South Wales derby
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The South Wales derby is the name of the football local derby between Welsh clubs Cardiff City and Swansea City and is regarded as one of the most fierce rivalries in British football.[1][2] The South Wales derby can also include Newport County.
The last South Wales derby to be played featuring Cardiff and Swansea took place on 13 May 2002 in the FAW Premier Cup final, which ended with a 1-0 win for Cardiff.
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[edit] History
The first match between the two sides took place on 7 September 1912 at Swansea's Vetch Field, the match ending in a 1-1 draw. Over the next two decades the clubs met frequently not only in league competition but also in the Welsh Cup as at the time they were two of the best Welsh teams and as such often progressed further into the tournament.
During the last few decades both clubs have been plagued by football hooliganism, notably Cardiff who's Soul Crew became notorious through their actions[3][4], and matches between the sides have often been marred by violence between the rival sets of supporters.
In September 1988, after seeing their side win in Swansea, a small group of Cardiff's Soul Crew were forced to run into Swansea bay after being attacked.[5]
On 23 December 1993 a match between the two sides was dubbed 'The Battle Of Ninian Park' as Swansea fans were placed in the grandstand for the game. As Cardiff went up 1-0, fans invaded the pitch, before Swansea fans bgan to tear out seats from the grandstand and use them as missiles. The following day national news showing pictures of the violence shocked the nation, forcing the FAW to ban away fans from this fixture for several years, the first fixture in Britain to do so.
Although in recent years the hooligan violence of both sides has sharply decreased matches between the two sides can still see serious trouble, as such any games between the two teams are normally subject to a much higher level of policing than normal matches. A heavy police presence was also required when Swansea fans travelled to Cardiff when they played at the Millennium Stadium in the Football League Trophy final in 2006.[6]
In recent years the South Wales derby has taken place less frequently as both sides have found themselves moving around the various divisions and have avoided each other but, with Swansea being promoted to the same divsion as Cardiff, the two teams will play each other for the first time in 6 years towards the end of 2008. With Cardiff's run to the FA Cup finals and Swansea's promotion, the South Wales derby is likely to become a race for a Welsh place in the English Premiership.
[edit] Newport rivalry
While both clubs still regard Newport County as a local rival their struggles in the league have meant that they rarely face off against Cardiff or Swansea.
A recent survey carried out by Planetfootball.com saw Cardiff fans vote that they considered Bristol City, known as the Severnside Derby, to be more of a rivalry than Newport. Swansea fans did not even vote Newport into their top three rivalries, instead finishing behnd Cardiff, Bristol City and Bristol Rovers.[7]
[edit] Record
As of 28 January 2008
| Competition | Total Matches | Cardiff Win | Draw | Swansea Win |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | 48 | 16 | 14 | 18 |
| FA Cup | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| League Cup | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Associate Members Cup | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Welsh Cup/FAW Premier Cup | 36 | 21 | 8 | 7 |
| Southern League | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Wartime competitions | 42 | 30 | 6 | 6 |
| Jubilee Benevolent Fund | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Friendlies | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Total | 150 | 74 | 35 | 41 |
[edit] Memorable matches
- Swansea Town 1-1 Cardiff City (7 September 1912) - The first ever meeting between the two sides. Billy Ball opened the scoring for Swansea after hitting in a rebound as the ball came off the post only for Cardiff captain Jack Burton to head in an equaliser.
- Swansea Town 3-3 Cardiff City (20 August 1938) - The match took place under the name of a Jubilee Benevolent Fund match and although the match was regarded as nothing more than a pre-season friendly the 10,000 crowd were not left wanting for action as Cardiff went 1-0 and 2-1 up only to be forced to grab a late equaliser to salvage a draw.
- Cardiff City 8-0 Swansea Town (26 October 1940) - A wartime league match ended in disaster for Swansea as they were on the receiving end of the "Bluebirds Blitzkrieg", as it was named, with a hattrick each for John Moore and Billy James and two goals for Reg Parker saw Swansea suffer a heavy defeat.
- Cardiff City 5-0 Swansea Town (6 April 1965) - A match mostly remembered as one of the most sporting matches to take place between the teams. The 15,000 strong Ninian Park crowd were treated to a fine performance from Cardiff, Swansea and Wales legends Ivor Allchurch and John Charles who found the net five times between them (Allchurch (3) and Charles (2)) to doom Swansea to relegation.
- Swansea City 4-1 Cardiff City (7 March 1995) - Heavy snowfall prior to kick-off saw the teams compete in a snow covered pitch with the use of an orange ball. Late in the first-half Swansea fired in three goals in the space of nine minutes to lead 3-0 at halftime. They added a fourth in the second-half before Cardiff grabbed a late consolation goal.
[edit] Player records
[edit] Most derby appearances*
| Ranking | Player | Derby Appearances | Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roger Freestone | 19 | Swansea City |
| 2= | Ivor Allchurch | 17 | Swansea Town & Cardiff City |
| 2= | Alan Harrington | 17 | Cardiff City |
| 2= | Herbie Williams | 17 | Swansea Town |
| 5 | Ron Stitfall | 16 | Cardiff City |
* - Excluding wartime fixtures.
[edit] Most derby goals*
| Ranking | Player | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brayley Reynolds | 8 | Swansea Town |
| 2 | Ronnie Williams | 7 | Swansea Town |
| 3= | Jimmy Gilligan | 6 | Cardiff City & Swansea Town |
| 3= | Herbie Williams | 6 | Swansea Town |
| 5= | George Johnston | 4 | Cardiff City |
| 5= | John Toshack | 4 | Cardiff City & Swansea City |
* - Excluding wartime fixtures.
[edit] Crossing the South Wales divide
A number of players who have played for both clubs during their career
- Ivor Allchurch
- Terry Boyle
- Mel Charles
- Alan Curtis
- George Edwards
- Warren Feeney
- Jimmy Gilligan
- Mark Harris
- Barrie Hole
- Robbie James
- Leslie James
- Jason Bowen
- Andy Legg
- Don Murray
- Brayley Reynolds
- Nigel Stevenson
- John Toshack
[edit] References
- ^ "Cardiff City vs Swansea City" Footballderbies.com Retrieved on 28 January 2008
- ^ "The Top Ten British Rivalries" oleole.com Retrieved on 28 January 2008,
- ^ "Cardiff and the hooligan element" BBC Retrieved on 28 January 2008
- ^ "Hammam calls for anti-thug summit" BBC Sport Retrieved on 14 May 2008
- ^ "News paper report on 'The Night In Swansea Bay'" Geocities Retrieved on 14 May 2008
- ^ "Police ready for Swans invasion" BBC Retrieved on 28 January 2008
- ^ "Football rivalries: The complete results" Planetfootball.com Retrieved on 28 January 2008
Dean Hayes: "The South Wales Derbies: A History of Cardiff City versus Swansea City"
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