A pitched battle for Manchester

Football, and the bitter rivalry between United and City, is what makes Manchester tick, writes DAVIN O'DWYER, who was treated to a classic derby at Old Trafford

FEW ACTIVITIES afford a greater window into the character of a city than attending a football game. Visiting galleries and parks and tourist attractions can be edifying, for sure, but they are not communal experiences. Attending a sports event, on the other hand, is by far the easiest way to become part of a city’s life, to join its citizens at play, to witness what it means to belong there.

The mood of a city will be spotted faster in England’s northern cities than many other places. Newcastle is passionate about its tragically underachieving team, Liverpool self-worth rises and falls alongside the triumph and travails of its two clubs, and Manchester’s international reputation is inextricably linked to the success of its Red Devils.

For a good number of visitors to Manchester, the sole reason for their journey is a trip to Old Trafford to see their beloved heroes in action. Attending a game at the Theatre of Dreams reveals almost as much about the international nature of top-level sport as it does about the nature of Manchester itself, as you notice the overwhelming number of foreign fans who have made the pilgrimage.

While United stands as one of the biggest brands in world football, loyalties among Mancunians are far more evenly divided between United and their local neighbours, Manchester City, who have recently become one of the wealthiest clubs in the world, courtesy of their new oil-rich owners from Abu Dhabi. It was my great fortune to see the two teams go head to head.

While attending a football game is a great communal experience, a derby brings a city into sharp focus, as the different tribes come together for bragging rights, determined to prove their supremacy. Before this match, the passions and tensions of the long-simmering local rivalry were palpable.

In a way, City fans are defined by their opposition to United – they count themselves as more Mancunian, as if being a City fan is a purer statement of belonging to the city. United have fans all over Asia and America, and of course Ireland, whereas City’s fan base doesn’t go far beyond the suburbs of this sprawling post-industrial conurbation. But now, with more than €120 million worth of talent on the pitch, including former United favourite Carlos Tevez, City fans are gleefully anticipating finally usurping their loathed rivals.

Old Trafford itself is vast, with giant spindly white arms looming over the roof, the spider-like cantilevers holding the structure in place. Since it opened almost a century ago, it has undergone several stages of renovation, resulting in a capacity of 76,000, comfortably the largest club ground in England.

But Old Trafford isn’t just big – it leads the way in terms of the standard and range of its hospitality suites. There is a bewildering range of boxes, restaurants, bars and cafes, all tailored to suit the wide spectrum of guests, from lifelong fan to high-end businessman.

Every match day, about 9,000 people dine at the stadium, not including all those munching on hot dogs or chips. Many of the lounges feature illustrious names from United’s past, such as Frank Stapleton or Norman Whiteside. I meet former manager Wilf McGuinness, warmly greeting guests and fans.

As impressive as Old Trafford is, the piecemeal nature of its renovation over the past few years means it fails to generate the same awe as sporting cathedrals such as Madrid’s Bernabeu or Milan’s San Siro or even Croke Park. When packed with fans in full voice, however, the effect is spine-tingling – the prawn-sandwich brigade fails to dampen the atmosphere during this match.

A huge number of those voices are Irish – there are so many Irish accents in the crowd it could be a GAA game. This is a club, after all, that counts among its greatest players George Best and Roy Keane. A father and his young son from Donegal sit beside me, and as the game progresses we can scarcely believe our luck – goals are flying in left, right and centre, with United three times taking the lead, and City repeatedly equalising. As the momentum swings from team to team, the fans swap chants back and forth, with City’s supporters impressively loud.

It's a game for big performances, and two of the best are a real pleasure to watch – Shay Given pulling off a series of outstanding saves to keep City in the match, and Ryan Giggs reeling back the years and attacking the City defence with scalpel-like precision. His rampaging display is rewarded with a hearty chorus of "Giggs, Giggs will tear you apart again" (sung to the tune of Joy Division's Love Will Tear You Apart); a perfect moment when Mancunian miserabilism is transfigured into a statement of shared devotion.

For a spectacular finish, Giggs sends an inch-perfect pass through to Michael Owen to score a winner deep into injury time in front of the Stretford End. As the ball passes Givens’s despairing dive, a collective mania grips the crowd – an intoxicating, heart-pumping delirium.

The City fans, who moments before believed their team had salvaged a heroic draw, are in a daze, slack-jawed and silenced. Immediately after the game, as a red river of fans spreads out from the ground, we realise we have seen one of the classics of the genre. It’s been a scintillating, visceral and propulsive 96 minutes of pure entertainment.

There’s a tingling mood of gleeful disbelief. Not every game is going to end up with a controversial winner at the death, or vintage performances from a legend, or outrageous saves by an Irish hero, but that’s why the drama of sport is among the purest there is.

This is theatre, all right, and this is what makes Manchester tick.

Go there

Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus.com) and Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) fly Dublin to Manchester daily, while Irish Ferries (www.irishferries.co.uk) sails from Dublin to Holyhead

Where to stay, eat and go in Manchester

Match packages

Dawson Travel (021-4274397, 01-6618900, dawson-travel.com) has a range of packages to Premiership and European games, including matches at United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Celtic, as well as Barcelona and Real Madrid, with packages at Old Trafford starting at €169 for match ticket and one night’s shared accommodation.

Other companies that offer packages include Abbey Travel (abbeytravel.ie), Club Travel, (clubtravel.ie), Celtic Horizon Tours (celtichorizontours.com), Marathon Sports Travel (marathonsportstravel.ie), Club Travel (clubtravel.ie), and Sportstours.ie.

To book a hospitality package, which can include four-course meal, complimentary bar and match ticket, visit manutd.com, 00-44-161-8688000, hospitality@manutd.co.uk.

Where to stay

Amblehurst Hotel. 44 Washway Road, Sale, 00-44-161-9738800, theamblehurst.com. Before the big-money Premiership days, United players used to socialise in the Amblehurst, but now this three-star caters for football fans who fancy a pint and simple food well done. The 24-hour bar is adorned with signed jerseys. Rooms from about €58.

Premier Inn Manchester Old Trafford. Waters Reach, Trafford Park, 00-44-870-4236450, premierinn.com. If the thought of having to walk more than 50 yards to a match puts you off, this three-star Premier Inn is for you – so close to Old Trafford it’s practically taking up a car-parking spot. Rooms from about €65.

Radisson Edwardian Manchester. Free Trade Hall, Peter Street, Manchester, radissonedwardian.com. There are few more luxurious hotels in the city centre than this five-star Radisson in the extravagantly renovated Free Trade Hall, one of the city’s key historic buildings. Stylish? Most certainly. Contemporary? Thoroughly. Understated? Just so. Rooms from about €133.

Where to eat

Red Cafe. Old Trafford, 00-44-161-8688303. All self-respecting United fans will be making the pilgrimage to the club museum and the merchandise Mecca that is the Megastore, so they might as well pop into the famous Red Cafe while they are at it. On match days, this cafe is restricted to hospitality ticket holders, but the rest of the time it’s open to the public.

Bowling Green. Brookburn Road, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, 00-44-161-8602800. Manchester’s vibrant Irish community has traditionally been based in Chorlton, a suburb southwest of the city centre, and this charming pub, in a lovely area, functions as a HQ for the Irish there. Welcoming smiles and honest pub grub make it a perennial favourite. Not to be confused with another Bowling Green in the city.

Where to go

Manchester Museum of Science and Industry. Liverpool Road, 00-44-161-8322244, mosi.org.uk. Mosey on down to the Mosi for a more cerebral afternoon’s entertainment. The museum is located on the historic site of the world’s oldest surviving passenger railway station, apparently, and tells the story of Manchester’s scientific and industrial past. In that fine British tradition, admission is free.

The Wheel of Manchester. Exchange Square, 00-44-161-8319918, worldtouristattractions.co.uk. The London Eye really has made the viewing tower a thing of the past, hasn’t it? The Wheel of Manchester is the northern equivalent, gracefully going through its motions in Exchange Square in the heart of the city. Fun fact: this is the wheel that used to sit at the end of the Champs Élysées in Paris.

Where to shop

Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, the colossal Arndale centre – central Manchester sometimes feels like one big shopping plaza, which is just swell if you want to take advantage of the tumbling pound.

Davin O’Dwyer was a guest of Dawson Travel