On April 5 2000 two Leeds fans, Kevin Speight and Christopher Loftus, were stabbed to death before the 2000 Uefa Cup semi-final first leg against Galatasaray in Taksim Square, Istanbul. , updated It triggered something and I ran into the ward. I was so pleased to get on the plane out of Turkey but once I got back and thought about things, the reality of two lads dying out there got to me. Past present or future..', A second added: 'Would much rather see one of the u23s get a chance at lb than Alioski for the rest of the season. It was totally deliberate. The Galatasaray fans were later attacked from behind by members of British hooligan firms seeking revenge for the Istanbul stabbings. Phil grew up near Edinburgh in Scotland and is a staff writer for The Athletic, covering Leeds United. Following the two tragic deaths, local police arrested and charged four Galatasaray supporters with murder. And thats without even mentioning what had gone on the night before with the two lads who were killed. Peter Ridsdale, the Leeds chairman, had been dining with directors from Galatasaray when reports of trouble came through. After a while, Andys eldest brother Phil complained of feeling ill and the two of them decided to go back to their hotel. There was no minutes silence or acknowledgement of the deaths. The potential for trouble was as high as anything Id been involved in. They had no direct contact with Galatasarays security officials but Fallows and Harry Stokoe, Leedss stadium manager, were able to visit the Ali Sami Yen the day before the game to map the venue out. Follow Phil on Twitter @PhilHay_, Leeds players needed protection from police with riot shields before their game against Galatasaray in 2000 (Photo: Steve Mitchell/EMPICS via Getty Images). [44], In the United Kingdom, the Daily Mirror newspaper printed pictures of Arsenal fans alleged to have been part of the violence. Four men were arrested and charged with their murders. [26] There were further clashes at the airport the day after the game. [24] It was claimed that the police failed to control the riots,[43] and that they had been undermanned and outmaneuvered, to which Mogens Lauridsen, the police chief in Copenhagen admitted that the police had been "under-prepared". My mum always says the same: Hed gone out there for the football, nothing else. Chris Loftus and Kevin Speight were stabbed in Istanbul on the eve of Leeds' Uefa Cup semi-final tie against Galatasaray in April 2000. I knew the ramifications would be life-long.. The deaths led to an angry reaction in England with Galatasaray fans being banned from attending the second leg in England. Every year, the families of Kevin Speight and Chris Loftus place wreathes at the plaque and go together for a drink, to catch up and reflect. Gray remembers OLeary going out of the team hotel to visit a barbers for a shave beforehand. The friend who arranged their trips abroad organised for them to fly home via Brussels. I am not sure if the first few expected fighting but I saw one guy running to a telephone to call his friends after he saw the English. Ali Sami Yen stadium should even go ahead. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter'. I was getting into trouble, drinking and fighting. We catch up at the cafe in an Asda store near his home in Killingbeck and he speaks bravely but reluctantly; not because he wants to but because he thinks he should, for the sake of his brother Chriss memory. The loss ofKevin Speight and Christopher Loftus is still felt incredibly deeply and the feud between the clubs remains. It was horrible. On the 21st anniversary of Kevin Speight and Christopher Loftus' deaths on April 5 2000, Martyn also recalls the immediate reaction of the Leeds squad . "We came out of a bar and there were 100 people waiting for us with machetes, knives, bits of chair and table legs and they just attacked us. Ridsdale was told by staff at the hospital that Speight was in a critical condition and needed an urgent transfusion but that the blood had to be paid for. Acquittal plea in soccer death trial. . Andy is one of six siblings, two sisters and four brothers, and all of the boys Phil, Chris, Darren and Andy made the trip to Turkey. At least nine other people, including six Leeds fans, were injured. Who really cares?. The Ibrox disaster was a tragedy, an accident, he says. He had been involved in the plane crash which Leeds players and coaches escaped from on the way home from a Premier League game at West Ham United in 1998. junio 12, 2022. abc news anchors female philadelphia . They thought we were looking for a sporting advantage, which is just incredible. By the time the match kicked off, the ramifications of two fatal stabbings the previous evening were rapidly sinking in and for those who were closest to it, the images wont fade. But in the light of day, the sun hits it and the sparkle lingers. Galatasaray supporters, despite everything that had gone on, were pelting the buses and trying to smash the windows. Galatasaray away on April 6, 2000; "a huge occasion for the club in a football sense," Ridsdale says. Former club legend Harry Kewell previously soured his relationship with Leeds fans after moving to Galatasaray from Liverpool in 2008. Galatasaray football player Wesley Sneijder has released a commemorative knife set - on the 15th anniversary of the fatal stabbing of two Leeds fans by Turkish supporters. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Theyd turned on their tellies and it was all over the Turkish news, Fallows says. It was the same at the second leg when I had to stand and look after Galatasarays main man at Elland Road. Demir lost his last appeal in 2010 and was jailed for six years and eight months. The 45-year-old was an unused sub when Leeds were defeated by Galatasaray in an infamous 1999-00 Uefa Cup semi-finals - a match that was overshadowed by the death of two Yorkshire fans in the . Leeds Crown Court sentenced him to 12 months. He previously worked for the Yorkshire Evening Post as its chief football writer. Anywhere else in Europe, I doubt it would have been played. Grieving Leeds Faces Galatasaray Rematch : It Is a Matter of Life Or Death, Sometimes. The bodies were repatriated a few days later, beginning the process of mourning and funerals. Something went wrong, please try again later. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. [47] Michael Doherty, the chairman of the Communication Workers Union, and his brother Tom took Royal Mail to an Employment Tribunal for unfair dismissal claiming they had been acting in self-defence. Andy was jailed in 2013 for his part in a fight between Leeds and Tottenham Hotspur fans in which a Spurs supporter was knocked unconscious. I had joked with him and said, At least youll be safe. He gave me a look and said, Or maybe not., The attitude as far as I could see was, Lets intimidate these lads and see what happens. Leeds back then had a lot of kids in their squad. [20], After the match, which Galatasaray won 41 on penalties, approximately 300 Arsenal fans in the Finsbury Park area of Islington in London attacked Turkish restaurants and businesses, with bottles being used to break windows. Can you list the top facts and stats about 2000 UEFA Cup semi-final violence? [28] In Turkey, nine people were accidentally shot and injured by Galatasaray fans firing guns in celebration despite police warning them not to. [10] It was reported that members of Leeds United's Leeds United Service Crew[11] and Chelsea's Chelsea Headhunters, along with hooligans supporting Rangers, Cardiff City and Swansea City all travelled to Denmark to join Arsenal fans in attacks on Galatasaray fans. By "When you see a man having to identify the body of his brother with a massive stab wound in his chest it just isn't what you'd associate with football.". They felt we were overreacting. In all the many layers of anger, that was one of them; the apparent inability to adopt some common decency. He said getting involved in charity work and fundraisers, including running half-marathons in memory of his brother, had helped him to deal with his sibling's death. Ridsdale and Leedss operations director, David Spencer, were at a floating restaurant on the Bosphorus when they were phoned to tell them trouble in the centre of Istanbul had resulted in at least two fans being hospitalised. The police were knocking everyone about, says Paul Holmes, a friend of the Loftuses who was in Taksim Square when the violence broke out. Association with the tragedy can be difficult. The design of the place meant the Leeds players had to take a long walk to the tunnel, flanked by armed police. Speights son, George, is no longer the cheeky kid with floppy hair smiling brightly in the photograph of his father he digs out. [15] In the fight, Paul Dineen, an Arsenal fan, was stabbed, leading to Arsenal offering fans refunds if they did not want to fly to the game. Wed spoken about doing something beforehand, he says. I could see in their faces how much they were raging, Fallows says. The interview included vague expressions of regret but no apology to Speight and Loftus or their relatives. There was a sense of relief to be leaving, he says, but I knew that flying out of Istanbul wasnt the end of it. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. [22] The riots did not spread to the stadium, although there was an attempt to pull down the fences by fans heading towards the Arsenal area of the stadium before police stopped them. That is true. [30] A Danish police officer[22] and a Turkish cameraman were also injured in the riots. Convictions were quashed, appeals were repetitive and it is far from clear how much of their respective sentences were served. [12] However, there were conflicting reports, with claims that some Galatasaray fans were instigating some of the violence. Our Daz was there and he told me the full story. I make no secret of that., Leeds were beaten 2-0 in Istanbul and lost over two legs after a 2-2 draw at home. The atmosphere was electric like, scarily electric. I stopped getting involved eventually, Andy says. In the circumstances, it was a total irrelevance and too highly-charged. The Turkish side are hated by those at Elland Road after two travelling fans were stabbed to. [31] Nineteen of the arrested were British, thirty-six were Turkish and the rest of the arrested included people from Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands. "They were screaming all sorts of things. The Loftuses had travelled to Turkey on the same flight as David OLearys players. So Leeds did. They had been a couple since their teens. Another picture, taken by the Yorkshire Evening Posts Mark Bickerdike, shows Lee Bowyer and Jonathan Woodgate stepping from the tunnel with tangible shock on their faces. Leeds have never forgiven Eric Cantona for . Speight arrived soon after and was seen chatting to midfielder Alan Smith as they walked through the breezy foyer at Ataturk Airport. When we got to the bottom of the stairs they pulled out a drawer, a bit like a filing cabinet, and Christophers body was there. He rushed to Taksim hospital, near where the men were stabbed. You mention him over Farsley way and people respect him. Confusion reigned. [40], The Danish police were also criticised for their handling of the riots. The story goes that he and his wife Susan got together after he offered her a lift on the back of one. So Leeds did. The families of the victims will tell you that. Even then, it was meant to be closed to the press but loads of them were there and they were being really intrusive, Fallows says.

Tamarack Country Club Initiation Fee, Spiked At The Beach Vertex Help, Articles G