Sam, David and Riley run through their pre-season predictions. Many were bad. Some were very bad. The rest? They were less bad. Join us to roast our past hot takes and toast the closing of the 25-26 season.

Take a trip down Memory Lane, walk past Better Day Alley, swing a left by Wistful Road, then a right by Sentimentality Street, then arrive on Commentary Corner. You have reached your destination: here there be Mann and Motson and more.

Leave a comment

Cutting a squad is easy in theory, until you actually start doing it and realise it’s actually quite hard, in theory. In Part Two, Sam, David and Riley turn to the contracted core of Sheffield United and ask the uncomfortable questions: who do you build around, who do you cash in on and who simply isn’t worth keeping? From the Sydie Peck dilemma to the Gustavo Hamer debate, this is where the rebuild becomes trickier.

In this episode of Memory Lane, we revisit some of Sheffield United’s most iconic commentary moments: the lines that instantly bring goals, players, and matches flooding back.

Joined by commentator Chris MacMillan, we explore what makes great football commentary before diving into the calls that have defined Blades memories. From unforgettable goals to perfectly delivered one-liners, this is a celebration of the voices behind the moments — mostly, Daniel Mann.

This episode covers Chris’ pick from 14-8. Next week we’ll cover 7-1.

Leave a comment

Chris Wilder has already spoken about cutting 15 players — but when you factor in expiring deals, returning loanees and outgoings, the true scale of Sheffield United’s rebuild is far bigger.

In the first part of this Squad Reset podcast, we’re looking at who is either returning from loan or whose deals are expiring.

On this episode of Hang It in the Louvre, we welcome lifelong Blade David Pendlebury into the Pinch Wing to curate his three defining Sheffield United images. From a wide-eyed first view of Bramall Lane in the late ’80s, to the eerie emptiness of lockdown football and Chris Wilder at his lowest, to one of the most visceral moments in modern Blades history—Basham arriving at Elland Road.

David’s back: hooray.

The Blades’ season is cooked: boo.

In the latest Formline pod we review the Easter weekend and take stock of where Sheffield United are right now. We get into the full-back situation, what’s working (and what isn’t), and dig into a strange pattern — why United look so comfortable at 0-0 but struggle when ahead.

In this episode of Memory Lane, Ben Meakin joins Andrew and Sam to revisit Sheffield United’s infamous FA Cup tie with Arsenal, and the extraordinary (literally) decision to replay the game.

From Kanu’s controversial goal to Arsène Wenger’s and David Dean’s offer to do it all again, we unpack the fallout of a true “you’ll never sing that” moment.

Leave a comment

Part Two of our Q&A special with the LEGENDS Ben Meakin and Andrew Hague.

We dig into Chris Wilder’s future, long-term planning, recruitment strategy, and whether United should stick with stability or take a bigger swing - plus the usual tangents along the way.

Thanks as ever for listening!

Oh, and if you don’t already, sign up to Ben’s Substack here:

Women of Steel

Covering Sheffield United Women in 2023/24 and beyond.

By Ben Meakin

In this episode of Memory Lane, Andrew, Sam and David dive into the world of Sheffield United players you may have forgotten ever played for the club.

From brief loans and reserve appearances to names that barely registered at the time, we each build our own XIs and try to settle on the most forgettable Blades players of the modern era.

Leave a comment

First off, we’ve not recorded Part Two yet — so if you’ve got any questions, drop them in the comments, on Twitter, or by replying to any Pinch email.

Leave a comment

In Part One of our Q&A special, we’re joined by Ben Meakin and Andrew Hague to tackle your questions… but also some of mine (Sam). We traverse the expected: Chris Wilder’s future and all-round long-term strategy, and the unexpected: air fryer chat and Mount Fuji hypotheticals.

Part Two will likely be a little longer. As you may notice, there’s some patchy audio towards the end where Andrew briefly turns into a Dalek or, if you prefer, a RoyBot. So we cut this one a touch short.

Thanks as ever for listening!

In this episode of Memory Lane, we take a nostalgic trip through the history of Sheffield United shirt sponsors from Cantor’s and Arnold Laver to the bizarre and short-lived deals along the way.

Joined by David Beeden (Deadbat), we explore United’s early role in football sponsorship, the 27 brands to feature on the shirt, and the stories behind them. Of course, DB’s only gone and done us a quiz to kick it all off…

Let us know your memories in the comments.

Leave a comment

Have things actually dipped, or just feel like they have?

Sam and Riley dig into the numbers behind the last 10 games, where results have improved (really!?) but underlying performances tell a more complicated story. From being outshot regularly to conceding too many chances, we explore whether this is a genuine drop-off or just regression to the mean.

There’s also a look at tactical shifts under Wilder, whether a more possession-heavy approach is helping or hurting, and if January signings hint at a longer-term change in direction.

Plus, we answer a couple of your listener questions — and tease a Q&A special next week with a very special guest.

Thanks for all your questions: we answered a couple and will be answering the rest next week in a Q&A special with an appropriately special guest.

Freelance football commentator Chris MacMillan joins us in the Pinch wing to nominate three Sheffield United images for eternity: a childhood Brian Deane celebration, the agony of Seaman’s save, and David Brooks humiliating Jack Hunt at Hillsborough.

Which moment deserves to hang in the Louvre?

In Part Two of Clough Actually, Andrew Hague, Sam Parry and Ben “Travelling Blade” Humphries pick up where the story left off.

After an FA Cup semi-final and a promising finish to the previous season, expectations were high for Nigel Clough’s Sheffield United. Instead, the campaign quickly descended into confusion. There were strange selections, constant team changes and a squad that never quite fit together.

Despite flashes of brilliance in the cups, the league form lurched from win to loss, momentum never arrived, and optimism slowly evaporated. As United failed in the play-offs and Clough left, what legacy did he leave behind?

Welcome to episode 3 of Memory Lane

This time, Andrew Hague is joined by Sam Parry and Ben Humphries — better known as Travelling Blade — to kick off the first part of Clough Actually, a two-part series looking back at Nigel Clough’s time at Sheffield United.

In this episode, we revisit the chaotic early months of the Clough era: a struggling League One side, a squad full of strange signings, and a team that looked destined for trouble. Along the way we discuss players like Jamie Murphy, Jose Baxter and… err, Ryan Hall, plus the impact of John Brayford’s arrival, and some unforgettable FA Cup moments.

After a solid away win at QPR, we break down Adam Davies’ performance stepping in between the sticks and ask what the data really says (or fails to say) about him. We preview the clash with West Brom and talk about why it’s all going so badly wrong for them.

Plus, in Question Time, we dive into how the Blades perform with and without Gus Hamer, discuss Jairo’s long-term future at the club, and look ahead to the summer with a conversation about who United might need to sell.

Thanks to everyone who got in touch for our “Question Time” segment we’d love to hear from you with any rabbit holes you’d like us to go down. To share your questions, you can either reply to this message or — ideally — leave us a voice note so we can add your voice to the pod.

Drop us a voice note

All questions are good questions, and we’ll try to answer as many as we can each week.

Catch you next time

UTB

Welcome to the second episode of Memory Lane

Andrew and Sam are joined by special guest Berlin Blade to look back at the 1996 Sean Bean–led When Saturday Comes. It’s a big conversation about a film that took the Blades onto the big screen. We dive into dodgy accents, Umbro jackets, 90s football culture, and the film’s gritty(?) Sheffield spirit.

Got ideas for future Memory Lane episodes? Tell us in the comments.

Leave a comment

Sam, Riley, and David are back to break down another big week for Sheffield United. The trio dig into the Blades’ historic 2–1 win over Sheffield Wednesday — a result that confirmed Wednesday’s relegation. But did the performance quite match the occasion?

Attention then turns to the frustrating 2–1 defeat vs Coventry City, before we look ahead to the upcoming clash with QPR.

We also have a 🚨 NEW FEATURE…

For our new “Question Time” segment we’d love to hear from you with any rabbit holes you’d like us to go down. To share your questions, you can either reply to this message or — ideally — leave us a voice note so we can add your voice to the pod.

Drop us a voice note

All questions are good questions, and we’ll try to answer as many as we can each week.

Catch you next time

UTB

Welcome to a new regular podcast on The Pinch

Hosted by Andrew Hague, Memory Lane will be published three times per a month on a Tuesday afternoon.

“In the very first episode of Memory Lane, we kick things off by diving into one of football’s most unpredictable fixtures: the opening day of the season. For Sheffield United fans, the first game has delivered everything from incredible debuts to ludicrous line-ups, and here we relive the highs, lows and unforgettable moments that set the tone for entire campaigns.”

Let us know what you make of our selections. We must have got something wildly wrong. Got ideas for future Memory Lane episodes? Tell us in the comments.

Leave a comment