SHEFFIELD UTD v PORTSMOUTH League One – 29 October 2012 Link to BBC Preview: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/20024780 Last meeting at Bramall Lane 18 September 2010 – Championship Sheffield Utd 1-0 Pompey This was the 7th and last game in Pompey’s rotten run at the start of the season. Who are Ya? The Blades were formed in 1889, after a new club was needed to play at Bramall Lane when the Wednesday moved out. They enjoyed great success in the FA Cup around the turn of the 20th Century, reaching the final three times in four seasons, from 1899 to 1902. They joined the Football League [Second Division] in 1892. They gained promotion in their first season and remained in the top flight until 1934. They were runners up in 1939, but, with the 1939-40 season being abandoned, they would have to wait until the end of Hostilities to pay a full season in the First Division They were relegated in 1949, although they did enjoy a 3-1 home win against eventual champions Portsmouth! After spending their years between the top two divisions, they suffered relegation to the third tier for the first time in 1979. Two years later they dropped into the Fourth division for the first and only time, winning it the following year. They spent the 1980s between the Second and Third divisions, before reaching the top flight in 1990. They were relegated from the Premier League in 1994, but had a single season in the top flight in 2006-07, when a last day defeat at the hands of Wigan saw the visitors stay up at the Blades’ expense. Another relegation in 2011 means they are currently in their second season in League One. Highest League Finish: League Champions 1898 Lowest League Finish: 1st in Fourth Division [League Two] 1982 Honours: 1st Tier: [Premier League] winners 1898; runners up 1897, 1900 2nd Tier [Championship] winners 1953; runners up 1893, 1939, 1961, 1971, 1990, 2006. 3rd Tier [League One] runners up 1989 4th Tier [League Two] winners 1982 FA Cup winners 1899, 1902, 1915, 1925; runners up 1901, 1936 Yesteryear 5 November 1955 – First Division [Premier League] Sheffield Utd 1-3 Pompey This, believe it or not, is the last time Pompey won at there in the league! Silver Stats – Sheffield Utd 5 seasons ago [2008] – 9th in Championship 10 seasons ago [2003] – 3rd in Div 1 [Championship] – playoff final 15 seasons ago [1998] – 6th in Div 1 [Championship] – playoff semi-final 20 seasons ago [1993] – 14th in Premier League 25 seasons ago [1988] – 21st in Second Division [Championship] - relegated Random Fact: On 15th August 1992, Sheffield Utd’s Brian Dean scored the very first Premier League goal – against Manchester Utd. Match Odds (at Skybet) Sheffield Utd – 4/6 Pompey – 7/2 Draw – 13/5 Mystic Devo Sheffield Utd are still unbeaten in the league, with 7 wins and 7 draws. Pompey’s 7 away games have yielded 8 points. The history books are stacked against us. As mentioned above, Pompey last won away to the blades in the league in November 1955. Devo reckons: Sheffield Utd 2-0 Pompey
2-0 to Sheff. Utd. could well be a good shout unfortunately Dev. Probably both goals from Dave "Barndoor" Kitson - knowing our luck Maybe a goal back for us - Izzy perhaps PUP
Kitson scored the only goal of the game for them in the last round of matches, as Sheff Unt won 1-0! I'll go for Sheffield United 1-3 Pompey Wishful thinking, I know
Whenever I have been to Sheff Utd we always seem to do reasonably well, so I will go for an unlikely 1-1.PUP
Considering how useless Kitson was for us in the championship you can almost guarantee he'll score. Looking at bournemouth today and i see Wes thomas isn't even on the bench! i'm sure he'll be happy back there...
I looked just before as well- and you're right, Wes was not even on the bench .. What does Eddie Howe want Thomas to do ?? Surely letting him play for us was the better option, or myabe he didn't like the fact he was scoring goals, taking us above Bournemouth Ah well, at least Rodgers might get back in the team now (not a good thing!)
Surprised by the amount of bile directed at B'mouth on the some other forums due to not extending Thomas's loan. Why? Plus he is still on loan to you until Sunday so could not be named yesterday! As to this match it has draw written all over it, good luck.
It seems that a lot of fans remember the favours done for Bournmouth whereas this loan wasn't actually up until Monday so everyone was expecting to see him play. Don't know about the bile though.
Any news on who the strikers Appy wants on loan are ?? He says he's going to get one in before our game tomorrow night v Sheff Unt .. I've heard we've been linked with: Marko Futacs- coming back on loan from Leicester for a couple of months. Chris Maguire- Played for us at the end of last season, on loan from Derby. (He's at Sheff Wednesday now) He scored that belter against the Scummers last season We've also been linked with handing out a rolling monthly contract to Josh Payne, formerly of West Ham. Cristiano Ronaldo's agent was spotted at Pompey's training ground yesterday .. so maybe he's trying to push the deal through to make him available for tomorrow night ..
Seems that it's just the fans who want Futaks back, I think that's where the rumours are coming from - and Chris Maguire has been an unused sub, (isn't he already loaned out?) again it's the fans wanting him back. Appy said he's got 3 potentials but as they come in order of preference he isn't letting anything slip so the players themselves won't know if they are first choice or not - which is fair enough really.
How many are going tomorrow? I hope the atmosphere is amazing!! Will be the highest attendance game so far - clash of the 2 biggest clubs in League 1.
Considering it a monday night on TV, we'll probably have around 500 in steel city. More than respectable.
Greg Halford is going to Bramall Lane tonight. He used to play for the Blades, he used to play for us. So just where is he going to sit? Whose goals is he going to cheer? He was in the team with Kits and he was in the team with Scott Allan - who is he going to cheer on???? Questions, questions.
He's been getting a lot of tweets - from both sets of fans - but he has managed to keep both sets of fans happy without actually answering the main questions. Definitely someone with great communication skills.
