Nene derby

The Nene derby is the name of the association football local rivalry in England between Northampton Town and Peterborough United, both of which are based along the River Nene. Fans of both clubs consider the other to be one of their main rivals. The first competitive match between the two clubs took place in 1946 but the first professional derby took place in 1960. As of 3 September 2019, there has been 72 competitive matches between the two teams, with 32 wins for Peterborough, 21 wins for Northampton and 19 draws.[1]

Nene derby
LocaleEast of England
East Midlands
TeamsNorthampton Town
Peterborough United
First meetingPeterborough 1-1 Northampton
1946-47 FA Cup
(14 December 1946)
Latest meetingNorthampton 0-2 Peterborough
EFL Trophy
(3 September 2019)
StadiumsSixfields Stadium (Northampton)
London Road Stadium (Peterborough)
Statistics
Most winsPeterborough (32)
All-time seriesPeterborough: 32
Drawn: 19
Northampton: 21
Largest victoryNorthampton 8-1 Peterborough
1946-47 FA Cup
(23 December 1946)

The derby has never been played higher than the third tier of English football with 54 league matches, 7 FA Cup matches, 5 League Cup matches and 6 EFL Trophy matches. The most recent game took place in the EFL Trophy and resulted in a 0-2 win for Peterborough.[2]

Northampton play their home games at Sixfields Stadium, while Peterborough play at London Road Stadium. The two stadiums are approximately 37 miles (59.5 km) apart

History

Early matches

The first competitive game between the two clubs took place in the second round of the 1946-47 FA Cup. The match took place at Peterborough's London Road Stadium and ended in a 1-1 draw, forcing a reply. The reply ended in another 1-1, forcing a second reply which Northampton won 8-1. This victory still stands as the largest victory in the Nene derby.

Peterborough United won the Midland League five times in a row between 1956 and 1960 before being accepted into the Football League ahead of the 1960-61 season. That season, the Nene derby was played in the league for the first time with the first game ending in a 3-3 draw and the return fixture ending in a 0-3 win for Peterborough. Both teams were promoted to the Third Division as Peterborough won the league and Northampton finished third. Both teams played in the Third Division for the next two seasons before Northampton were promoted as champions in 1963.

The two teams did not play each other in the league again until the 1967-68 Third Division season after Northampton's run in the second and first tier.

Recent years

Northampton's last win in the series came in a League Two match in 2006 when they won 0-1 at London Road, with Northampton's goal being scored by Scott McGleish who had played for Peterborough ten years earlier.[3] Of the eight derbies since, Peterborough have won six and two have ended in draw.

In the 2019-20 season, Peterborough finished seventh in League One whilst Northampton won the League Two play-offs, meaning that the Nene derby is expected to be played twice in the 2020-21 League One season. Following Northampton's promotion, Peterborough United chairman, Darragh MacAnthony congratulated them and referred to the derby as "The one real 'local' rivalry I've experienced in 15 years at Posh."[4]

Rivalry

While the proximity of the clubs was the main root of the rivalry between Northampton Town and Peterborough United, other events have fueled the division. Most notable among these are the violent confrontations between fans, famously the "Battle of Abington Park" in April 1974 when approximately 500 fans clashed before, during and after a derby. An eye witness was quoted as saying "It was like a battle scene from a film where everyone converged to carry out personal duels. I have never seen anything like it." Some of the evidence presented in the court case that followed included "Sticks with nails embedded in the end, part of a brick, broken bottles, a large beer can and a pint mug."[5]

Aside from fan violence, animosity has arisen over transfers between the clubs with Northampton fans accusing Peterborough of poaching players. It has been said that "Northampton fans have never forgiven Peterborough for taking star strikers Tony Adcock and Bobby Barnes when the Cobblers were cash strapped."[6] This, however, has not stopped players from crossing the divide. Gabriel Zakuani, for example, signed for Northampton in 2016 after making 252 appearances for Peterborough.[7]

Away from football, one of the key divisions between the fans of each club is the pronunciation of the word "Nene". In Northampton it is pronounced "nen" while in Peterborough it is pronounced "neen".

gollark: ```phpif(mynum($Q)){ // Congratulations, you has locurlicenseucesss asdfghjk} else { header("Location: feed.php");}```
gollark: No.
gollark: You are as incoherent as a swarm of bees connected to a text to speech system.
gollark: I don't even have a muddy puddle.
gollark: What? I wasn't DOING that.

References
  1. "Peterborough United football club: record v Northampton Town". www.11v11.com. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  2. "Northampton Town v. Peterborough United LIVE: Final score: Cobblers 0, Posh 2 as Kanu and Dembele strike". www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
  3. "Peterborough 0-1 Northampton". 1 April 2006. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
  4. "Peterborough United congratulate Cobblers on promotion (and not just because Posh usually beat them)!". www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  5. Nicholls, Andy; Lowles, Nick (12 June 2007). Hooligans 2: The M-Z of Britain's Football Hooligan Gangs. Milo Books Ltd.
  6. "Gripped by the Cobblers: MK match is no local derby – you need history for a derby". The NeneQuirer. 18 October 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  7. "Gabriel Zakuani: Northampton Town close to signing ex-Peterborough defender". BBC Sport. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
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