Today I'm going back 40 years to 1981 and a rare meeting between Sheffield United and York City. This game was in the League Cup but the two sides also faced each other in League action too that season as the Blades (Sheffield United's Steel City nickname) had fallen on hard times and had plummeted into the Fourth Division.
This was my first ever visit to Bramall Lane, a ground famous for being one of only two that has hosted England Football and Cricket internationals and an FA Cup Final (the other being the Oval). The ground originally opened as a cricket ground in 1855 and has variously been home to Yorkshire CCC, Sheffield FC (the oldest football club in the world), The Wednesday (the former name of Sheffield Wednesday and home to the club from 1880 to 1887) and finally Sheffield United from 1889 onwards. Bramall Lane was a three sided ground until 1973 when construction of the new South Stand commenced which finally enclosed the football pitch and meant the end of Bramall Lane as a cricket venue. The Football League no longer boasts any three sided venues and the only time that I've seen a league game at one was at Northampton Town's County Ground which is still there but no longer hosts Northampton Town matches. There are of course plenty of joint football / cricket grounds at Non-League level.
In front of a crowd of just 6,702, Ian Porterfield's United ran out as 1-0 victors over Barry Lyons' Minstermen with the goal coming via a penalty which was despatched by Tony Kenworthy. Notable in the United line-up that day was John MacPhail who actually made 135 League appearances for the Blades between 1978 and 1983 scoring seven goals before being transferred to York where he would go on to make 142 League appearances scoring 24 goals and he formed part of one of York's greatest ever sides. City's side that night had an unfamiliar look about it and included names such as Eddie Flood (15 League appearances for City). Stuart Croft (14 League appearances), Richard Dawson (0 League appearances) and Alan Waldron (3 League appearances).
United would go on to squeeze through to the Second Round 2-1 on aggregate following a 1-1 draw at Bootham Crescent in the second leg of the tie. Their prize? A two legged Second Round tie against Arsenal in which United themselves were only narrowly eliminated by 2-1 on aggregate.
CRB Match No. 120
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