Balham Blade
S24SU Seer
Where are they now? Chris Wilder’s first United XI. Bolton 1-0 Sheffield United, 6 Aug 2016
We went to Bolton full of hope, led by boyhood Blade Chris Wilder in his first game as United manager having previously served the club as ballboy and player. We started well with Clarke missing a couple of opportunities but fell behind to Jay Spearing's 25 yard screamer on 37 minutes. We then huffed and puffed for the rest of the game but the closest either side came to scoring was Pratley's header in the second half, well saved by Long in the United goal. Anyway, and somewhat amazingly, four of the names below are still at the club and would arguably still be first choice if fit.
1 (G) G Long: one of three games played by the 2016 scapegoat that season; Wilder unceremoniously dropping him after the Southend débâcle. He made one more appearance for United before moving to Wimbledon on loan in 2017/18 then permanently to Hull where he was in and out of the team. Now Millwall’s backup keeper.
2 (DR) J Brayford: another whose United career ended with that 0-3 home defeat to the Shrimpers. He moved to Burton three days later with United paying him off. The irony is that he’d probably have been excellent in the RCB role. Still at Burton but surely a matter of time until he moves to Mansfield for another reunification with Nigel Clough
20 (DCR) J Wilson: another one of Wilder’s summer of 2016 signings who made fewer than 10 league appearances for us but he still scored one of the critical goals of Wilder’s reign when he got the winner against Oxford. Lost out to Basham in the RCB role and Jake Wright Snr in the CB role. Left United on loan to Walsall in 2017/18 before moving to Lincoln on a free in January 2019. Now at Plymouth
5 (DCL) J O'Connell: still at the club but out for over 18 months with a series of knee injuries after a collision with Dean Henderson in training. Should have been capped by England before that setback and we haven’t come close to filling the gap in the team. His absence (and that failure to replace him) was arguably one of the biggest reasons for our awful second Premier League season
3 (DL) C Hussey: one of Wilder’s first signings when he moved from Bury for an undisclosed fee rumoured to be around £100k. He made 7 league appearances but never looked comfortable; we won one game he started and that was the 2-1 turnaround against Oxford after Hussey had been substituted at half-time. An early indication that not all Wilder’s transfers worked out. Loaned out by United to Swindon in 2017/18 before moving to Cheltenham on a free, he’s now at Port Vale in League 2.
21 (MR) M Duffy: signed on Wilder’s first day on a free from Birmingham having been on loan at promoted Burton the previous season. Played a key role to the point that the trequartista is still referred to as “the Duffy role”. Had a bust-up with Wilder over contracts after promotion to the Premier League before unsuccessful loan spells at Stoke and Den Haag. Released by United in the summer of 2020 he reunited with Paul Coutts at Fleetwood before moving to Tranmere in the summer and on to the reformed Macclesfield last month
6 (MCR) C Basham: he’s still arriving. Our longest serving player and another adopted son of ours. Mr Consistent who started this game in central midfield with Fleck looking every inch the League One midfielder but dropped back to the RCB “piston” role and was critical to our success between 2016 and 2020.
4 (MCL) J Fleck: another one who was pivotal in our rise through the divisions before illness and injury started to affect his performances. Wilder joked that he was playing Fleck’s brother Jimmy at times last season but he’s still our Scottish hero. One third of one of the best midfields I’ve ever seen at United with Coutts and Duffy
11 (ML) M Done: scored 3 in 31 appearances in the title winning side before agreeing to a mutual contract termination in the summer of 2017. Moved back to Rochdale for a third spell and is still there
10 (F) B Sharp: still scoring goals for United. Championship goalscoring GOAT.
27 (F) L Clarke: brought in from Bury for £100k at the end of July. Made more starts for United than any of his other 18 clubs and only played more times over his two spells with boyhood club Wolves. Had a tendency to blow hot and cold but when he was hot he was unplayable at League One and Championship level. Wrote himself into United folklore with the second and fourth goals at Hillsborough in the famous Bouncing Day Massacre. Had a successful loan spell at Wigan in 2018/19 including setting up the winner at Elland Road to allow United to leapfrog Leeds into second place in the Championship with three games to go. Made one substitute appearance in our first PL season before moving to Shrewsbury in the summer of 2020 and then to Bristol Rovers this season
Subs:
12 (G) A Ramsdale: made two FA cup appearances before an £800k move to Bournemouth in January 2017. Resigned for £12.5m at the start of the ill-fated second Premier League season before being sold to Arsenal for a fee which could rise to £30m after refusing to play for United this season. Can still be found occasionally diving after the ball has passed him but has generally surprised the Gunners by being relatively competent
13 (D) J Wright: had an amazing record of not losing a league game for United once he got into the team when we switched to 3-5-2. Dropped to a bit-part role after the signing of Richard Stearman in 2018 before leaving United on loan to Bolton in 2019 then permanently in the summer of 2020. Has since dropped into non-league and is now at Boston
17 (D) K Wallace: an odd one really, signed by Clough from Ilkeston alongside Che Adams. Didn’t make a United appearance in 2016/17, moved to Fleetwood on loan in August 16 but didn’t make a league appearance for them either. Left United for Burton to reunite with Nigel Clough who took him to Mansfield in January
8 (M) S Scougall: diminutive midfielder who was a reliable backup in 2016/17, making 25 appearances mostly as a substitute and scoring 4 goals, three of which came in a four game spell in the autumn. Left United for St Johnstone at the end of that season and is now at Alloa having crossed back into England for a season with Carlisle
15 (M) P Coutts: started on the bench but became the regista in Wilder’s 3-5-2, setting the tempo and never giving the ball away. We were on track for a double-bounce promotion from the Championship in our first season when Marvin Sordell hung a leg out, breaking Coutts’ legs and thousands of United hearts. Wasn’t the same player afterwards and we’d move on by bringing Norwood in and changing tactics slightly. Left United for Fleetwood in 2019 and is now at Bristol Rovers where he’s pretty much ever present
7 (F) M McNulty: lollipop loving centre forward whose natural ability isn’t matched by his application and that resulted in only 4 appearances under Wilder before he was shipped out to Bradford on loan. Has bounced around since leaving United for Coventry where he scored 23 goals in his single season before moving to Reading for £500k. He’s only made 13 league appearances for the Royals, spending most of his time out on loan: two spells at Hibs with half a season at Sunderland in between and last two seasons on loan at Dundee United. Burnt his bridges with the Royals in a scathing January interview.
9 (F) C Adams: bankrolled the final pieces in Wilder’s promotion squad jigsaw as his £1.8m departure to Birmingham allowed us to sign Simon Moore, Daniel Lafferty, Caolan Lavery and Samir Carruthers during the season. Everything seemed to click for him in 2018/19 as he scored 22 goals despite Birmingham’s 17th place finish, earning a move to Southampton and an £80k per week contract. Another slow start but he’s now Scotland’s and Southampton’s first choice centre forward
We went to Bolton full of hope, led by boyhood Blade Chris Wilder in his first game as United manager having previously served the club as ballboy and player. We started well with Clarke missing a couple of opportunities but fell behind to Jay Spearing's 25 yard screamer on 37 minutes. We then huffed and puffed for the rest of the game but the closest either side came to scoring was Pratley's header in the second half, well saved by Long in the United goal. Anyway, and somewhat amazingly, four of the names below are still at the club and would arguably still be first choice if fit.
1 (G) G Long: one of three games played by the 2016 scapegoat that season; Wilder unceremoniously dropping him after the Southend débâcle. He made one more appearance for United before moving to Wimbledon on loan in 2017/18 then permanently to Hull where he was in and out of the team. Now Millwall’s backup keeper.
2 (DR) J Brayford: another whose United career ended with that 0-3 home defeat to the Shrimpers. He moved to Burton three days later with United paying him off. The irony is that he’d probably have been excellent in the RCB role. Still at Burton but surely a matter of time until he moves to Mansfield for another reunification with Nigel Clough
20 (DCR) J Wilson: another one of Wilder’s summer of 2016 signings who made fewer than 10 league appearances for us but he still scored one of the critical goals of Wilder’s reign when he got the winner against Oxford. Lost out to Basham in the RCB role and Jake Wright Snr in the CB role. Left United on loan to Walsall in 2017/18 before moving to Lincoln on a free in January 2019. Now at Plymouth
5 (DCL) J O'Connell: still at the club but out for over 18 months with a series of knee injuries after a collision with Dean Henderson in training. Should have been capped by England before that setback and we haven’t come close to filling the gap in the team. His absence (and that failure to replace him) was arguably one of the biggest reasons for our awful second Premier League season
3 (DL) C Hussey: one of Wilder’s first signings when he moved from Bury for an undisclosed fee rumoured to be around £100k. He made 7 league appearances but never looked comfortable; we won one game he started and that was the 2-1 turnaround against Oxford after Hussey had been substituted at half-time. An early indication that not all Wilder’s transfers worked out. Loaned out by United to Swindon in 2017/18 before moving to Cheltenham on a free, he’s now at Port Vale in League 2.
21 (MR) M Duffy: signed on Wilder’s first day on a free from Birmingham having been on loan at promoted Burton the previous season. Played a key role to the point that the trequartista is still referred to as “the Duffy role”. Had a bust-up with Wilder over contracts after promotion to the Premier League before unsuccessful loan spells at Stoke and Den Haag. Released by United in the summer of 2020 he reunited with Paul Coutts at Fleetwood before moving to Tranmere in the summer and on to the reformed Macclesfield last month
6 (MCR) C Basham: he’s still arriving. Our longest serving player and another adopted son of ours. Mr Consistent who started this game in central midfield with Fleck looking every inch the League One midfielder but dropped back to the RCB “piston” role and was critical to our success between 2016 and 2020.
4 (MCL) J Fleck: another one who was pivotal in our rise through the divisions before illness and injury started to affect his performances. Wilder joked that he was playing Fleck’s brother Jimmy at times last season but he’s still our Scottish hero. One third of one of the best midfields I’ve ever seen at United with Coutts and Duffy
11 (ML) M Done: scored 3 in 31 appearances in the title winning side before agreeing to a mutual contract termination in the summer of 2017. Moved back to Rochdale for a third spell and is still there
10 (F) B Sharp: still scoring goals for United. Championship goalscoring GOAT.
27 (F) L Clarke: brought in from Bury for £100k at the end of July. Made more starts for United than any of his other 18 clubs and only played more times over his two spells with boyhood club Wolves. Had a tendency to blow hot and cold but when he was hot he was unplayable at League One and Championship level. Wrote himself into United folklore with the second and fourth goals at Hillsborough in the famous Bouncing Day Massacre. Had a successful loan spell at Wigan in 2018/19 including setting up the winner at Elland Road to allow United to leapfrog Leeds into second place in the Championship with three games to go. Made one substitute appearance in our first PL season before moving to Shrewsbury in the summer of 2020 and then to Bristol Rovers this season
Subs:
12 (G) A Ramsdale: made two FA cup appearances before an £800k move to Bournemouth in January 2017. Resigned for £12.5m at the start of the ill-fated second Premier League season before being sold to Arsenal for a fee which could rise to £30m after refusing to play for United this season. Can still be found occasionally diving after the ball has passed him but has generally surprised the Gunners by being relatively competent
13 (D) J Wright: had an amazing record of not losing a league game for United once he got into the team when we switched to 3-5-2. Dropped to a bit-part role after the signing of Richard Stearman in 2018 before leaving United on loan to Bolton in 2019 then permanently in the summer of 2020. Has since dropped into non-league and is now at Boston
17 (D) K Wallace: an odd one really, signed by Clough from Ilkeston alongside Che Adams. Didn’t make a United appearance in 2016/17, moved to Fleetwood on loan in August 16 but didn’t make a league appearance for them either. Left United for Burton to reunite with Nigel Clough who took him to Mansfield in January
8 (M) S Scougall: diminutive midfielder who was a reliable backup in 2016/17, making 25 appearances mostly as a substitute and scoring 4 goals, three of which came in a four game spell in the autumn. Left United for St Johnstone at the end of that season and is now at Alloa having crossed back into England for a season with Carlisle
15 (M) P Coutts: started on the bench but became the regista in Wilder’s 3-5-2, setting the tempo and never giving the ball away. We were on track for a double-bounce promotion from the Championship in our first season when Marvin Sordell hung a leg out, breaking Coutts’ legs and thousands of United hearts. Wasn’t the same player afterwards and we’d move on by bringing Norwood in and changing tactics slightly. Left United for Fleetwood in 2019 and is now at Bristol Rovers where he’s pretty much ever present
7 (F) M McNulty: lollipop loving centre forward whose natural ability isn’t matched by his application and that resulted in only 4 appearances under Wilder before he was shipped out to Bradford on loan. Has bounced around since leaving United for Coventry where he scored 23 goals in his single season before moving to Reading for £500k. He’s only made 13 league appearances for the Royals, spending most of his time out on loan: two spells at Hibs with half a season at Sunderland in between and last two seasons on loan at Dundee United. Burnt his bridges with the Royals in a scathing January interview.
9 (F) C Adams: bankrolled the final pieces in Wilder’s promotion squad jigsaw as his £1.8m departure to Birmingham allowed us to sign Simon Moore, Daniel Lafferty, Caolan Lavery and Samir Carruthers during the season. Everything seemed to click for him in 2018/19 as he scored 22 goals despite Birmingham’s 17th place finish, earning a move to Southampton and an £80k per week contract. Another slow start but he’s now Scotland’s and Southampton’s first choice centre forward
