This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/oct/21/sheffield-united-yeovil-championship

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Sheffield United go fourth after Yeovil win but Ched Evans’ spectre looms Sheffield United overcome Yeovil but Ched Evans’ spectre looms large
(about 1 hour later)
Less than three minutes into the game the first murmurs of “Super Chedwyn Evans” emanated from the Kop housing Sheffield United fans. You had to strain to hear them but they were there and the chants were repeated later in the first half, although barely audible. Nigel Clough celebrates a year in charge of Sheffield United with his team in the League One play-off positions following a 2-0 victory over Yeovil.
It was in contrast to the derby at Bradford on Saturday when a vocal minority chanted in support of Evans, who had been released from prison 36 hours earlier after serving half of his five-year sentence following his conviction for rape. Marc McNulty and Jamie Murphy scored the goals that lifted them into sixth position and afterwards Clough spoke about the match as well as his year in charge, but there is one question that hung in the air and is not going to go away any time soon. The possible return to the club of Ched Evans.
On Tuesday night there were no Welsh flags – only one with ‘Sheffield’s Red & White’ emblazoned upon it passed along the Kop as the Blades looked to claim three points and push for the promotion the bookies had backed them for in preseason. The former Wales international was released from prison last Friday after serving half of a five-year sentence for rape. Now he wants to return to football and Sheffield United in particular with the club, who paid £3m for him in 2009 and saw him score 48 goals in 113 appearances, yet to make any definitive statement bar the fact they are deliberating.
Instead there was a minute’s applause in the seventh minute for two Sheffield children who have recently passed away. The game itself was settled by a goal in each half for Sheffield United. Marc McNulty opening the scoring in the 14th minute and Jamie Murphy’s 67th-minute effort sending the home fans away happy as Nigel Clough’s side moved up to fourth. While they do so, it is Clough who faces the questions and he was the epitome of calm after a storm of emotion, argument and debate over the past week. “We are just focused on what we are doing. There is no hurry to make any decision either way,” the manager said. “Everybody is just going to take time to make sure every angle is considered. We are just concentrating on the games, it doesn’t affect the football side, honestly. We just pick the team and get on with that side of things.”
But the subject of Evans is not going away. The centre forward, who left Manchester City in search of first-team football and joined Sheffield United in 2009 for £3m, had proved a valuable asset to the South Yorkshire club, scoring 48 goals in 113 appearances. However the player was found guilty of rape in April 2012, although he has consistently proclaimed his innocence. Having been refused leave to appeal in 2012, the Criminal Cases Review Commission has now fast-tracked an investigation into whether there are grounds to refer the case to the Court of Appeal. Clough knows he is not going to be able to always avoid the Evans question. “Ideally we would like to be talking about the two last clean sheets we’ve had and a couple of great victories and being in the top six now,” he said. “It’s the same answer, I’m afraid: when the club makes a decision or has something to say, they’ll say it.”
The debate about a possible return to the Blades began in the latter stages of last season. It gathered pace during the summer with online petitions for and against a return by the player and reached a crescendo last week across national TV, radio and print media. What Clough has done for Sheffield United cannot be underestimated. He became the club’s seventh permanent manager in a little under six and a half years and inherited a team struggling in 21st place in League One.
Opinions are polarised. For some he has served his time and should be rehabilitated, others point to a lack of accountability while there have been calls for Evans never to play again. And under him the wheels started turning as United finished seventh as well as producing an heroic performance before losing 5-3 to Hull in the FA Cup semi-final, witnessed by more than 32,000 Blades fans at Wembley. Importantly, he has also brought harmony to the club, on the pitch and in the stands. However the question of Evans – who has consistently proclaimed his innocence – has put the club back into the spotlight.
A war of words has become increasingly ferocious – some of it downright disturbing – with social media a febrile feeding ground for some. On Saturday a vocal minority of Blades fans chanted in support of Evans, much to the disgust of others. Last night there were murmurs of ‘Super Chedwyn Evans’ from the Kop after less than three minutes and they were repeated in the first half before a louder burst in the second.
Evans left Wymott Prison at 5am last Friday. A message was posted on the campaign website run by family and friends that he would “continue the fight to clear his name”. On Saturday, Sheffield United were forced to deny reports he had already been offered a two-year contract. Indeed the loudest moment at Bramall Lane before the arrival of the first goal came in the seventh minute with a minute’s applause for two Sheffield children who had passed away.
An interview appeared the following day in which Evans expressed remorse at cheating on his girlfriend although his campaigners have said it was conducted in March 2013 and not subsequent to his release. The flag that made an appearance on the Kop had ‘Sheffield’s Red & White’ emblazoned upon it rather than a Wales one.
Now the identity of the victim has reportedly been revealed again.Evans wants to return to the game and to the Blades specifically, but the club have as yet made no definitive statement except to say that they are deliberating the matter. While they are doing so it means Clough will continue to have to field questions while maintaining it remains a decision to be made at board level. It helped that the team were ahead after less than 15 minutes. Given there were 155 Yeovil fans in the crowd of 19,353 there was little room for taunting from the opposition fans.
More than 19,000 fans at a League One match on a Tuesday is evidence of a loyal and large fan base. While the owners are deliberating it would be worth them remembering what went before and how the harmony brought to the club by Clough can underpin success.