The Steel City Derby between Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship on Sunday (10 November) was a fiery affair.
The Blades came out on top with a narrow 1-0 win thanks to Tyrese Campbell’s second-half winner. But the game was marred with some unnecessary, disgusting things in the stand.
With this being the first game between these two teams since 2019, tensions were high at Bramall Lane. A healthy group of Sheffield Wednesday fans travelled for the stadium and some looked to be find ways to intentionally rile up their rival teams’ supporters.
Of course, Sheffield United and their fans are still in shock with the sudden demise of former defender George Baldock in October.
The English full-back suffered a tragic death while playing for Panathinaikos and even Chelsea paid a poignant tribute for him in a recent Europa Conference League clash.
For some Sheffield Wednesday supporters, Baldock’s death was a way of triggering their opposition supporters.
One Sheffield Wednesday supporter tried to mock the home fans by mouthing off some abuses at them before showing off his phone screen that had the words ‘Where’s Baldock?’ written on it.
To their credit, Sheffield Wednesday have immediately distanced themselves from this particular fan. They’ve promised to work with the police to find the perpetrator, claiming: “The club are aware of an image circulating on social media and roundly condemn this abhorrent act. We are working together with South Yorkshire Police on an immediate investigation and make it absolutely clear that there is no place in football or society for such appalling behaviour.”
The Sheffield United fans on X (Twitter) were quick to try and know the identity of this particular Sheffield Wednesday supporter. Well, it turns out a few online detectives have done so in rather admirable fashion. This vile Sheffield Wednesday supporter is a person named Brandon Pedryc.
Brandon even had a picture of him alongside Sheffield Wednesday supporters and a post which appeared to be a person beating someone else up.
A bit more digging makes it appear that Brandon actually works for the River Stewardship Company in Yorkshire. It is a watercourse maintenance company that helps to keep the rivers clean in the area.
Any Reds who follow me, or just any humans with an ounce of decency please share and report Brandon Pedryc and his mates to @syptweeet and @swfc . Him and his mates may find insulting George Baldock and his family amusing, I do not, revolting animals pic.twitter.com/CHdZD8WBP1
— Geekboymeta316 (@geekboymeta316) November 10, 2024
Well, there is a strong chance that this supporter might not have a job for long once his bosses find out what he’s done in the recent derby.
From Sheffield Wednesday’s statement, there is a chance that Brandon might be charged. Earlier this year, a fan attending a League One match between Forest Green Rovers and Fleetwood Town was jailed for racism in the stadium.
Brandon’s act might not be deemed as a criminal offence, which means he might not exactly be jailed. But Sheffield Wednesday are likely to ban him from attending any more matches once able to identify him, which is at least the minimum punishment for his abhorrent act in the derby.
