United 2 Wednesday 1 - report/ratings

[Deadbat]

Sorry for the late report – cold drinks were taken on full time and I was too tired and drunk to write anything coherent until today! Apologies it is over 24 hours late and most have seen the game anyway but wanted to give my thoughts….



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The Blades completed a derby ‘double double’ as they beat their city rivals for the second time this year and made it four wins on the spin against the Owls. In doing so, they also confirmed that Wednesday would be relegated to League One. Whilst it was always clear that the Owls were heading for the trap door, the fact that United were the side to officially relegate them, made it even sweeter for those in S2. The game itself threatened to be a very one-sided contest as early goals from Patrick Bamford and Harrison Burrows saw United storm into a two-goal lead. However, any thoughts of further goals and a lopsided scoreline, went out of the window after an early red card for Kalvin Phillips in the second half. Charlie McNeil quickly reduced the arrears but United made changes and were able to wrestle back control after a period where Wednesday sensed an unlikely result. In the end, Gabriel Otegbayo also was given his marching orders and despite United missing chances towards full time, they won the game and the bragging rights of the city yet again. It is now 8 games and 14 years since Wednesday beat United in a competitive fixture.



Wilder made two changes with Peck and O’Hare back in from the start for Soumare and Cannon. Wednesday gave a debut to their seventh different keeper of the season with Boro stopper, Seny Dieng starting between the posts. The atmosphere was bristling as both teams entered the field with fireworks launched pitch side. The visitors knew they had to win the game to take it to another week, in terms of officially not being relegated and turned the home side around who kicked towards the Kop in the first half.



It was the worst possible start for Wednesday though as United took the lead after only 90 seconds. It was a poor clearance from Ndala who inexplicably played it centrally straight to Gus Hamer. The midfielder threaded a clever pass into the path of BAMFORD, and he steadied himself and finished clinically to send most of Bramall Lane into delirium.



United were dominating the ball although Wednesday did win an early corner and looked to use Ingelsson to launch long throws in at every opportunity. O’Hare was looking to get on the ball, and he drove into the box, but his shot hit the outside of the post. From a Blades corner, the ball dropped and Tanganga sliced his finish over – when he was well placed right in front of goal. United were completely dominant at this stage and Wednesday were content to sit behind the ball and try and prevent more chances.



The Blades were moving the ball about slickly with Brooks and Seriki linking well and Burrows looking to get forward at every opportunity. Heskey was booked for a poor foul on Brooks after the winger used his quick feet to dribble forward.



The second goal duly arrived on 19 minutes, after Peck had played in BURROWS and he came onto it and hit a left foot shot with the outside of his boot that surprised Dieng at the near post and United were in dream land.



Ingelsson was then booked for a late tackle on O’Hare as Wednesday threatened to lose their cool. United were now content to move the ball around and find gaps as they continued to almost toy with their rivals. Wednesday did win another corner, but this was cleared with no real opportunities created apart from a wild shot from McNeill into the Bramall Lane end. The final stages of the half saw United move the ball around without creating any further chances, but it had been a rather comfortable half for the red and white side of Sheffield.



The second half began in disastrous fashion for the Blades who went from being in complete control to into a real contest. First, a tackle from Kalvin Phillips saw him catch Ingelsson high in his follow up and Josh Smith deemed it to be reckless and sent the Blades man off. To compound this moment, Wednesday were able to half the deficit after a ball came over from the left and it dropped to MCNEIL who came inside and hit a low precise finish past Cooper and sent the Wednesday fans wild as they could finally celebrate an away goal!



The game now had completely turned, and Wednesday had a good spell as United could not get out and were starting to lose their shape and control. A few balls came across the box and Wednesday won another corner but could not test Cooper despite their renewed vigour and pressure – in a game they had not been in for 45 minutes.



Arblaster came on for Hamer, and it was not long after Bamford and Brooks came off for Hoever and Campbell – with still half an hour to play. These changes gave United some control back and they shored up the left-hand side with Hoever making some telling contributions. United were now able to start winning loose balls again and now the game was much more even –despite the Blades only having 10 men. There were opportunities for United to break and get in on goal, but they made the wrong choices whilst Cooper caught a ball into the box as Wednesday continued to rely on set plays and the long throws. Cooper and McNeil were both booked for cynical fouls as Wednesday shared the bookings around and remained with a man advantage.



Cooper had to go off for the Owls replaced by Ugbo as the game entered the final 10 minutes whilst Soumare and Hjedle came on for O’Hare and Seriki. Soumare won two crunching tackles and had a chance to score but his shot was blocked with men over. Campbell then was in on goal, but his low shot lacked power and was saved by Dieng. United now had men over and Peck should have finished when played in by Arblaster. Otegbayo was given his second yellow card when he hauled Campbell back as the game entered 7 minutes of stoppage time. This evened things up – albeit for only the brief time left in the game. United had more chances to break and score and more good work from Soumare helped United see out a fair chunk of stoppage time. Campbell won a corner off Palmer before the final whistle came and United’s fans and players could celebrate. Ingelsson did not like that Peck chose to celebrate with the Bramall Lane upper tier and led to some disagreements between both sets of players but quickly dissipated. Wednesday’s fate was sealed whilst United’s slim playoff hopes remain alive for now.







United – I just wanted to win and to send them down. It felt a monumental moment to do that – no matter what their fans said about it not being important or they were not bothered. It clearly was significant and as the results went out way on Saturday – I was delighted we had the chance to do that. I would have loved to smash them but win the game – do the double – send them on their way and I would have been happy. In the end it became an odd sort of afternoon but we got what we wanted. They can crow about how close it was but it matters little– they still lost to us. Again.



All the talk about hammerings and what cricket score we might get (from both sides) annoyed me as derbies are rarely like that. They have not been hammered lots in games this season either and we have shown issues to do daft things (some awful performances or red cards – mixed in with some largely much improved stuff) since December time. However, we started the game superbly and got the early goal – then got another. It felt like it might happen – a big score. We swarmed all over them, they had no answer and we created chances. We could have had a few more. Oddly about 25-30 minutes, we took the foot off the gas in terms of how we played and started to go more sideways and backwards and a bit Harlem Globetrotters – rather than just playing forward passes and continuing to expose their weaknesses – of which they are many! We kind of settled a bit and whilst it was professional thought we went from being clinical and showing no mercy to a bit arrogant? Might be harsh but how I felt. However, I did think we would wear them down and score 2 or 3 more goals as they tired. Thought that they might get one or two sent off as had committed some poor tackles and lost their head. We just needed to keep our calm and the chances and gaps would come for more goals.



The tackle from Phillips was unnecessary (I can see why it was a red – as did Wilder) and make the game totally different. We did the one thing that would give them hope. Just no need for it. They then score immediately and we lost our heads for a period after this. The changes he made helped calm it down and in the end we sort of did what we had to. Of course, it would have been satisfying to pump them 4 or 5 but in the end, circumstances changed the game and I was just pleased (and a bit relieved) to win. They may take this as some sort of moral victory but shows how they have fallen. Any derby win is a great win.



It was a strange game to dissect and very much a game of two halves but overall, we still created nearly all the chances (cannot recall another clear chance outside of their goal) and deserved to win. With more composure and better decisions first half and near the end, we win by a few more regardless of the red card. It kind of showed the best and worst of United – albeit versus a dreadful opponent – we showed some swashbuckling football and were able to create lots of chances and score goals. We have some fine attacking talents and at home play offensive football that is good to watch. We also saw the soft underbelly and how we make silly mistakes/decisions and end up then having to put a game away that should have been comfortable. The type of ill-discipline has and will cost us (5 red cards in 7 is ridiculous and most if not all deserved no matter how much some may argue- I think Wednesday could have had one off long before they did too tbf). It is odd though as only one team has as few yellow cards than us (Wednesday!). We were doing really well till after Xmas in terms of improving our discipline but there has been some terrible decisions by experienced players who should know better. We cannot keep making the same daft mistakes – we are playing catch up and have to be almost perfect to make the top 6. I think that is my worry – that we serve up the odd poor performance or make decisions –that mean it will be too hard to make up the gap/teams. It is a shame as weirdly some of the football and how we approach games has been more enjoyable than last season – certainly at home.



The positive are another goal and line leading performance from Bamford. We also saw some of the attacking threats we have to compliment him and can attack teams. We saw some issues in terms of the shape/structure after the red card but Wilder to his credit – changed this. I thought the subs did well and helped us managed the game. Hopefully in terms of game discussion, it will be the last time we talk of any contest v Wednesday for a while (discuss them below) and away from the rivalry and what happened with them going down and how the game played out – we still had to win the game. We had a similar tricky period v Oxford (who have held Coventry and Boro since then) and so winning the game takes us the highest we have been. We have two much harder games to come v Coventry and v QPR. It will be night and day – the attacking threats from Coventry in terms of how they come at us and we are hamstrung a bit in midfield again but we have to try and have the same type of approach as v Ipswich/Boro - with more control of midfield and not make it so basketball-like which will play into the hands of Cov who have some dangerous attackers. I hope we can give them a decent game. A point is not a disaster but then kind of means we need to go and beat QPR and West Brom the following week.

 

[Deadbat]

Ratings:



Cooper 6/10 – Did what he had to mostly – caught a few crosses and he also threw one great ball out for O’Hare. Did he have any other saves apart from the one that went in? I thought he was a bit slow down to this but maybe was a bit unsighted as it came through bodies. I think he might be a touch disappointed but was not as bad as the one Dieng let in.



Seriki 6/10 - Started well with some good interplay with Brooks and won a few tackles to set the tone. He had a few opportunities to cross but hit the first men a few times. Second half we did not see him anywhere near as much and he had to defend. There were some overloads down the right and thought that he and Brooks did not work as hard and there was too much space –the changes helped in this regard.



Burrows 7/10 – Best game for a while. Playing a poor side, he could get forward and find space and scored a well taken goal. First half he played almost as a left winger with Hamer more inside and put in some dangerous crosses. After the break, he like Seriki, offered less of a threat but he was able to at least stop a few attacks. On the goal, could he have got tighter? Possibly but we had other men around it too.



Bindon 7/10 – Solid game. Did what he had to. No frills. Swept up and won headers when he needed and used the ball well. Been quite consistent recently and much improved from the awful start he/the team had. He looks unflustered and composed now and not the player who looked ruffled very easily. Helped when opposition did not have a recognised centre forward though!



Tanganga 6/10 – Not quite as assured as above. He did have that chance he should have taken and when he goes forward for corners he seems to get in good areas but does not always take some decent chances. Defensively a few moments of uncertainty but nothing major in terms of errors – just felt he and others looked a bit panicky for a spell second half.



Peck 7/10 – Thought he quietly had a very good game and was the outstanding central midfielder on display and a contender with Burrows and Bindon for man of the match. Moved it on, got stuck in and was competitive. Set up the second goa. He broke through also a few times and should have scored near the end. He does love beating them and showed again at the end and he led the celebrations – seems to enjoy wounding them up. They said he was winding them up but they had been giving him hammer with the chants towards him so if you give it, you have to take it back.



Phillips 3/10 – Mark may seem harsh but hard to mark any higher. He did ok first half and won the loose balls, moved it on and looked energetic as we swarmed all over them. Involved in some of our attacking moves too. The moment of course he will be remembered for in Sheffield Derbies (doubt he ever plays one again) was after half time. Seen some defending it and saying it was not even a foul let alone a red card but I think that is hard to agree with sadly. He does win the ball but the follow through is late and high. Those saying where is he meant to put his foot – well not there! You could argue any foul that their foot was not meant to go there but if you catch someone and that high with a fair bit of force – then you always run the risk. Ingelsson goes down and might make a meal of it maybe, but he did have a cut I think on his leg too? Even Wilder said it was a red card in his atfer match comments. I was mad at Phillips. No need to do that and gave them a way back into the game. By all means get stuck in but that did look like he left one on his opponent. If it is the other way around, we are screaming for a red card and sadly in 2026 (and has been for some time), even if you get the ball, refs still penalised any follow through/contact that is high or excessive. If it was appealed, we would get nowhere. If it had been a yellow, I think he would have been fortunate and sadly like many of the other reds we have had recently – it comes down to a poor choice and ill-discipline from a senior player – saw same with Rothwell, Bamford and Tanganga too. We cannot keep getting players sent off. He is now out for a fair chunk of games – when he won’t be here long anyway. Hope Riedewald gets back in and Phillips has to fight to get his place back – should be how it is anyway.



O’Hare 5.5/10 - Thought he did some good things and looked lively – the run and shot that hit the post and some other bits of link play. However, he was loose in possession at times and not quite clinical with the killer pass/moment. It came off him too much and we had countless opportunities where we broke and he (and others) did not quite play the right pass or at the right pace. Faded badly after the break and not in the game as it became scrappy. Right decision to play him over Campbell as was involved in the excellent start.



Hamer 6.5/10 – Started the game well and was involved in the first goal with a great pass – this was a big moment and he showed composure and class. A lot of the other good moves and attacks, he seemed to be involved and was picking up the ball and causing issues. Came inside a lot too and meant we had a lot of creative talents dropping on it and linking. He stood out in the first half but then of course he is sacrificed when Phillips goes off. Shame as with 11 v 11, he could have ran riot (as we could) the longer the game went on.



Brooks 6/10 – Started well with some dribbles and runs where he carried it and led to them fouling him or being pushed back. Linked well with Seriki and looked a great outlet with his pace and trickery. Thought he did too much at times and not quite the end product. After the break, he and Seriki did not do what they have been doing defensively and thought they had a threat down there. The change of replacing him with Hoever seemed to be an odd one but credit to Wilder as this gave us a defensive minded player and he did well and shored up this side.



Bamford 6.5/10 – Thought he would score and he did not disappoint. He nearly scored in the reverse fixture – in limited minutes – but yesterday he gets his goal in the 2nd minute. He is a good finisher who is calm in front of goal (has missed a few recent which has surprised me). After this he pulled them about and was causing the young Irish centre back all sorts of issues – he kept grabbing him and fouling him. They had no real answer for his movement and experience at holding it up. He is another that was taken off as we needed a player who could run behind (Campbell did that to be fair).





Subs -



Arblaster 6/10 - I have been critical of him but today he did ok when he came on. Nothing massively that made you sit up and say wow, but he got his foot in, slowed it down and used it well. Took the heat out of things and gave us a body in there to ensure we made it scrappy. He nearly made a goal at the end too. With Phillips being suspended, he may have to be used more than we like again – as we are missing him and Rothwell now (at least he comes back for next Saturday).



Hoever 6.5/10 - Thought he did well when he came on and that is the best I have seen of him. He cut out a few balls, made some interceptions and played it intelligently and stopped the threat down the left-hand side. He did nothing flashy but used the ball well and gave us some energy and tenacity when the game started to become quite loose.



Campbell 6/10 – He missed a good chance and had a few other moments to get in behind and maybe took the wrong choices, but he did help us- giving us an outlet and some pace – which with 10 men we needed (an out ball). A few times I still got frustrated at how leggy he looked but then he did make some sprightly runs too. Should take the late chance but he did contribute to the red card too. He has looked a bit better in recent games coming off the bench so hopefully finding some form again.



Soumare – Not on long enough to rate but he did well and surprised me. I was worried he might do something daft with a silly foul or loose pass but he got stuck in, showed good energy and physicality and made a few interceptions. Drove forward with it a few times although should have done better with a decent chance when he had a man over. Overall, though in a small amount of time, thought he did well and helped us see it out. The critical article in the Star was way over the top in the week – he has been largely not good enough but has shown positive flashes and we saw that again in this game. He has the raw tools if not maybe a football brain to use these yet.



Hjedle – Went to right back I think for the limited time he was on? A few clearances but only limited minutes.





Manager: Wilder 7/10 – I think he deserves credit for the rip-roaring start, the way we took the game to them and then also despite a poor start after the half (thought we looked a bit arrogant just before and after half time) he made changes that saw us wrestle back control. Nobody would have expected Hoever, Soumare etc but they all contributed well from the bench and helped us see the game out. Overall, his record in these games is superb. I get the sense he never wants to lose to them whilst he is manager and is perfect for these games. Hopefully we will not play them for some time now! I was impressed how he kept his calm when the team started to unravel for a period after the half time whistle and his in-game changes/tweaks worked (they do not always work, and he has rightly been criticised for this). Must be frustrated with senior players (he signed them I suppose!) making stupid decisions and making his/our job so much harder!







Wednesday – I knew it would be a struggle, and I, like most, thought they would be bottom. I did not even think they would be this bad. They have a small squad and are relying on emergency loans to fill it out but losses of even some of the ok and/or experienced players like Bannan, Lowe, Cadamarteri, Valery, Charles have hit them hard. Their current squad would be down towards the bottom of league one. I compare then with a Rotherham or Doncaster and don’t see much clear difference. I sense they have sort of given up. They have a poor squad and losing becomes a habit but has the coach has done himself many favours – carried himself well and showed a lot of class – but tactically and in terms of coaching/setting the team up – I think he has shown his inexperience and limitations – that may seem harsh maybe?





Yesterday I thought they would keep it tight and try and stay in the game – as they have done to be fair to the manager and players – a number of games but that went out of the window early as they conceded in the first few minutes and then again. I think many of the fans and even the players would have been fearing the worst, but they stayed in the game as United let them off the hook a bit – maybe thinking they could turn the screw 2nd half. The red card changes it but credit to them – they still had to score and force a change and they did that. For 10 minutes, they put us under pressure but then even with 10 – they sort of run out of steam – we ended up ensuring that we took the steam out of things and in the end they could have conceded more. The result was the right one, but they did not get hammered but it is still not nice to get relegated at the Lane. Whatever the circumstances and whatever the margin – no one will say it did not count or they only lost 2-1! It still must hurt that we keep beating them and clearly are the number one side in the city. They will say they did ok and made a game of it but it was more down to our own stupidity that led to it being close. I think without the red card, it goes onto be 3, 4 or 5 easily as they would have tired. It was the only thing I feared that may keep them in the game.



We may not see them for a while – I do not feel that they do a Birmingham/Cardiff due to the lack of stability and uncertainty. The rumoured owners coming in seem to have a lot of questions and I think it might get thrown out or break down. I would not want Ashley to come in – controversial but will run it as a business and would probably settle it all down. As we saw with us, ownership changes can take a long time, and it must be a worry the amount of money they are losing/paying the administrators too. The playing squad is poor and thin and without money to properly invest – they will rely on veterans/loans to ensure they can have a better go at it. They may even get more points deductions – if the takeover fails. Unless they get another deduction, they may escape being right down at the bottom but mid table could be a more realistic and best cased scenario for them for next season. Be interesting how many renew season tickets as the crowds have dropped considerably. It is still a very uncertain future. They will hope they have new owners (and probably a new manager) in place by the summer but even that will not mean things are all rosy. They have so many issues with the money they owe, the stadium, the training ground, poor academy and it will take a lot of work to turn it around.



Opponent Man of the Match – Not many stood out as outstanding and they looked a poor side but McNeil took his goal well and was lively. The lad Ingelsson took a lot of long throws and this was a threat – but he was dirty too. I thought that the keeper made some decent saves too but could have done better with the second. Cooper toiled a fair bit at the back and at least headed a few out/back to the keeper but struggled to last the pace and went off after he committed a poor challenge and sort of injured himself.



Opponent Weak link – Several struggled with the pace and intensity of the game early on and the lad Ndala made an error and seemed a bit rabbit in headlights. I thought the centre back who got sent off was dreadful and struggled in all aspects of defending - aerial, pace, movement and Bamford and Campbell caused him all sort of problems.





Referee / Officials – Lewis Smith. Young ref who has done well in games I have seen. I think even in our games when we have lost – he has impressed me overall. This game was not easy – being a derby and some poor challenges coming in (mainly from them). Sadly, they sort of shared them around – although Ingellson could have waked – several fouls after a bad one and ditto for the centre back. I have discussed the Phillips one above and sadly not sure there is much complaint we can have. He kind of made his decision for him – VAR are not overturning if there were VAR and any appeal would be frivolous. He sort of lost control a bit at the end but then so did a few of the players. There were some meaty challenges and some late ones from Wednesday and could have had a few more booked but they will argue Hamer’s retaliation was not great – ref took too long to give this and he turned and made contact with the player that fouled him – was a bit daft and could easily have been a red card too (videos show this clearly and another example of us losing our cool even if they were filthy). However, Wednesday were extremely cynical and dirty throughout so not a surprise they ended up losing a man too. I thought the game became quite tetchy and Smith did not quite have the control he has had of other games but then players have to take responsibility. A few times he played on and could have stopped it for fouls and then equally did not play on when we had advantages.



Crowd/Day Out - Good atmosphere with the whole relegation thing added in making it feisty. There was a fair bit of noise both ways and then it ramps up when we score early. It kind of then took the life out of it a bit when we went 2-0 as all felt too easy but then they come back and the noise goes up from their end and is a bit back and forth – a proper derby day atmosphere after this. When it is nearly done, then the United fans of course give the stick about the relegation. There was the inevitable mocking from Blades fans with Chansiri masks, chants and a Thailand flag. Did seem a bit naughty around Bramall Lane pre game – but does the police escort help? – just kind of makes it game for any old thing to be thrown but whether bringing them all in one group from the tram is not going to lead to anything but the United fans waiting and that kind of scenario – but I guess I expect both sets of fans to not lob things at each other so on them rather than the policing? After the game it was nice to go round a few pubs and the hotel to soak it all up and Blades fans revelled in it. Had too much to drink but not every day you relegate your city rivals and my lad was loving it. I do hate the tension of derbies but we have come out on the right end most of the time in recent years so we have to enjoy it.

 

[Bell4]

About time

 

[wardonia_blade]

Ref was Josh Smith.

 

[Panini]

Palmer and Burrows are doing well to escape attention for their roles in the first goal and the red card, and not just here.

 

[Deadbat]

Ref was Josh Smith.

No idea why I typed Lewis. Is the ref I have been impressed with before.

 

[Deadbat]

I think my Peck and Burrows mark could be a bit higher on reflection but kind of had to assess who we played also. Could easily make case for 7.5 for both. I know I am a harsh marker!

Seen for the Pinch Riley Roberts gave Peck a 6 so makes me feel better!

 

[Carlton Blade]

Ratings:



Cooper 6/10 – Did what he had to mostly – caught a few crosses and he also threw one great ball out for O’Hare. Did he have any other saves apart from the one that went in? I thought he was a bit slow down to this but maybe was a bit unsighted as it came through bodies. I think he might be a touch disappointed but was not as bad as the one Dieng let in.



Seriki 6/10 - Started well with some good interplay with Brooks and won a few tackles to set the tone. He had a few opportunities to cross but hit the first men a few times. Second half we did not see him anywhere near as much and he had to defend. There were some overloads down the right and thought that he and Brooks did not work as hard and there was too much space –the changes helped in this regard.



Burrows 7/10 – Best game for a while. Playing a poor side, he could get forward and find space and scored a well taken goal. First half he played almost as a left winger with Hamer more inside and put in some dangerous crosses. After the break, he like Seriki, offered less of a threat but he was able to at least stop a few attacks. On the goal, could he have got tighter? Possibly but we had other men around it too.



Bindon 7/10 – Solid game. Did what he had to. No frills. Swept up and won headers when he needed and used the ball well. Been quite consistent recently and much improved from the awful start he/the team had. He looks unflustered and composed now and not the player who looked ruffled very easily. Helped when opposition did not have a recognised centre forward though!



Tanganga 6/10 – Not quite as assured as above. He did have that chance he should have taken and when he goes forward for corners he seems to get in good areas but does not always take some decent chances. Defensively a few moments of uncertainty but nothing major in terms of errors – just felt he and others looked a bit panicky for a spell second half.



Peck 7/10 – Thought he quietly had a very good game and was the outstanding central midfielder on display and a contender with Burrows and Bindon for man of the match. Moved it on, got stuck in and was competitive. Set up the second goa. He broke through also a few times and should have scored near the end. He does love beating them and showed again at the end and he led the celebrations – seems to enjoy wounding them up. They said he was winding them up but they had been giving him hammer with the chants towards him so if you give it, you have to take it back.



Phillips 3/10 – Mark may seem harsh but hard to mark any higher. He did ok first half and won the loose balls, moved it on and looked energetic as we swarmed all over them. Involved in some of our attacking moves too. The moment of course he will be remembered for in Sheffield Derbies (doubt he ever plays one again) was after half time. Seen some defending it and saying it was not even a foul let alone a red card but I think that is hard to agree with sadly. He does win the ball but the follow through is late and high. Those saying where is he meant to put his foot – well not there! You could argue any foul that their foot was not meant to go there but if you catch someone and that high with a fair bit of force – then you always run the risk. Ingelsson goes down and might make a meal of it maybe, but he did have a cut I think on his leg too? Even Wilder said it was a red card in his atfer match comments. I was mad at Phillips. No need to do that and gave them a way back into the game. By all means get stuck in but that did look like he left one on his opponent. If it is the other way around, we are screaming for a red card and sadly in 2026 (and has been for some time), even if you get the ball, refs still penalised any follow through/contact that is high or excessive. If it was appealed, we would get nowhere. If it had been a yellow, I think he would have been fortunate and sadly like many of the other reds we have had recently – it comes down to a poor choice and ill-discipline from a senior player – saw same with Rothwell, Bamford and Tanganga too. We cannot keep getting players sent off. He is now out for a fair chunk of games – when he won’t be here long anyway. Hope Riedewald gets back in and Phillips has to fight to get his place back – should be how it is anyway.



O’Hare 5.5/10 - Thought he did some good things and looked lively – the run and shot that hit the post and some other bits of link play. However, he was loose in possession at times and not quite clinical with the killer pass/moment. It came off him too much and we had countless opportunities where we broke and he (and others) did not quite play the right pass or at the right pace. Faded badly after the break and not in the game as it became scrappy. Right decision to play him over Campbell as was involved in the excellent start.



Hamer 6.5/10 – Started the game well and was involved in the first goal with a great pass – this was a big moment and he showed composure and class. A lot of the other good moves and attacks, he seemed to be involved and was picking up the ball and causing issues. Came inside a lot too and meant we had a lot of creative talents dropping on it and linking. He stood out in the first half but then of course he is sacrificed when Phillips goes off. Shame as with 11 v 11, he could have ran riot (as we could) the longer the game went on.



Brooks 6/10 – Started well with some dribbles and runs where he carried it and led to them fouling him or being pushed back. Linked well with Seriki and looked a great outlet with his pace and trickery. Thought he did too much at times and not quite the end product. After the break, he and Seriki did not do what they have been doing defensively and thought they had a threat down there. The change of replacing him with Hoever seemed to be an odd one but credit to Wilder as this gave us a defensive minded player and he did well and shored up this side.



Bamford 6.5/10 – Thought he would score and he did not disappoint. He nearly scored in the reverse fixture – in limited minutes – but yesterday he gets his goal in the 2nd minute. He is a good finisher who is calm in front of goal (has missed a few recent which has surprised me). After this he pulled them about and was causing the young Irish centre back all sorts of issues – he kept grabbing him and fouling him. They had no real answer for his movement and experience at holding it up. He is another that was taken off as we needed a player who could run behind (Campbell did that to be fair).





Subs -



Arblaster 6/10 - I have been critical of him but today he did ok when he came on. Nothing massively that made you sit up and say wow, but he got his foot in, slowed it down and used it well. Took the heat out of things and gave us a body in there to ensure we made it scrappy. He nearly made a goal at the end too. With Phillips being suspended, he may have to be used more than we like again – as we are missing him and Rothwell now (at least he comes back for next Saturday).



Hoever 6.5/10 - Thought he did well when he came on and that is the best I have seen of him. He cut out a few balls, made some interceptions and played it intelligently and stopped the threat down the left-hand side. He did nothing flashy but used the ball well and gave us some energy and tenacity when the game started to become quite loose.



Campbell 6/10 – He missed a good chance and had a few other moments to get in behind and maybe took the wrong choices, but he did help us- giving us an outlet and some pace – which with 10 men we needed (an out ball). A few times I still got frustrated at how leggy he looked but then he did make some sprightly runs too. Should take the late chance but he did contribute to the red card too. He has looked a bit better in recent games coming off the bench so hopefully finding some form again.



Soumare – Not on long enough to rate but he did well and surprised me. I was worried he might do something daft with a silly foul or loose pass but he got stuck in, showed good energy and physicality and made a few interceptions. Drove forward with it a few times although should have done better with a decent chance when he had a man over. Overall, though in a small amount of time, thought he did well and helped us see it out. The critical article in the Star was way over the top in the week – he has been largely not good enough but has shown positive flashes and we saw that again in this game. He has the raw tools if not maybe a football brain to use these yet.



Hjedle – Went to right back I think for the limited time he was on? A few clearances but only limited minutes.





Manager: Wilder 7/10 – I think he deserves credit for the rip-roaring start, the way we took the game to them and then also despite a poor start after the half (thought we looked a bit arrogant just before and after half time) he made changes that saw us wrestle back control. Nobody would have expected Hoever, Soumare etc but they all contributed well from the bench and helped us see the game out. Overall, his record in these games is superb. I get the sense he never wants to lose to them whilst he is manager and is perfect for these games. Hopefully we will not play them for some time now! I was impressed how he kept his calm when the team started to unravel for a period after the half time whistle and his in-game changes/tweaks worked (they do not always work, and he has rightly been criticised for this). Must be frustrated with senior players (he signed them I suppose!) making stupid decisions and making his/our job so much harder!







Wednesday – I knew it would be a struggle, and I, like most, thought they would be bottom. I did not even think they would be this bad. They have a small squad and are relying on emergency loans to fill it out but losses of even some of the ok and/or experienced players like Bannan, Lowe, Cadamarteri, Valery, Charles have hit them hard. Their current squad would be down towards the bottom of league one. I compare then with a Rotherham or Doncaster and don’t see much clear difference. I sense they have sort of given up. They have a poor squad and losing becomes a habit but has the coach has done himself many favours – carried himself well and showed a lot of class – but tactically and in terms of coaching/setting the team up – I think he has shown his inexperience and limitations – that may seem harsh maybe?





Yesterday I thought they would keep it tight and try and stay in the game – as they have done to be fair to the manager and players – a number of games but that went out of the window early as they conceded in the first few minutes and then again. I think many of the fans and even the players would have been fearing the worst, but they stayed in the game as United let them off the hook a bit – maybe thinking they could turn the screw 2nd half. The red card changes it but credit to them – they still had to score and force a change and they did that. For 10 minutes, they put us under pressure but then even with 10 – they sort of run out of steam – we ended up ensuring that we took the steam out of things and in the end they could have conceded more. The result was the right one, but they did not get hammered but it is still not nice to get relegated at the Lane. Whatever the circumstances and whatever the margin – no one will say it did not count or they only lost 2-1! It still must hurt that we keep beating them and clearly are the number one side in the city. They will say they did ok and made a game of it but it was more down to our own stupidity that led to it being close. I think without the red card, it goes onto be 3, 4 or 5 easily as they would have tired. It was the only thing I feared that may keep them in the game.



We may not see them for a while – I do not feel that they do a Birmingham/Cardiff due to the lack of stability and uncertainty. The rumoured owners coming in seem to have a lot of questions and I think it might get thrown out or break down. I would not want Ashley to come in – controversial but will run it as a business and would probably settle it all down. As we saw with us, ownership changes can take a long time, and it must be a worry the amount of money they are losing/paying the administrators too. The playing squad is poor and thin and without money to properly invest – they will rely on veterans/loans to ensure they can have a better go at it. They may even get more points deductions – if the takeover fails. Unless they get another deduction, they may escape being right down at the bottom but mid table could be a more realistic and best cased scenario for them for next season. Be interesting how many renew season tickets as the crowds have dropped considerably. It is still a very uncertain future. They will hope they have new owners (and probably a new manager) in place by the summer but even that will not mean things are all rosy. They have so many issues with the money they owe, the stadium, the training ground, poor academy and it will take a lot of work to turn it around.



Opponent Man of the Match – Not many stood out as outstanding and they looked a poor side but McNeil took his goal well and was lively. The lad Ingelsson took a lot of long throws and this was a threat – but he was dirty too. I thought that the keeper made some decent saves too but could have done better with the second. Cooper toiled a fair bit at the back and at least headed a few out/back to the keeper but struggled to last the pace and went off after he committed a poor challenge and sort of injured himself.



Opponent Weak link – Several struggled with the pace and intensity of the game early on and the lad Ndala made an error and seemed a bit rabbit in headlights. I thought the centre back who got sent off was dreadful and struggled in all aspects of defending - aerial, pace, movement and Bamford and Campbell caused him all sort of problems.





Referee / Officials – Lewis Smith. Young ref who has done well in games I have seen. I think even in our games when we have lost – he has impressed me overall. This game was not easy – being a derby and some poor challenges coming in (mainly from them). Sadly, they sort of shared them around – although Ingellson could have waked – several fouls after a bad one and ditto for the centre back. I have discussed the Phillips one above and sadly not sure there is much complaint we can have. He kind of made his decision for him – VAR are not overturning if there were VAR and any appeal would be frivolous. He sort of lost control a bit at the end but then so did a few of the players. There were some meaty challenges and some late ones from Wednesday and could have had a few more booked but they will argue Hamer’s retaliation was not great – ref took too long to give this and he turned and made contact with the player that fouled him – was a bit daft and could easily have been a red card too (videos show this clearly and another example of us losing our cool even if they were filthy). However, Wednesday were extremely cynical and dirty throughout so not a surprise they ended up losing a man too. I thought the game became quite tetchy and Smith did not quite have the control he has had of other games but then players have to take responsibility. A few times he played on and could have stopped it for fouls and then equally did not play on when we had advantages.



Crowd/Day Out - Good atmosphere with the whole relegation thing added in making it feisty. There was a fair bit of noise both ways and then it ramps up when we score early. It kind of then took the life out of it a bit when we went 2-0 as all felt too easy but then they come back and the noise goes up from their end and is a bit back and forth – a proper derby day atmosphere after this. When it is nearly done, then the United fans of course give the stick about the relegation. There was the inevitable mocking from Blades fans with Chansiri masks, chants and a Thailand flag. Did seem a bit naughty around Bramall Lane pre game – but does the police escort help? – just kind of makes it game for any old thing to be thrown but whether bringing them all in one group from the tram is not going to lead to anything but the United fans waiting and that kind of scenario – but I guess I expect both sets of fans to not lob things at each other so on them rather than the policing? After the game it was nice to go round a few pubs and the hotel to soak it all up and Blades fans revelled in it. Had too much to drink but not every day you relegate your city rivals and my lad was loving it. I do hate the tension of derbies but we have come out on the right end most of the time in recent years so we have to enjoy it.

I think the mark is right fir Brooks but the comments harsh. They booted him out of the matches. He was limping heavily when he came off.

I think their blatant attempts to injure Brooks and O'Hare led indirectly to the red card. I think he intended to leave a bit on him as retribution and got the timing all wrong

 

[Houston_Blade]

On Burrows, it was a poor touch from him that led to Phillips having to win the ball from the blonde pig. 7/10 is about right for me.

 

[dc_blade]

Phillips 3/10 – Mark may seem harsh but hard to mark any higher. He did ok first half and won the loose balls, moved it on and looked energetic as we swarmed all over them. Involved in some of our attacking moves too. The moment of course he will be remembered for in Sheffield Derbies (doubt he ever plays one again) was after half time. Seen some defending it and saying it was not even a foul let alone a red card but I think that is hard to agree with sadly. He does win the ball but the follow through is late and high. Those saying where is he meant to put his foot – well not there! You could argue any foul that their foot was not meant to go there but if you catch someone and that high with a fair bit of force – then you always run the risk. Ingelsson goes down and might make a meal of it maybe, but he did have a cut I think on his leg too? Even Wilder said it was a red card in his atfer match comments. I was mad at Phillips. No need to do that and gave them a way back into the game. By all means get stuck in but that did look like he left one on his opponent. If it is the other way around, we are screaming for a red card and sadly in 2026 (and has been for some time), even if you get the ball, refs still penalised any follow through/contact that is high or excessive. If it was appealed, we would get nowhere. If it had been a yellow, I think he would have been fortunate and sadly like many of the other reds we have had recently – it comes down to a poor choice and ill-discipline from a senior player – saw same with Rothwell, Bamford and Tanganga too. We cannot keep getting players sent off. He is now out for a fair chunk of games – when he won’t be here long anyway. Hope Riedewald gets back in and Phillips has to fight to get his place back – should be how it is anyway.

I think he was probably a 6/10 in the first half and I was thinking to myself that him and Peck looked like a promising partnership. Peck was able to get forward a bit more and take some more risks.

The red card was idiotic, a moment of head loss. He definitely left his foot in. Now he'll end up missing about 20 percent of the matches during his loan spell.

 

[Fjortoft's Aeroplane]

Thought their LB Adaramola looked a threat going forward. Was happy when he went off.

 

[Rufus Smalls]

Thanks DB.

On Cooper for their goal, I was sat in the South Stand almost right behind the shot and it was a good shot and Cooper had a clear view of the ball. No closing down of the Weds player made it easier for him to hit the bottom corner. Cooper didn’t have much chance as I saw it.

I also thought Campbell looked sluggish, as usual, but made a nuisance of himself, getting their player his second yellow. The thing with Campbell is that he’s so left footed, any defender just needs to close him down and he has to take an extra touch to strike the ball with his left, when the chance has then almost gone.

 

[Blademan89]

Thought their LB Adaramola looked a threat going forward. Was happy when he went off.

When we went to 10 men. He was no where near when it was 11v11

 

[knowsnowt]

Can't read all that as I'm fat.
Cheers though.

 

[Racing Blade]

Thought their LB Adaramola looked a threat going forward. Was happy when he went off.

Agree and think he was their star man. I was disappointed, given recent form, with how Seriki handled him. As DB mentions, Hoever was given the job of sorting it out and did so very efficiently.

 

[Grappler]

I was a bit concerned when Ty Campbell, despite only being on the pitch for about 10 minutes, was bent over, hands on his knees, as if he was knackered.

 

[Wards]

Hjedle – Went to right back I think for the limited time he was on?

If by right back you mean left sided centre half then yes, yes he did.

 

[Revolution]

Thought their LB Adaramola looked a threat going forward. Was happy when he went off.

He was booked for his second foul, and allowed to commit 3 more fouls with no card. There was a lot of that.

As at the Sty, they went after a number of our players.

 

[Balham]

As Wards says, Hjelde played at LCB.

We started with a 4-4-1-1 with O’Hare playing behind Bamford. After Phillips’ red card Hamer moved central with O’Hare on the left but three minutes later, when Wednesday scored, Arblaster replaced Hamer in a standard midfield two.

Hoever came on for Brooks just after the hour in a straight RW swap, albeit a more defensive option with Campbell replacing Bamford as we retained a 4-4-1 shape.

The final changes, Hjelde for Seriki and Soumaré for O’Hare saw us shift definitively into a 5-3-1 with Bindon moving to RCB and Hjelde at LCB. Peck was RCM, Arblaster in the middle with Soumaré on the left behind Campbell as the lone forward.

 

[Revolution]

It was never going to be a massacre. Wilder teams do not do that. The 15 minutes pissing about at the end of the first half was an indication of this (if the idea was to keep the ball, why did we keep knocking it back to Cooper to belt?).

Thought at HT that dominance was total and only our frequent unseriousness/lack of professionalism could cost us, and it took 4 mins for Phillips to deliver. At that point I was getting playoff final vibes, but credit to Wilder for his subs, all of whom did better than I expected. Plus Wednesday tired more quickly. As is documented on here, Pedersen does not use his bench as much as he should.

Shame we couldn’t extend the lead at the death but I’ll take it. Goodbye Pigs. It is accomplished. My staff got their usual free pass after a Derby win today: nothing could upset me.

Fun fact: My first Derby at the Lane was in 1991. Saw it by borrowing Revo Seniors season ticket. Yesterday I borrowed Revo Jrs (he was watching Rapid Bucharest!). I assume I will be borrowing one of my grandchildren’s season tickets in 2055 or so, although hopefully Wednesday won’t be around to make it necessary.

 

[Revolution]

As Wards says, Hjelde played at LCB.

We started with a 4-4-1-1 with O’Hare playing behind Bamford. After Phillips’ red card Hamer moved central with O’Hare on the left but three minutes later, when Wednesday scored, Arblaster replaced Hamer in a standard midfield two.

Hoever came on for Brooks just after the hour in a straight RW swap, albeit a more defensive option with Campbell replacing Bamford as we retained a 4-4-1 shape.

The final changes, Hjelde for Seriki and Soumaré for O’Hare saw us shift definitively into a 5-3-1 with Bindon moving to RCB and Hjelde at LCB. Peck was RCM, Arblaster in the middle with Soumaré on the left behind Campbell as the lone forward.

Very solid work by Wilder and by everyone who came on.

 

[Silent Blade]

What irritated me is that when we have a free kick from 40 to 50 yards away from the goal, at least 3 of our players are in an offside position just before the free kick is taken.

 

[SirNibletsO'Korne]

Cheers DB. Initially after going down to 10 we were at sixes & sevens for a little bit before conceding. Rather than doing what we are prone to do and collapsing though, I thought the way we played after was outstanding. We harried, slowed it down when we had to and cut out anything that came anywhere near the box and I actually didn't think they'd score another.
Proud of all of them.
Except Phillips obviously.