The Damned United

Last night I saw the Damned United, which I'd been looking forward to seeing for some time. I lived near the Baseball Ground and supported Derby from a very young age so can remember this period very clearly. The La Gondola restaurant - which my grandad owned was also nearby and often the players used to come to visit. Happy days. Even today the Clough legend lives on, especially now that young Nigel is the manager.

I really enjoyed the film and hearing the Derby fans chanting as the credits rolled did bring a tear to my eye. I can understand why the book upset the Clough family, but the film was a very affectionate portrayal. There were inaccuracies, but the central characters were brilliant - particularly Clough, Longson and Revie. However, I didn't think Timothy Spall was particularly convincing as Peter Taylor. You forget how grim and miserable the 70s were and this comes across really well.

Some of the real life footage was excellent too, especially the Derby team scoring goals and seeing the 'real' Clough appear at the end was a nice touch too. It was a less than flattering portrayal of Leeds. But they always were a dirty team weren't they.