The cricket pavillion

[mahatmafoot]

I can remember the Beer Keller under the pavilion ,they did not seem to be bothered about serving a 15 year old who looked about 10,so happy nights.

Criminal that such a fine building was demolished, it should have been used and preserved, alongside the new stand.Somebody should be shot for allowing it.

Can remember the old guy who's favourite saying was " Yeh barred".

[Chips1889]

For while they had a lovely restaurant and I often went for a pre-match meal. The club bar was well used as well.
When I was a kid I would run around from the Kop to the other side to watch United kick towards me.

[GrayBlade]

My memories are a bit sketchy now as I was only a kid. I was allowed (at the age of 11!) to go to games with twomates (also 11, how would you get that freedom today..?), so long as we went on the pavilion side, not in the main crowd. I remember TC's goal from 35yards vs Liverpool, I remember getting piss-wet through in a 0-0 with West Brom (nowhere to shelter...), and being annoyed when the TV cameras were there as their scaffolding obscured where TC usually was. The bloke in the white coat doing the scores on the balcony

I didn't go to cricket much, only a few games. I went to a Roses match, sat where the Copthorne is now. Watched Boycott and Hampshire (I think) open for us, and after I'd eaten my sandwiches thinking how I'd much prefer to be in the park playing than watching.

Later, as a young man, we played 5-a side in the gym on Cherry Street corner for a couple of seasons.

Ronnie. The first Mrs FKB's father had a silver share too. Used to lend it to me, but on strict instructions I went in collar and tie. Looking back I'm still not sure if he was pulling my leg..!

He wasn’t...unless it was a general joke of the silver shareholders because I was told exactly the same FKB.

[peterandliz46]

I went with my uncle in the mid fifties to watch a match Yorkshire v I can't remember bit I met Freddie Truman (my hero at the time)he'd grown a beard asked why, he was in an advert for a new electric razor!I can remember the pavilion though.

[tomytony]

Yes, I feel very lucky to have seen so many great players, long before we could see them on the tele.

I could get into the pavilion because my father owned an “original” share in the Sheffield United Cricket and Football Club. I’ve still got the silver disc somewhere, with which I could get into watch the football (standing on the terraces) but we had a little booklet issued each year which admitted 1 adult and 2 ladies or children into the pavilion for cricket matches (both Yorkshire’s 4 matches and the Sheffield United Cricket Club games). Once inside, the seats were unreserved so if you wanted to get the best seats (front row on the balcony), you had to get there early - which I usually did. I even went down on Coronation Day as Yorkshire were playing Glamorgan (I think it was) but it peed it down all day so my pal and I had a wasted journey. Although the ground was open, I think us 2 were probably the only customers there!

That's dedication Ronnie!

Yorkshire also issued small booklets to members back in the day and, obviously, I kept each and every seasons, for sentiment but they also had another use. At away grounds Yorkshire members were allowed to sit in the member's seats of the ground they were visiting. I would go with the wife and my mum and dad, holding the current season's booklet in front and the rest, from previous seasons, behind and was never challenged as 4 of us trooped in on one valid ticket.

The pavilion used to feature slightly in one of FS Trueman's after dinner anecdotes as he told the tale of beating the Windies there
.
Building up the drama of the occasion, particularly as he had been winning captain, he described the lightning paced Wes Hall's run up, saying, " He got futher back wi' each ball, in fact at t'end he were coming darn t'pavilion steps faster tha Arkle wi' 'is *rse on fire".

He also told the tale, less politically correctly, if you can believe that from Fred, of the last over which he had to bat out with Tony Nicholson, esteemed swing bowler but not remowned for his batting. They tried every tactic to delay the bowler, stepping away as the bowler hurtled towards them, tying laces to prevent a further over being squeezed in, tapping down the pot holes in the pitch and, when, exasperated, the 10 Windies outfielders crowded the bat he stepped away saying " If you buggers don't move back I shall appeal against t'bluddy light"

[Currieisgod]

Started watching first team games from the Pavillion after making my debut in reserve games on the John Street Terrace. Dad had a bad leg so didn't like being too near a big crush. Could get refreshments from inside and remember queuing with my programme coupons after a game to get FA cup tickets for Mansfield away only to be told I didn't have enough coupons! Managed to get two tickets later, we lost to 2-1 to a third division team in a cup shock that year.

In later years did a few Disco's for mates Weddings and engagements in the room upstairs. Acoustics were crap because of the very high ceiling. Watched Yorkshire a few times with my grandmother who loved the game. Fond memories of an iconic building.

I remember going to a Blades v Chelsea game in the seventies, It was a 2-00pm Kick Off due to the Power Strike and the risk of Floodlight failure.

I stood on the pavillion that day as there was no room anywhere else in the ground, I think we lost 2-1 after taking the lead.

I also remember standing on the kop and seeing a guy with brown overalls appearing from the pavillion end and it used to take him seemingly an age to get to the numbers that hung from the letter L on the Bramall Lane End and were indicating the Wednesday score as they were obviously away when we were at home.

The suspense used to kill us as we waited to see which number he would alter. Hopefully he would change the home number from a 0 to a 1 or even 2 which meant the pigs were losing.

He did this every 15 minutes or so and he was a valuable source of information in the days before Sky TV and Social Media.

The only alternative to this was to find somebody with a Transistor Radio stuck in his ear, Very popular those guys were.

UTB

[costablade]

I used to wag it off school to go and watch Yorkshire play, I once met our school sports teacher there and we agreed not to "grass" on each other - great great Yorkshire team in those day, Binks behind the stumps, Sharp in the slips, Boycott & Jack Hampshire, Illingworth, Fred (Trueman), the list goes on and on, what a team that was!!

Also remember watching the Blades v Cardiff, 42,000 crowd and promotion (I think! can't remember the score, 4-2 comes to mind), great days to be a youngster!

[boltonblade]

Where are all the late 20's early 30's lads like me who haven't got a Scooby what you're on about? It's good to hear of the old times in all seriousness though. We will start a thread like this is 20 years time and remember when the john street stand was built and it started selling chips in fancy sheff utd cones. good times haha

[BlockD]

I used to wag it off school to go and watch Yorkshire play, I once met our school sports teacher there and we agreed not to "grass" on each other - great great Yorkshire team in those day, Binks behind the stumps, Sharp in the slips, Boycott & Jack Hampshire, Illingworth, Fred (Trueman), the list goes on and on, what a team that was!!

Also remember watching the Blades v Cardiff, 42,000 crowd and promotion (I think! can't remember the score, 4-2 comes to mind), great days to be a youngster!

5-1

[tomytony]

Where are all the late 20's early 30's lads like me who haven't got a Scooby what you're on about? It's good to hear of the old times in all seriousness though. We will start a thread like this is 20 years time and remember when the john street stand was built and it started selling chips in fancy sheff utd cones. good times haha

Great memories BB and each generation has their own.Watching Yorkshire at BDBL was the catalyst to my ongoing love of cricket. Supporting the Blades was just a given.

Now I'm intrigued as to why SJH put up the original post.