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UNITED we stand! (go back to the homepage) The McCaskill family joined 4,000 fellow fans at Bloomfield Road to cheer on their favourite football team – Manchester's other United. Stuart and Clare and their two children Megan, nine, and Alex, five, are among the army of one-time Old Trafford diehards who no longer get their kicks out of watching Wayne Rooney and Co. The Cleveleys' family's new idols FC United play 10 levels below the Old Trafford superstars in the North-West Counties League, where the visitors' phenomenal following meant hard-up Blackpool Mechanics netted a £10,000 payday – despite losing 4-2. Crowds Formed in the summer by disgruntled Man Utd supporters unhappy at the buyout by American Malcolm Glazer, the breakaway club are pulling in bigger crowds than several Football League clubs. That includes Bury, where the part-timers play home games. The McCaskills, from Leicester Avenue, rarely miss home or away. Stuart followed Man Utd from the age of six, but said: "Glazer was the final straw after a build-up over the years. Watching them means as much as Man Utd used to." Stuart, 46, says it costs less than £20 to go to a home game now, rather than the £80 to £100 it did at Old Trafford. "Old Trafford fans are being distanced from the players. Here you see the team arriving and there's no problem if you want autographs or a photo," Stuart added. Saturday's match was watched by some 4,300 after it was switched from Mechs' Common Edge ground, where attendances rarely reach three figures. Tommy Baldwin, chairman for 16 years, said the anticipated profit of £10,000 would guarantee the club's future for the next four or five years. "It was a carnival atmosphere and Blackpool FC did a tremendous job staging the game." Andy Hughes, 50, is now chairman of the Bury branch of FC United's supporters' club. A combination of Glazer – and being unable to afford taking his son – killed a lifelong passion for the Reds. "FC United takes over your life, more so than with Man Utd because you are involved. It's our club, it belongs to us. We've got an input. "We've a close affinity with the players. They are normal guys like ourselves." Oldham schoolboy James Talbot, 14, said: "My dad introduced me to the FC United players and I've gone home and away since. Man Utd cost me about £30. At FC United I pay £2 and some games are free." Five people were arrested after fights broke out in pubs across Blackpool following the match. Police were called to The Auctioneer on Lytham Road, South Shore, at 5pm to disperse a group of 50 fans. There were several arrests at the Waterloo pub for drunk and disorderly behaviour while a 20-strong group was asked to leave Finns Bar in Talbot Square around 11pm. All five were released without charge. |
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