Blades Matt is in for the Kill
By MICHAEL MORGAN
Published: Today
MATT KILGALLON is desperate for a derby day win tomorrow — so he can dedicate it to sacked Sheffield United boss Bryan Robson.
The Blades made such a pig’s ear of their last visit to Hillsborough it effectively cost Robbo his job after just eight turbulent months in charge.
United’s passionless 2-0 defeat by the Owls nine months ago left Robson in a perilous position and, sure enough, four games and four draws later, the axe finally fell.
Blades centre-back Kilgallon, 24, knows he and his team-mates badly let down their manager that day.
They have been on a guilt trip ever since — but now they have the chance to put the record straight and they do not intend to blow it.
Killa, who cost £1.75million from Leeds 21 months ago, said: “This one is for Robbo. We owe him a performance and a win at Hillsborough after badly under-performing there last season.
“And, if we come out on top, I shall dedicate the victory to him.
“At the time, he took a lot of flak for our display against Wednesday and that was totally unfair.
“He said and did everything right in the build-up. It was not his fault we lost, it was purely and simply down to the players.
“We just seemed to be so flat while the Wednesday lads were really up for it. They started the match really well whereas we just did not start at all. In fact, we never, ever got going. It must have been a psychological thing.
“Maybe we took Wednesday a bit for granted because we believed we were a better team and that we were going to beat them.
“For whatever reason, it just did not work out for us on the day. We let ourselves, our manager and our fans down badly.”
It was Robson who paid the ultimate price for that embarrassment and he was hurt so badly by getting the bullet he turned his back on the chance to stay at Bramall Lane as director of football and took up an ambassadorial role at Old Trafford instead.
But Kilgallon rates Robson as a boss, and insists the players at Bramall Lane all enjoyed working for him.
The former England Under-21 defender said: “Robbo was a great player in his own right and, for that alone, he commanded respect.
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"We thoroughly enjoyed working with him, so it is a real mystery why we under-achieved — both individually and as a team — during his time.”
There is no doubt, though, that under Robson’s replacement, Kevin Blackwell, the Blades are on the up.
And they go into the 122nd Steel City showdown convinced they can turn over their bitterest rivals, who humiliated them by taking four points off them last term.
United lead the way in this battle with 44 wins to Wednesday’s 39 and they fully intend to build on that domination in front of a near 40,000 full house.
Kilgallon vowed: “What happened in the corresponding game last season will not happen again. I just cannot see it because of the determination in our camp.
“We are going to Wednesday full of confidence after winning our last three games on the bounce — and we won’t make the same mistakes we made on our last visit there.”
