The 92 by rivalry...

[Dazza]

Regarding Bournemouth, our 'rival' depends who you ask and what generation they're from. There is no one definitive rival, and there is no one club we particularly "hate". Reading, Brighton and yes Southampton, are all in there for different reasons. Who we would pick as top of that list will vary.

Saints fans take younger Bournemouth lads calling them 'scummers' far too seriously, they leap on that as a sign that we hate them, I guess because they usually get it from Pompey who do actually hate them. When in fact it's mostly just the kids wanting something to shout. We don't like a certain brand of Saints fan, who is in Dorset and supports Saints from his sofa. Otherwise, we have no problem and wish Saints well. We'd bloody love to beat them sometime mind.

Reading and Brighton we've generally come across on a regular basis down the decades, but neither is exactly on our doorstep, so they can't really be classed as a proper local rival and both have other clubs nearer them. Personally I've rather enjoyed our beatings (nay batterings) of Reading these last two seasons. I remember ~12 year old me standing in their away end watching our Defoe led playoff hopes get crushed by stoppage time goal, only for Reading to then disappear up the leagues for a while. That upset child within me has been placated.

Our recent record against Bournemouth is crap.Even when you were playing at Dorcester's Avenue Stadium you turned us over.The last 3 games against Bournemouth we have been pathetic.Hopefully that will change in April.

 

[Vale on Trent]

If we played Stoke again it would be a bigger Derby than the majority of the ones you mentioned, in my opinion.

 

[THE LAST WALTZ]

Rivalry might not be quite the right word, more of a bit of a dislike for each other.

Years back, we started 'Valley Express' which offered affordable travel to home games for already Charlton fans living in and around the Kent suburbs and the Medway towns. Gillingham took offence to this, and their chairman came out and accused us of infiltrating their catchment area in order to get our own attendances up, which quite simply is not the case. The idea was to get Charlton fans who would/could not normally - get to games, we have quite a big fan base in Kent, which is understandable when Gillingham is the only alternative

Sorry but this is total bollocks.
You were offering free and/or cheap tickets to people who bought new homes in the Medway area.
You were running coaches from the Medway towns as well as other parts of Kent.
You were picking people up literally yards from our ground for fuck's sake.
You were the only Premier League team in South London at the time and despite having a population of some 4 million people you still couldn't fill your ground.
We had just lost the ITV Digital money and were facing administration and Charlton stepped in like the proverbial vulture.
I have a few mates who are Charlton fans where I live in West Kent and they were ashamed and embarrassed at the actions of their club at that time.
I personally couldn't give a flying fuck anymore as it is in the past and has been done to death but if you are going to bring it up at least tell it as it is and don't try and justify such a total lack of class.

 

[Bobbin']

Sorry but this is total bollocks.
You were offering free and/or cheap tickets to people who bought new homes in the Medway area.
You were running coaches from the Medway towns as well as other parts of Kent.
You were picking people up literally yards from our ground for fuck's sake.
You were the only Premier League team in South London at the time and despite having a population of some 4 million people you still couldn't fill your ground.
We had just lost the ITV Digital money and were facing administration and Charlton stepped in like the proverbial vulture.
I have a few mates who are Charlton fans where I live in West Kent and they were ashamed and embarrassed at the actions of their club at that time.
I personally couldn't give a flying fuck anymore as it is in the past and has been done to death but if you are going to bring it up at least tell it as it is and don't try and justify such a total lack of class.

Did you just make that rubbish up from the top of your head?

I have already stated that coaches picked up from the Medway towns.
4 million people in South London? ok.
We ran coaches across the whole of Kent just to poach already Gillingham fans?

Get a grip.

 

[joethegill]

How about Charlton fans coming to our 'last ever game' when we were in admin, and trying to distribute flyers encouraging our fans to go to the Valley when we died as a club? Needless to say they got told where to go, but can you argue you weren't trying to pinpoint Gills fans with that act?

 

[THE LAST WALTZ]

Did you just make that rubbish up from the top of your head?

I have already stated that coaches picked up from the Medway towns.
4 million people in South London? ok.
We ran coaches across the whole of Kent just to poach already Gillingham fans?

Get a grip.

I haven't made any of it up, it is all factually accurate as I am sure you know.
With regard to the population of South London, I will concede that the last official figures had it at a shade under 3 million. I can see now why you would have trouble filling your ground from your own catchment area and have to ferry people in from 30 or 40 miles away.
And the timing of your new travel scheme was pure coincidence I suppose?
Purely for existing Charlton fans?

Get a grip.

I will give you the benefit and believe that you are just incredibly naive.

 

[Bobbin']

I haven't made any of it up, it is all factually accurate as I am sure you know.
With regard to the population of South London, I will concede that the last official figures had it at a shade under 3 million. I can see now why you would have trouble filling your ground from your own catchment area and have to ferry people in from 30 or 40 miles away.
And the timing of your new travel scheme was pure coincidence I suppose?
Purely for existing Charlton fans?

Get a grip.

I will give you the benefit and believe that you are just incredibly naive.

So less than 3 million in an area occupied by 3 football clubs with West Ham literally on the other side of the river. Arsenal, Chelsea and Spurs all an hour or so away.

It is well known that Charlton have a large fan base around Kent, the Valley Express was an affordable way for fans to get to games from places like Ashford, Maidstone, Margate etc not just Medway. Perhaps the club were hoping to pick up new fans along the way but surely anyone in the Medway towns that had any desire to support Gillingham would have already been doing so.

You genuinely think the club organised a service with over 50 odd pick-up points across the whole of Kent just to scoop up any stragglers in Medway?

And given the history of our club, I would suggest we'd be one of the last proverbial vultures.

 

[Bobbin']

How about Charlton fans coming to our 'last ever game' when we were in admin, and trying to distribute flyers encouraging our fans to go to the Valley when we died as a club? Needless to say they got told where to go, but can you argue you weren't trying to pinpoint Gills fans with that act?

I can argue that the club were not trying to pinpoint Gills fans.

If rogue Charlton fans were doing that, then that is obviously not on but in no way related to the Valley Express service.

 

[CFC2010]

We don't really have any sort of rivalry with Walsall. But I see what your trying to do and its a fairly local game with a bit more spice to it.

Our traditional rivals are Chester and Wrexham. During our championship days it was Stoke. And over the last 10-15 years Port Vale has been the main one. Also have small rivalries with Shrewsbury and Tranmere. From further a field the games vs Wigan were very tasty for a few years.

In truth though were abit of a Leicester. We need Nantwich town to come into some money and rise 3 or 4 leagues.

When was the last time we even played you in the league? I can remember a JPT game that went to penalties. We'd class you as one our traditional rivals alongside Wrexham and Tranmere but there's no real animosity towards Crewe other than older supporters. You still get a mention in a song most weeks though.

 

[The Southbank]

The Reading 'rivalry' was better when you were still in your proper historical position, league-wise, and living at Elm Park.

Everything about you now seems so manufactured.

See you next season!

I seem to remember Swindon bringing some pretty poor followings to the Madejski, little bit more tasty at Elm Park and the County Ground.

 

[HertsWolf]

Aren't Reading and QPR both owned by Asian multitrillionaires? And play in the same shirts with iron-on logos? Are they, in fact, the same club? Is it all a big fucking illusion by that David Copperfield? Has anyone actually seen Reading play against QPR? Suspicious! I reckon it's a big fucking conspiracy theory. Has anyone else noticed that "Harry Redknapp" is an anagram of "Thai Carpet Manufacturing Syndicate Soon We Change The Reading Strip to Red Hoops"???

It's like X-Files.

 

[rudebwoyben]

We've never had any sort of rivalry with Dagenham, none whatsoever. For a start, Dagenham and Barnet aren't even local to each other. I live in East London and even from there Dagenham is far away.
If Dagenham need a rivalry, the clubs that merged to form Dagenham and Redbridge should split so they can all have a rivalry with each other.
In terms of our rivals, if us and Stevenage stay in the same division for a while I'd see that one developing.

 

[Etienne Vermeer]

West Ham then. Many of our fans dislike Crystal Palace more. I think there's an age split with that one.

 

[Indian Dan]

I seem to remember Swindon bringing some pretty poor followings to the Madejski, little bit more tasty at Elm Park and the County Ground.

Strange thing to say.

We've only ever played you twice at the Madjeski and the last time - 2001 (3-1 victory!) - we took 3,500.

Perhaps you were supporting Chelsea then

 

[mistermagic]

If I had to put up such a list I'd confront Orient with Daggers. No other London club actually care about either of them so might as well go to loggerheads between themselves!

 

[dedwardp]

Southend v Colchester is the proper derby. Col Ewe have no other rival derby wise than Southend, they have a niggle with Wycombe from their non-league days. Orient - Southend can be tasty, but its more from the Orient side, they don't really have a derby rival as historically every other London club has been above them league wise. Southend count Col Ewe as the derby, so Orient only get a look in when they are in the same division without Col Ewe.

This. Southend is definitely our derby, Orient is simply a local game which are so rare that everyone enjoys it - never a derby though.

Wonder what the biggest "non local" rivalries are? There's the obvious Man U v Leeds and Man U v Liverpool, but I recall that Wycombe had some long-distance hatred too but can't remember who.

Wycombe is with us from the non-league days at the beginning of the 1990s. It was still quite a big derby until the millennium, but then they've been rubbish since then so we rarely play them anymore and nobody cares.

 

[markwwfc1992]

Norwich don't seem to be very fond of us due to the Kevin Muscat /Craig Bellamy thing

 

[HertsWolf]

Norwich don't seem to be very fond of us due to the Kevin Muscat /Craig Bellamy thing

Oh Norwich people develop a seven-generation vendetta because their bus pass was refused or they got asked for ID when buying Cabernet Sauvignon at a Tesco Express.

 

[HertsWolf]

Wycombe is with us from the non-league days at the beginning of the 1990s. It was still quite a big derby until the millennium, but then they've been rubbish since then so we rarely play them anymore and nobody cares.

Yeh thought it might be U lot. (See what I did there?) Yes. Anyway. So Wycombe hate you and you hate Southend. But not Orient. All very proper.

 

[HertsWolf]

What about non-League rivalries. I've heard of problems with Telford, Walsall and Nuneaton? But who are these rivalries with?

I'm (almost) hoping Carlisle get relegated so we can have the dingdong A2-M25-M1-M6 Carlisle-Dover derby again (except when Operation Stack is in force when you will have to find your own way through the dirt tracks of East Kent). Hope they make both games a Tuesday night, as well.

On the other hand, seeing Eastleigh and Pompey in the same division would be fun.

 

[Silver Stone]

What about non-League rivalries. I've heard of problems with Telford, Walsall and Nuneaton? But who are these rivalries with?

I'm (almost) hoping Carlisle get relegated so we can have the dingdong A2-M25-M1-M6 Carlisle-Dover derby again (except when Operation Stack is in force when you will have to find your own way through the dirt tracks of East Kent). Hope they make both games a Tuesday night, as well.

On the other hand, seeing Eastleigh and Pompey in the same division would be fun.

Ourselves and Gillingham would be tasty if it ever occurred again.

 

[HertsWolf]

But aren't you smaller than Dover Athletic and Staplehurst Monarchs United? Surely your rivals are Snodland Town? I'm confused.

 

[joethegill]

Maidstone's big game is Tonbridge Angels. We won't be meeting any time soon.

 

[Munkiki]

Norwich don't seem to be very fond of us due to the Kevin Muscat /Craig Bellamy thing

afaik the dislike for Wolves was a combination of things - originated in the late 90s when first Matt Jackson got sent off because a Wolves player pretended he'd been stamped on then the following season Muscat's tackle on Bellamy. Then there were the play-offs were City fans were spat at and had coins thrown at them.

I didn't really get into football until I was in my mid-teens so I missed all that and have never had a problem with Wolves. Think most have got over it now, never really hear people talking about not liking Wolves.

 

[Frank]

QPR would probably be seen as bigger rivals to Chelsea than Fulham but neither really register.

 

[You Orns]

Definitely right for us, Watford/Luton has to be one of the few totally recipricated rivalries in the lower leagues, I do wonder who we'd have been pared with last season though.

For me our next rivals are QPR but they don't really care about us so ...

 

[HertsWolf]

Definitely right for us, Watford/Luton has to be one of the few totally recipricated rivalries in the lower leagues, I do wonder who we'd have been pared with last season though.

For me our next rivals are QPR but they don't really care about us so ...

We sang the geographically-odd "You're just a bus stop in Barnet" at your place two years ago.

 

[TrinidadsNumberOne]

Since 2006 it's been Port Vale. Championship years it was Stoke but before then it was historically Chester, Wrexham, Tranmere and Stockport because we played them for years in the Fourth Division. Chester for being a Cheshire Derby, Wrexham with the Anglo-Welsh factor and the latter two for being old Cheshire sides before the boundaries changed. In particular, trouble with Stockport used to be commonplace back in the 70s and 80s and the older generations of Alex fans in my family would regard games against them as the most intense of the four when we were languishing at the bottom of the Fourth Division.

Never seen Shrewsbury as a rival seeing as they were our feeder club when we were in the Championship. It's a class awayday and we often take a good following but there's no bitterness with them at all, even when we effectively relegated them in their own backyard last season! Walsall (thanks to Tony Naylor in the early 1990s) and Macclesfield have had a thing with us in the past but it's never been reciprocated.

 

[Peacock]

Personally I don't see Bradford as our biggest rivals. For me, that will always be Manchester United. I also see Chelsea and Millwall on a similar level as City. It may be because I grew up in the 90s when we also played Man Utd regularly, but I've always seen more passion there too.

To be honest, just like Man Utd don't see us as main rivals I probably have the same feeling with Bradford. Although I do know plenty who see our West Yorkshire rivalries as more important and I know plenty of older fans who still consider Derby main rivals, so it's interesting.

 

[JimmyD]

Is Coventry-Leicester such a big rivalry?