Tears and togetherness - Cardiff and Leeds unite for Bamba

Cardiff and Leeds fans applauded in tribute of Bamba during the 14th minute of their Championship fixture.

There has been more hostility than harmony between Cardiff City and Leeds United over the years.

But, on an emotional afternoon at Cardiff City Stadium, tribalism was put on hold for tributes – and says plenty about Sol Bamba that even rivals raised their voice as one.

As a club and as a fanbase, Cardiff have been still reeling from the shock news of Bamba’s death at the age of 39 last month.

There have been touching moments and memorials to him across football since, including at Leeds last weekend, Bamba having captained the Elland Road side during his year at the club.

But it was at the Bluebirds where Bamba found a home, and where his family and friends joined with supporters to celebrate his life.

One that was not only marked by success on the field, achieving his dream of playing in the Premier League during his five years at Cardiff, but also inspiring off it.

It was at Cardiff where he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Still wearing that smile during what must have been dark days, he played again before the season was out.

Members of Bamba's family, including wife Chloe (left) and mother Sehrata, paid tribute alongside former teammates.

Make no mistake, even with Bamba’s Leeds background, the traditional tension between the two sets of fans might have made this fixture an awkward one in which to mark the club’s gratitude and grief.

Even the stadium Wi-Fi password for the day made a cheeky reference to the infamous 2002 FA Cup tie between the clubs by including the name of matchwinner Scott Young.

Throw in the side’s worst start to a season since 1989 and a growing loss of patience over manager Erol Bulut, and you wondered if this – Cardiff’s first home fixture since the news – was the ideal day to remember Bamba and all he brought to the game.

But, just as his smile so often disarmed and diffused situations, so the chance to remember overpowered everything else. For a while, at least.

Leeds supporters laid a wreath alongside Cardiff fans' tributes at the base of the Fred Keenor statue at the Cardiff City Stadium

Both clubs played their part classily. While scarves on sale outside featured Bamba’s name and image, the programme kiosks sold special issues with images of Bamba in both Cardiff blue and Leeds white on the cover.

At the statue of the club’s 1927 FA Cup-winning captain Fred Keenor, a Leeds United wreath was laid alongside the Cardiff shirts and souvenirs that had been gathering over the past three weeks.

In the programme, manager Bulut admitted the game had “extra meaning” because of what Bamba meant to supporters, while chairman Mehmet Dalman described the former defender as “one of a kind”.

“Sol’s enthusiasm and love for the game made him a joy to be around. When someone has that much energy and a zest for life, it is hard to imagine a world without them," Dalman added.

Chief executive Ken Choo questioned whether the side that won promotion to the Premier League in 2018 would have achieved such success without Bamba, a player who wasn’t captain but still felt like the side’s leader.

The actual skipper, Sean Morrison, was pitchside having attended a tribute night the previous evening with other former teammates. Lee Peltier, a no-nonsense defender who epitomised the toughness of that team, was said to have struggled to get through the Q&A such was his emotion and deep sense of loss.

The architect of that promotion-winning team was also present. Neil Warnock, who long held a father-son relationship with the jovial French-Ivorian, looked up proudly as highlights and memories were displayed on the big screen. You could sense the pain and happiness of the players who almost all described Bamba as a big brother.

Neil Warnock - who signed Bamba for Cardiff - paid tribute alongside other members of the side that won promotion to the Premier League in 2018.

Family were in attendance too, large numbers of relatives and friends filling function rooms where images of Bamba in his Cardiff days were on display.

Moments before kick-off, wife Chloe walked out alongside Dalman, Leeds ambassador Eddie Gray and others to lay wreaths on the centre circle. She consoled Bamba’s clearly upset mother as the fans both sang his name during the minute’s applause.

'One Sol Bamba' chanted those in yellow and those in blue, before Cardiff added their rendition of 'Last Christmas', their tale of giving their heart to Bamba. He never let them down.

There was another moment of unity, 14 minutes into the clash, the ground standing to signal their appreciation of a colossus of a centre-back and a character.

The timing reflected his shirt number he wore when he first signed for the Bluebirds, a number chosen after wife Chloe’s birthday. Two years into his time here, a new signing asked if he would mind swapping. Despite the significance, Bamba did so to help the new arrival settle into the club.

Thus summing up the measure of the man and the player.

The harmony didn’t last, of course. It didn’t take long for Callum O’Dowda and Jayden Bogle to be squaring up and having to be cooled down by the referee. Bamba wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

He might have preferred more from this Cardiff team, one he returned to to help stave off the threat of relegation as assistant manager two years ago.

But Leeds' quality - as well as Joel Bagan's first-half red card - ensured that was never likely.

Yet questions over Bulut and this Cardiff team are for the future. This was an afternoon where it was important to remember the recent past, whatever your colours.

Chances are Bamba would not have liked the fuss. That does not mean he did not deserve it.