1971-72 (55 years ago today) match reports and photos

[Blade1959]

No reports on the O-0 with WBA?

 

[Silent Blade]

No reports on the O-0 with WBA?

I thought I had posted it. Dont know what happened there. Will try again.

 

[Silent Blade]

28/8/1971

Blades 0 WBA 0

Came back home from an enjoyable week at Butlin's holiday camp a few hours before the kick off. I played plenty of football on the holiday camp football pitch during the week and so did many of the holiday makers. Watched Celtic beat Ayr 3-0 on the Saturday and Rangers beat Ayr 4-0 on the Wednesday (both at Somerset Park). Years later (probably in 1978) my dad told me that we had met Ayr's manager Ally MacLeod (later was Scotland's manager and well known for the 1978 World Cup campaign) that week but I do not remember meeting him (I probably didnt have a clue who he was). My dad remembered him being a good player for Blackburn in the early 1960s.

It rained a lot during the WBA match. YTV cameras were there probably expecting goals! I think we attacked the Lane end in the first half because I remember there were so many photographers taking their positions behind the Lane End goal. As for the match, I do not really remember much
apart from when Hockey returned to the pitch through the tunnel with a bandage on his head, which brought loud cheers from the crowd, and later on I was being frustrated that we didnt score

Apologies for the first two parts of the Green Un report being blurry!

 

[Dnblade]

28/8/1971

Blades 0 WBA 0

Came back home from an enjoyable week at Butlin's holiday camp a few hours before the kick off. I played plenty of football on the holiday camp football pitch during the week and so did many of the holiday makers. Watched Celtic beat Ayr 3-0 on the Saturday and Rangers beat Ayr 4-0 on the Wednesday (both at Somerset Park). Years later (probably in 1978) my dad told me that we had met Ayr's manager Ally MacLeod (later was Scotland's manager and well known for the 1978 World Cup campaign) that week but I do not remember meeting him (I probably didnt have a clue who he was). My dad remembered him being a good player for Blackburn in the early 1960s.

It rained a lot during the WBA match. YTV cameras were there probably expecting goals! I think we attacked the Lane end in the first half because I remember there were so many photographers taking their positions behind the Lane End goal. As for the match, I do not really remember much
apart from when Hockey returned to the pitch through the tunnel with a bandage on his head, which brought loud cheers from the crowd, and later on I was being frustrated that we didnt score

Apologies for the first two parts of the Green Un report being blurry!

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Can't remember much about the game,but remember lots of rain stood at the front of the kop, and my rain damaged Lane line up programme is knocking about somewhere.
Great times though,but frustrating result.

 

[Bell4]

28/8/1971

Blades 0 WBA 0

Came back home from an enjoyable week at Butlin's holiday camp a few hours before the kick off. I played plenty of football on the holiday camp football pitch during the week and so did many of the holiday makers. Watched Celtic beat Ayr 3-0 on the Saturday and Rangers beat Ayr 4-0 on the Wednesday (both at Somerset Park). Years later (probably in 1978) my dad told me that we had met Ayr's manager Ally MacLeod (later was Scotland's manager and well known for the 1978 World Cup campaign) that week but I do not remember meeting him (I probably didnt have a clue who he was). My dad remembered him being a good player for Blackburn in the early 1960s.

It rained a lot during the WBA match. YTV cameras were there probably expecting goals! I think we attacked the Lane end in the first half because I remember there were so many photographers taking their positions behind the Lane End goal. As for the match, I do not really remember much
apart from when Hockey returned to the pitch through the tunnel with a bandage on his head, which brought loud cheers from the crowd, and later on I was being frustrated that we didnt score

Apologies for the first two parts of the Green Un report being blurry!

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I too was looking for the WBA game report -

This was my first game of the season due to holidays etc - i remember Currie kicking the ball high into the Kop at full time through his frustration.

 

[Bell4]

31/8/1971

Blades 3 (Dearden 2, Woodward (pen)) Huddersfield 1 ( Jimmy Lawson)

I remember our goals but not Huddersfield's. We went two up early in the game with a Dearden header

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and then a Woody penalty that sent keeper David Lawson the wrong way

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In the 2nd half Jimmy Lawson (no relation to the keeper) pulled a goal back before Dearden made sure of the win with a brave goal, he dived in mid air to hit a pass by Currie past the keeper and he got injured by Roy Ellam's challenge. He received congratulations by his team mates as he laid almost motionless on the ground. He got a big round of applause from the crowd as he got carried off and replaced by sub Gil Reece.

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I remember thinking that we are still at the top of the league after beating a team who comfortably won the 2nd division the previous year.

Years later my dad and I were talking about David Lawson (I think he was playing for Everton at the time) and my dad called him a "big head". I asked him why he thought that. He recalled being outside the players entrance after our 3-1 win in 1971 as I was autograph hunting (I do not remember this and it wasnt often that I went autograph hunting after a night match , maybe it made sense as it was still the school summer holiday and I didnt need to get up early in the next morning). When David Lawson came out of the players entrance to make his way to the coach, my dad said to him "that was a great save from a Woody shot!", the keeper looked straight at my dad with a quizzical look saying "Woodward?!", shrugged his shoulders then looked away shaking his head saying "Alan?!". Although I do not remember the save but I agree with my dad that it was a twattish behaviour by Lawson!

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Score in the previous evening
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Scores that evening
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Scores in the next evening. I was at the Leeds v Newcastle match in S6!

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Huddersfield went down that season

 

[Silent Blade]

Huddersfield went down that season

Yes, with Forest.

 

[Silent Blade]

4/9/1971

Nottingham Forest 2 (Storey-Moore, Martin) Blades 3 (Dearden, Currie, Scullion)

A lovely Sunny day. Nottingham was a place I had been to many times in late 1960s and early 1970s as my parents often went to NDCS meetings there. After the meetings we often went to a nearby park.

There were many Blades fans at the match. I stood in the East End stand. Forest's Storey-Moore was a name to look out for and he scored a good equaliser after Dearden opened the scoring. Midway in the 2nd half we scored twice in about a minute or two and both were scored at the Trent End, Forest pulled a goal back late in the game but not enough to deny us a 6th win in our first 7 league games of the season.