Erm. My first Blades match was at Feethams as a Darlington supporter. Yeah I supported my local team Darlington until I was 7 and saw the Blades win 2-0 on the last day of the season in 81-2 I think (and as a 7 year old the atmosphere was hairy back in the drink fuelled hooligan days) I kind of remember seeing men with red and white scarves crying with pleasure and looking so happy.
I guess 7 year old me was a typical gloryhunter and decided then and there that was my team.
Thank god there was no internet in those days just bricks with Zombie flesh keyboards which loaded games from tapes - or I’d be supporting a shallow soulless team like Man Utd!
My Dad was appalled when I told him I was supporting the Blades from then on. He even went so far as to sign me up with the Junior Quakers who played football before the match. I enjoyed the football, and I don’t think any of the boys I played with supported Darlo.
Darlo were shite I must add, but they did have a few hard men who I forget.
My Dad also refused to take me down the M1 to see the Blades, even though he took my younger brother to see Liverpool (and a reluctant me) at Anfield numerous times. Liverpool were good to watch, but I’m still bitter. So most of my Blades watching was on teletext and reading anything I could find in the press until I could save enough to take the train to Sheffield with one of my mates.
Ironically my first match at Bramall Lane was in 92 when we defeated a poor Liverpool team who were all style but no substance. (My brother, who came with me was a Liverpool fan) I still remember how fat the Danish Scouser Molby looked, but could still ping a ball about. And those two goals by Deane are fond memories. Especially as I could make fun of my brother for Grobbelar’s idiocy for the first goal.
Fast forward 30 odd years and I’m still what some of you may call a tourist. I get to 3-8 games a season when I can.
My five year old daughter attends with me now - even though she hates our mascot who has ‘evil eyes’ supposedly. In a year or two I’ll be taking my 8 month old son. My daughters first game was the Leon Clarke game against Hull. She was beginning to think that the Blades always won, until I took her to Brighton last week. She’s the little girl with a pony toy shouting at the opposition fans.
It amazes me how many fans Wilder is winning (I teach and the kids now want to talk to me about how great the Blades are!) and I’m sure over the next few years we will be attracting 1000s of youngsters to their first game. It’s a good time to be a Blade. Hopefully many of us will be planning our first European games next year.
