Neil Warnock and Derek McInnes prepare for Battle of Bramall Lane reunion, 22 years after the now Aberdeen and Killie managers were at loggerheads in English football’s only game to be abandoned due to a shortage of players

To the uninitiated, it seemed like just a routine match between two teams in the second tier of the English game.

West Brom’s trip to Sheffield United on March 16, 2002 was certainly not the standout match in the south that day. That was Manchester United’s away trip to West Ham (a 3-5 thriller).

In fact, it wasn’t even the biggest match in the old First Division. That was Manchester City’s hosting of Crystal Palace (1-0) as they closed in on the title.

But the events that unfolded that afternoon in South Yorkshire ensured that the match would become one of the most infamous in history. And one that will undoubtedly be revisited this week as two of the main characters, Derek McInnes and Neil Warnock, prepare to meet at Rugby Park on Saturday as managers of Kilmarnock and Aberdeen respectively.

The prologue to some unsavory scenes, called The Battle of Bramall Lane – somewhat unfairly, as there was only one side fighting – had been set in the same location a year earlier.

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Sheffield United’s match against Nottingham Forest was abandoned after eight minutes due to an aerial collision between the home team’s Georges Santos and the visitors’ Andy Johnson.

Warnock, the Blades’ manager, was aghast at why no action was taken against Johnson. Santos had to undergo a five-hour operation to repair a double fracture of his eye socket and was considering legal action.

Johnson claimed he was ‘totally blameless’. Warnock disputed that. “Another quarter inch and he’s blinded,” he said from Santos’ hospital bed.

Later that year, Johnson signed for West Brom, although he was injured when Warnock’s side – including Santos – won 1-0 at The Hawthorns on 8 December 2001.

By the time the corresponding match took place some three months later, the Baggies were in third place, while United drifted into 15th. What made the occasion even more exciting was the fact that Warnock had only been offered the job after opposite number Gary Megson turned it down – citing his affinity with Sheffield Wednesday.

What followed was breathtaking. Nine minutes later, United keeper Simon Tracey was sent off by referee Eddie Wolstenholme for deliberately handling the ball outside his penalty area. Warnock sent on substitute Wilko de Vogt for Peter Ndlovu.

With 18 minutes to go, Albion made their numerical advantage count when Scott Dobie – who was about to be called up by Scotland boss Berti Vogts – headed home a cross from none other than Johnson.

Only when the hour arrived did the fireworks begin. West Brom skipper McInnes’ spectacular strike from outside the area gave De Vogt no chance and effectively sealed the victory.

Warnock responded by withdrawing Gus Uhlenbeek and Michael Tongue. Patrick Suffo and Santos joined. “It will be interesting to see what the first challenge between Santos and Johnson looks like,” the BBC match commentator said.

Santos’ first action was to charge at a loose ball like a bull charging a red rag. Out of control, his studs hit Johnson on the shin, sending him flying into the air. It was an act of violent retaliation.

It led to a massive brawl between both groups of players. Any number could have been sent off, but Suffo’s headbutt on McInnes was the one Wolstenholme was sure he saw.

With McInnes receiving stitches to a wound above his eye, his striker became the third home player to receive his marching orders. Keith Curle could easily have been the next to throw a punch at the Scot. Likewise Michael Brown for a cynical foul to stop a counter-attack.

Wolstenholme would later admit that he kept his cards in his pocket in the hope that the game could be completed. That would be wishful thinking.

Albion’s third goal, which came in the 77th minute via a Dobie tap-in, was academic. But not so much what happened next.

Two minutes later, Brown staggered away while holding his crotch. Three minutes later, his teammate Robert Ullathorne also left the field, complaining of muscle cramps. With only six United players on the field, for the first time in the history of English professional football, the referee stopped the match because one team did not have enough players to continue.

Despite being the better team and only booking Larus Sigurdsson, Albion’s post-match celebrations were curtailed by the match’s unique ending.

The words of a Football League spokesperson did little to ease their unease. “The Football League has the power to uphold the result or order that the match be replayed,” he said.

Fearing the outcome of a crisis meeting scheduled for Thursday, Megson fumed: “There will be no repeat. When we are called back to Bramall Lane, we kick off and then walk off the field.

‘I’ve been in professional football since I was 16 and I’m now 42. I’ve never seen anything so disgraceful.’ Warnock’s first reaction was ignorance to the fact that Ullathorne’s withdrawal meant the game would be abandoned. The fact that he was a qualified referee rather undermined this.

“I wish I had gotten a word from the referee about what would happen when there were only six men left,” he said.

“I would have brought a beach chair onto the field to keep one on.”

The war of words quickly escalated. Megson sensed Warnock looking for a repeat and came back in.

‘The authorities must do the right thing. Otherwise they reward cheating,” he stormed.

‘Sheffield United didn’t do that, one person did that. The things that happened both on the field and on the line were disgraceful and have no place in football. They should be severely punished by the FA.

“People were told to get down, get off, and the referee was asked to send people off knowing that would mean the match couldn’t go ahead. It was very difficult to keep your patience.’

By the next morning, Warnock had taken a step back. He recognized too late that West Brom had to keep the three points and placed Suffo and Santos on the transfer list.

However, he flatly denied Megson’s allegations of cheating and launched a new comment.

“I completely refute that, and it’s shameful that it’s even being said,” he stated. “I can say 100 percent that I didn’t tell my players to stop. I wasn’t trying to call the game off.

‘The way it’s all come out so far, you’d think I’d be guilty of committing more crimes than Bin Laden. Anyone who knows Gary Megson knows he’s one of the biggest whiners. The way he behaves on the bench is sometimes a complete shame.’

While Megson’s team got the three points after the Football League meeting, he couldn’t get Warnock’s head on a plate. The Sheffield United manager was fined £300 by the FA for inappropriate behavior towards the fourth official but was cleared of intentional omission. His club was fined £10,000.

Brown effectively missed the remainder of the season, with Ullathorne sidelined for a month. Johnson, who accused Santos of trying to end his career, returned to the Albion squad three weeks later.

Neither Santos nor Suffo, both handed six-match bans, played for United again. Suffo soon joined Numancia, and Santos moved to Grimsby in the summer.

By then, Albion had had the last laugh – finishing second and winning automatic promotion – while United were stuck in 13th.

Warnock, of course, had the final say. “I thought people in this country are innocent until proven guilty,” he said.