Comments on: Local football rivalries are stupid aren’t they?

By: Jamie Brannon

Jamie Brannon — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 16:10:48 +0000

The most passionate derby has to be the old firm clash, perhaps, the only one that is bound by religious hatred.

Are you generally a satire writer, Guy?

By: Rory Hanna

Rory Hanna — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 19:49:30 +0000

Perhaps, but take this into account. The Derby della Madonnina in Milan is entertaining because 1. They are two great teams generally on equal footing most of the time and 2. There is an actual class divide. The second point is valid for the Rome derby and for El Clasico it is that FC Barcelona represented the bane of Spanish fascism.

In Sheffield, you have two teams who are generally equal in that neither team has won anything for years, but who haven’t been in the same division consistently for a long time. If I am correct, Wednesday is meant to be slightly posher, but there isn’t really much difference. So what you get is a rivalry which is essentially just two tribes.

With a grudge match like Sheffield United – West Ham, with the catalyst being the relegation battle in 06/07, the rivalry works on all sorts of levels. There’s the fact Blades fans feel they were robbed, there’s the stylish south v the gritty, honest north and there’s rich v poor (in terms of the players both clubs can buy). It could be a tasty affair, if only the Blades were in the same division.

By: Guy Gorman

Guy Gorman — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 16:39:21 +0000

Cheers Willie! I agree, people really do take these pieces tremendously personally, whichis good because an angry response is about as good as it gets!

Here’s to you Samuel…

By: Abbas

Abbas — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 13:48:28 +0000

As a lifelong Sheffield Wednesday fan I can assure you a Blades-West Ham tie would not come close to a Blades-Owls tie.

In time, you will learn this.

By: Willie Gannon

Willie Gannon — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:52:07 +0000

Really good read Guy, as someone who writes articles about all and sundry I can see exactly where you’re coming from as I’m usually accused of supporting some team when I write critical pieces and therefore must be a cretin if I do.
Whereas when I write a complimentry article I’m embraced as a fan because I know what I’m talking about.

I think, all fans are mad to a certain agree, especially the ones who write about it!

By: Kofte

Kofte — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 20:18:19 +0000

Not sure I agree with everything in the article, but it did make me reminisce about derbies that used to really be about a town, or city coming together. In particular, I remember the 1989 FA Cup Final was very emotional, as Liverpool and Everton fans sat mixed-together throughout Wembley, just a month after Hillsborough.

By: Simon Curtis

Simon Curtis — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:32:59 +0000

I can only agree with your taste in women

By: Samuel

Samuel — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:16:03 +0000

Sorry, but this is just lame. So you like the big games, that’s all. Everyone would rather watch a Barça-Madrid because 90% of the times they play for the title, but if in 20 years, Barça sucked and Atlético were Madrid’s main rival for the title, your mind would change?

That’s what you’re saying there. Completely lame.

Give me a Betis-Sevilla, a Boca-River, a Central-Newell’s, a Racing-Independiente, a Sporting-Oviedo, a Dortmund-HSV, an Olympiacos-Panathinaikos, a Sporting-Benfica, a Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe, etc., etc., ANYTIME.

You name Chelsea-Fulham, where the difference is HUGE and usually a one-side game, and of course that can’t compete to a Chelsea-Arsenal, which is no derby, rivalry story, or whatever. Let’s just name big games.

By the way, there’s no more historical context than a local derby. And for God’s sake, it’s your own town, your own people celebrating while you’re f*cked up! Sorry, this article must be the lamest ever.

And sorry for that, I guess I’m being disrespectful, but I don’t find other words to say it. Sorry, seriously.

By: Rory Hanna

Rory Hanna — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 12:27:02 +0000

I agree with pretty much all of that. Being a relatively new Sheffield United fan, I reckon that the Blades-West Ham tie would have eclipsed the Steel City Derby if only United had ever been in the same division as West Ham since the Tevez affair. The Manchester Derby is the tastiest encounter in the Premier League right now, but that is more because of the recent animosity stemmed from City’s newfound wealth.

I guess my conclusion is that great rivalries do not necessarily need to be local, but local derbies are much better when both teams have the chance of getting trophies.

By: Benjamin Formela-Osborne

Benjamin Formela-Osborne — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 11:06:43 +0000

Interesting thoughts. As a Bristol Rovers fan I have always been frustrated that for too long both Bristol clubs have been satisfied with underachievement as long as the other is similarly suffering.

That said, there is a genuine north/south divide in Bristol away from football, so the derby is rooted in geography.

The ‘bigger’ derbies may have lost their lustre, but it seems if your team is shit, having a hot rivalry is a redeeming feature.