What makes Sheffield United your club?

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My dads a blade so i'm a blade. If i have kids they'll be blades.

They are my club and Kevin Blackwell is my clubs manager so i support him. I have only ever wanted two managers out in my life time... Heath & Robson. We're a mid-table to top 6 Championship team at best in my eyes so i have only ever wanted to get rid of managers that could've gotten us relegated. Premiership is a bonus. We have spent 3 seasons in the top flight in my lifetime (1984.)

Things we should never change... Ground, club badge & red and white stripes.

What to change... Nothing!

Or Diamonds?
 



My dad was in the same class as the son of Fred Jessop (joined the Blades from Derby in 1938) and he then became a Blade. My mum's family were Wednesdayites (she had 6 brothers). Out of my dad's family, there were only him and his youngest brother who were Blades. At the age of 7 in January 1970, I decided to become a fully committed Blade.
 
My Dad first took me to Bramall Lane a few weeks before my 9th birthday. My uncles and an older cousin were Blades. The thought of supporting the other lot never crossed my mind, even though my best mate was an Owl (I use the word Owl since 'Pigs' didn't exist in those far-off days!).

I cannot claim to have been brought up in a council estate – I was born and lived in the leafy suburbs of S7, but close enough to Bramall Lane to hear the roars if the wind was in the right direction.
The roars used to come to at leafy S8
From a blades family started at the age of 5.
By what a long time ago.
Still get a tingle when I get to the lane.
UTB
ps they used to be called Owls.:)
 
When my Dad arrived in the city, he was introduced to relatives who were mainly Blades, but the odd pig knocking about. He was taken to Hillsborough and then BDTBL on alternate games for a few weeks. He never really liked the atmosphere and 'feel' of the piggery and preferred BDTBL, even though at the time the swinery was still a recently developed ground (late 60s). He opted to be full-time at BDTBL and took me as a wee nipper in 1970-71. Walking up those steps from the back of John Street, up onto the terrace and seeing the pitch for the first time puts this emotional set of chains on you. You have been captured forever. Blade for Life, nothing would change that, but leaving BDTBL might shake it severely.
 
The roars used to come to at leafy S8
From a blades family started at the age of 5.
By what a long time ago.
Still get a tingle when I get to the lane.
UTB
ps they used to be called Owls.:)
And before that they were called Blades - it was a generic nickname for any sports team from Sheffield. We started out as The Cutlers!
 
I'm sure all English clubs have their own stories and identities - but by joining up with ours Tihane - you've not picked a bad 'un :)

Thanks for your insight! With my pick, I was quite selfish, picked the one that had the most Estonians in it!
I'm liking it so far though, and hopefully can soon see a game too.
 
When I was a child my father took myself and a pal to matches the Lane and this was reciprocated by my pal's father taking us to the other side on alternate Saturdays so i could easily have gone over to the dark side. One of the clinchers for me was the 7-3 victory we had at the Lane, of which to be honest I don't remember much about the game since it was a long time ago but i do remember deciding that i would be a Blade because it made me feel superior at the time after such a good result.
As a teenager most of my mates were pig fans but we would go to games at both grounds ( when we weren't playing football) which was pretty normal at that time since the rivalry wasn't as bitter ( this was the late 50's) and there were no forums or 'phone-ins to stoke it up. I am extremely happy to say that I became a jinx on the piggies as far as my mates were concerned since I had an excellent record of being there when they lost.
 
As a young 'un, Silverfox took me to both the Lane and Hillsborough (mainly on free tickets I got from being in the school footy team).

He's always been a blade, but never brainwashed me or forced me to become a blade.

For me, it was the natural choice, it felt right...

  • There is nothing like the Lane on a cold, dark, noisy Tuesday night.
  • As Blades, we were a completely different breed to the crowing Wednesday fans at school (who seemed to outnumber us, mainly down to their "superiority" at the time).
  • We always seemed far more down to earth, could take the piss out of ourselves but retain pride at all times.


As soon as I was hooked (straight away) it wasn't going to change, the Blades are part of me and always will be... I've missed a tiny tiny proportion of home matches since (only for very serious issues) and feel like theres something missing/wrong if I miss the odd away match.

As others have said I'd be gutted if we ever moved from the lane or drastically changed the tradition of the place, it's home.

The little things like these two will forever remind me of standing at the lane, hoping my plodding hero's would give me some bragging rights at school the next morning....

[youtube]zwX-t-ER1dg[/youtube] | [youtube]WO4wcNVbYOQ[/youtube]

(i'll await thanks from Beighton :D)
 
As a young 'un, Silverfox took me to both the Lane and Hillsborough (mainly on free tickets I got from being in the school footy team).

He's always been a blade, but never brainwashed me or forced me to become a blade.

For me, it was the natural choice, it felt right...

  • There is nothing like the Lane on a cold, dark, noisy Tuesday night.
  • As Blades, we were a completely different breed to the crowing Wednesday fans at school (who seemed to outnumber us, mainly down to their "superiority" at the time).
  • We always seemed far more down to earth, could take the piss out of ourselves but retain pride at all times.


As soon as I was hooked (straight away) it wasn't going to change, the Blades are part of me and always will be... I've missed a tiny tiny proportion of home matches since (only for very serious issues) and feel like theres something missing/wrong if I miss the odd away match.

As others have said I'd be gutted if we ever moved from the lane or drastically changed the tradition of the place, it's home.

The little things like these two will forever remind me of standing at the lane, hoping my plodding hero's would give me some bragging rights at school the next morning....

[youtube]zwX-t-ER1dg[/youtube] | [youtube]WO4wcNVbYOQ[/youtube]

(i'll await thanks from Beighton :D)

Sorry foxy, if you play them both at the same time it just sounds shite
 



I was born and brought up in High Green.

My father was from down south and was a big Crystal Palace fan, the next door neighbours were staunch pigs, and my mothers side of the family were all Blades.

Firstly i got took to Bramall Lane for a night match by my Grandad, loved the floodlights, the whole atmosphere and was all wrapped up and felt warm and comfortable, and my red and white bobble hat didn't get taken off for weeks after.

A few weeks later the neighbours took me to Hillsborough, and i went on the old unroofed kop. I made the huge faux paus of telling one of the bigger boys i supported Sheffield United and he gave me a chinese burn and would not stop until i said i supported Wednesday. I cried and cried, but defiantly refused and refused until an adult stepped in and told him to pack it in, but that act of defiance sealed the deal for me.

Very much a case of once a blade, always a blade for me.

All through school i was usually the only Blade in my class, and upon going to Ecclesfield School i was one of about 20 Blades in a year of about 300 kids. I had to take shit from them all my school life, but there was always something different and something non-compliant from being a Blade. The odd thing is that out of the 20 or so Blades that i was outnumbered with, the vast majority are still very active Blades, whilst out of most of the Wednesdayite's i can hardly think of any that are still active to my knowledge, with one notable exception of a knobhead who saw me out up down after a derby win a few seasons back and started a fight with me.

Ended up marrying a Wednesdayite, and took her to a couple of pig games 2 or 3 years back, the second time i went was a night match towards the end of the season, and i still hated it as much as i did the first time i went, and came down with flu and ended up ill on the sofa for about a week.

Baby Brownie is already getting active encouragement to be a Blade, and as soon as i think i can safely take him to the lane without the noise and crowd upsetting him, and having the potential to compromise his safety he will be there.
 
Same story as many others. Brought up in S8 by a United supporting family, Blades outnumbered Pigs at junior school and secondary school and what few Pigs there were seemed up themselves.

As I understand it, Great-grandad got tickets from work for a United match in the 1940s. My Nannan's brother wasn't bothered about going with him so she got to go instead and was hooked. She's still a season ticket holder (although we were sat for ages last Tuesday night trying to work out which evil person she'd been in the past to be lumbered with reincarnation as a Blade. She said it can't have been Hitler or Stalin, she was alive when they were!)

One of her sons was a season ticket holder, other one still is and was responsible for taking me to my first match (yeah, thanks for that Ian!). My Mum has been to a fair few matches in her time and will use my ST if I can't, only my Aunty is missing in action and hates football.

From that, three of my cousins were or still are ST holders, brother was a ST holder and now works at the Lane and there's me. (My two other cousins, offspring of aforementioned Aunty are also MIA). My first match was fifteen years ago this coming August.

Frankly, the future offspring of Foxy and myself have no chance. I certainly aint taking 'em to Hillsborough. They can bollocks! Blades or staying home with either Nannan, their choice! :D

Bramall Lane feels like home. Everything is so familiar and I wouldn't change it for the world. I love the graffiti in the ladies of "I love sexy Stephen Quinn" (honestly!) I love the fact that my feet just take me to my ST seat without having to look where I'm going.

I love the camaraderie, sense of humour and sheer bloody-mindedness of most Blades. I do love that in a crowd of thousands of people, I know loads of people to say hello to, the same old faces week after week. I love going all over the country and seeing those same people. I do find the collective grumpiness quite endearing. We could win the European Cup and some bugger would be whinging.

And I love how, for the most part, people quite like us. We are a friendly lot for the most part and we've had a good laugh with loads of opposition fans all over the country.

I think being a Blade is just part of who I am, and it's too ingrained to do anything about it now.
 
My Dad is a blade.

End of.

It's enough for me, it better be enough for my kids. Or I'll beat them until they are, just like my Dad.

(Kidding)
 
I went to a school were i was one of four Blades.
My first match was Boxing day at the sty.
I sat with my family who are pigs on a pig stand.

I guess i'm just an arkward Bastard.
 
Why am I a Blade? Good luck of course! :)

Family have been Blades fans since the club was formed so there was never any question about who I'd support. My mum supports the unclean so tried it on with me but I never crossed the city though sadly my brother did.

Once a Blade, always a Blade. Any kids I have will also be Blades regardless of where they're born.

UTB
 
Even living in Sunderland, because my old man was a Blade, I would not become anything else.

Living out of Sheffield enhanced the match day experience for me, making a bit more of an effort to get to a game. I've been to quite a few different grounds, but nothing quite compares to when you walk up all those stairs on the back of the kop, the smell of fags, bovril, pies, chip butties hits the nostrils, the sound of the raw yorkshire accent, you eventually get at the top where Blades are smashing against the cladding and you walk up to the gangway and it hits you.
 
Why am I a Blade?

Look at the link below....

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en...7929,-1.471224&spn=0.005787,0.013754&t=h&z=16

The red tag is just about where I was born and brought up for the first 4 years of my life.My grandad,nannan and my old man lived on Franklin Street and were all Blades,my other grandad and nannan,and my mum & Uncle lived on Woodhead Road,with my uncle(another blade) moving onto Alderson Road for a while after he got married,& various other uncles and aunties of my dad lived on Shoreham Street during the 30's & 40's .

I even went to Denby Street Nursery - right opposite was the Sportsman,which I later became a member of the Supporters Club there,and travelled on Calvert's coaches.... and had my first bike bought for me from Ted James's bike shop.

So...I couldn't have been anything else,could I? :-)
 
I think all the aforementioned reasons apply to most of us - proper team (always up against it), proper nickname (none of this namby-pamby 'blues', 'lilywhites', 'owls' etc.), proper name Sheffield. UNITED. Proper football ground. Proper club badge.

As I've got older, I've pretty much seen everything (apart from us winning anything :D !) and realise that things could be a lot worse. In fact, once you've tasted the high life, it must be very hard to get back to normality - ask any of the 'big' teams. Let others flirt with the high life and suffer when you get let down (are you listening, Christine Bleakley? :D)

The day we sold Deane and Fjortoft, I thought 'That's it. Stuff 'em.' Didn't go for 3 years. Since then we've become used to losing our better players, but which team hasn't? Even Man. U.

However, as the years roll by I find that my once all-powerful love for United is now replaced by a 'love' in the sense of a faithful old labrador. It stinks, it shits all over you but you can't bring yourself to have it put down.

This love has been almost replaced by my utter loathing of Wendy. I was brought up in a city, school, environment where it seemed everyone supported the pigs. So I've endured the supercillious crap from that lot, threats, abuse etc. They really are a different breed. Even yesterday, they were explaining away their lack of transfer activity as 'Owls keep hold of their stars(sic)!'

And that hatred will never leave me. As I look back to my younger years, I see Wendy as an abusive, perverted stepfather who treated me badly in my formative years.

Forgive them? Never!

That's
why I'll always be a Blade.
 
This love has been almost replaced by my utter loathing of Wendy. I was brought up in a city, school, environment where it seemed everyone supported the pigs. So I've endured the supercillious crap from that lot, threats, abuse etc. They really are a different breed. Even yesterday, they were explaining away their lack of transfer activity as 'Owls keep hold of their stars(sic)!'

And that hatred will never leave me. As I look back to my younger years, I see Wendy as an abusive, perverted stepfather who treated me badly in my formative years.
So if I ever come to visit, what should I do:
a) not wear a united shirt
b) stick to S2 (what other areas might be safe?)
c) roll my sleeves up

or how bad is the rivalry with Wednesday?
what are the preconditions to getting your arse kicked?
 
So if I ever come to visit, what should I do:
a) not wear a united shirt
b) stick to S2 (what other areas might be safe?)
c) roll my sleeves up

or how bad is the rivalry with Wednesday?
what are the preconditions to getting your arse kicked?

Tihane,

When you come to watch the Blades

a) Wear your Blades shirt - I don't wear shirts to games, just personal choice as some pubs in the centre of town don't let you in with team colours on and I often stay out after the match and go into town. Generally speaking you'll be safe with a Blades shirt on, although you can never account for the odd idiot. General rule is that anyone wearing team colours is not considered a threat to other thugs.
b) Anywhere around the city centre is fairly safe. Bramall lane is very close to the city centre and there are no areas to particularly avoid between the city centre, train station and Bramall lane.
c) why would you have long sleeves :D

The rivalry between the Sheffield teams is strong, but its nothing to worry about.

Preconditions to getting a kicking by Wednesday? ha ha ha I've been trying to get a kicking off them for years but never managed it.

Obviously like any city, if you go looking for trouble you can probably find it. There are some dodgy clubs and bars where you can get bother if you go looking (eg spill someones pint, look at their bird etc) but generally Sheffield is a very safe city
 
Because i'm into BDSM and enjoy all forms of torture. Watching the Blades is to extreme for most Masochists though that's why sex shops never display Blades memorabillia
 

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