Former West Ham hooligan feared he would die after facing one 'hard as nails' fanbase

The infamous Inter City Firm, or ICF, became a mainstay of the hoolie-lit boom of the mid-noughties.

West Ham's violent Saturdays were recalled in memoirs and immortalised in gritty movies that occasionally skirted close to glamourising the scourge of football in the 1970s and 1980s.

Along with the gangs who claimed to represent the likes of Manchester United, Millwall, Chelsea, Cardiff City, Stoke City, Luton Town and Birmingham City, the exploits of the ICF have long been in print.

Now, the age of football culture podcasts has established another platform for the raucous raconteurs of the hooligan heyday. The big names are doing the rounds again and their stories are throwing up some surprising recollections.

Carlton Leach, once a notorious ICF hooligan, recalled one shocking incident on an episode of the On The Edge podcast.

The goal of many matchdays was for a visiting firm to 'take the end' of the home team, invading the behind-the-goal terrace en masse and taking it over by force.

It didn't always go to plan, as Leach discovered during one game at a club that might not immediately spring to mind but had a big reputation at the time.

On a visit to Middlesbrough, Leach and leading ICF member Bill Gardner ended up in an unenviable position.

"Our biggest thing was to try to get in their end... just run in and start fighting. That was your trophy for the day. If you could do that, that was a big thing," Leach told the Daily Express podcast.

"Everyone talks about Sunderland and Newcastle, but Middlesbrough's one of the worst...they're hard as nails."

With most of their comrades headed off at the pass by the police, Leach and Gardner were alone.

Former West Ham hooligan Bill Gardner

Gardner decided on an unexpected solution and led Leach to the middle of the terrace, where he revealed his claret and blue scarf and the pair sang West Ham's anthem.

"I remember thinking we're going to get absolutely murdered, smashed to bits," admitted Leach.

Instead, a space cleared around them as the Boro fans measured up "a couple of psychos" for long enough for the boys in blue to remove the pair and return them to the right part of Ayresome Park.

"Yes, I was scared," said Leach.

A hero's welcome back to the Hammers' end presumably took the edge off.