Our rivals

[turvontour]

A few thoughts/questions on our rivalries/derby matches;

Who are our rivals currently, and who do you think they'll be in the future?

I'm not sure if the geography comes into rivalry although in the most part there seems to be a link. Man u v liverpool/City, Arsenal v Tottenham etc. It feels like West Brom, Newcastle, Leeds, Wolves and Leicester could be considered our current rivals, although I'm not sure how much of some of those are social media driven. Hopefully wolves and Leicester are teams we compete with going forward and forge a deeper rivalry with them.

Can Blues be our rivals, or is it just a derby match?

For me, Blues hasn't been our rivals for about ten years, and probably wont be again for some time. It's a great local derby though, one of the best, helped though by its infrequency. They've probably averaged one division below us in my lifetime, and in the last five to ten years havent really given us a game, and started taking our cast offs. A rival you need to vie with and compete. E.g. Chelsea millwall isnt a rivalry but a great London derby match.

Will the intensity of derbies/rivalries slowly dissolve over the coming years, particularly given likely lower attendance with Covid?

Watching the coverage of the Wolves games I was surprised just how often the derby match element was referred to buy commentators, players, managers etc. To me, the Wolves fixture has always been a slightly tepid match/atmosphere even with the fans there. So what makes it a derby when the fans arent there, is it almost like a fable within the clubs? I suppose we are weird with Grealish and Ramsey coming from Brum. Those 10 Wolves lads from Portugal dont feel it's a derby do they, without the fans influence particularly? They're only in Wolverhampton because that's where that project is, if it was in Warsaw or Washington, then they would be told of the derby games there. I understand it being feisty because we are competing for league position, but I dont see the local derby element currently.

I'ts difficult to know whether football atmosphere and rivalries will change over time as we have no idea when the next full house will be. When I first started going to football you're slowly educated about the club by the songs and conversations as to who we like, we dont like, the culture, what we're proud of etc. I'm just wondering if we lose a couple of years of support whether we return to a slightly more neutral environment.

[icouldtelltheworld]

I'd say Wolves is a local derby but not really a rivalry. Blues are our rivals, West Brom after them, they're the only two games I get the derby day feeling from - and Blues way moreso than West Brom. 

Growing up in Brum I never met a Wolves fan until I started working there a few years ago, they have some idiots on twitter (like every club), but IME they're mostly a decent set of fans and many have a fair bit of respect for us. 

I suppose you could make a case for Leicester, Newcastle, Leeds etc. being rivalries, but for me games against those sides feel like games against any other club in the league. Rivalry is about emotion more than league position

 

[The Fun Factory]

Blues,  and Albion. Albion was the big derby up to about the 1960s and recent years has been the Blues when we are in the same division.

Wolves have Albion and to a much lesser extent Stoke. That's about in the West Midlands apart from the fact every club hates us because we are the biggest.

Coventry- Villa was a example of that as Coventry hate Villa and we just saw them as a irrelevance.  Coming up for 20 years since JPA sent them down.

The rest are meaningless 'midlands derby' guff spouted in the pre match build up. 

 

[NIVillan]

Growing up 70/80s the big Derbies were Albion and Blues. 

Wolves was a local rivalry but it didnt feel the same as Albion and Blues.   Albion felt bigger as late 70s/80s they were competitive.  Blues was just seen as a brawl for 90 mins.

Thats about it really.  The Newcastle and Leeds thing bores me.  Their fans trying to big themselves up to be a big club.  Leeds at least won something in recent memory unlike Newcastle.  Both are one club cities.

Leicester and Wolves has only built up since both of those teams have done well.  They have gone all bertie big bollocks crowing at Villa who were seen as the big dogs of the Midlands.   

In the early eighties I had subuetto for Xmas.  The Villa 82 side and I was also bought Blues and Albion (No Wolves though the Birmingham one could also be Leicester) so I could hold Derbies.  So there you go scientific proof that Albion and Blues are our main rivals.

[ender4]

Man City and Liverpool as we fight them for the title 

[ender4]

but seriously, Bham City in a sense, but not in a footballing sense as i doubt we'll ever play them again.

Wolves in terms of fighting for best team in the West Midlands, and i think the next few years will have both of us trying to get into the final european spot each year.

Newcastle just because they are similar to us in a lot of ways.

That about it. 

 

 

[villa4europe]

The Leeds and Newcastle stuff is cooked up in the championship as its a fight for relevance and this whole "big club" bullshit when in reality it's bald men fighting over a comb

To an extent the wolves "rivalry" is the same, don't think it would be half of what it's made out to be if we hadn't been relegated 

[vreitti]

Every club in the Premier League. 

[SuperTed]

Small Heath. I don’t care about the gulf in class between us and their pond life club, it’ll always be Small Heath. It goes beyond rivalry to the point where they actually disgust me. Call it childish but I truly hate the word removed vermin. 

[YouUnastanFren]

It's difficult because I don't have a clear idea on what a club rivalry is.

Clubs who aren't really our rivals anymore but I laugh when I'm told that they have lost (every week): Blues, WBA, Coventry

Clubs who think we're their rivals because of various perceived slights but we don't give anywhere near as much of a shit about them: Norwich, Leeds, Newcastle, Chris Wilder

Clubs who I'd like to think are our rivals this/next season: Wolves, Leicester, Everton, West Ham, Arsenal 

Eventually obviously I'd like rivalries with the top 5 but one step at a time. And then with Bayern, Real and Barca if possible, please and thank you NSWE.

 

[Follyfoot]

56 minutes ago, The Fun Factory said:

Blues,  and Albion. Albion was the big derby up to about the 1960s and recent years has been the Blues when we are in the same division.

Wolves have Albion and to a much lesser extent Stoke. That's about in the West Midlands apart from the fact every club hates us because we are the biggest.

Coventry- Villa was a example of that as Coventry hate Villa and we just saw them as a irrelevance.  Coming up for 20 years since JPA sent them down.

The rest are meaningless 'midlands derby' guff spouted in the pre match build up. 

 

Coventry have still not forgiven us for filling three quarters of their ground in the mid 70's 

[tomav84]

just blues...i don't see any others as rivals. last few baggies games have been played at 3pm...not a huge rivalry anymore. there's always been a bit of needle between us and newcastle since the ant and dec banner at VP when we sent them down. and leeds seem to hate everyone, with the feeling mutual. so i'd say those two are bigger rivals to us than wolves + west brom

[The Fun Factory]

27 minutes ago, Follyfoot said:

Coventry have still not forgiven us for filling three quarters of their ground in the mid 70's 

Now they haven't even got a quarter of a ground and are forced to squat at the sty.

[Follyfoot]

1 minute ago, The Fun Factory said:

Now they haven't even got a quarter of a ground and are forced to squat at the sty.

El Spastico 

[Greenfly]

In terms of competitiveness, Wolves are currently our biggest rivals imo. We're both challenging for the honour of being the best club in the West Midlands at the moment, and that's what a regional rivalry is about to me. West Brom would be next, by virtue of the the fact they're in the PL. I can't see that one lasting though.

I just can't bring myself to care about the likes of Leeds and Newcastle. They can do well or fall into obscurity, I couldn't care less.

Blues are enemies, not rivals. Rivalries imply competitiveness.

[turvontour]

10 hours ago, icouldtelltheworld said:

I'd say Wolves is a local derby but not really a rivalry. Blues are our rivals, West Brom after them, they're the only two games I get the derby day feeling from - and Blues way moreso than West Brom. 

Growing up in Brum I never met a Wolves fan until I started working there a few years ago, they have some idiots on twitter (like every club), but IME they're mostly a decent set of fans and many have a fair bit of respect for us. 

I suppose you could make a case for Leicester, Newcastle, Leeds etc. being rivalries, but for me games against those sides feel like games against any other club in the league. Rivalry is about emotion more than league position

 

Wolves a local derby and Blues a rivalry? Personally I'd say it's a bit of a stretch calling Wolves a local derby, particularly given that we have Blues and West Brom much closer. It's not like saints Pompey or Cardiff swansea where theyre a fair distance apart, but then theres little no one else close to either of them.

Blues is no longer a rivalry for me, or not currently at least. Rivalry is about competing. 

I think that's the distinction. Rivalries can change but the local derby is always there.

[turvontour]

10 hours ago, The Fun Factory said:

Blues,  and Albion. Albion was the big derby up to about the 1960s and recent years has been the Blues when we are in the same division.

Wolves have Albion and to a much lesser extent Stoke. That's about in the West Midlands apart from the fact every club hates us because we are the biggest.

Coventry- Villa was a example of that as Coventry hate Villa and we just saw them as a irrelevance.  Coming up for 20 years since JPA sent them down.

The rest are meaningless 'midlands derby' guff spouted in the pre match build up. 

 

I'd completely forgotten about Coventry. Some really good games with them late 90s. Wouldn't wish what's happened to that club on anyone.

[turvontour]

9 hours ago, YouUnastanFren said:

It's difficult because I don't have a clear idea on what a club rivalry is.

Clubs who aren't really our rivals anymore but I laugh when I'm told that they have lost (every week): Blues, WBA, Coventry

Clubs who think we're their rivals because of various perceived slights but we don't give anywhere near as much of a shit about them: Norwich, Leeds, Newcastle, Chris Wilder

Clubs who I'd like to think are our rivals this/next season: Wolves, Leicester, Everton, West Ham, Arsenal 

Eventually obviously I'd like rivalries with the top 5 but one step at a time. And then with Bayern, Real and Barca if possible, please and thank you NSWE.

 

I like the idea that we compete with those you list over the next few years, except for West Ham.

[One For The Road]

14 hours ago, The Fun Factory said:

Coventry- Villa was a example of that as Coventry hate Villa and we just saw them as a irrelevance.  Coming up for 20 years since JPA sent them down.

As much as I wish it were true,  Villa didn't send Coventry down. Derby won at Old Trafford to secure safety, meaning the Coventry result was irrelevant. 

[Sulberto21]

Depends on the era. Initially it was Sunderland and Preston. Everton have always been around us. When the premier League started we were second to Liverpool for total trophies won. Blues is more a Derby for me.

In the premier League era I'd say Everton, Spurs, Newcastle, Man City until their buy out West Ham.