How much of a home is Bramall Lane to the players?

[Darren]

Had it been 1965 Silent, we'd have nicked it

I once did get a ball courtesy of United as I was walking along Myrtle Road one evening in the early 80's when there was a youth game on. The ball came over the fence and literally landed at my feet.

I lived (and my parents still live) on Erskine Crescent over the back field from the Ball Inn Ground. All housing now.

 

[Silent Blade]

I presume it's only me that laughed out loud at the thought of bowler, wicket keeper and slips all appealing for LBW in sign language.

Played cricket many a time up at CD and it was the coldest, most inhospitable place to play every time we turned up. Hated the place for cricket but quite liked it for football when you expect it to be cold and wet and it never let you down.

Our sign language for "Howzat" is exactly the same as the hearing players!

 

[Grecian2000]

Exactly as I expected, and no offence meant Silent.
However, the "Monty Python" in me imagined a much funnier scene.

I did a spot of umpiring after I'd packed in playing. The appeal is pretty much universal, the insults and gestures after a "not out" decision were a bit more team specific.

 

[HighfieldBlade]

I used to play 5 a side in the gym on Monday nights ,you could use the main changing rooms and we used to warm up by running down the side of the pitch. It was a crap surface in the gym but we wouldn't have swapped for anywhere else.

Was this gym a single-storey building on Cherry St? close to the Bramall Lane end? I used to go there in Summer for activities to keep us kids occupied...living round the corner from BDTBL, the nearest park for us was probably Millhouses, before the Asline Rd houses were demolished to make the park.

 

[sitwell]

Was this gym a single-storey building on Cherry St? close to the Bramall Lane end? I used to go there in Summer for activities to keep us kids occupied...living round the corner from BDTBL, the nearest park for us was probably Millhouses, before the Asline Rd houses were demolished to make the park.

From what I remember it was just a metal shell ,it was always freezing ,you could see your breath ,but my memory is rubbish .I couldn't even tell you what the surface was but it suited my Gola and Green flash ,until my Mum got me some Patricks from the catalogue.

 

[LSF]

I once did get a ball courtesy of United as I was walking along Myrtle Road one evening in the early 80's when there was a youth game on. The ball came over the fence and literally landed at my feet.

I lived (and my parents still live) on Erskine Crescent over the back field from the Ball Inn Ground. All housing now.

As my house was nearest to Ball Inn, (literally across road on Myrtle), any balls 'aquired', either by your method of chance or one smuggled off the ground, our coalhouse was the obvious hiding place.
Trouble was, my mum was one step in front and always made me take them back along with a sermon on thou shalt not steal ( especially from SUFC!)
Pissed my mates off no end...

 

[sitwell]

As my house was nearest to Ball Inn, (literally across road on Myrtle), any balls 'aquired', either by your method of chance or one smuggled off the ground, our coalhouse was the obvious hiding place.
Trouble was, my mum was one step in front and always made me take them back along with a sermon on thou shalt not steal ( especially from SUFC!)
Pissed my mates off no end...

Its so easy to piss those 2 off

 

[Cyprus Blade]

Much closer to the Sty than the Lane and not the nicest of areas.

Oi - wash your mouth out - nowt wrong with our fair bit of the city.

I first kicked a football there when it was the Atlas and Norfolk Sports and Social Club (home to Atlas and Norfolk Works FC whose history is somewhat lost although they were FA Cup regulars pre 1920) , cheered my dad on when he played for Norfolk in the inter-departmental matches, got beat at snooker by my dad and his mate (who was registered blind ) and got my mother home in a weeving fashion after the Saturday night socials several times. Ernest Jackson played for A&N before joining United. Talking to my father today he remembers having to go to the stores at Firth Vickers which was where Ernest worked for a time. Ernest liked to deride opponents a bit - so Preston North End became Preston Knob Ends.

I loved the place - the green and amber halved shirts, cricket matches, tennis. The centre was paid for by a 1d per week subscription from the 8000 workforce at Firth Brown (although it was always known as the Atlas and Norfolk S&SC) and the sale to United by Sheffield Forgemasters was disputed (many at the time held that it belonged to the members and not the steelworks owner - the same one who did dodgy stuff with the pension fund).

 

[WhiteHawk]

I once did get a ball courtesy of United as I was walking along Myrtle Road one evening in the early 80's when there was a youth game on. The ball came over the fence and literally landed at my feet.

I lived (and my parents still live) on Erskine Crescent over the back field from the Ball Inn Ground. All housing now.

I once got a ball courtesy of Wednesday. I was about 12 and at the time, the guy who loved a couple of doors down from me worked as a security guard at their training ground. He got me a Mitre Ultimax which was the ball they used in the Premier League at the time and cost about £60-£70 to buy. Took it to Pitz/Power League one Saturday and some bastard nicked it.

 

[Deleted member 875]

Interesting point, Don Revie believed in it he had the training ground at Elland Road across the car park from the main stand.

Yeah, but Don Revie was a cunt

 

[Hamburg Blade]

Wuss! Try rugby at Castle Dyke in the bleak midwinter.

I played rugby up at Castle Dyke (in bleak midwinters - was it ever summer up there?)
It's probably why I no longer feel the cold. Send the players up there to train, they'll love the Lane after that.