1899 The Magic Of The Cup

Millwall 0 v Sheffield United 2

FA Cup 3rd Round

Saturday 7 January 2023

SUFC 2022/23 Game #40

My name is Phil. I'm a Sheffield United supporter. Although you wouldn't think it from recent Blogs. Of the last 11 games I've been to before today, only 2 (Blackpool & QPR) were BladesDays. With our London soirees coming to an end. With the U21 season (hopefully) restarting on Tuesday. With the National Football Youth League season (hopefully) restarting on Wednesday. It's time to ditch the Oyster Card and get back on the Blades Horse.

We begin at Millwall. With the FA Cup. With a - times have changed point. With a quote from a newspaper published in the hometown of the (then) League Champions. On the eve of their first cup tie of the season. Paraphrased as - the FA Cup is brilliant.

"With five months of the eight in which football holds the sway almost gone, we have once more arrived at the preliminary stages of the English Cup. Somehow or other there is an indescribable attraction about a cup tie which few people can resist, and no matter how badly a team may be doing in the League, success in the Cup at once restores it to the affections of its supporters. Finances, too, improve beyond all expectation, and indeed without the gloriously uncertain elements of a cup tie, the whole game would lose a great deal of its charm."

The quote is from the Sheffield Evening Telegraph, Friday 27 January 1899. Sheffield United were reigning League Champions and would go on to win the FA Cup that year (1899). I paid seven quid English today at Millwall. The Cold Blow Lane End wasn't even open. (Nor was the top tier of the stand on our left). Times have changed. For. The. Worse.

Rest players because "we won't win the Cup anyway". So that we can get promoted to a league "we can't win anyway". Get to fuck.

Although, we deffo got it right today. We kept an Egan, Norwood, Iliman spine. Had the necessary experienced, seen it all, players splattered around. Had the Big Lads on the bench. And … Basham. Lovely seeing the old dear out there doing what he does. Raiding. Marauding. Arriving.

A goal after not much more than 20 settled it down a bit. And allowed us to do what we do. Simple to control the game from there. Dan Jeb lively up top. He knocked a few defenders over. Gave away a few "necessary" free kicks. Put the defenders in the fucking game. Zone man at corners an' all.

Sensibe to make subs in the circumstances. Two strikers off for Billy and Berge. Maybe pushing McAtee into a proper ten, with one up. I didn't think that particularly worked. But it didn't matter by then.

And, finally, we had a glimpse at the People Trafficking Project of PRINCE Abdullah bin Musaid Al Saud, the owner of Sheffield United.

"He's a - built his business empire from the factory floor, self made, entrepreneur you know Phil."

"No he's fucking not."

But, let me make myself clear. I am not against the Prince, our current owner. I am against ALL fucking owners. I'm against ownership. Chances are if you're reading this, you're a Blade. Why the fuck would you want someone to own the thing you love?

"Tolerate 'em - don't rate 'em"

So, in case you missed it, Ismaila Coulibaly came on at 90, to make his Sheffield United debut. Ismaila was signed by Sheffield United with no chance of getting a work permit in Suella Braverman's predecessors Hostile Environment. So, he was trafficked to one of the many other football clubs around the globe owned by the Prince. Effectively earning a Work Permit on the merit of sitting on his arse. (btw he's a victim in all this, not a perp).

But, now the clock's ticking. All Work Permits are time limited. All Work Permits will expire. The Club & Ismaila himself will find it a bit more difficult if he doesn't play 30% of minutes. He won't do that, surely. So this nonsense will just rattle on.

I'm cutting back on including minutiae of my health. I've cut out/cut back on choccies, biccies, sweeties, cakes, ice cream. And, my alcohol units are well under control. I'll know more about the impact at the end of January.

Today, I sank four pints.

"Fuck sake, Phil. That doesn't sound like control"

Well. You say that. But, the drink was in;

Small Beer Brew Co.

70-72 Verney Rd, London SE16 3DH

Which is very close to the New Den. They specialise in lower abv beers. So, those four pints came in at 5.45 units of alcohol. The (just) two pints I had at QPR came it at 5.40.

To brew, you make a porridge, drain off the water, put some hops in and let the yeast turn the sugar to alcohol. I can't speak for Small Beer. But, they built their kit specifically for the lower abv process. I'm suggesting other brewers, producing both normal and low abv beers, put everything through the same kit. Which might not be particularly suited to lower abv.

They'll try & convince you it's magic. But, basically they try to get the initial porridge to churn out (long chain) sugars which the yeast has more difficulty turning into alcohol. So, bad news for us diabetics, less alcohol is likely to mean more sugar.

There's the dilemma right there. A switchback ride around either alcohol or sugar. FFS.

The Original Small Beer IPA at 2.3%