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The Severnside Derby is a local derby between rivals Cardiff City and Bristol City. Althought neither team lists the other as their main rivals, this is still considered a fierce and bitter feud. The title Severnside Derby has also been used for matches involving Newport County and Bristol Rovers aswell but traditionally refers to the two cities.
Reasons for rivalry
[edit]Although it is a traditional local rivalry, it is different in that the two teams are actually in different countries (Wales and England respectively), vastly increasing the hostility between the two teams. Aswell as bragging rights the matches are seen as an 'international contest' to prove which country is superior. Both sets of fans use this to taunt each other with patriotic songs as well offensive props (Bristol City often bring inflatable sheep to the derby, incinuating that the Cardiff fans are sheep shaggers).
Violence
[edit]Both teams have a history in hooliganism and have their own 'firm' of organised hooligans; Cardiff with the Soul Crew and Bristol with their City Service Firm. Due to the fierce rivalry and the history of the two teams the encounters often end up with some sort of conflict, commonly pre-organised.
In an attempt to discourage the violence, games between the two are usually kept 'all coach' meaning that everyone travelling to an away game must travel using the clubs offical transport (i.e. no-one can travel to the game of their own accord). The coachs are usally accompanied by a heavy police presence and away fans are usually kept in the ground after the game until the home fans have all left. While this has been mildly successful from stopping organised fights fans still attempt to attack each other by throwing objects such as bottles and coins during the game.
The violence involved with this derby was the subject of a BBC documentary in 2001.[1] This documentary involved a reporter wearing a hidden camera and infiltrating the Soul Crew. This exposed the use of racist chanting and abuse as well as a lack of control by stewards and police.
Classic Matches
[edit]Cardiff City 1 - 3 Bristol City - Thursday December 27 2001 [2]
A night-time kick off ensured a heated and passionate affair. Cardiff took an early lead through Graham Kavanagh inspiring the home crowd be in full voice. But 3 goals in the space of 4 minutes in the second half gave Bristol a famous victory. This game is renowned because after Scott Murray scored his second he put his hand to his ear and ran the length of the Cardiff home stand to wind them up.[3]
Cardiff City 1 - 0 Bristol City - May 10 2003
Bristol City 0 - 0 Cardiff City - May 13 2003
Both teams finished in the play offs for the 2002-03 Season [4] meaning 2 cagey matches would be played to decide who would go on to challenge for a place in the Coca Cola Championship. Despite losing both games during the season, Cardiff beat Bristol for the first time since 1971 at Ninian Park. They held on for a no-score draw at Ashton Gate pipping Bristol City to promotion whilst also ensuring the rivalry retained its bitterness.
The two teams have not met since, but after Bristol City won promotion in the 2006-07 Season they are due to meet again on December 15 2007 at Ashton Gate. In the Offical Coca Cola League Preview, every team was asked which team they were most looking forward to visiting. Both Bristol City and Cardiff listed each other.
Notable Characters in Past Encounters
[edit]Unlike the Cardiff vs Swansea derby, and the Bristol derby, it is not usually frowned upon to sign a player/manager who has played for the opposition in the Severnside Derby. The only players that are disfavoured are players who are remembered for one-off incidents. Such players include:
- Lee Trundle - Bristol City
Severely hated by Cardiff fans for a long affiliation with rivals Swansea City. After winning the LDV Vans Trophy in 2006, Trundle took to the pitch wearing a t-shirt depicting a Swansea fan urinating on a Cardiff City shirt. He also held up a welsh flag with the words "Fuck off Cardiff" on it but claimed he didn't realise it was written on there.[5][6]
- Robert Earnshaw - Cardiff City
Playing upfront for his hometown club, he was often know for taunting Bristol fans. He was often taunted for being ugly by away fans.
- Scott Murray - Bristol City
Disliked by Cardiff fans for overturning a 1-0 loss and then running past the Cardiff crowd with his hand to his ear taunting them as well as a long affiliation with Bristol.
Head to Head Record
[edit]| Competition | Played | Bristol City | Draw | Cardiff City |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | 62 | 29 | 15 | 18 |
| FA Cup | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| League Cup | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Other | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals | 72 | 33 | 17 | 22 |
Current as of 26 November 2007. Statistics obtained from Soccerbase. [7]
References
[edit]- ^ "Youtube - Bristol City vs Cardiff City for BBC Hooligans". www.youtube.com.
- ^ "BBC Sport - Match Report: Cardiff vs Bristol City". news.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Youtube - Scott murray double against Cardiff". www.youtube.com.
- ^ 2002-03 in English football#Football League Second Division
- ^ "Trundle - Wearing Offensive T-shirt". www.photobucket.com.
- ^ "BBC News - Trundle banned for offensive flag". news.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Soccerbase Head to Head - Cardiff vs Bristol City". www.soccerbase.com.