50 years ago today

[Silent Blade]

It was a draw, Currie out injured.

Recovering from injuries after a car crash

 

[Silent Blade]

I know that teams in 61 played a completely different formation from modern day teams, so would it be fair to class Summers and Richardson as midfield type players? Also, from what I've gathered Richardson was very much a defensive player, was that the same with Summers?

My other questions with the combined XI, could Pace and Dearden have formed a good partnership, or would Reece have been a better foil for one or the other? And Salmons over Scullion?

Pace and Dearden were similar type of strikers I believe so maybe Reece or Tudor would be a better partner for Pace. My dad said Richardson was a bit of a "dirty player" and Summers was more stylish

 

[Silent Blade]

1-1, I think they scored late after Geoff Salmons put us one up IIRC. I know I was gutted TC wasn't playing.

Dave Sadler scored the equaliser. John Connaughton in goal for Man U

 

[Darnall Siam Blade]

Yes, Richardson was a very tough half back verging on ' dirty' , as your Dad said. Summers was a classy , more attacking half back. In today's parlance Richardson would be a defensive midfielder and Summers an attacking midfielder.

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

HBT you will have seen both the 61 era and 71 era teams, question for you who was the best of the two teams?

I know the 71 lot are always put out there as the de facto entertaining United team, but wasn't the 61 lot more successful, promotion, 5th place finish in the top tier, and by rights should have played in Europe in the 62 Fairs Cup (they only didn't due to underhand tactics from the pigs), much better in the cups, FA Cup semi final, 2 or 3 quarter finals, couple of 5th rounds. I guess if you took the attacking flair of the 71 team and the defensive capabilities of the 61 team you'd have the perfect team!

I was too young to see either, but how would this look as a best of XI from both eras:-

Hodgkinson
Badger - Colquhoun - J Shaw - G Shaw
Woodward - Currie - Richardson - Salmons
Pace - Dearden

Dangerous question to ask an oldie! How long have you got? The short answer is you can never really compare across generations; but you are quite right that the strengths of the 2 sides were different. The other big difference is I was a kid growing up watching the 1961 side, and a bloke with a job and kids watching the 1971 side, so my heart is always with the 1961 side. But the 1971 side was the more exciting to watch, the 1961 side more solid. And as you say, each of them had a tilt at success in the top league, but came up short. The thrilling Cup runs of the 1961 side were never matched.
Your best XI is a good shout, but it would be impossible to blend the 2 because of the change in systems. I don’t think Richardson would make it, as he was defensive. Hockey as an enforcer would perhaps be better. Summers was a very cultured player, when the role of the left-half was to supply the left-winger; include Summers and you would need to include Simpson. A lot of goals came from ‘Summers passes to Simpson, Simpson centres, Pace scores with a header.’ Simple, but very effective.
The 1961 side had nothing to compare with Currie and Woodward, though.
And in my view the 2016-1020 version has been up there with best in terms of United sides. More great memories.

 

[ancientblade]

My dad and my Uncle Ronnie missed that match because Uncle Tony (who had no interest in football) got married that day!

didnt wednesday have 2 shots from wilkinson that day and united have about 16 corners ?

 

[Silent Blade]

didnt wednesday have 2 shots from wilkinson that day and united have about 16 corners ?

From what I had read, yes, we had more shots than they did.

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

didnt wednesday have 2 shots from wilkinson that day and united have about 16 corners ?

That’s the one. Read the final paragraph of the report by a neutral journalist below. My nightmare is the photo bottom left - I was standing on the front of the Kop, must have been right behind the cameraman. Me and Hodgy both knew that was in at the same time. Horrible. Wednesday played anti-football that day, and we were the lower league team.

 

[kevreedy]

Bert. did George Best play in the match April 1971 at Bramall Lane.

 

[Silent Blade]

Bert. did George Best play in the match April 1971 at Bramall Lane.

Yes 1972

 

[kevreedy]

Thank you for correcting me Bert

 

[drblade]

I guess I should have posted the Cricket at BDTBL thread here!

 

[Jon Bon II]

Dangerous question to ask an oldie! How long have you got?

Christ on a bike! I know we're all concerned about the Covid and that but that's a bit upfront, isn't it?

 

[Silent Blade]

I guess I should have posted the Cricket at BDTBL thread here!

Post it in here

 

[drblade]

Interesting piece in the Guardian, 50 years ago today!

The Spin | How Bramall Lane's occasional cricketing heritage came to an end

Fifty years ago, Sheffield United ended their ground’s strange use for cricket despite most shareholders voting for it to remain

www.theguardian.com

Had it been up to the shareholders, we would have remained a 3-sided ground. Some things never change though:

"the Sheffield crowd was known for being particularly knowledgable about and passionate for the game, if a little more vocal than others – in 1938 the Guardian wrote about “spectators of the usual Bramall Lane breed, howling at times like young lions after their meat”.

UTB

 

[Silent Blade]

16/1/1971

Bolton Wanderers 2 (Seddon, Fletcher) Blades 1 (Tudor)

2 of my dad's friends travelled with us in my dad's car.

Early in the game Tudor gave us the lead by firing home from close range so it looked that it was going to be an easy win for us against a struggling side playing a lot of youngsters. Midway in the 1st half Ian Seddon fired in a spectacular equaliser from outside the box that Hodgy had little chance to save. It still looked good when YTV showed highlights of the game in the next day. Late in the game, Paul Fletcher (who seemed to be in an offside position), broke away and slotted in the winner under Hodgy's arms (photo below).

It was a real sickener to lose in that match and Bolton seemed to be a bogey side to us in the 1970s (saw us beat them once in the 1970s and that was the 2-1 win at Burnden Park in 1977).

After the game I was feeling queasy and felt worse when I got in the car. Shortly after we had set off, I threw up in the car so my dad stopped the car and he had to clean out the vomit from the car. The stench must have been horrible for us 4 in the journey home! I fell asleep but woke up when we were on the Snake Pass and my dad pointed out that we were behind the SUFC team coach making their way home. I could see through the rear window of the coach that the players were moving about in the aisle especially John Barnwell who I was to see for the last time! It was Hodgy's and Tudor's last league game for us but I did see the pair play in the 1st team once more in the friendly match at Saltergate a week later.

 

[Bert]

16/1/1971

Bolton Wanderers 2 (Seddon, Fletcher) Blades 1 (Tudor)

2 of my dad's friends travelled with us in my dad's car.

Early in the game Tudor gave us the lead by firing home from close range so it looked that it was going to be an easy win for us against a struggling side playing a lot of youngsters. Midway in the 1st half Ian Seddon fired in a spectacular equaliser from outside the box that Hodgy had little chance to save. It still looked good when YTV showed highlights of the game in the next day. Late in the game, Paul Fletcher (who seemed to be in an offside position), broke away and slotted in the winner under Hodgy's arms (photo below).

It was a real sickener to lose in that match and Bolton seemed to be a bogey side to us in the 1970s (saw us beat them once in the 1970s and that was the 2-1 win at Burnden Park in 1977).

After the game I was feeling queasy and felt worse when I got in the car. Shortly after we had set off, I threw up in the car so my dad stopped the car and he had to clean out the vomit from the car. The stench must have been horrible for us 4 in the journey home! I fell asleep but woke up when we were on the Snake Pass and my dad pointed out that we were behind the SUFC team coach making their way home. I could see through the rear window of the coach that the players were moving about in the aisle especially John Barnwell who I was to see for the last time! It was Hodgy's and Tudor's last league game for us but I did see the pair play in the 1st team once more in the friendly match at Saltergate a week later.

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Bert went to that one.
Stood with the Unitedites on their 'End'.
Bert's memory seems to think it was called the Cemetery End.

 

[Silent Blade]

Bert went to that one.
Stood with the Unitedites on their 'End'.
Bert's memory seems to think it was called the Cemetery End.

I was in the stand with my dad not far from where the tv cameras were

 

[Bert]

I was in the stand with my dad not far from where the tv cameras were

You were in the safest place.

As usual in those days without segregation it was one long punch up.

 

[Silent Blade]

You were in the safest place.

As usual in those days without segregation it was one long punch up.

Were you behind the goal where Tudor scored or at the other end?

 

[Bert]

Were you behind the goal where Tudor scored or at the other end?

Bert is struggling to remember, but he thinks we were at the end where he scored.
Was that to the left if you were sat in the Main Stand?

 

[Silent Blade]

Bert is struggling to remember, but he thinks we were at the end where he scored.
Was that to the left if you were sat in the Main Stand?

Not in the stand where you can see in the photo of the winning goal. I looked to my left where Tudor and Fletcher scored, and to my right where Seddon equalised (I was much nearer to the equaliser)

 

[Bert]

This photo tells Bert that he was on the Great Lever Terrace.

 

[Silent Blade]

This photo tells Bert that he was on the Great Lever Terrace.

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Just looked at footage of Bolton v Newcastle Cup match in 1976, I am now quite sure that Tudor scored at the Railway Embankment End. I hadnt really noticed the Railway line in my two visits to Burnden Park

 

[bornablade]

Just looked at footage of Bolton v Newcastle Cup match in 1976, I am now quite sure that Tudor scored at the Railway Embankment End. I hadnt really noticed the Railway line in my two visits to Burnden Park

I think there is an old (Arthur Askey) film on You tube showing Burnden Park. Footage against the Blades.

 

[Uncle mick]

It was rammed full.
Bert can't think of a bigger crowd in the last 50 years.
Maybe the Hull game?

Sat next to badgers wife for cardiff match as a kid saw them last year and told her dont think she would remember as im a codger now

 

[Uncle mick]

24/1/70.

My dad took me to watch Chesterfield v Lincoln. The kick off was probably 3.15pm (in those days Chesterfield and Bury had 3.15pm kick off for home games on Saturdays). We were late again for the kick off probably because my dad again wanted to watch racing on tv. Chesterfield won 4-0 but I do not remember the goals at all. I remember during half time my dad pointed out to the scoreboard in the Cross Street end and he was excited to find out the half time score for the Blades FA Cup match at Derby. He then got disappointed when it was revealed that we were losing 2-0. In the end, we lost 3-0 and our FA Cup dream was over (see from 43 mins 57 secs in below video). When we got home we discovered that 1st division Wendy had lost 2-1 at home to 4th division Scunthorpe and that cheered my dad up! I remember watching the highlights of Derby v Blades match on YTV at my grandmother's house in the next day.

Prob in the bookies with my dad

 

[ancientblade]

You were in the safest place.

As usual in those days without segregation it was one long punch up.

was on that end that day bert and it was one long punch up running battles all afternoon for some reason boltons mob mostly greasers didnt take too kindly to the shoreham boys being on their end that day lol

 

[Silent Blade]

I think there is an old (Arthur Askey) film on You tube showing Burnden Park. Footage against the Blades.

Bolton v Blades 4th November 1961

Saw the below video in FB tonight. It was part of a film called "A Kind of Loving" starring James Bolam and Alan Bates. Bolton won the match by 2-0. Our line up that day was Hodgkinson, Coldwell, G Shaw, Richardson, J Shaw, Orr, Allcurch, Kettleborough, Pace, Hodgson and Simpson

www.s24su.com

 

[Silent Blade]

Bert , Ancient blade , do you remember Paddy Buckley coming on as sub replacing Barnwell? I dont. It would have been the only time I saw him play for our 1st team.