Needham made his debut for the Blades on 5 September 1891, in a pre-season game against Woolwich Arsenal.

Short yet solidly built and blessed with immense stamina, he was fast, resolute and brave.

His consistently accomplished and energetic displays made him the star of the side and won him the title, 'the prince of half backs'.

"There is one thing which has made Earnest Needham stand out of the common run of halves; he is neither a constructive nor a destructive half-back alone; he is both at once.

One moment you will see him falling back to the defence of his own goal, or checking the speedy rush of his wing; the next, he is up with his forwards, feeding them to a nicety, and always making the best of every opening.

"A fine shot, Needham possessed great ball control: "This is one of the secrets of his greatness for very seldom when he has the ball is he deprived of it, whilst the accuracy of his wing passes, and the telling force of his punches straight across the field to an unprotected wing, spell danger to any kind of defence."

He was an occasional wicket-keeper, and as a right-arm medium pace bowler bowled 21 overs without taking a wicket.

He made his debut for Derbyshire in June 1901 against a South African team, and scored 57 in his first innings but was out for a duck in the second.