Guest Howaythetoon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 And fans' reaction to him? Prompted by the documentary on Sky about Chelsea's first black player. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
midds Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Quick google throws this up. http://www.nufc.co.uk/articles/20120530/fifa-pay-tribute-to-first-black-player_2281670_2792737 http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/6dca64086b1218b725a49beeedc08c8364295700.jpg Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Not sure he actually played for us - http://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/roots/2003/10/arthur_wharton.shtml Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shays Given Tim Flowers Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Howard Gayle in 1982 was apparently the first black player for us in the top-flight Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
midds Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Not sure he actually played for us - http://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/roots/2003/10/arthur_wharton.shtml Think you're right. Hell of a story and life though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Not sure he actually played for us - http://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/roots/2003/10/arthur_wharton.shtml Think you're right. Hell of a story and life though. Aye, remember him being on Look North a while back and also: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cp40 Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Howard Gayle in 1982 was apparently the first black player for us in the top-flight Div 2 in 1982 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Varadi Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Tony Cunningham is the first I can remember watching. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinho lad Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Quick google throws this up. http://www.nufc.co.uk/articles/20120530/fifa-pay-tribute-to-first-black-player_2281670_2792737 http://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/6dca64086b1218b725a49beeedc08c8364295700.jpg Jonas in past life. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cp40 Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 And fans' reaction to him? Prompted by the documentary on Sky about Chelsea's first black player. I can barely remember Howard Gayle 8 games on loan in 83, tho i never missed a game that season. I remember Tony Cunningham, and a certain name directed at him, but I think his race didnt really come into the fact the fans just thought he was shit and symptomatic of the poor first season back in the top flight playing hoofball under Jack Charlton. The Newcastle crowd were just generally racist in the early/ mid 80s, names, monkey noises, bananas and songs, chants were quite common iirc. Im sure someone will be along to disagree- but thats how I remember it. Casual racism was pretty much an accepted norm in the area where I grew up tbh. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fenham Mag Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 And fans' reaction to him? Prompted by the documentary on Sky about Chelsea's first black player. I can barely remember Howard Gayle 8 games on loan in 83, tho i never missed a game that season. I remember Tony Cunningham, and a certain name directed at him, but I think his race didnt really come into the fact the fans just thought he was shit, and symptomatic of the poor first season back in the top flight playing hoofball under Jack Charlton. The Newcastle crowd were just generally racist in the early/ mid 80s, names, monkey noises, bananas and songs, chants were quite common iirc. Im sure someone will be along to disagree- but thats how I remember it. Casual racism was pretty much an accepted norm in the area where I grew up tbh. It still is accepted as the norm in a lot of places in Newcastle. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest reefatoon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Yep, I remember watching Tony Cunningham when I was young. I also remember chants of "he's black, he's brown, he plays for the town". Must have been so hard playing back in the 80s with all the racism. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Howaythetoon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 A bloke I know, originally from the Carribean who came here early 50s reckons he only suffered abuse mid 70s and throughout the 80s and early 90s and now it's returning sadly. He says a black bloke playing for NUFC in the 50s and early 60s wouldn't have received such abuse because people were civil back then. He reckons groups like the NF and BNP and lately other far right groups are responsible for all the racism. He says he would go to Newcastle games as a kid and nothing was ever said. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Howaythetoon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 And fans' reaction to him? Prompted by the documentary on Sky about Chelsea's first black player. I can barely remember Howard Gayle 8 games on loan in 83, tho i never missed a game that season. I remember Tony Cunningham, and a certain name directed at him, but I think his race didnt really come into the fact the fans just thought he was s***, and symptomatic of the poor first season back in the top flight playing hoofball under Jack Charlton. The Newcastle crowd were just generally racist in the early/ mid 80s, names, monkey noises, bananas and songs, chants were quite common iirc. Im sure someone will be along to disagree- but thats how I remember it. Casual racism was pretty much an accepted norm in the area where I grew up tbh. It still is accepted as the norm in a lot of places in Newcastle. Sadly it's increasing by the looks/sounds of things. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sempuki Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Yep, I remember watching Tony Cunningham when I was young. I also remember chants of "he's black, he's brown, he plays for the town". Must have been so hard playing back in the 80s with all the racism. I remember the word "darkies" used when I was a kid to describe black players. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mick Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Yep, I remember watching Tony Cunningham when I was young. I also remember chants of "he's black, he's brown, he plays for the town". Must have been so hard playing back in the 80s with all the racism. That song was about Howard Gayle. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mick Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 And fans' reaction to him? Prompted by the documentary on Sky about Chelsea's first black player. Howard Gayle and he was well liked. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bert Shaft Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Refer your mate to Albert Johansson especially when Leeds played Sunderland in the early 60's Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Howaythetoon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Refer your mate to Albert Johansson especially when Leeds played Sunderland in the early 60's I'm talking black NUFC players, he is coming from it initially as a young black kid attending games mind. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsunami Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Remember Howard Gayle very well, he was well liked. Boxing Day away to Grimsby "he's black, he's broon, he's playing for the toon, Howard Gayle, Howard Gayle". Scored that day. Tony Cunningham was also well liked even though he was pretty useless in his time here. Gayle and Bennett were sent off 3 or 4 years later at our place and both received absolute dogs abuse. It was casual racism at its worst. Gayle was still well liked. I believe his son posts on RTG. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
newsted Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 A bloke I know, originally from the Carribean who came here early 50s reckons he only suffered abuse mid 70s and throughout the 80s and early 90s and now it's returning sadly. He says a black bloke playing for NUFC in the 50s and early 60s wouldn't have received such abuse because people were civil back then. He reckons groups like the NF and BNP and lately other far right groups are responsible for all the racism. He says he would go to Newcastle games as a kid and nothing was ever said. This shouldn't be a thing either. We must be of about the same age, at a wild guess, and I had no idea Pelé or Eusébio were supposed to be different from me when I was a kid, they were just brilliant footballers. My parents weren't inherently racist - although they were of a certain age so I started noticing it later on that their choice of words wasn't acceptable any more. Andrew Watson and Walter Tull, obviously, and Jack Leslie come to mind as forerunners. Leslie was picked for England until the bastards realised he wasn't their type, the twats. I spent too much of the 70s and 80s marching and shouting. Probably got on too many lists, too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mick Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Remember Howard Gayle very well, he was well liked. Boxing Day away to Grimsby "he's black, he's broon, he's playing for the toon, Howard Gayle, Howard Gayle". Scored that day. Tony Cunningham was also well liked even though he was pretty useless in his time here. Gayle and Bennett were sent off 3 or 4 years later at our place and both received absolute dogs abuse. It was casual racism at its worst. Gayle was still well liked. I believe his son posts on RTG. I got kicked out of the Grimsby end when he scored and was escorted around the pitch and into our end. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Toon Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Yep, I remember watching Tony Cunningham when I was young. I also remember chants of "he's black, he's brown, he plays for the town". Must have been so hard playing back in the 80s with all the racism. That song was about Howard Gayle. I remember being in the scoreboard in the 80's and it was towards Cunningham. The song went, He's black, he's broon, he plays for the toon, Cunningham, Cunningham to the tune of the Mickey Burns ditty Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest reefatoon Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 Yep, I remember watching Tony Cunningham when I was young. I also remember chants of "he's black, he's brown, he plays for the town". Must have been so hard playing back in the 80s with all the racism. That song was about Howard Gayle. I remember being in the scoreboard in the 80's and it was towards Cunningham. The song went, He's black, he's broon, he plays for the toon, Cunningham, Cunningham to the tune of the Mickey Burns ditty Yep, that's where I used to stand (sit on the barriers) and remember it being towards Cunningham. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 Joe Kinnear wasn't it ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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