August 6 – Steel City Merger Dismissed

WITH the formation of the Premiership in 1992, clubs floating on the stock market, and sky (TV) high player wages, football was changing in the 1990s from a sport to a multi-million pound business.

While this was all well and good for those at the top end of the game, the money did not trickle down to the less fortunate clubs.

Two teams that were finding life hard in the late 1990s were two proud old clubs that shared a fierce rivalry, as well as a city.

Over the 1997/98 season, Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United lost a combined total of £16.5m. In response to this crisis United Chairman John Thurman suggested in an interview with the Yorkshire Post that the answer to these woes could be a merger of the two clubs.

Thurman said: “It would be a radical idea, but one that will have to come under active consideration.

“I can personally see a lot of benefits from it.

“The whole football business is evolving and the only way for smaller clubs to survive is by merging to become stronger.

“I’m not aware of any serious debate having taken place so far but I would expect that in the future there will be and market forces may decide it is sooner rather than later.”

On this day in 1999 Wednesday secretary Alan Sykes echoed the feelings of Wednesday and United fans alike when he dismissed Thurman’s suggestion.

He said: “In London obviously there are clubs in close proximity to each other – Tottenham and Arsenal are close to each other and have sustained Premiership football for a long time.

“There is no reason why Sheffield can’t support two clubs.”

Indeed, there are stories that many fans in Sheffield literally did that before ticket prices rose sharply. When they could afford it, some fans would apparently attend games at both clubs on alternate Saturdays, although you would probably be hard pressed to find anyone who would admit to it now.

The two clubs do share a lot in common: both have used Brammall as their home ground, and both used to be nicknamed ‘The Blades,’ a reference to Sheffield’s steel industry. It was only after Wednesday moved to Owlerton that they adopted ‘The Owls’ as their moniker.

As it has turned out, Thurman’s prediction has not materialised, and the two clubs remain independent of each other, and the Steel City Derby remains the most important game of the season for both teams.

If anything, since 1999 the rivalry between the two sets of fans has increased, although this can probably be put down almost entirely to Neil Warnock – the Marmite of football managers: you either love him or hate him. Needless to say, not that many love him.

Find out why ‘no one likes them but they don’t care’ tomorrow, but before you go, check out the abuse Warnock dishes out to this poor linesman…