My Earliest memorys of SUFC.....

[Kev Gee]

My earliest memorys of sufc are when was a young irish kid who landed in England in Stepney Buildings Sheffield in 1982.


My Mum was English COE and my dad an Irish Catholic of COE and Catholic mix. Apparently back in the days this wasnt a problem...........

anyway we had been forced to move back to England because of the conditions NI...and they were bad trust me!!!

my earliest memory is being hanging around outside teh KOP end & getting let in over the various brick walls around the time.... i dont even know who we were playing and my brothers turned into pigs cos they a better team....

anyway...what are your earliest mems.....

 

[United Aren't Back.]

My earliest memorys of sufc are when was a young irish kid who landed in England in Stepney Buildings Sheffield in 1982.


My Mum was English COE and my dad an Irish Catholic of COE and Catholic mix. Apparently back in the days this wasnt a problem...........

anyway we had been forced to move back to England because of the conditions NI...and they were bad trust me!!!

my earliest memory is being hanging around outside teh KOP end & getting let in over the various brick walls around the time.... i dont even know who we were playing and my brothers turned into pigs cos they a better team....

anyway...what are your earliest mems.....

Irish Catholic dad, English COE mom, lived Stepney buildings 1978 to 80.
Lived Heeley when attending my first match, Aug 30 1974, United 3 Ipswich town 1, first division. Tony Field 2 goals.

 

[Tyler Durden]

This shirt and this man.

 

[Woodwardfan]

Jimmy Hagan sent off in home game at Bramall Lane. Year not known.

 

[Russ]

1st game Charlton home 1981 won 3-2. 2nd game Walsall home 0-1 grown men crying. Salad for tea. Never enjoyed salad since.

Following season every game in the junior blades pen at the back. My uncle on the kop behind me, reassuringly tapping me on the shoulder from time to time. We never lost.

 

[GreasyChipBeattie]

Early 1970's stood at the corner of Bramall Lane and John Street with my dad. The heady combination of Bovril and sweet smelling pipe tobacco, thinking that we had as much chance as anybody else of winning the league and cup every season and not being disappointed when we didn't.
Feeling the joy of hammering Ipswich (7-0 I think) and the despair of being dumped out of the FA cup by lower league teams (back then we were the giants to be killed, not the giant killers ourselves)
No matter what the previous result, always looking forward to the next game thinking we would go on some miraculous undefeated run to either win the title or escape relegation until it was mathematically impossible. Oh, the naivety of youth!

 

[1973Blade]

For my second home game (Oxford in 1980), I was stood with my head pressed against the fence in the Kop. A Bobby Hatton shot missed my face by about an inch! I remember I used to stand by an old guy who shouted racist abuse at any black player all through the game. We used to shout things back at him!

 

[Tyler Durden]

Irish Catholic dad, English COE mom, lived Stepney buildings 1978 to 80.
Lived Heeley when attending my first match, Aug 30 1974, United 3 Ipswich town 1, first division. Tony Field 2 goals.

Theres a video of one of Tony Fields goals against Ipswich on Youtube. It's on one of those best United goals compilations.
That one is absolutely incredible.

 

[brownie4583]

1st game in 1975 Blades 2 Stoke 0,Peter Shilton in goal in all white.
I was behind the goal on the kop.

 

[maidmarion]

First game against Leeds sometime in 70s. Stood on Kop with my dad, grandad and uncle. Oh and a couple of Leeds fans( think there were more than a couple actually) who went mental when they scored, which they did twice. Can remember youngsters being passed over heads to front of Kop as it was rammed.
First away match, against Nottingham Forest.....we lost 6-1.... That sums up me following Utd really.

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

Theres a video of one of Tony Fields goals against Ipswich on Youtube. It's on one of those best United goals compilations.
That one is absolutely incredible.

Gracie is forever remembered for that one flash of genius, rather than the numerous times he trod on the ball, or ballooned it into the kop, or missed it altogether.

 

[maidmarion]

Oooh no...thinking about it my first memory of Bramall Lane was going down to the reserves with my grandad when I was a nipper. Mum gave me some money to spend in that little club shop that was on the corner of the terraced housing on John Street......but Grandad forgot.....must have lost the match... Of which I can remember nothing!

 

[sitwell]

My Grandad took me on Bramall Lane upper tier with a friend October Carlisle 1970. As a an 8 year old I remember the excitement ,being ready at 10'oclock and watching out of the window for 4 hours to get picked up. I remember parking near my old nursery on Denby Street and then climbing up the stairs in the stand. The steepness of the stand going down to the pitch was breathtaking as a kid and a bit scary. I remember my Grandad having about 10 layers of vest ,shirt , tie,cardy ,jumper ,coat and flat cap on even though it wasn't really cold ,he looked like a Lowry figure and he had a dewdrop hanging off the end of his nose but it didn't bother me. Typically we drew 2-2 but I was hooked from that moment. My Grandad died a few months later ,the most important person in my life ,he would still be going now if he could ,he loved Gil Reece and told me that's how he used to play.
Ive lost my programme collection but would pay good money for a programme of that game and the following one.

 

[Tyler Durden]

Gracie is forever remembered for that one flash of genius, rather than the numerous times he trod on the ball, or ballooned it into the kop, or missed it altogether.

I nearly asked why he never became a fan favourite but your comment cleared it up. Was it a Nade v Arsenal sort of moment then?

 

[Karaoke Blade]

My earliest memory of BDTBL is attending a reserve match with my Dad and one of his mates. I must only have been about 4 yo , the opposition wore white shirts and my only recollection is thinking that Jimmy Greaves was playing. (Strange that, because the opposition were in fact Preston!).

My next visit to the Lane was as a 7 year old, with my brother in 1967 when we saw Mick Jones scoring the winner against Man City in a 1-0 victory. I recall that at the time I'd never seen as many people in one place. (Looking at the record books it's bizarre that the attendance was just under 17000). We stood on the ledge on the top right (looking towards pitch). There was a lot of fighting on the kop that day, which was reported widely in the Sunday papers. This meant that my Mum would'nt let me go any more matches for quite a while.

My Dad was reluctant to take me again and this left the door open for my Uncle, a Wendy fan, to take advantage of an impressionable football mad kid and he took me to the Sty, where we stood on the Leppings Lane end, the home side beating Wolves. I have to admit I enjoyed the experience.

Anyway, my Dad was having none of this, so in March 1970 he took me to see the Blades play Carlisle on a freezing Friday night, where we sat on the BLUT. By this time we had slipped into Division 2, but the attandance was a healthier 22,000. My first taste of Bovril and an incredible view looking down from my lofty perch where I witnessed a 1-0 victory, Woody scoring the winner.

From that night on I was hooked. The rest is history.

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

I nearly asked why he never became a fan favourite but your comment cleared it up. Was it a Nade v Arsenal sort of moment then?

Almost, he scored about a dozen goals for us, but is always remembered for the mazy dribble goal against Ipswich. It was that critical point in the clubs history where real investment in 3 or 4 quality players would have established us as a top 4 club. Unfortunately the board opted for triers, grafters and potential from the lower leagues, so we ended up with players like Field, Bradford, Garbutt, Guthrie etc. and within a few short seasons we were where we are now!

 

[Grappler]

My Grandad took me on Bramall Lane upper tier with a friend October Carlisle 1970. As a an 8 year old I remember the excitement ,being ready at 10'oclock and watching out of the window for 4 hours to get picked up. I remember parking near my old nursery on Denby Street and then climbing up the stairs in the stand. The steepness of the stand going down to the pitch was breathtaking as a kid and a bit scary. I remember my Grandad having about 10 layers of vest ,shirt , tie,cardy ,jumper ,coat and flat cap on even though it wasn't really cold ,he looked like a Lowry figure and he had a dewdrop hanging off the end of his nose but it didn't bother me. Typically we drew 2-2 but I was hooked from that moment. My Grandad died a few months later ,the most important person in my life ,he would still be going now if he could ,he loved Gil Reece and told me that's how he used to play.
Ive lost my programme collection but would pay good money for a programme of that game and the following one.

Pretty much the same as me pal, mine was perhaps late 1968 or more probably 1969, but it was my Grandad who took me and first one was a reserves game to see if I liked football and crowded places, which I did.

Whenever I hear that certain clapping sound followed by "The Blades!", I think of being a little lad and the crowd singing

M-I
M-I-C
M-I-C-K
MICK JONES!

 

[Grappler]

My earliest memory of BDTBL is attending a reserve match with my Dad and one of his mates. I must only have been about 4 yo , the opposition wore white shirts and my only recollection is thinking that Jimmy Greaves was playing. (Strange that, because the opposition were in fact Preston!).

My next visit to the Lane was as a 7 year old, with my brother in 1967 when we saw Mick Jones scoring the winner against Man City in a 1-0 victory. I recall that at the time I'd never seen as many people in one place. (Looking at the record books it's bizarre that the attendance was just under 17000). We stood on the ledge on the top right (looking towards pitch). There was a lot of fighting on the kop that day, which was reported widely in the Sunday papers. This meant that my Mum would'nt let me go any more matches for quite a while.

My Dad was reluctant to take me again and this left the door open for my Uncle, a Wendy fan, to take advantage of an impressionable football mad kid and he took me to the Sty, where we stood on the Leppings Lane end, the home side beating Wolves. I have to admit I enjoyed the experience.

Anyway, my Dad was having none of this, so in March 1970 he took me to see the Blades play Carlisle on a freezing Friday night, where we sat on the BLUT. By this time we had slipped into Division 2, but the attandance was a healthier 22,000. My first taste of Bovril and an incredible view looking down from my lofty perch where I witnessed a 1-0 victory, Woody scoring the winner.

From that night on I was hooked. The rest is history.

Similar era to mine, and as I have said before, Mick Speight and his glorious flluroescent striped boots are forever burned into my memory, getting a pair like that for Christmas (Puma I think?) around 1970 was a fantastic present, walking round the house in them on Christmas morning.

 

[Silent Blade]

1st game in 1975 Blades 2 Stoke 0,Peter Shilton in goal in all white.
I was behind the goal on the kop.

Shilton stopped wearing the white goalkeeping jersey after Leicester lost to Liverpool in the 1974 FA Cup semi final replay. I am sure he wore a blue goal keeping shirt for Stoke against us in April 1975

 

[Silent Blade]

Jimmy Hagan sent off in home game at Bramall Lane. Year not known.

v Swansea in December 20th 1952. We were winning by 7-1, a mate who is a Wendy fan remembers the sending off. He said he thinks Hagan got sent off for arguing with the ref but the crowd were furious and threw fruit at the ref! My dad remembered that too

 

[Silent Blade]

First game against Leeds sometime in 70s. Stood on Kop with my dad, grandad and uncle. Oh and a couple of Leeds fans( think there were more than a couple actually) who went mental when they scored, which they did twice. Can remember youngsters being passed over heads to front of Kop as it was rammed.
First away match, against Nottingham Forest.....we lost 6-1.... That sums up me following Utd really.

we lost 2-0 at home to L**ds in August 1972 also in April 1974 (they were getting closer to clinching the league title and many L**ds fans were in all parts of the ground)

 

[Silent Blade]

Anyway, my Dad was having none of this, so in March 1970 he took me to see the Blades play Carlisle on a freezing Friday night, where we sat on the BLUT. By this time we had slipped into Division 2, but the attandance was a healthier 22,000. My first taste of Bovril and an incredible view looking down from my lofty perch where I witnessed a 1-0 victory, Woody scoring the winner.

I started being a Lane regular from the 2-0 win against Preston and the Carlisle match on the Friday night (L**ds v Man U semi final at S6 in the next day) was the first home match I missed because I was in bed with flu. Here is what the papers wrote about Woody's goal

GOAL - v Carlisle (h) 13.3.70. Garbutt brought down Addison just outside the penalty area, Barlow played his free kick a few inches to the right and Woodward walloped an unstoppable shot. Ross did not see the ball until he picked it out of the net.

 

[Silent Blade]

Ive lost my programme collection but would pay good money for a programme of that game and the following one.

The next home game was v QPR and Sharrowblade might have spare ones

 

[SheepdipBlade]

My Grandad took me on Bramall Lane upper tier with a friend October Carlisle 1970. As a an 8 year old I remember the excitement ,being ready at 10'oclock and watching out of the window for 4 hours to get picked up. I remember parking near my old nursery on Denby Street and then climbing up the stairs in the stand. The steepness of the stand going down to the pitch was breathtaking as a kid and a bit scary. I remember my Grandad having about 10 layers of vest ,shirt , tie,cardy ,jumper ,coat and flat cap on even though it wasn't really cold ,he looked like a Lowry figure and he had a dewdrop hanging off the end of his nose but it didn't bother me. Typically we drew 2-2 but I was hooked from that moment. My Grandad died a few months later ,the most important person in my life ,he would still be going now if he could ,he loved Gil Reece and told me that's how he used to play.
Ive lost my programme collection but would pay good money for a programme of that game and the following one.

I think we may have had this conversation before cos this was my first game too. 2-2 draw with them playing in sky blue with a white and orange (red?) hoop if its the same match.

 

[SUFC Handsworth]

Not quite sure why we're opening with family genealogy but here goes, mum COE, dad COE of Northern Irish Proddy stock.

As my dad's dad was from Northern Ireland and had no interest in football, it was down to his uncle Bert to take him to the Lane in the 50s, Jimmy Hagan and all that. My Dad took me to the Lane for the first time in 1975, United v Leicester, 4-0 Blades, Currie and Birchenall and that kiss.

What I do regret is not asking Great Uncle Bert loads of questions about his early days watching the Blades, he'd remember the 1915 Cup final no doubt and for all I know he went in 1925 and 1936. Did ask my Dad who he thought was best Hagan or Currie, he always said there was nothing in it, although maybe more on the side of Currie.

 

[Cyprus Blade]

Did ask my Dad who he thought was best Hagan or Currie, he always said there was nothing in it, although maybe more on the side of Currie.

I guess beauty is always in the eye of the beholder - I asked mine the same question and, though my dad did rate Currie, I got told in no uncertain terms that Currie was only good enough to tie Hagan's bootlaces. I never saw Hagan play - just missed out, but my father had a good eye for a player and would have to respect his assessment even though I didn't like it at the time.

 

[Silent Blade]

I think we may have had this conversation before cos this was my first game too. 2-2 draw with them playing in sky blue with a white and orange (red?) hoop if its the same match.

That was Carlisle's kit in 1970-71

 

[United Aren't Back.]

Theres a video of one of Tony Fields goals against Ipswich on Youtube. It's on one of those best United goals compilations.
That one is absolutely incredible.

That was my first ever match.

 

[sitwell]

I think we may have had this conversation before cos this was my first game too. 2-2 draw with them playing in sky blue with a white and orange (red?) hoop if its the same match.

I thought they played in dark blue ,but I may be wrong ,I also think Balderstone (the cricketer) scored 2 for them and Hemsley got one of ours but again ,I stand to be corrected.
My first away math was at Leicester on Easter Saturday followed by the grunters away on easter Monday ,both 0-0 ,as was the following game I think but I still loved it. I was always fascinated as to why John Sjoberg of Leicester had a j in his name.

 

[Silent Blade]

I thought they played in dark blue ,but I may be wrong ,I also think Balderstone (the cricketer) scored 2 for them and Hemsley got one of ours but again ,I stand to be corrected.
My first away math was at Leicester on Easter Saturday followed by the grunters away on easter Monday ,both 0-0 ,as was the following game I think but I still loved it. I was always fascinated as to why John Sjoberg of Leicester had a j in his name.

Dearden and Tudor put us up a two goal lead at half time. Late goals from Chris Balderstone and Stan Ternent levelled the game