Ernest ‘Nudger’ Needham died this day in 1936 : Sheffield United’s greatest ever player?

Book out now : A History of Sheffield Football 1857-1889 : Speed, Science and Bottom  http://bit.ly/2qYw0r0

Ernest Needham was born at Whittington Manor on 21st January 1873 and died on the 8th March 1936. He played local football for Waverley and Staveley before joining Sheffield United in 1892 and played an important role in the club’s promotion to the First Division of the Football League.He won his first international cap against Scotland on 7th April, 1894. In the 1896-97 season Sheffield United were runners-up behind the double-winning Aston Villa. Sheffield United, led by Ernest Needham, won the First Division championship of the Football League in the 1897-1898 season. The club struggled the following year in the league but the team beat Derby County in the 1899 FA Cup Final.In the 1899-1900 season Sheffield United had the best defensive record in the league, the club finished in second place to Aston Villa.The following season Needham was a member of the Sheffield United team that reached the 1901 FA Cup Final against Tottenham Hotspur, the game ended in a 2-2 draw, with Spurs winning the replay 3-1. Needham was a member of the Sheffield United team that played Southampton in the 1902 FA Cup Final,which United won 2-1.Ernest Needham played his last international game for England on 3rd March, 1902. Over a eight year period he won 16 international caps and scored three goals for his country. Needham retired from professional football in 1909. During his time at Sheffield United he scored 49 goals in 464 games. He continued to play cricket for Derbyshire in the County Cricket Championship until 1912,scoring 6550 runs.

This is an image from the 1905 Book of Football magazine that is for sale at http://bit.ly/2HaCp9G

In the February 2018 edition of the Flashing Blade fanzine the editor analysed Sheffield United records to try to gauge who was Sheffield United’s best ever player. He did this by awarding  points for what players over the years achieved -so for example winning the FA Cup and League Championships. The winner by some distance was Nudger Needham.

Book out now : A History of Sheffield Football 1857-1889 : Speed, Science and Bottom  http://bit.ly/2qYw0r0

Biography detail from Wikipedia