The Covered End----Memories

Goonerhater

I guess this is one for the oldies.
Reading Drinking During the Game blog the other day there was a comment re the Covered End which rang very true to me.
In the "real" days of the CE (before seating etc) is was a PLACE. Sure there was no real food,toilets,booze,shop,etc and when a goal was scored in could be dangerous and lets not forget it was violent,racist,homophobic, etc etc (most places were of course) but it had something------it meant something to me.
Loved going there and seeing if the"middle park"boys would turn up ot "The Greenwich" or "Gravesend" or " The Welling skins" etc. So many many mates made from that shed like end of the ground----the parties---the girls----the holidays---the court apperances--weddings----the christenings---and now sadly the funerals.
A good few years back i tried to get the old Covered End together----Chelsea Shed had just done something similar. It was the time of "Maze Hill" and maybe the way it was done was wrong, but it was a failure really and although it cost me a few quid i was glad we tried.
It left me wondering at the time if i had totaly lost the plot and maybe the CE only really meant something to me. reading DT`s blog i know that i wasnt alone and wonder what those of you who was there in the "day" think of that strange peice of terrace with a cover ?

soapy_jones

The Valley, or the CE in particular were a seminal part of my upbringing and journey into adulthood. As soon as I shook off the shackles of male family who had introduced me to CAFC as a young child, that was where a 14/15 year old working class kid naturally gravitated to on a match day to experience the excitement and rush they craved. It truly was an escape, just for a couple of hours every few days from the humdrum existence of growing up in suburban S.E London. Hard to explain the football environment to some of our younger support, it has changed that much. The world of my youth seemed much more tribal and I was glad to belong to something. It was not glamorous because it was Charlton, it was just the right thing for me in that time, in my circumstances. It was not a hard edged violence thing for me, unfortunately I saw too much of that indoors, it was just a journey and I grew out of it just as it was all changing and dying anyway. We both changed together. Very fond memories of the place, the people I knew, the scrapes we got ourselves into and I would not be over egging it to admit that it often brings a lump into my throat when I remember mates who I now seldom see and all those characters potentially I will never encounter again.

God bless the CE, in my heart still at the Valley of Dreams, London SE7.

Hastingsaddick

Originally I was introduced to the CE by my brother-in-law (well now ex- brother-in-law)...one of the 'lads' in the 70's early 80's.....and yes it meant alot to me at the time it was 'ours'....and something to be proud of, as a youngster I looked up to my brother-in-law and his mates....all were around 10-15 years older then me and my early away days with them was something special.
I hated it when it got 'took', it mystified me when I was younger why more effort wasn't made to hold onto it....for example I will never forget the turnout we had for Birmingham in the early eighties....a good 2-3000 firm in there that day, if those same 2-3000 were in there against the likes of Chelsea, Spurs, West Ham and Millwall it would have made things 'very interesting' and there is no way Wednesday would have took it in that FA Cup match. I do remember when Chelsea had 4/5ths of it but our 'lads' held the last 1/5th through-out the game (early 80's)....good on the f-block.
On a more positive note I met some good lads in there (we tended to stand at the back in the middle....the main men were d & f block), these lads were mainly from Abbey Wood and Thamesmead and our lot often joined in with them and went away together as well.

maybe_baby

A few names I remember...best family I ever had. Eric Pearson, Hughie Barr, Alan (Bomber) Ragget, Chrissy Barber, Keith Salter, Kieth Giles, Fat Bob, Gary Spence, Alan (the good looking one) Ray Davis, Bob Brown, Chris Sandford, Soundas, Graham Ellis and two girls, one fat one thin lol. Loads more but my memory is not what it was.

Covered End

I'd like my ashes spread in the penalty area in front of the Covered End, but not for about 30 years :-)

Great memories, far too many to mention.

maybe_baby

95 is a good age to go...I'd have no complaints, though not too keen on that f**k off big roller going over my bonce twice a week.

ellisaddick

As all memories things fade, but I seem to remember the atmosphere in the bar under the covered end was special as well, and I even remember lock ins behind the shutters.

dartfordgent

us to keep warm in there as a young chap did it have a name ?

Hastingsaddick

ellisaddick said:

As all memories things fade, but I seem to remember the atmosphere in the bar under the covered end was special as well, and I even remember lock ins behind the shutters.

If you could get in there at 1/2 time then the atmosphere was quality in there.

clivey_hero

quality it was and no henry irving

Uboat

maybe_baby said:

A few names I remember...best family I ever had. Eric Pearson, Hughie Barr, Alan (Bomber) Ragget, Chrissy Barber, Keith Salter, Kieth Giles, Fat Bob, Gary Spence, Alan (the good looking one) Ray Davis, Bob Brown, Chris Sandford, Soundas, Graham Ellis and two girls, one fat one thin lol. Loads more but my memory is not what it was.

I don't know any of those people, but as lists of names go it has a certain something. Was there an Alan who wasn't good looking or are you saying that he was actually the only good looking person on the list?

Greenie

Remember West ham in our end (C P and co running forward, whacking a few Charlton and then running to the back) and Millwall in our end, Stoke trying to take it, 'Hit em on the ead, with the basball bat'.
Remember going through the covered end turnstiles and some Charlton Mod cracking some away fans (sorry cant remember which club) with his crash helmet on the steps up into the back of the covered end, he must have done 3-4 of them. All on the pitch v Sunderland, kicking off in the middle of the pitch. Getting nicked and put in the holding pen behind the mains stand with loads of pissed Plymouth fans, I was the only Charlton in there. That was nice!!!
It was of the time, but I cant help but feel its better now, if only cos I like sitting down ;o)

Hastingsaddick

Greenie said:

Remember West ham in our end (C P and co running forward, whacking a few Charlton and then running to the back) and Millwall in our end, Stoke trying to take it, 'Hit em on the ead, with the basball bat'.
Remember going through the covered end turnstiles and some Charlton Mod cracking some away fans (sorry cant remember which club) with his crash helmet on the steps up into the back of the covered end, he must have done 3-4 of them. All on the pitch v Sunderland, kicking off in the middle of the pitch. Getting nicked and put in the holding pen behind the mains stand with loads of pissed Plymouth fans, I was the only Charlton in there. That was nice!!!
It was of the time, but I cant help but feel its better now, if only cos I like sitting down ;o)

Remember 3/4 mods doing Millwall, when we were playing Bristol Rovers, they were bashing them with their crash-helmets.

maybe_baby

Uboat said:

maybe_baby said:

A few names I remember...best family I ever had. Eric Pearson, Hughie Barr, Alan (Bomber) Ragget, Chrissy Barber, Keith Salter, Kieth Giles, Fat Bob, Gary Spence, Alan (the good looking one) Ray Davis, Bob Brown, Chris Sandford, Soundas, Graham Ellis and two girls, one fat one thin lol. Loads more but my memory is not what it was.

I don't know any of those people, but as lists of names go it has a certain something. Was there an Alan who wasn't good looking or are you saying that he was actually the only good looking person on the list?</blockquote

After getting the crap kicked out of him the first thing he said was "I can't find my comb" now thats a man that takes care of his looks. We generally were pretty ugly and I still am.

dickplumb

I remember the days when the Police took the laces out of the Doc Martens.

AddickFC81

The walkway that used to be in the lower north near the back before the upper was built.

stonemuse

Left side ....right side.
Scoring and tumbling down the terraces.
Friday night atmosphere always the best.
Preston promotion game ...Covered End so loud.
Bar at halftime ...many going down 5 minutes before and getting back 5 minutes late.
Middle Park, Cherry Orchard, Blackheath Village, Royal Standard, Greenwich ...and many other crews.
PC Jim.
Being kicked down the terrace after ...probably stupidly ...standing up to West Hams' Mile End mob.
Chelsea fire.
Beating both Spurs and Chelsea over the course of a bank holiday weekend.
Sharing the Covered End with SheffWed and refusing to move despite some obvious 'hardware' being displayed.
Trying to get enough together to take Covered End back from the Spanners ...with very infrequent success.
Bogs behind the Covered End ...haaa, just a brick wall basically.

I was showing my son the old picture of the Covered End in the Brighton program last weekend and telling him, that was the real Covered End ...what memories, barely scraped the surface with this post.

Redmidland

The Covered End what memories...once I left my dad and grandad standing on the old East terrace and made my 'promotion' to the CE, my enjoyment of following the addicks intensified even further. The 'buzz' of just being in there sometimes with people you didn't really know, but always willing to stand together and defend what was ours......for me it was late 60's early to mid 70's, Friday night matches, doc martins, left -side - right side, stinking bogs, a few 'nice' birds.....and the occasional rumble,
yeah they were the days......lost all my mates from that time now.....not a clue where any of them are....but whilst friends may fade, memories however 'scant' will always be with me. Now its a different generation and l hope those in the North Upper now enjoy it as much as we did in the old and still Covered End (for me).....I've never lost that buzz even on my rare visits back it all comes flooding back.

Stone

We always stood just to the left of the goal. Creatures of habit most of us, as we recognised most of those around us week to week. Stoke at home in the league cup was a great night despite the result (2-3) and Crooks getting a late winner after we'd come back from 0-2.
We would gradually stroll up to the top of the East Terrace during the last 5-10 minutes for a quick getaway out of the Sam Bartram entrance (Landsdowne Mews to you young 'uns) when the final whistle blew.

As above, loved those Friday evening fixtures.

stonemuse

This is such a great thread

Hastingsaddick

Quite liked it when it rained, 75% of the crowd would end up in the CE, it would be packed and then a crowd of say 6-7000 was read out of which 4-5000 were in the CE.

maybe_baby

RM If youre in your 60's youll know me.

Rob

Late 60's, early 70's was my CE era before starting on my worldly travels. Used to love it. Knew a good bunch of people but can't remember their names now though. I vaguely remember twins. Also Bomber and Soundas (he was a bit of a ledge). Black Les the Spurs fan (and surrogate Red). He would say "What am I, Black?" when we missed him when flashing the ash. And paying homage to Henry Irving after the games. Memories.

maybe_baby

Rob, we were mates...Ellisaddick too!

ps. Sorry for missing out Black Les...he was f**king 'ard.

Redmidland

maybe_baby said:

RM If youre in your 60's youll know me.

Not quite there yet mate.....58 next March

maybe_baby

Thanks for this thread Goonerhater...I've found a long lost friend who I never got the chance to thank for their kindness when my life wasnt so good.

m_2

Blimey!
The Old Covered End.
I came from the Elephant & Castle and always seemed to arrive early.
The times I stood behind the goal and wondered if we would have enough bodies to keep out the oppo.
Fulham at Christmas; watching them walk around the back of the main stand and come into the CE - and get pummeled back. Then the jeers of the whole crowd as they walked back to the other end.
Millwall; embarrassed to my boots because only the girls would sing.
Chelsea the fire - and then revenge 3 x over!
Portsmouth and the charge around the East stand and over the fences
Away at Arsenal and holding our own in the North Bank.
This is 60's and 70's but great memories

southamptonaddick

Great memories from standing in the Covered End.
Unfortunately the younger fans will never get the feeling or excitement of those times.
Just meeting all your mates, standing together through the rough times.
The rows were part but not all of it.
It was all about the social occasion.
A lot of the people you saw you may have been on just knodding terms but you knew them and they knew you.
I can't pick out an individual memory because all the memories, good or bad, make me smile.

maybe_baby

Standing our ground v Wendies in the cup, and the most flags I've ever seen at a match.

charltonbob

m2 said:

Blimey!
The Old Covered End.
I came from the Elephant & Castle and always seemed to arrive early.
The times I stood behind the goal and wondered if we would have enough bodies to keep out the oppo.
Fulham at Christmas; watching them walk around the back of the main stand and come into the CE - and get pummeled back. Then the jeers of the whole crowd as they walked back to the other end.
Millwall; embarrassed to my boots because only the girls would sing.
Chelsea the fire - and then revenge 3 x over!
Portsmouth and the charge around the East stand and over the fences
Away at Arsenal and holding our own in the North Bank.
This is 60's and 70's but great memories

Re Fulham not at Christmas but prob late sept/oct, this was 68/69. We were top they were bottom. 5-2 to us I think. Yes remember they must have mobbed up (as we all did in those days) & came marching from behind the West stand, always remember a bunch of cocky looking blokes at the front got the shock of their lives when they saw the packed covered end. They stopped on the terrace at the side of the west & then came into the covered end ........for about 2 minutes before being kicked out again.

Portsmouth I'm sure must have been early 80s, certainly remember loads from both firms jumping over the fence between east & south terrace. The fence wasn't there I don't think in the 70s, if there was a fence they wasn't a gate along the pathway.

Happy days lol

Davo55

Love this thread.

I share many of the memories but most of all how the CE seemed to be ram full, all standing. all singing, loads of scarves above heads doing "You'll never walk alone", cascading down the terracing when a goal was scored, "Knees up mother Brown". Remember in particular one game in the late 60s against Norwich - we were 0-3 down at half time and fought back to 3-3. I was nearly deafened by the roars, and lost my voice for about 3 days after. Not such a great fan of the times our end was "taken" but usually won it back - me generally being behind my big brother who was (and still is) a bit tasty :-)