The group of four travelled 300 miles home after the match
(L-R) Albe, Rob and Mike were stranded in Liverpool along with their friend Con
(L-R) Albe, Rob and Mike were stranded in Liverpool along with their friend Con
Four fans forked out £450 between them to get home after what they did before heading to the first Premier League match at the Hill Dickinson Stadium last week. Rob Gellatly travelled to Merseyside with his son Albe and friends Mike and Con from their homes in Eastbourne, driving up on Saturday, August 23, and staying over night ahead of Brighton's match away at Everton.
After staying the night, they parked up on Carlton Street, between Boundary Street and Great Howard Street, but despite the street being under parking restrictions introduced by Liverpool City Council on match days, the Brighton supporter claims there were no signs in place at the time. He told the ECHO when he left the car on the tight street, there was nothing to suggest he was not able to park, as well as other cars lining the road.
Despite his claims, a spokesperson for the council said there is signage on the road that explains between 10am and midnight on event days people can park there for up to two hours.
When the group left the ground after a demoralising 2-0 defeat to the Blues, they were preparing themselves for the long drive back to the south coast until they realised the car had disappeared from the street.
The 55-year-old gas safe engineer said: "We walked down the street and we thought we were just going to see the car and we realised that we walked past where we were parked.
"Then we thought we had gone down the wrong road until I got the location up on my phone of where the car had been parked and we realised it was gone.
"I went to speak to a police officer who said it must have been lifted. All our luggage was in the car. My mate takes six or seven pills a day and we needed our glasses so I had to sleep in my contacts and so did my son.
"We'll go down in history as not only the first away fans at the new stadium but the first ones to get their car towed."
A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said: "There is signage in place on Carlton Street explaining that between the hours of 10am and midnight on event days, permits are required and non-permit holders can park for up to 2 hours.
"Blue badge holders are exempt from the two hour limit. The road is also closed whenever a match is taking place as part of the wider event management plan. We will work with Everton FC’s traffic management contractor to look at whether more advance notice of road closures is required.
"Any decision to tow vehicles away is taken by Merseyside Police. Anyone travelling to a match is advised to use public transport wherever possible, or use city centre car parks or key transport hubs and connect via shuttle buses or trains. Further information on road closures can be found on Everton FC’s website.”
By the time they realised what had happened, the supporter coach had left Liverpool and it was too late to catch a train to Eastbourne so the four of them settled on another night in the city before deciding to get a £450 taxi back to Eastbourne.
On top of that, between four of them, Rob estimates they have spent a further £200 on food and accommodation, taking it up to £650 between the group.
To add to the pain, Rob has to shell out just short of £200 plus £26 a day for this car being impounded, taking the total up to around £300.
Rob spoke to the ECHO as he travels back to Liverpool on the train today, Thursday, August 28, and said the outpouring of generosity from the people of Liverpool on social media was overwhelming when his friend Mike shared the situation they found themselves in on X.
Mike's post said: "Everton away… lost 2-0 … cars been towed away now stranded in Liverpool… can’t get the car till Tuesday #BHAFC."
The post was viewed 1.6 million times on the platform, with Rob saying how people offered drinks and breakfasts for the Monday morning.
Rob added: "All we can say is that all the Evertonians were happy to chat with us and everyone was really good about the situation we were in.
"We were getting all sorts of offers on Twitter (X), it was amazing. Offers for breakfasts and drinks so it was really nice."