Billy Sharp’s Sheffield United story would not be out of place in a Roy of the Rovers comic, so it was fitting he should mark their return to the second tier with a match-winning goal.
A Blades fan born and bred and now in his third spell at the club, Sharp scored 30 times last season as Chris Wilder’s side were promoted as League One champions at a canter. At a sunny Bramall Lane, the United captain headed home a cross from Leon Clarke in the 39th minute before celebrating with the kind of gusto that underlined his love for the team he has supported since childhood.
United have spent the past six seasons in the relative abyss of the third tier but Wilder, himself a Sheffield lad and “Unitedite”, has succeeded where others before him failed.
Like Sharp, home was where the heart was for Wilder and he quit his job as Northampton boss in May 2016 and signed a three-year deal with the Blades. United have not looked back since. They finished last season with 100 points, scoring 92 goals.
Putting your head in where it hurts has been the Blades’ mantra under Wilder and sure enough, shortly after nodding in what proved to be the winner, Sharp clashed heads with Brentford captain John Egan and had to be bandaged up. He left the field 12 minutes from time to a standing ovation.
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“Billy’s goal record speaks for itself and when the ball went in the box, he was there and it was a great finish,” Wilder said. “It was a fabulous feeling for him to score and I think he will get better with age.
“You look at strikers in the Championship like [David] Nugent ,who has had a fantastic career, and they tend to blossom later on. Hopefully Billy can.”
Wilder’s men hit the post through debutant Enda Stevens and saw efforts from Sharp and Clarke disallowed early in the second half.
Since their promotion to the second tier in May 2014, Brentford have achieved highly respectable finishes of fifth, ninth and 10th. They continued to probe for an equaliser here as the second half wore on, but they hit the bar on one occasion and United’s on-loan Chelsea goalkeeper Jamal Blackman kept them at bay with some fine saves.
They pushed hard for an equaliser during the three minutes of stoppage time but Wilder’s men held out.
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Dean Smith, Brentford’s head coach, said: “Billy Sharp has one chance and he’s scored, but that’s what he does. Sheffield United are a good organised team and they made it very difficult for us, which we expected. We had some good chances but we just didn’t take them and that was the difference.”
Opposite number Wilder paid tribute to the club’s loyal supporters in a huge crowd of 26,746. “This is a football city and we’ve had it tough for the past six years, so this was reward for the fans for their outstanding loyalty and love of their football club which they have showed through thick and thin,” he said.
Star man: Jamal Blackman (Sheff Utd)
Referee: S Martin
Attendance: 26,746