A couple of cracking Blades videos..

[GrayBlade]

For the more mature Blade

 

[BigBed]

"Sheffield United finish their first season back in tenth place"....

De ja vu coming into play there....

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

I think GrayBlade you may have our very own WalthamstowBlade to thank for those videos.

 

[GrayBlade]

I think GrayBlade you may have our very own WalthamstowBlade to thank for those videos.

If it’s him I indeed thank him. They appeared on my YouTube feed yesterday, a really good job.

 

[Broomhall Blade]

Great video's mate enjoyed watching them.
Good to see a few old grounds like the Baseball ground, Filbert street and Ayresome Park.

Was John Hope really that bad or did they just happen to pick his bad days, he was a bit before my time?

Also i think we need more scarf waving at matches now.
And more arms in the air goal celebrations with the odd jump put in.

 

[Silent Blade]

Great video's mate enjoyed watching them.
Good to see a few old grounds like the Baseball ground, Filbert street and Ayresome Park.

Was John Hope really that bad or did they just happen to pick his bad days, he was a bit before my time?

Also i think we need more scarf waving at matches now.
And more arms in the air goal celebrations with the odd jump put in.

Hodgy had lost form and was seen as our weakest link by other teams so Harris decided to buy a big keeper who came for the crosses. Hope was one of our key players to the promotion run in. He set a record of 8 clean sheets in successive game. Carried on playing well (apart from the bad night at West Ham) and was picked twice for the England u23 squad. Lost confidence and form when we lost 5-0 at home to Arsenal and wasnt the same again before being replaced by McAlister

 

[GrayBlade]

Hodgy had lost form and was seen as our weakest link by other teams so Harris decided to buy a big keeper who came for the crosses. Hope was one of our key players to the promotion run in. He set a record of 8 clean sheets in successive game. Carried on playing well (apart from the bad night at West Ham) and was picked twice for the England u23 squad. Lost confidence and form when we lost 5-0 at home to Arsenal and wasnt the same again before being replaced by McAlister

He always had a lucky Gonk mascot in the back of his goal but I think he binned it when his form started to dip.

 

[Cerberus Blade]

John Hope was a sensation when he arrived. I don’t remember Hodgy being bad but I do remember Blades fans saying he was “too small”.

Hope was everything Hodgy wasn’t. Tall. Young. Trendy. And he had incredibly sharp reflexes. Point blank saves were food and drink to him. He got himself into the England B team on his heroic performances. He appeared in “Shoot” magazine and I had that picture on my bedroom wall.

But... (and it’s a big but)...he was a bag of nerves. The match that sealed his fate was a 0-5 defeat at home to Arsenal. He went down, open legged, and let a soft shot go through his legs into the goal. He flapped at crosses At one point in that game he was seen praying skywards to God for help! These aren’t good signs in a goalkeeper!

He was so bad that no club wanted to take him on. (Although I seem to recall Port Vale tried but rejected him later?)

He was possibly the worst United keeper of all time, by my reckoning. With all due respect to the lad, I genuinely felt sorry, not angry, at his plight.

Confidence is a huge factor for any player. But for a goalkeeper it is critical.

We weren’t so aware then, but I think the lad had some serious confidence issues which saw his career collapse. Poor lad. RIP.

 

[Silent Blade]

J

He was so bad that no club wanted to take him on. (Although I seem to recall Port Vale tried but rejected him later?)

He was dropped after the 4-0 home defeat to Derby then got badly injured in a reserves match a week later. Needed a knee op that took him a long time to recover. Came back to the 1st team in January 1974 as Furphy wasnt happy with Connaughton's performances. Played 8 1st team games before Furphy signed Jim Brown

 

[blade.i.am]

70-71, my first season at the Lane. Really weird watching games you were at over 40 years after the event. Most memorable for me was 3-3 against Man City. Dad was a City fan so he got tickets to sit in the John Street. The only time I ever sat in the old stand and the only time mum went to a game. Remember being a marry 12 year old at 2-0 down. Many thanks for bringing back some great memories.

 

[Lawrence]

We all know about United momentum under CW. We started the 71-72 season with the same team that got us promotion and what a start we had, I remember I was 17 and on holiday (with my first real girlfriend and her family) at the Beachcomber caravan park Cleethorpes, whist on holiday we won the first 4 games, it was ‘HaPpy DaYs’ the Sun was mad hot, United were top of the league and T Rex, GET IT ON played none stop on the juke box, Oh and I was so much in love with my new girlfriend

United stayed top of the league until October when we lost away at Manure 2-0, I was one of the 20,000 locked out, with 15 minutes to go they opened the gates and I rushed in and got to the top of the stairwell just in time to see George Best score with that maizey run! (The goal that the BBC show every time they make reference to Georgie Best!) Great goal or was it bad defending?

 

[Bladesthorpe]

John Hope was a sensation when he arrived. I don’t remember Hodgy being bad but I do remember Blades fans saying he was “too small”.

Hope was everything Hodgy wasn’t. Tall. Young. Trendy. And he had incredibly sharp reflexes. Point blank saves were food and drink to him. He got himself into the England B team on his heroic performances. He appeared in “Shoot” magazine and I had that picture on my bedroom wall.

But... (and it’s a big but)...he was a bag of nerves. The match that sealed his fate was a 0-5 defeat at home to Arsenal. He went down, open legged, and let a soft shot go through his legs into the goal. He flapped at crosses At one point in that game he was seen praying skywards to God for help! These aren’t good signs in a goalkeeper!

He was so bad that no club wanted to take him on. (Although I seem to recall Port Vale tried but rejected him later?)

He was possibly the worst United keeper of all time, by my reckoning. With all due respect to the lad, I genuinely felt sorry, not angry, at his plight.

Confidence is a huge factor for any player. But for a goalkeeper it is critical.

We weren’t so aware then, but I think the lad had some serious confidence issues which saw his career collapse. Poor lad. RIP.

You never had the pleasure of seeing Baxter, Richardson, Simmo, Nicky Johns, Benstead plus many others who were much worse than Hope.

 

[coaxingstar71]

We all know about United momentum under CW. We started the 71-72 season with the same team that got us promotion and what a start we had, I remember I was 17 and on holiday (with my first real girlfriend and her family) at the Beachcomber caravan park Cleethorpes, whist on holiday we won the first 4 games, it was ‘HaPpy DaYs’ the Sun was mad hot, United were top of the league and T Rex, GET IT ON played none stop on the juke box, Oh and I was so much in love with my new girlfriend

United stayed top of the league until October when we lost away at Manure 2-0, I was one of the 20,000 locked out, with 15 minutes to go they opened the gates and I rushed in and got to the top of the stairwell just in time to see George Best score with that maizey run! (The goal that the BBC show every time they make reference to Georgie Best!) Great goal or was it bad defending?

Ted Hemsley reckons Best would never have had scored that goal if Hemsley hadn't got injured and had to go off. He'd been marking him prior to going off.

 

[Freddie]

He was dropped after the 4-0 home defeat to Derby then got badly injured in a reserves match a week later. Needed a knee op that took him a long time to recover. Came back to the 1st team in January 1974 as Furphy wasnt happy with Connaughton's performances. Played 8 1st team games before Furphy signed Jim Brown

 

[bladesrus]

Ted Hemsley was spot on. He'd had Best in his pocket till he got injured and had to go off, being replaced by Gil Reece.
If he'd still been on, he'd never have let Best come inside and get a shot off.