The 1990s - A golden age for football in Sheffield and beyond

The previous decade had seen football on the decline – hooliganism was rife, attendances had fallen, many people seemingly falling out of love with the game. Add to that the Bradford Fire, the events at Heysel and the Hillsborough Disaster, and football was not in a good place.

Lord Taylor’s Report, set up in the wake of the Hillsborough Disaster, had key recommendations – including clubs in the top two divisions had to convert their grounds to all-seated. Comfort and safety of supporters at the top of the agenda for the first time.

And in Sheffield – the Kop at Hillsborough and the Leppings Lane terrace made all-seated, the Grandstand built. At Bramall Lane the Shoreham Street Kop and Bramall Lane terrace made all seated, the John Street Stand and terrace demolished, replaced with an all-seated stand.

Over the decade across the country the football landscape changed like never before. Add to that the breakaway of the top clubs from the century old Football League, to form the Premier League. The financial benefits to those clubs based on the huge television contracts for live and exclusive broadcasting of games by the subscription-based Sky television. The game took off.

In Sheffield the two city clubs played their first league derby in the top flight for the first time in 23 years in 1991/92. They wanted and needed to be part of the breakaway from the Football League.

The two clubs in the top flight for three seasons before United’s relegation – those three seasons and the Blades had the upper hand in the league derbies.

The biggest derby of all – the FA Cup Semi-Final at Wembley in April 1993 – the old stadium bedecked with blue and white, red and white favours. The colour, the atmosphere, the noise, a never to be forgotten day – one that prompted TV commentator Barry Davies to remark “Wembley has never seen anything like it”. Spoils on the day to the Owls with a 2-1 win.

And the decade as a whole for Wednesday their most successful in recent memory – League Cup winners in 1991, losing finalists in the FA Cup and League Cup in 1993. European football. Players of the quality of David Hirst, Roland Nilsson, John Sheridan, Carlton Palmer, Benito Carbone, Paolo Di Canio.

The riches of the Premier League and the Bosman ruling in 1995 (no transfer fee required at the end of a player’s contract) encouraged and enabled top players in Europe to join Premier League clubs.

For supporters it was not all upside. Prices to enter grounds sky-rocketed. In the top flight over the decade prices increased substantially – at Hillsborough prices for an adult on the Kop increased from £4.50 to £8, and in the North Stand from £8 to £24.

At Bramall Lane a marked increase but less so given was in the second tier in the second half of the decade.

Increases in prices or not attendances grew in the 1990s across the country. In Sheffield in 1989/90 Wednesday had an average attendance of 20930 reaching a decade high of 29560, and for United an average attendance of 16989 rising to a decade high of 22097.

All this and more can be found in the new book “What Was Football Like In The 1990s?” (Pitch Publishing) by Richard Crooks