The horrific Upton Park riots in 2009 turned out to be the location of a first date that went horribly wrong.

hosted bitter rivals in a second round tie of the Carling Cup and considering the history between the two clubs, a heavy police presence was in place surrounding the stadium and inside it too.

Following Junior Stanislas' late equaliser after Millwall's Neil Harris had given them the lead, a pitch invasion among the home fans stopped the match and despite the Hammers' players pleading with their supporters, it was delayed for several minutes before heading into extra-time.

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It was the side that ended victors with Stanislas scoring a second goal and Zavon Harris adding a third to progress to the third round. However, the match was marred due to riots, with 80 people suspected of violence before and after the match arrested, while a Millwall supporter was stabbed in the chest before kick-off.

For West Ham supporter Rick Galer, the riots were doubly dreadful as he'd chosen the match as his first date with his girlfriend. "That match was my first date with my girlfriend," the 35-year-old said, who was 19 at the time, told .

“I told her parents it wouldn’t be that bad. But we got to Upton Park station and straight away I knew it was a mistake. There were loads of police and all sorts were being chucked from The Queens pub. I took all the back roads around Priory Road to avoid the trouble.

"Her mum watched the game and heard Phil Thompson (the former midfielder and pundit for Sky Sports) say, ‘If my kids were at this game, I’d feel terrified.’ So she started to worry even more. Her father is a cabbie and he said he’d pick us up near Forest Gate station (a 38-minute walk from Upton Park stadium)."

Galer's girlfriend wasn't best pleased with him and gave him the silent treatment. He added: "When we saw him, I said, ‘I’m really sorry, I didn’t know it was going to be that bad.’ He just gave me this look and didn’t say a word during the journey back. I wasn’t on his card list that year!"

The Association charged both clubs for failing to control their fans. While West Ham were fined £115,000, Millwall were cleared of the charges. In the aftermath of the riots, ex-West Ham boss - who managed the club from 1994 to 2001 - advised the football authorities to never allow the two clubs to face each other in a cup game.

In response to the violent scenes, West Ham banned at least 54 people for life from Upton Park, including 11 season ticket holders. Over 15 years on, the rivals have never competed in a cup competition against each other but have faced off twice in the 2011/12 season when West Ham were relegated to the Championship.

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