of these events? Useless *****, heads should ***** role after tonight.
Ive spoke to my dad and others who've said that the news have reported it as small disturbances with a hand full of Rangers fans clashing with the police. Thats absolute *****, total *****. There where ****** hundreds, if not more, and this went on for hours right in front of my eyes. To be fair, the amount of Scots lads who made the effort to come over and speak to us while this was going on, simply saying "sorry" was amazing. I spoke to a feller who made the effort to come over to us when he seen us having all kinds thrown in our direction, and he just apologised on behalf of Rangers fans, and said what a disgrace and embarrasment it was. I know from experience that its always a minority who are scum, and tar everyone with the same brush. But thats what happened, anything you hear otherwise is *****, i ***** seen it with my own eyes. Rangers fans had every right to be ***** with what happened in that square, but the actions of some afterwards, the rioting for 2 hours, was inexcusable. And it wasnt a "handfull" either.
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