COLIN Bell has no doubt whatsoever City fans will adhere to a minute's silence - and Manchester will next month be united on derby day to commemorate the victims of the Munich tragedy.
City's most famous player has spoken today after the Blues Official Supporters' Club urged a rethink with the 50th anniversary marked by applause rather than silence.
United ended the debate by stressing that the disaster that killed 23 people, including eight of the Busby Babes team, is best marked by silence as planned.
Reds chief executive David Gill said: "On the day of the City game we have a minute's silence. This is a tragedy and, though we understand the modern move to applaud like we did for George Best, we believe it is not appropriate in this particular circumstance.
"We have discussed this and other aspects with City and we believe all supporters - including the 3,000 City fans - will respect that and act appropriately."
And Bell agreed wholeheartedly, telling MEN Sport: "This was a tragedy for Manchester. It's about life and death, not a football match, and true City supporters will respect what United want to do."
Bell, whose own hero was Munich survivor Sir Bobby Charlton, went on: "A minute's silence is entirely appropriate. It's always been right to have silence and it should not be changed for the sake of a few nutters.
"Whether I was on the pitch as a player or in the stand as a spectator, I've always been touched at matches when 40,000 or more fans stand in silence together and you can hear a pin drop.
"It is a fantastic experience and gives you the chance to think of the person or people who died and say a little prayer and you can't do that if everyone is clapping.
"I just can't imagine any true City fan thinking of spoiling an occasion like this on derby day when the whole world will have its eyes on Manchester.
Respectful
"City fans - and I do know them - are respectful and will do the right thing. They know what is right and wrong.
"I'm a traditionalist, without doubt, and I don't have to plead with City supporters because it is not necessary.
"They will do the right thing and respect the occasion and the minute's silence. I am absolutely sure of that.
"This idea that City fans or, more to the point, the odd idiot might not show respect has got under my skin.
"City have the best supporters in the world, true football fans and they just won't let the club or themselves down. They know when to draw the line."
Bell, who like Charlton hails from the north-east, travelled many times with Sir Bobby, who is now a United director, on England duty and he never spoke about the 1958 tragedy.
Said Bell: "He was my idol and I played against him in derby matches and was in the same England squad.
"I remember once on an England tour of South America in 1969 our plane was diverted because a small aircraft had crash landed and we hit terrible turbulence.
"I was terrified but I kept looking over at Bobby, who was sitting opposite, and kept thinking what he must be going through after surviving the Munich tragedy."
Bell, who remembers the tragedy dominating the news when he was a 12-year-old, played in America for San Jose Earthquakes when he retired and the manager there was another Munich survivor Bill Foulkes and, like Charlton, he never mentioned the crash.
The email sent by City's official supporters club that expresses concern about some of the 3,000 Blues supporters breaking the silence before the February 10 derby at Old Trafford - four days after the 50th anniversary of the crash - is not the club's official position.
Indeed manager Sven- Goran Eriksson has written to supporters pleading with them not to spoil the occasion.
And he is stressing that Blues legend Frank Swift, then working as a journalist, was among the 23 people who died.
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Sigh...............and yet another story on the same topic.
The media really are in frenzy arent they.
The majority will remain silent, the ed the balls on both sides will ruin it and thats the end of the story.
...it only takes one to ruin it Colin ... I hope it's respected, then we can out sing 73,000 reds for the rest of the game as soon as that whistle is blown ...
Why are we still talking about this? Oh, cos it's Man Utd of course. The publicity machine keeps on rolling
and Talksport radio this morning had to put in it's 2pennies worth in by stating in their news headline that City fans want to stop the minutes silence from taking place.
the reason why followed 10 minutes later, and i'm sure plenty of people during those 10 minutes thought the worse of our club.and emails and texts came by those self-rightous fine upstanding fans from places like Leeds and millwall comdemming City fans.
for me, the coming 50th year commemoration is a local family affair.
let us be.
unfortunatly, that will not happen, so lets us all get on with it, and try to ignore the "outsiders" who want to prove their own self-worth by condemming City fans for something which has not, and hopefully will not happen,
keep the silence and 3-0 to the Blues.
It seems to me that everything Man Utd. touch turns into a circus.
Absolutely nothing is beyond
being used as PR.
This is outpacing the Daily Express and Princess Diana. Well Done MEN you get the prize!
it seems strange that the only time there will be any noise in old trafford they want 1 mins silence ! They have ninety mins silence every week .
East Stand I agree.
Wherever ,whenever it always happens .
Colin the King is a top 1% legend but deep down he will know .
All the gutter press will be looking at the Blue army just waiting for anything .... then a mountain out of amole hill and all that .
In sven we trust
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....another interesting fact for what is obviously a slow news day
One newspaper shown on Sky this morning even leads with the story that "The City fans reaction or not to the minutes silence will show the level at which the WHOLE of British society is at" ..You what ???
This media witch-hunt is getting beyond a joke and a sick one at that. The game has not even happened yet FFS.
So City Fans are now responsible for the moral fibre of the whole nation !
So if we respect the silence that will stop all the shootings , knifings etc and If we don't then expect the Four Horsemen of the Apocolypse to ride in the COMS the next day !
I would not put it past a tabloid rag to plant someone in the City end to ensure they get theior story ...come on if the can do fake sheikh's then they are capable of anything
Paranoia ...you wait and see !
Spoken like a true blue legand..
City fans will show their respect end of, can we drop it now muen its becoming tedious..
MCFC Wythenshawe Hardcore !!
Do not fall into their trap Blues. These people actually WANT you to disrupt their silence. The respect for Munich victims is secondary to some weird sort of points scoring exercise. If you really want to upset them, just shut yer face for one minute, it will ruin their day I guarentee it.
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(Serves 4 to 6)
Ingredients:
500 gms of soft shin, cut into small cubes
Seasoned Flour
Cooking oil
1 onion, peeled & sliced
2 carrots, peeled & sliced (optional)
350mls of beef stock
Salt & black pepper
500 gms of potatoes, peeled, cut into cubes & parboiled
Short crust pastry
Method
Dust the meat with the seasoned flour. Heat the oil in a pan & fry the meat & onion until lightly browned. Add the carrot (if desired), stock & seasoning. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for at least an hour or until the meat is very tender. (The longer and more slowly the meat is cooked the better). When the meat is ready mix in the drained potato cubes. Put into a deep pie dish or casserole and cover with a short crust pastry crust. Make three slits in the top of the pastry (for the steam to escape), brush with beaten egg or milk and bake for about 40 minutes at 200C until the pastry is golden brown.
this story again?
Anyone got any good jokes!
plenty of crocodile tears-end of chat.
Scooby Blue;
STOP IT!
I just nearly spilled my cup o tea all over me desk after that post of yours.
Wet my drawers, funniest thing I've seen posted in ages.
Keep em coming please fella!
I posted a lengthy piece this morning which criticised the MUEN, Mirror, Terry Christian and all the other red mouthpieces out there, for their utterly one eyed and hypocritical cries for City fans to put their animosity and local rivalries to one side on Feb 10th. I also suggested that the chief reason we hate United so much is not as that balloon, Paul Hayward, suggests in todays Mail, because of (yawn) 'jealousy', but rather because of the rags continual self aggrandisement, self reverence and snidey condescension when it comes to City. The provocative '32' banner is a case in point. Will it still be there on Feb 10th? We all know damned well it will be. Or how's about the fact that nary a day goes by without the red editors of this paper allowing a string of rags (Thick the Fireman, Randy no mates, ThaiArt, ronaldo, etc etc) to post their jibes on the City pages, whilst editing out ours on theirs. Small things matter. They help fuel the flames, and if it's a minutes silence they want, then perhaps they ought to start thinking about building a few bridges. Racist chants are seldom heard at English football grounds anymore. Why? Well, one of the reasons was because the 'kick it out' campaign won over sufficient waverers to ensure that those indulging in such chanting were very much part of an embarrassable minority, and whilst the HUGE majority of City fans want to see the Munich silence respected, it would be helpful if the fans and media mouthpieces of a certain Stretford club started to reciprocate by showing us some respect in the ways suggested. Footnote to editor - You pulled my last piece on this topic for no good reason that I can see, so what say you show your supposed neutrality by letting this one in, eh??
I agree with every line written by Bluejohn.
It has become a farce regarding the posts on utds pages.
In fact the last one was pulled as I mearly likened them to pimps profiting from the Munich Air Disaster. A Simple fact.
Has that been pulled ?
Its not just us though is it? Nobody likes those arrogant self worshiping out of towners.
I'll respect the silence but after that there should be two things done.
1. a bit of respect towards us
2. The Munich disaster but to bed.
Or would that lose them money?
last week we had michael henderson spouting his claptrap munich stuff in the telegraph which frankly was just a stick to beat city fans with. lo and behold john inverdale is at it today in the same paper.
they wonder why we are sick of nitid infested media.
For all you Blues who like a drink I have come across this fuity refreshing little number ...bottoms up !
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The Tequila Sunrise is considered a long drink and is usually served in a highball glass. The International Bartender Association has designated this cocktail as an IBA Official Cocktail.
Well I never .... That's certainly livened my day up !
Never known there to be such a frenzy about a minute's silence. We all know it will be respected by the majority and there will be a couple of headcases that cause abit of a stir. Nothing anyone can do about that other than deal with the guilty parties if and when it happens.
Wonder whether the media will pick up on all distatefulness on the day i.e. songs about killing people on bonfires, russian submaires, being a City fan etc..etc...
Unlike, MUEN, King Colin knows something about our fans. City fans will honour the 1 min silence, despite what the MUEN and other rags want to believe. King Colin, pure class to this day.
Give em the minutes silence blues because if you dont it will be all over the media for the next week or so and it will give the scum even more publicity/coverage/support/
sympathy than they get now, which as we all know is too much, but thats not to say we cant sing and GIVE EM HELL FOR THE NEXT 90+ minutes.
Dont give em the (smug red rag) chance to make us look bad.
They are so sure it will happen they see it as a banker.
CTID
this is what the press everywhere want,for city fans 2 ruin the silence and now they will.if they hadnt hyped it up for ks then most city fans wouldnt have probley even known till the day.well done the press monkeys.on your heads