Sometime in 2004 a blog was born. Not from some misplaced desire to earn web 2.0 blogosphere social media wealth and notoriety. Nor a genuine belief that the site would actually attract any readers, let alone ones that cared. But a basic primeaval urge embedded into the DNA of every football fan. The need, when things aren’t going your team’s way, to rant and then rant some more.
For Manchester United fans 2004-5 wasn’t a pretty time. United lost the league to Chelsea by 18 points and were beaten in the FA Cup final by an inferior Arsenal side. United also went out of the Champions League at the first knockout stage, somewhat meakly, to eventual finalists Milan. Worse still the winners were our great rivals from down the M62. The word that dare not speak its name.
But fans suffered not solely because the team was (I’ll be kind) in a period of transition but because our leader, Sir Alex Ferguson, was undergoing a period of mental transformation too. From a coach whose genuine belief was that his team could ‘score one more’ than the opposition, to a pragmatist tactician. The end result was a second, glorious, Champions League victory in May 2008 for which all United fans are grateful. The original Rant called for his head, and has been proven wrong.
But travel is just as much about the journey as the destination and this road was far from smooth. A website found its voice.
And while the site didn’t make a dime, at its zenith around 1,000,000 pages per month of editorial were read. That’s 1,000,000. More than 15,000 fans received the site’s newsletter twice a week and there were 5,000 registered users on a rabidly active forum. Your editor was asked to write for national newspapers and became a regular pundit on both broadcast and Internet radio. It was a surreal, if shortlived, experience.
Sadly, love rarely lasts forever. A little over two years after it’s inception the site died. It had to. It wasn’t pretty, nobody’s proud about it and you’ll forever be spared the details.
Now it is time for Rant to rise again. While we can’t promise to bring you the depth – or length – of analysis, or frequency of editorial we once did, but we’ll try our best. It’s the same editorial team, back from the dead.
Step aside immitators, fakers and haters (there were many). Rant is coming through.
Good to see United Rant is back! I’ve stumbled upon the site just by chance but no forum?
There *will* be a forum!
Thanks for the Link
but
Have you decided on a forum yet?
The old Rant crew (the die hards) are still there…awaiting your decision.
Question
Which “Mark” are we talking about, there are two..the Ed knows their User Names!
Well I’m talking about the Mark from MUFC Info that can visually ID me and confirm my bone fide(ness). And frankly it’s been two years guys. Give me a break!
I didn’t realise that there was an editorial ‘team’ on the original Rant…?
Are you sure you’re the original Rant and not an immitator yourself?
If so, what were the moderators’ names?
Good point! The proof is in the pudding. If the editorial is any good then you’ll know. Mark, Spike, me (Ed) and a bunch of others. And I suppose there wasn’t a team.. just me, a few guests, Mark who did the match previews/reviews.
LOL
If you would Link the unitedrant.eu put it at the top of the page, not at the bottom, as THE! Unitedrant forum for this site I’ll have no probs with your “identity”.
Understand that anyone can come on and say they are the old Ed with a unitedrant page. 🙂
BTW…. Do you at least remember how many Mods there were on the old forum?
Sorry for harping on at this, but some of the lads at the forum are not sure if you are on the straight with us.
Well frankly they can just go f… themselves! (close enough to the old rant for ya?!!) We had about 5 mods I believe, at least ones that I approved. But I did approve a couple of super mods who could add new ones. In any case how would this prove who I am? Ping Mark @ MUFC Info.
Link at top for the time being.
Glad you’re back – will check on the site regularly!
Just what did happen with the old site though?
(former “Bad Cop” mod!)
Long story really. I had to give it a break for a while, returning to find that the hosts had deleted everything. I just didn’t have the time to get everything back up until now.
You are the ED!!!
Topic closed!! lol
Thanks for the Link
Well i for one am the original captain……this will prove if he’s the real Ed
Ed….how many fingers am i holding up?
Thats ya dick…swine!
LOL. once again the Capt ruins a perfectly good thread :p
I remember those rants from you! Many of them were true, and I liked to read your articles. But I never liked the idea of calling for Fergie’s head everytime you said it. Saying sorry is the least thing you can do now. Fans should support their team when things aren’t going well. But you called for Fergie’s head. Well he’s not God, and even he can get things wrong. But to say that he lost it etc was a stupid thing to do, see how it came back to bite you! The red machine marching on for (hopefully) a 3rd title in a row!!! I hope you learned your lesson.
Well just to be accurate on this, I called for Fergie’s head once (and have explained why), and I never said he’d lost it… just so we’re correct on that!
Good to see the original and best rant back up and running. 🙂
Great to have you back!!! bin starved of baised commentary.
Good to see you back!)
MATES!!!! I was a frequent UnitedRant reader during the dark years (2004-2006) and I was devastated when the site just went dead, I still remember the last post being about our loss against the arses away in winter 2006… EXCELLENT to see u back lads, please keep up the great work u did back then…
/Loyal reader
Great to have yiss back!
Rant used to be my favourite reading on United and I feared you had gone away forever.
Welcome back
Never thought you would be resurrected but just found you by chance, welcome back.
The rant is back for our doom.
Great to have Rant back, first came across the site when all the bullshit Obi Mikel crap was happening and stayed with it to the end.
Glad you are back…more great reading for me!
Rejoice!! been periodically checking on yous since u went offline. Ecstatic your biased reporting (but nearly always true!) is back and hope that this time, back for good.
I’ve seen him up close. It’s the real Ed. No one else can quite capture that profound authentic myopic certainty on the subject of Manchester United anyway…
Delighted you are back – venting in this site helped me through some dark days. I too was one who wanted Fergies head on a plate – felt very much he sold us out. We do still have the monstrous debt but despite an economic crisis we appear to be surviving. I still fear we will get news similar to the scousers who must be flying very close to the financial wind. just great that the site is back up – well done ed.
excellent! used to really enjoy the editorials and was disappointed when it all stopped suddenly…after gooner match, i think.
anyway good to have you back.