Steel City derby updates, kick-off 7.45pm GMTBen Fisher: diverging rivals test their mettleThe Fiver: John Ashdown previews the gameYou can email Niall your thoughts or tweet @niallmcveigh 6.53pm GMT Tonight.Hysteria? Different Class? Mistakes, misfits?Erm.Pour some sugar on me? Maybe that last one doesn’t work.#sufc #swfc #SteelCityDerby pic.twitter.com/i98dmIfCO1Sheffield is a famously musical city, but Wednesday definitely win in the band-fan stakes. Def Lep singer Joe Elliott joins Paul Heaton and, weirdly, Flea in the red corner. The blue corner can boast Jarvis Cocker, Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, half of the Human League and one-fifth of the Jackson Five (Jermaine, who also has a soft spot for QPR). 5.52pm GMT From Der Klassiker to the Superclásico via the Manchester derby, it’s a red-letter weekend for those of us fortunate enough to like football. It’s starting early too, thanks to a Friday night Sheffield derby under the lights at Bramall Lane. But does it meet the six-step Proper Derby Test?1) Proximity Grounds less than five miles apart, in the same city. Next question.2) History These two first faced off in 1890 and have been battling for city-wide supremacy ever since. This will be their 143rd meeting.3) Competitiveness Second to none. United have won 49, Wednesday 48, with 45 draws. Both teams have bounced around the divisions but these games are almost always close. The last proper thrashing belonged to Wednesday in 1979, while United’s 4-2 win last season was the biggest by either side in a decade.4) Colours Red and white, blue and white. Absolutely textbook.5) High stakes In the 21st century, only United have played top flight – and that was just one, Carlos Tevez-blighted season. Wednesday had seemed closer to the promised land in recent seasons but as they have dropped, United have climbed. They’ll go top with a win and condemn Wednesday to a fifth straight loss. All of which means defeat for either side is an even grimmer prospect than usual.6) The name Come on. The Steel City Derby. It sounds like a deleted scene from Mad Max. Who wants to miss that? Kick-off is at 7.45pm, GMT. Continue readingreadfullarticle
