War Of The Roses

Elland Road is buzzing. At the Leeds city centre, fireworks are going off. Leeds have returned to the Premier League after 16 years. It’s a city that loves it’s football. A massive one-club city. And the first chant that goes off after the famous ‘Marching On Together’ is ‘Are you watching Manchester’. Rewind back thirty years when United were visiting Leeds thrice over an eighteen day December period dubbed the famous ‘Winter Trilogy’ and you’d find that the buzz, the thrill, the excitement,  the hatred, the rivalry to be the same. The Roses Derby will never lose vigour.

The roots of this rivalry though is cultural, unlike the ones United share with Liverpool or Bolton. The rivalry originates from the strong enmity between the historic counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire, which is popularly believed to have its origins in the War of the Roses of the 15th century a series of English Civil Wars for control of the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival cadet branches of the royal Houses: the House Of Lancaster, represented by a red rose and the House of York represented by a white rose. 

As if almost poetically, two brothers Jack and Bobby Charlton shared the same dining table for meals while captaining Leeds and Manchester United respectively. The glamorous Manchester United side under Sir Busby played Revie’s ‘Dirty Leeds’ 19 times and managed to win only twice. Leeds denied United the title in ‘71 on the final day, pipped them to win it on the final day in ‘92 with Howard Wilkinson in charge. United took Cantona off them and that would be the fire starter for a 20-year period of dominance. It has always had it’s moments, the derby, the tackle by Alfie Halaand- Erling’s father, on Roy Keane, the Cantona celebration, the benching of Beckham, the FA Cup third round victory at Old Trafford, the Munich chants, the Istanbul ones, the title races, the relegations, this fixture has seen it all. It’s bigger than City, it’s arguably bigger than Liverpool, there has forever been a white thorn in a Red Rose and vice-versa.

They talk about it for years, they remember it for months. It matters almost too much when Leeds and Manchester go toe to toe. And when they do, there’s only ever one thing on the agenda – war (2/2)