When was atmosphere at its best?

[Fjortoft's Aeroplane]

Prefer to get answers from those aged 60+ as you'll have caught the 70s & 80s, maybe some remember the 50s & 60s too?

 

[Cherry Street]

When you were a child until roughly your early twenties.

 

[Paisley Blade]

Prefer to get answers from those aged 60+ as you'll have caught the 70s & 80s, maybe some remember the 50s & 60s too?

Ageist.
Reported.

 

[FMBlade1]

As a side point, I usually find 5.30pm kick-offs have the best atmospheres along with when we are underdogs in a cup game

 

[SwitchBLADE Smiles]

When G&H block was full of fucking nutters. The times around the Leeds Worthington Cup game was the best I can remember.

 

[Paisley Blade]

It’s at its best when we are the underdog or have been starved of any success for a while.

Villa away in 2014 fits that profile and was an absolute banger.

 

[SwissBlade]

It’s always better when we’re coming back, 90’s under Bassett, early 00’s during the 2 cup semi season under Warnock and of course the rise from league one to premier league was probably a sustained period.

But even in those big promotion seasons, a midweek against mid table opposition from a long way away in October will never have the same impact as a midweek in March against rival.

I’m pretty sure that when the weather turns, darker colder nights it’s a bit of a shock to the system because it’s too early to get excited

 

[coaxingstar71]

Big games against nearest rivals, when we're winning and/or playing well, when we feel we've been wronged or wound up.

I used to love midweek games and my memory is that the atmosphere was better than Saturdays, however it feels different now and last night seemed quite flat from the start.

 

[borg elite]

When G&H block was full of fucking nutters. The times around the Leeds Worthington Cup game was the best I can remember.

I started watching United in 1981. That period during the noughties you mention had some amazing atmospheres. Largely down to unreserved seating on G&H blocks. Also the kop was much, much more vociferous than it is now. The entire ground would be rocking at times.

I don't get to the Lane too often these days, but when I do visit, the drop off in noise always surprises me. Any attempt to do something about it seems to end in ridicule. Sad really.

 

[crazyblade1889]

Been watching since the 90/91 and the best atmosphere I can remember was 2003. Both Leeds games, the derby, the Forest play off semi particularly were absolutely rocking. The atmosphere has got progressively worse ever since. Even in our worst league 1 days there was a much better atmospheres than we have currently. We seem to have picked up a lot of entitled fans (probably as a hangover from our seasons in the Prem) who come with their spoilt brat children. Many of these seem to have either been armchair fans until recently or supported other clubs. They come for a chat and a pint and leave before the end!

 

[Down the Channels]

When we were allowed to stand.
When there is a sustained level of attacking, chances, tackles flying in. If it is just once chance created every 20 mins there is no momentum built with the atmosphere either.
It always helps if the opposition has a few shithouses to shout at......Swansea didn't have any.
I think it is fair to say generally (as a 60 year old) that I found the atmosphere much better in the 80's and 90's. But that might be nostalgia and only recalling the good games. Some recent games in promotion seasons and the season we finished 9th in Prem had some cracking atmospheres (3-3 Man Utd at home for eg)

 

[Blademan18891889]

2003 by a mile, the arsenal game at new year too was exceptional in 2006, It's truly horrific now, I'm not exaggerating I honestly think it's the worst in the country.

 

[Houston_Blade]

When the ref is wank

 

[crazyblade1889]

The atmosphere at BL reeks of middle class families who come with little Tarquin from Birkdale or Westbourne and are completely apathetic to the club. Honestly if it meant getting rid of a lot of the new “fans” we have picked up over the last 8 years I’d gladly go back to league 1

 

[JimW1889]

When teams sell out their away allocation and the game means something and there isn’t an overwhelmingly expected result. Blackburn, Forest (until they scored), Spurs, Ipswich etc etc have all been great atmospheres in recent times. Even Wolves last season was good from memory. Atmosphere is on the slide at all grounds, it’s just one of the things that comes with the sanitisation of football, but there’s still great atmospheres when both sets of fans are up for it imo.

 

[Fjortoft's Aeroplane]

I'm surprised to see 1980s doing so badly, we had standing everywhere and had a real change of fortune on the pitch after a torrid time in the 70s.

 

[crazyblade1889]

When teams sell out their away allocation and the game means something and there isn’t an overwhelmingly expected results Blackburn, Forest (until they scored), Spurs, Ipswich etc etc have all been great atmospheres in recent times. Even Wolves last season was good from memory. Atmosphere is on the slide at all grounds, it’s just one of the things that comes with the sanitisation of football, but there’s still great atmospheres when both sets of fans are up for it imo.

Disagree. When Forest came in the play off semi a few years ago they brought a very good atmosphere and it was completely subdued in most areas of the ground apart from the away end. Same with Blackburn in the cup until we scored at the end!

 

[BladesOnToast]

A side point, but living in the south west (ish), its much easier for me to get to certain away grounds so I usually end up going to places like Ashton Gate, Reading, Cardiff, Birmingham, Cov a lot. I rarely make it to Bramall Lane but when I do I am really put off by the library atmosphere these days. not United's problem exclusively, it's the same across football mostly, but I enjoy games far more as an away fan. The raucous concourse halftime stuff is a bit lame but I can put up with it if it means the fans have some energy in them. (Or cocaine).

 

[CrookesBlade]

2003 by a mile, the arsenal game at new year too was exceptional in 2006, It's truly horrific now, I'm not exaggerating I honestly think it's the worst in the country.

I’ve sat in the home end a couple of times at West Ham’s new ground and we’ve a long way to go before the atmosphere drops to that level.

 

[CrookesBlade]

It’s at its best when we are the underdog or have been starved of any success for a while.

Villa away in 2014 fits that profile and was an absolute banger.

I agree. It’s usually when initial expectations are low but we manage to pull off a surprise. That’s sometimes extrapolated over the course of a season (02/03, 19/20)

Plus bad refereeing - that usually gets everybody out of their seat

 

[Racing Blade]

For me, the 70s was the transitional decade. When I started going in the early 70s, segregation was pretty much on a voluntary basis. We stood in the Bramall Lane End, mixed with away fans. It was during that decade that large scale hooliganism kicked in. I don't know how the politics played out but, by the end of the 70s, the BL lower was police restricted to away support. It created the tribal, territorial environment which became a catalyst for singing directed at opposing fans, rather than just in support of your own team.

I was watching a clip of Blades v Sunderland earlier, dated 7 Oct 1978. I remember the game well as, aged 13, it was an eye opener to what away support was all about. Sunderland were flying high, filled the away end and sang throughout the 90 minutes.......all of them, not just those in the middle sections. In response, The Kop was much louder than normal. Newcastle followed, shortly afterwards, and were much the same. I absolutely loved those games.

For all the right reasons, all seater stadia were introduced, throughout the 90s, which had a gradual negative impact on atmosphere in most grounds, in my view, as 'singers' could no longer cluster together so freely as when standing.

More recently, heavily reduced ticket allocation for away fans has further eroded the atmosphere. Watch the later stages of the FA Cup, nowadays, where the rules dictate that away allocations are much higher, and you can get throwback atmospheres, particularly where the draw throws out a near capacity tie.

 

[Nesh Blade]

spoilt brat children

This for me! Kid behind me just repeatedly shouting WANK last night every time a player tried something that didn't come off

 

[Paisley Blade]

For me, the 70s was the transitional decade. When I started going in the early 70s, segregation was pretty much on a voluntary basis. We stood in the Bramall Lane End, mixed with away fans. It was during that decade that large scale hooliganism kicked in. I don't know how the politics played out but, by the end of the 70s, the BL lower was police restricted to away support. It created the tribal, territorial environment which became a catalyst for singing directed at opposing fans, rather than just in support of your own team.

I was watching a clip of Blades v Sunderland earlier, dated 7 Oct 1978. I remember the game well as, aged 13, it was an eye opener to what away support was all about. Sunderland were flying high, filled the away end and sang throughout the 90 minutes.......all of them, not just those in the middle sections. In response, The Kop was much louder than normal. Newcastle followed, shortly afterwards, and were much the same. I absolutely loved those games.

For all the right reasons, all seater stadia were introduced, throughout the 90s, which had a gradual negative impact on atmosphere in most grounds, in my view, as 'singers' could no longer cluster together so freely as when standing.

More recently, heavily reduced ticket allocation for away fans has further eroded the atmosphere. Watch the later stages of the FA Cup, nowadays, where the rules dictate that away allocations are much higher, and you can get throwback atmospheres, particularly where the draw throws out a near capacity tie.

I’m the same age as you and remember that brilliant game very well. Sunderland support was off the scale.

 

[COME BACK CHED]

Having a Sharp ,Currie , Evans ,Edwards in the team , always helped But 40 thou plus crowds in the early 70`s were special .

 

[FinchleyBlade]

The atmosphere under Warnock when we were getting 18k every game was considerably better and louder than it has been for most of the last decade or so. I remember Villa at home in the FA cup live on the BBC in 04-05 being absolutely bouncing all game and there was 17k there.

 

[s20Blade]

Definitely 03-04, strangely a few years later when we went up I remember that atmosphere being nowhere near as good! As others have said it must be beating local rivals that does it!

 

[FinchleyBlade]

v

Definitely 03-04, strangely a few years later when we went up I remember that atmosphere being nowhere near as good! As others have said it must be beating local rivals that does it!

I remember it being absolutely bouncing our first season back in the Prem under Warnock?

 

[s20Blade]

v

I remember it being absolutely bouncing our first season back in the Prem under Warnock?

I remember the Liverpool and Middlesbrough game being good that's about it.

 

[Fjortoft's Aeroplane]

v

I remember it being absolutely bouncing our first season back in the Prem under Warnock?

1st half of the season significantly better than the 2nd half.

 

[Rodley]

2000–2005 with G&H in full flow.