Manchester United Parade

As I closed in on Manchester, from the Sheffield direction over the A628 Woodhead Pass (which just happens to be my favourite road) I could see the weather deteriorating quickly. Welcome home, Phil! Compounded by the early morning drive back from London where I had been at the Champions League final (in which, United had been defeated by Barcelona) and London Legends over the weekend, my heart began to sink. I hadn’t been properly rained on all season, and was rather hoping that this would extend to the final day of my personal season. The Manchester United home coming parade, with the Premier League trophy. It wasn’t to be.

Would I turn up at the Cathedral starting point to find a few damp squibs of supporters, who had braved the rain and early bank holiday start? Would it be cancelled? Just a couple of the many fears I was facing. Thankfully, I needed not worry.

I parked up at Deansgate Locks, making use of the free bank holiday parking in the city centre. Arriving just under an hour before the start, I was a little worried at it being so easy to actually find a space, but I could spot a good number of fans piling out of Deansgate railway and Metrolink stations. I decided on following the majority of them right down Deansgate to the Cathedral so I could take some fan related shots and then the team on the bus in the first minute or so of their journey, where I thought they would be at their most boisterous. Needless to say, by the time I’d reached the start I was as wet as brave fans in the pictures below!

Manchester United fans brave the rain outside Manchester Cathedral on Deansgate, Manchester

Fans brave the rain on Deansgate, Manchester

Next to do, was to decide which side of Deansgate to get a spot on. The eastern side would give me the earliest shots of the team bus, whereas the western side would give me better backgrounds, with the Cathedral and prettier architectural delights of the route through the city. The western side it was. On the whole, a good decision, thought it did mean I was blocked by the curve in the road for the opening explosion of confetti.. alas, I was not the only one, having spotted colleagues on the same side.

Eventually however (how slow do those buses go?) the bus creeped into view and I was blessed with the view presented below. Enthusiasm had not dampened in the rain, and Rio Ferdinand was in full control of the mic! The crowd were being spurred on to sing and chant by each and every team member. Some were clearly enjoying it, whilst others found the direct attention every so slightly embarrassing!

Bebe, Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand and Nani celebrate with the trophy on Deansgate, Manchester

I followed the bus and the crowd back down Deansgate. Partly to get more shots, and partly because I’d parked the car back down by the Beetham Tower and the Locks. Having done so proved to be fruitful, as Edwin van der Sar pretended to drop the trophy in true Sergio Ramos style, much to the shock of his team mates.. soon followed by the realisation of the prank!

Edwin van der Sar of Manchester United pretends to drop the trophy on Deansgate, Manchester

Javier Hernandez, Edwin Van Der Sar and Patrice Evra laugh on Deansgate, Manchester

As the bus passed under the railway bridge and onto Chester Road, I left the party for the relative dry and warmth of my car to edit and wire pictures out to newspapers. All this action and it was still only 10.30am! The rest of the day was spent as a bank holiday should, in front of the telly with good food, and good beer, but I could rest assured that my work was done.

Jun 07, 2011 | Categories: Editorial, Sport | Tags: 19, bad, centre, champions, city, crowd, deansgate, league, manchester, parade, premier, rain, united, weather | Comments Off