Eddie Colquhoun: Remembering a Sheffield United giant known as a man of the people

It is a mark of his stature and the indelible mark he made on Sheffield United that, almost half a century after his playing time at the club came to an end, Eddie Colquhoun’s name continues to be sung around Bramall Lane.
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Tributes have been paid to the Scottish centre-half, immortalised in the terrace chant alongside fellow Lane greats Alan Woodward and Tony Currie, after his sad recent passing, at the age of 78.

The captain of one of the greatest sides in United’s history, the promotion squad of 1970/71, Colquhoun made 433 appearances for the Blades in all, scoring 23 times. A glowing tribute from the Blades described Colquhoun as being “carved out of Scottish granite … with the heart of the lion on his country’s coat of arms … but his warmth and generosity was, and is, legendary.”

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Those close to Colquhoun remember not only a giant on the field but a loyal and decent man who did not court attention. After retiring from football, following a spell in America with Detroit Express and Washington Diplomats under Ken Furphy after leaving United, he ran a Post Office in Conisbrough and spent hours in the local working men’s club recalling stories from his playing days.

A famous photograph shows him, to put it politely, getting to grips with Frank Lampard Snr. in a game against West Ham, and the great Currie remembered Colquhoun as a “tough-as-teak Scotsman who took no prisoners and led the team by example”. Despite often declining the invitation to join his teammates on their regular Monday nights out, to Sheffield pubs and the Penny Farthing nightclub on Eyre Street, one of the most iconic photographs of Colquhoun’s United career shows him celebrating promotion in 1971 with a cigarette in one hand and a bottle of champagne in the other.

United historian John Garrett described Colquhoun as “a man of principle” who was not one to dwell on former glories once his playing days came to an end. Despite his standing at Bramall Lane, players in his era did not earn vast sums and Colquhoun balanced his football career with business interests including a fleet of lorries, after a Blades fan and owner of a local firm offered to put him through his HGV licence training.

Garrett remembered one of Colquhoun’s drivers once failing to turn up for work and the United man deciding he had enough time to deliver the load, and make it back to Bramall Lane in time for that afternoon’s game. All was going well until a breakdown threatened to throw the plan into disarray – with Colquhoun driving to the ground in his newly-fixed lorry and making it into the dressing room with 15 minutes to spare before kick-off.

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It was a sign of the times, as was Colquhoun’s presence behind the wheel to deliver a coachload of pensioners to Skegness for a day-trip – a day after captaining United to a top-flight victory over Coventry. A humble man who did not care for the relative trappings of the fame that being United’s captain brought, Colquhoun was awarded an FA Cup medal at Stoke despite missing the final with a broken leg but kept precious few mementoes on display at home and was in no way bitter or resentful at the thought of what a player of his career and capabilities would have been worth, or earned, all these years later.

Eddie Colquhoun with a picture of his Sheffield United 1970-71 side celebrating promotion at a reunion dinner at Bramall LaneEddie Colquhoun with a picture of his Sheffield United 1970-71 side celebrating promotion at a reunion dinner at Bramall Lane
Eddie Colquhoun with a picture of his Sheffield United 1970-71 side celebrating promotion at a reunion dinner at Bramall Lane

That isn’t to say that Colquhoun was not proud of his footballing achievements and as well as almost 500 Football League appearances, he was good enough to be capped 11 times for Scotland. The original tally was thought to be nine, before two games on an overseas tour in 1967 were later reclassified by the Scottish FA as full internationals.

However, because of the way the SFA handed out caps at the time – only giving them to players who appeared against the other home nations – Colquhoun did not receive a physical memento of his international career. Until 2014, that is, when he was presented with a commemorative SFA cap on stage at United’s 125th anniversary celebrations. Fittingly, Woodward and Currie joined him on stage along with fellow Scottish international Stuart McCall, the former Blade who was at Motherwell at the time and dashed back after a game to make the emotional presentation.

Colquhoun knew nothing about the gesture and as he stood in front of 1,000 cheering fans, could not find the words to describe his emotions. But there were likely fewer prouder people in the whole of his adopted South Yorkshire that evening, and further proof of how the man forged from Edinburgh granite had been taken to United hearts.

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The grandfather of Rotherham United star Ben Wiles, Colquhoun was, in Currie’s eyes, “a real stalwart – bloody great in the air, deceptively speedy and could read the game.” High praise indeed from a fellow Blades legend and a close pal, a friendship between a London boy and a son of Scotland who found homes somewhere in the middle right here in the Steel City.

Sheffield United's 1970-71 promotion-winning team at a reunion dinner at Bramall Lane. Back row, left to right: Frank Barlow, Tony Currie, Geoff Salmons, Alan Woodward, Colin Addison, Ted Hemsley, Geoff Goodall (physio). Front row: Len Badger, David Ford, Billy Dearden, Eddie ColquhounSheffield United's 1970-71 promotion-winning team at a reunion dinner at Bramall Lane. Back row, left to right: Frank Barlow, Tony Currie, Geoff Salmons, Alan Woodward, Colin Addison, Ted Hemsley, Geoff Goodall (physio). Front row: Len Badger, David Ford, Billy Dearden, Eddie Colquhoun
Sheffield United's 1970-71 promotion-winning team at a reunion dinner at Bramall Lane. Back row, left to right: Frank Barlow, Tony Currie, Geoff Salmons, Alan Woodward, Colin Addison, Ted Hemsley, Geoff Goodall (physio). Front row: Len Badger, David Ford, Billy Dearden, Eddie Colquhoun

Their shared song will be sung even louder at Bramall Lane on Tuesday night against Bristol City; even more poignantly, with promotion back to the top flight (hopefully) soon once again.

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