When my lad said he wanted to be a goalie, to say I was happy is an understatement.
Having being a keeper when I was younger though, I knew how on edge I’d be when I was watching him. The responsibility of being a keeper can’t be explained to a seven year old though. It’s unlikely that it can even be fully understood by a young teenager.
My lad’s never been one for watching sport. Football’s no different. He’s always preferred playing, taking part and having an effect on the outcome of the result. It was something that worried me when he was younger because I always thought he needed to see the pro’s performing and see how it should be done. I wanted him to watch keepers all the time. I was desperate for him to absorb the best attributes from each keeper so he could put it all into his own game.
Don’t get me wrong, he watches matches with me at Bramall Lane. We’re season ticket holders and have been for the last few years as the Blades have gone from spending time in League 1, to slugging it out with the best teams in the land in the Premier League. At times, the games, performances and the atmosphere have been on another level to what had been in front of us in previous seasons.
But, especially as he’s got older, I don’t think he’d have kicked up that much fuss if I’d said we weren’t getting season tickets the following year. He’d probably rather be trying to stop his mates scoring past him on the rec, than sitting with his old man. That’s just a part of us both getting older. A natural progression I suppose.
As he’s grown, I’ve been there. I’ve watched him, I’ve coached him, I’ve laughed, I’ve cried, I’ve been ecstatic and I’ve felt physically sick.
While ever he wants me coaching him, I will, as long as I think I can do him justice by pushing him and improving his game. But, as with us watching United, I know if he carries on playing, his old man will gradually move into the background. I’ll be sad but we’ve had some great times training together and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to be part of his football.
As and when that happens I’ll go back to just watching him, as his biggest fan, with the biggest knot in my stomach, hoping that he doesn’t make a mistake and cost his team a game. But I know it’ll happen at some point.
That’s the keeper’s lot.
We all make mistakes. That’s part of being human. The mistake of a keeper though, generally leads to conceding a goal and potentially losing a game.
Rewinding back a few years, one of our visits to Bramall Lane was very different to the rest. We won a raffle. Thanks to Matt, one of the other dads (a Supporter Liaison Officer at Bramall Lane) one of the prizes in the raffle at his first grassroots club was to be a matchday mascot for the Sheffield United v Scunthorpe United game on the last day of the 2015/16 season.
As far as United were concerned, it proved to be a pivotal match in their recent history. It was the final game before the appointment of Chris Wilder who took the club on an upward trajectory almost immediately.
As far as Pat and me were concerned, it was a real one off. A chance to go beyond the usual matchday experience, see the build up and meet the manager and players.
He had his favourites of course.
Billy Sharp is a living legend for Blades fans and the opportunity to meet him was amazing. Next in line was another Sheffield lad, George Long. United’s keeper. As a young keeper in a less than consistent team, he’d had highs but also lows. And although they were in League 1 – and had been for a few seasons – United’s average home attendance was just less than 20,000. At 22 years of age, Long had his fair share of critics in the crowd and they didn’t hold back in letting him know.
Pat, by this point already part of the ‘goalkeeper’s union’, wouldn’t have cared who was United’s number 1 but the fact that it was a young, local lad wasn’t lost on him. He was in awe.
As Pat was ushered round the changing room to have his photo taken with the rest of the squad, his eyes lit up when he was plonked in between two of the younger lads. On his right was David Brooks, who would prove to be one of the most skilful and entertaining players to play for United in quite a few years.
On his left was the substitute keeper, just a few days short of his 18th birthday. Aaron Ramsdale.
From that point on, we followed the progress of both the lads. Brooks played his part in the rise of the Blades to the Premier League before being sold to Bournemouth, with Ramsdale going out on loan to Chesterfield and then AFC Wimbledon, before reuniting with Brooks in the Premier League with the Cherries.
Obviously being a keeper meant we kept a keen eye on Ramsdale, particularly on the first day of the 2019/20 season, after United had returned to the Premier League, with Billy Sharp snatching a late equaliser against Bournemouth. Bournemouth were eventually relegated but week in, week out, on Match of the Day, Ramsdale looked to be performing well, albeit overworked. He was eventually voted Player of the Year by their supporters.
Back at United, with Dean Henderson’s second loan season over and a permanent deal not being an option, the Blades had to look elsewhere. Step forward Aaron Ramsdale. United offered him an immediate return to the Premier League, but it cost them. He signed a four year deal for £18.5 million. £17.5 more than he was sold for. A big price tag.
The new season was in complete contrast to the overachievement of the previous year.
The return to football behind closed doors in the previous season saw United struggle without fans pushing them on. The new season also gave United the added headaches of injuries, having previously had an almost unchanged team.
As before with George, it didn’t take long for Aaron to be the object of some fans discontent. He was immediately compared to Henderson. An unfair comparison. Playing behind an ever changing back line with the long term injury to Jack O’Connell is hardly ideal for a new keeper.
Maybe the fact that fans are still not in the ground has amplified things but social media has become an apparent free for all, with Ramsdale feeling required to post apologies for some of his performances.
This, from a lad, although not hailing from Sheffield, was seen to be ‘coming home’ due to being a product of United’s academy.
At the time of writing, he’s made the joint 2nd most saves in the Premier League which proves two things: 1) he knows what he’s doing and 2) he’s facing a lot of shots.
Football is a game of opinions.
A few times on Twitter I’ve felt the need to defend Ramsdale either because I don’t agree with what’s being said, or because the other person has little or no grasp of goalkeeping. And sometimes you learn to avoid it. As the saying goes, “don’t argue with an idiot, they’ll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience”.
Once or twice, after the event, I’ve been told about comments towards my lad during games. Not just from the opposition. By one of our own player’s dads on one occasion – when he was 14. It hurts, there’s no denying it.
What strikes me is that my lad is playing at a vastly different level to Aaron Ramsdale, but he isn’t that much younger than him. Ramsdale is 22 and has his best years in front of him.
Whether it’s a professional footballer, or a lad playing grassroots, they don’t go out there to make mistakes on purpose. I guess some people looking on, thrive on pulling other people down though.
Keepers always have been and always will be easy targets. A forward can score 1 chance in 10 and he’s a hero. A keeper can make 1 error and he’s automatically a liability.
I’ll always back my lad, even if he’s having a below par spell because mentally he’s strong and knows he has to deal with it. Instantly.
Obviously I don’t know Aaron Ramsdale anything like as well as my lad but I know he wouldn’t be where he is now if he wasn’t made of the right stuff. Off the back of the game against Man Utd, where ironically Henderson helped the Blades into an early lead, United play Brighton today and we’ll be hoping for 3 points and a clean sheet for one of our heroes.
That’s after Pat’s played, where I’m hoping for the same, obviously.
If you’re a Blade, please get behind our keeper and keep the faith.
Keeper of the faith 