I really don’t think it’s fair to compare players or teams through the ages. The differences and improvements in quality just keep happening. I don’t think any of that 96/97 squad would get into today’s team. It’s 25 years ago and the improvements have been huge. Don’t get me wrong I’m of the Glavin, Aylott, McCarthy era and I loved that side and look back on it as my favourite one while supporting the Reds but when you look back at old games - Dear me - it just does not compare with the athleticism, technique and yes - the skill of the modern footballer. The Oakwell crowd used to break out into spontaneous applause when a player controlled a 40/yard pass! I’m not saying the viewing spectacle is better, (I don’t think it is) but the players certainly are. Just an opinion of course. I do remember having them with older lads who thought Glavin, Aylott et al were nothing as compared to Kelly, Blanchflower and Kaye.
None, most weren’t even born! And the couple that were probably couldn’t even walk, so would struggle against the bigger teams.
It's not a fair comparison(in my opinion), but the promotion-winning team was much more than just the sum of its parts. There were some fantastic footballers in that team(De Zeeuw is still my favorite defender ever, and thinking about Sheridan battling away allowing Redfearn to do his thing still fills me with joy), but there was something magic about the team. A brilliant mix of youth and experience. Every partnership in the team(the defense, the midfield, strike partnership) had the strengths to cover for their mate's weaknesses. It's like when a group of musicians get together, and just make each other better and suddenly have that "x-factor". That team was the same. If you, for example, replaced Matty Appleby with Soulbour. You would lose the natural sweeper and defensive insurance policy that Appley naturally provided. Or say, Brittian with Eaden. Eaden got some real stick from our fans over the years, but his deep, diagonal crosses were deadly(and probably the best I have seen in a red shirt) and Wilkinson in particular thrived off them. Or you can take Wilko out and put Woodrow in. I rate Woodrow, but you then have lost your target man which would take the effectiveness of Eaden's crosses away, and Hendrie would have to do more grunt work. I honestly think we could be on to something good with this current crop(as long as the board stay strong), but I honestly can't see anyone who could better that team...