THE JOY OF SCORING SHEFFIELD UNITED’S FIRST FIRST PREMIER LEAGUE GOAL IN 12 YEARS

BILLY SHARP was hailed as ‘Mr Sheffield United’ by manager Chris Wilder after his late equaliser against Bournemouth. Sharp earned the Blades a point after his effort in the 88th minute deflected in off defender Chris Mepham, who had earlier given Bournemouth the lead. The 33-year-old came on six minutes before equalising and Wilder said he knew there was a chance of scoring with Sharp on the pitch.

‘You’re thinking, who do you want floating about in that area?’ said Wilder. ‘It’s Mr Sheffield United and I’m delighted for him.’

It was Sharp’s 103rd goal for the Blades in his 243rd appearance.

‘I’m still a little bit speechless to be honest,’ said Sharp. ‘We’ve paid a lot of money for a lot of good strikers to keep me on my toes. We had chances today.

‘We are playing in the Premier League now and strikes win you points. We have to keep each other sharp. I was itching to get on to freshen it up a little bit. The boys were magnificent. They have done themselves proud.’ Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe also praised Sharp, adding that he always seems to be in the ‘right place

at the right time’.