Only slightly interesting question

[1973Blade]

Looking at an old programme from the 1996/97 season, why did we play four consecutive away matches in October and November (Norwich City, Grimsby Town, West Brom and Port Vale)? I can't recall why this was the case.

 

[JOEYDEE]

Looking at an old programme from the 1996/97 season, why did we play four consecutive away matches in October and November (Norwich City, Grimsby Town, West Brom and Port Vale)? I can't recall why this was the case.
View attachment 66735

Me neither..sorry..

 

[HD8 Blades]

Hadn't realised how poor crowds were. Not just us but everyone. WBA, Stoke, Norwich attracting 12/13/14k at home. I was at that Stoke away game. Last season at their old ground I think and remember "Delilah" being really loud and the ground being quite intimidating.

 

[William]

Would it be something to do with John Street Stand. Pretty sure it was around this time it was being built/demolished because I kept asking my Dad why there was fuck all on that side of the ground (or words to that effect) when I was a wee nipper and I’d just started going to the match.

 

[blade67]

Looking at an old programme from the 1996/97 season, why did we play four consecutive away matches in October and November (Norwich City, Grimsby Town, West Brom and Port Vale)? I can't recall why this was the case.
View attachment 66735

this wasn't when the pitch was waterlogged down near the South stand Bramall Lane end was it?

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

Saturday November 9th is missing.....if I've got my calcs correct.
Postponed Saturday home fixture maybe ?

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

Looks like we had the odd Friday and Sunday fixtures randomly thrown in....ITV digital era pre it's collapse..... ??

 

[bromtom]

I'm going John Street related. Completed in 96 wasn't it?

Safety certification?

 

[Cerberus Blade]

Rearranged matches. All within a 16 day period. Probably weather or fixture clash related.

 

[BigBed]

Fucking SKY!

 

[DifferentClass]

Wasn't the Citeh at home when they started singing "we hate Saturdays" to our "we hate Wednesday" song because they were fucking shit at the time?

 

[N20 Blade]

Hadn't realised how poor crowds were. Not just us but everyone. WBA, Stoke, Norwich attracting 12/13/14k at home. I was at that Stoke away game. Last season at their old ground I think and remember "Delilah" being really loud and the ground being quite intimidating.

True but also there was a lot of ‘artistic license’ with crowds back then. I remember the final game v Swansea in the promotion season under Bassett and it was 15k!!! No way there were 15k on the kop that day!

 

[Captain]

Hadn't realised how poor crowds were. Not just us but everyone. WBA, Stoke, Norwich attracting 12/13/14k at home. I was at that Stoke away game. Last season at their old ground I think and remember "Delilah" being really loud and the ground being quite intimidating.

4-0 up within 20 mins remember Michael Vonk scoring and David White!

 

[Russ]

Probably a postponed home game as mentioned. If you checked fixtures from an earlier programme it might shed some light on it.

 

[Harry's Game]

Alomost certainly rearranged fixtures.

They only used to cancel championship matches on International weekends if one of the sides had three players called up, might have been a couple of cancellations if us or our opponents (probably the latter in those days) had three missing.

 

[Trigger Blade]

4-0 up within 20 mins remember Michael Vonk scoring and David White!

I remember that game, Carl Muggleton was in goal for them and got an ironic cheer when he caught a cross after they were 4-0 down. He’d been on loan with us and never actually played in goal, his one and only appearance was (I think), away at Reading and he came on as a striker in the last minute when we had no other subs to use.

On the following Monday, I had to do a management presentation at our factory in Stoke, with a fifteen minute time limit. I started by saying that fifteen minutes wasn’t long, unless you were Stoke City, in which case it was just long enough to concede four. Oh how they laughed

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

I remember that game, Carl Muggleton was in goal for them and got an ironic cheer when he caught a cross after they were 4-0 down. He’d been on loan with us and never actually played in goal, his one and only appearance was (I think), away at Reading and he came on as a striker in the last minute when we had no other subs to use.

On the following Monday, I had to do a management presentation at our factory in Stoke, with a fifteen minute time limit. I started by saying that fifteen minutes wasn’t long, unless you were Stoke City, in which case it was just long enough to concede four. Oh how they laughed

More than just an ironic cheer I seem to remember . Blades fans started chanting " Na Na Na Na , he's a Blade and .... etc .

Me and a mate were sitting in their stand and joined in . It didn't go down too well .........

 

[North East Blade]

20k against city great effort

 

[Paisley Blade]

Wasn't the Citeh at home when they started singing "we hate Saturdays" to our "we hate Wednesday" song because they were fucking shit at the time?

That's right , they were also singing ' What the fuck is going on ?' as we were swarming all over them.

It was also the day that Frankie Dettori rode his 7 winners at Ascot.

 

[Revolution]

Looking at an old programme from the 1996/97 season, why did we play four consecutive away matches in October and November (Norwich City, Grimsby Town, West Brom and Port Vale)? I can't recall why this was the case.
View attachment 66735

1. We were originally going to play Swindon at home on 9 November. It was an international weekend so I assume it was postponed.

2. The WBA game was originally scheduled for 30 August 1996 (a Friday).Again, that was an international weekend so it was postponed.

Mystery solved.

 

[Kozzy_is_my_Dad]

Global warming.

 

[Inter_blade83]

Global warming.

Nah, Greta wasn't around then.