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West Bromwich Albion FC Forums => West Bromwich Albion FC => Topic started by: Albionic on February 18, 2019, 11:46:11 AM
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I'll start this off
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Scumbags? Isn't that the sort of 'abuse' that this site frowns upon? Tut tut. ;)
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Scumbags? Isn't that the sort of 'abuse' that this site frowns upon? Tut tut. ;)
Damn that spallchucker, I could have sworn I put football club :D
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I’ve gone for the Vile for many, many reasons.
And not just because of the subliminal way the opinions are listed 😂👍
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I'd say it depends on when you started following Albion, and where you live / were bought up.
Familiarity bred contempt in the '90's with Wolves, but if you're an older fan it's still Villa. Likewise if you live Birmingham way and come across the Villa support more often, it's easier to hate the deluded bunch.
I hate Villa more than Wolves personally. I'm from Walsall, and started following Albion in the '90's, so I'm contradictory to the general rule. But my Mom's family is mostly Wolves (I followed my Dad up the Albion).
I think it's easier to have a bit of banter with the Wolves fans, they can give and take it a bit better. Villa fans still think they're Man United or something, and you can't convince them they aren't, which means they inevitably can't take it when we beat them. To thin skinned with delusions of grandeur.
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In fairness to my mind they're all our local rivals to a greater or lesser degree, even Blues. Know quite a few lads over Northfield and other areas who've no time at all for them. I just happen to have a greater dislike/rivalry for those in claret and blue. Likewise I respect the thoughts of others regarding the Wolves. Not a particular fan of Walsall or Coventry either to be honest but that's another story ;D .
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I'd say it depends on when you started following Albion, and where you live / were bought up.
Familiarity bred contempt in the '90's with Wolves, but if you're an older fan it's still Villa. Likewise if you live Birmingham way and come across the Villa support more often, it's easier to hate the deluded bunch.
I hate Villa more than Wolves personally. I'm from Walsall, and started following Albion in the '90's, so I'm contradictory to the general rule. But my Mom's family is mostly Wolves (I followed my Dad up the Albion).
I think it's easier to have a bit of banter with the Wolves fans, they can give and take it a bit better. Villa fans still think they're Man United or something, and you can't convince them they aren't, which means they inevitably can't take it when we beat them. To thin skinned with delusions of grandeur.
Started going in the 50’s so being from Wednesbury it could have been either but as the blunderers were the big name then its them and not the vile for me. Agree about the fans though, away from the match the banter was usually good with the Wolves lot but the Vile lot tended to be more arrogant and only capable of thinking inside their own little box. Must be something to do with being a big city club, Wolverhampton was only a town back then.
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Their's nothink better than bashing a team dressed in claret & blue, NOTHING
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As others have pointed out it depends on your age and where you're from. It's always been the Vile for me personally but I don't think anyone can seriously deny that in recent times (since the early 90s at least) the rivalry with Wolves has been far more intense.
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Vile for me having grown up in Newtown followed by the blue noses.
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Bought up In Selly Oak then Erdington for a bit, it’s Villa for me!
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Am in my 50s and grew up in Northfield, so it is without doubt Vile for me. Can’t stand the Dog Heads but think the rivalry is more intense for them, all their support see us as main rival whereas it’s not like that for all of us. Blues I don’t mind except when we play them, though when they were chucking cash about in the 90s they did become a bit arrogant. Hate Stoke, for a whole host of reasons on and off the pitch. Despise Man Utd too.
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I grew up a little detached from it all in the Coventry area. I was born in 1990, we hardly ever played Villa so it was always Wolves for me as we regularly played them. Even though lots of my wider family are Villa fans, they never gave me much stick so was never really bothered with Villa until our years in The Premier League with them.
My old man, always tells me that Villa are our real rivals, he grew up in West Bromwich and then Coventry in the 60s & 70s. As others have said, I guess it is down to personal experience, generations and geography. For me though, it's definitely Wolves and as Jacko has stated elsehere, I think outsiders see Albion v Wolves and Villa v Blues as the rivalries, rightly or wrongly.
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They're all our rivals!
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Being a soft southerner from High Wycombe, I don't have any strong hatreds for any Midland club. I dislike Man U with a passion, followed by Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City. Only because all the lazy armchair fans support them and the national press are not interested in outsiders. But in all honesty, I think all the Midlands clubs get a raw deal from the national media.
But if there was one Midland club that likes to act big as if they are Champions League, when their level is a million miles away, it would have to be Villa.
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I always like topics like this, its nice to see different views from generations, areas, etc.
We are in the middle a bit, in that if all 4 teams were in the same league and fans were asked who they wanted to beat the most, the vast majority would say -
Blues would say Villa
Villa would say Blues
Wolves would say Albion
However Albion would say Villa or Wolves as this forum shows as a guide, its each to their own.
Going on my own experiences, Villa do hate us (despite pretending not too) but i dont think its the same level as they have for Blues, but i think given the choice they would want to beat Blues more than us.
The same as i think the Wolves as a whole hate us on another level to what we hate them because a number of our fans see Villa as the rivals, but those that do hate the Wolves, do so with a passion.
I started going 86/87 (think Villa got promoted that year) so all my schooldays Villa were better than us, i think we only played them twice in the FA cup and they battered us. They were always a bit arrogant but they did win cup finals, challenged for the league, played in europe so at least there was something to back it up, nowadays as league positions show they are worse than us and have been for many years now.
However it was Wolves i couldnt stand and still cant, back in the late 80's / 90's they were very flash and full of themselves, we were the peasants, yet they never seemed to achieve anything and we often beat them on the pitch. Under Sir Jack i remember Wolves school mates were giving it large to Man United fans about how Wolves were the next Blackburn, then in the 2000's, out round the pubs, Steve Morgan took over and they were the next Chelsea. Now Fosun (who the signs are good so far) they are going to be the next Man City, law of averages they may be right this time because the first two times round they were just very ordinary.
I know some good lads who are Wolves fans and they are enjoying taking the p**s at the moment as i did with them, but they do seem to have more than most type of fans who just go from being normal to deluded very quick, instead of enjoying it, they are already setting themselves up for a fall.
To give a recent example, i went out for a few saturday night to celebrate, big group of us (including a couple of Vilers) was all good fun, another group came in who i knew a few of them and 3 of them were Dingles. 1 of the Dingle lads who i knew was a good laugh, plenty of banter, however the other 2 come over then and the atmosphere turned a bit, we lost them a couple of times but they piped up again.
I am a easy going person but the one was just gobbing off so much nonsense i ended up explaining things to him like a kid because he was too think to understand.
(1) Me and the Vilers were talking about Robson-Kanu, all of a sudden the Dingle pipes up saying Albion fans were a embarrassment for singing the song we do about him as we nicked off it Wolves that they sing for Neves, i pointed out we had signed Kanu a year before they had Neves and had been singing it long before Neves had set foot in Wolverhampton, he still couldnt do the maths.
(2) He said we live in the past and go no better banter than the 1-5 at the Molineux, again i pointed out because until this season we have spent the previous seasons since then in a higher league, again he didnt seem to get it.
(3) The one lad (an acquaintance not a mate) i saw him a few years ago and he no longer went to games, had no interest in them, he said he didnt even look out for the results. I saw him saturday and he looked like had robbed the Wolves club shop and all of a sudden he went everywhere, had done all his life, he was there to witness the bad times (he wasnt born til 82 so didnt see the real bad times and he also had no idea who Stole Solbakken was) but now he is enjoying the 'glory days' as he suffered!
Just to give an idea he was telling the Villa lads and me to 'mind the gap' and what Wolves are achieving in the modern day game, after hearing it for the hundreth time i asked what exactly have they achieved as of now that Albion hadnt, that Villa hadnt, that Blues hadnt. It was all what they were going to do, so i said basically as of now, you have achieved nothing new (whilst pointing out Blues won the carling cup) Wolves may break into europe this season, they may win the FA Cup, they may end up conquering the world but until they do, i wish they would shut the f**k up.
If Wolves do as the Fosuns are saying, they will be lauding it for years to come, however see where they are in a few years, if they dont sell their best players (ie - Mendes who wants to make money), if they do attract another 20k fans for the ground upgrade, if they do win something and break europe then thats when they can act like they are doing now.
But i would say over 50% of the Wolves fans i have met / know were like the ones above, maybe i have just been unlucky but from my experience they do seem to have more than most clubs who are just general bell***s.
As a end note (didnt realise how much saturday annoyed me til i typed this!) when we left it looked like the dingle (acquaintance) was going to get a battering off a spurs fan (season ticket holder but a fruitcake) i went over to try and calm things down for his own sake, everyone in the pub had had enough of him by then and the spurs fan i knew and he is ok, but the dingle wouldnt listen, i tried to get him to leave but he then proceeded to start gobbing off even more so i just thought sod him!
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Just did some trivia analysis on history between Albion, Vill and Wolves for myself really, but thought I would share it, you may think why and who could blame you! 😂
All three clubs have been competing in organised league football for 120 years
Each clubs record for how many years they have spent in each of the divisions is as follows
Albion
Football League - 4 years
Division One - 73 years
Division Two - 27 years
Division Three - 1 year
Division Four - 0 years
Championship - 4 years
Premier League - 11 years
Aston Villa
Football League - 4 years
Division One - 77 years
Division Two - 10 years
Division Three - 2 year
Division Four - 0 years
Championship - 3 years
Premier League - 24 years
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Football League - 4 years
Division One - 73 years
Division Two - 29 years
Division Three - 6 year
Division Four - 2 years
Championship - 4 years
Premier League - 2 years
To make it more interesting, well for me anyway, I awarded point to each team for the number of years in each division, as follows
Football League 1 point
Division One 4 points
Division Two 3 points
Division Three 2 points
Division Four 0 points
Championship 5 points
Premier League 6 points
Albion 465 points
Villa 505 points
Wolves 427 points
Additionally, over the 120 years, we have spent more years in a league with Villa than Wolves, as follows
Albion - Villa 70 years
Albion - Wolves 65 years
Villa - Wolves 58 years
Since the 1980’s, that’s 39 year to date, the figures are as follows
Albion - Villa 18 years
Albion - Wolves 12 years
Villa - Wolves 10 years
Doesn’t prove much, other than that we have spent more years in the same divisions as Villa rather than Wolves.
I’ll get we coot!
Ps, sorry Blues, I will do the analysis to include you if there is a high enough demand😂
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As I have said previously due to age and where I grew up, it has always been Vile for me, though Wolves aren’t too far behind. I had never actually really met a Dog Head until about 1982 aged 15 when I started visiting step relatives in Bridgnorth. My step cousin who last time I had seen him was a Leeds fan was now a rabid home/away Wolves fan and hates Albion almost manically and couldn’t even say out name and could only refer to us as the pooh, I was bemused tbh as I didn’t really care about them. Going to games against them brought it home how much they hated us, and I know lots of Albion reciprocate, I still say it is more them than us in the rivalry. I don’t care who Vile hate, and I don’t care what dog headsheads think of us, I hate Vile the most.
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No contest Vile, I'm from Smethwick but has the family wasn't into football that didn't make a lot of difference.
The hatred came when I started work the vile were sh### like now in Div 2 and we were a decent team in Div 1 having just won the FA Cup the year before but the arrogance I saw astounded me and nothing much has changed since then if anything they got worse. if I won the Euro millions I would buy vile and sell all their best players and buy dross until they were playing and losing to Sutton Town that would be money well spent ;D.
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As I have said previously due to age and where I grew up, it has always been Vile for me, though Wolves aren’t too far behind. I had never actually really met a Dog Head until about 1982 aged 15 when I started visiting step relatives in Bridgnorth. My step cousin who last time I had seen him was a Leeds fan was now a rabid home/away Wolves fan and hates Albion almost manically and couldn’t even say out name and could only refer to us as the pooh, I was bemused tbh as I didn’t really care about them. Going to games against them brought it home how much they hated us, and I know lots of Albion reciprocate, I still say it is more them than us in the rivalry. I don’t care who Vile hate, and I don’t care what dog headsheads think of us, I hate Vile the most.
You're right, Bridgnorth is real Dingle territory, I lived there for a while in the 70s, there were quite a lot of Albion fans, but we were always in the minority. Not surprising I suppose, Wolves is the closest club. So I put Wolves as the "local rivals".
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Being from the border of Warley and Quinton, I grew up with hardly any dingles, just Veela and blues. I was reminded daily that Veela were the greatest team the world had ever seen and so my hatred for them grew. Don't get me wrong, I hate the dingles as much as the next person, but the seals will always be the arch-enemy.
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I always like topics like this, its nice to see different views from generations, areas, etc.
We are in the middle a bit, in that if all 4 teams were in the same league and fans were asked who they wanted to beat the most, the vast majority would say -
Blues would say Villa
Villa would say Blues
Wolves would say Albion
However Albion would say Villa or Wolves as this forum shows as a guide, its each to their own.
Going on my own experiences, Villa do hate us (despite pretending not too) but i dont think its the same level as they have for Blues, but i think given the choice they would want to beat Blues more than us.
The same as i think the Wolves as a whole hate us on another level to what we hate them because a number of our fans see Villa as the rivals, but those that do hate the Wolves, do so with a passion.
I started going 86/87 (think Villa got promoted that year) so all my schooldays Villa were better than us, i think we only played them twice in the FA cup and they battered us. They were always a bit arrogant but they did win cup finals, challenged for the league, played in europe so at least there was something to back it up, nowadays as league positions show they are worse than us and have been for many years now.
However it was Wolves i couldnt stand and still cant, back in the late 80's / 90's they were very flash and full of themselves, we were the peasants, yet they never seemed to achieve anything and we often beat them on the pitch. Under Sir Jack i remember Wolves school mates were giving it large to Man United fans about how Wolves were the next Blackburn, then in the 2000's, out round the pubs, Steve Morgan took over and they were the next Chelsea. Now Fosun (who the signs are good so far) they are going to be the next Man City, law of averages they may be right this time because the first two times round they were just very ordinary.
I know some good lads who are Wolves fans and they are enjoying taking the p**s at the moment as i did with them, but they do seem to have more than most type of fans who just go from being normal to deluded very quick, instead of enjoying it, they are already setting themselves up for a fall.
To give a recent example, i went out for a few saturday night to celebrate, big group of us (including a couple of Vilers) was all good fun, another group came in who i knew a few of them and 3 of them were Dingles. 1 of the Dingle lads who i knew was a good laugh, plenty of banter, however the other 2 come over then and the atmosphere turned a bit, we lost them a couple of times but they piped up again.
I am a easy going person but the one was just gobbing off so much nonsense i ended up explaining things to him like a kid because he was too think to understand.
(1) Me and the Vilers were talking about Robson-Kanu, all of a sudden the Dingle pipes up saying Albion fans were a embarrassment for singing the song we do about him as we nicked off it Wolves that they sing for Neves, i pointed out we had signed Kanu a year before they had Neves and had been singing it long before Neves had set foot in Wolverhampton, he still couldnt do the maths.
(2) He said we live in the past and go no better banter than the 1-5 at the Molineux, again i pointed out because until this season we have spent the previous seasons since then in a higher league, again he didnt seem to get it.
(3) The one lad (an acquaintance not a mate) i saw him a few years ago and he no longer went to games, had no interest in them, he said he didnt even look out for the results. I saw him saturday and he looked like had robbed the Wolves club shop and all of a sudden he went everywhere, had done all his life, he was there to witness the bad times (he wasnt born til 82 so didnt see the real bad times and he also had no idea who Stole Solbakken was) but now he is enjoying the 'glory days' as he suffered!
Just to give an idea he was telling the Villa lads and me to 'mind the gap' and what Wolves are achieving in the modern day game, after hearing it for the hundreth time i asked what exactly have they achieved as of now that Albion hadnt, that Villa hadnt, that Blues hadnt. It was all what they were going to do, so i said basically as of now, you have achieved nothing new (whilst pointing out Blues won the carling cup) Wolves may break into europe this season, they may win the FA Cup, they may end up conquering the world but until they do, i wish they would shut the f**k up.
If Wolves do as the Fosuns are saying, they will be lauding it for years to come, however see where they are in a few years, if they dont sell their best players (ie - Mendes who wants to make money), if they do attract another 20k fans for the ground upgrade, if they do win something and break europe then thats when they can act like they are doing now.
But i would say over 50% of the Wolves fans i have met / know were like the ones above, maybe i have just been unlucky but from my experience they do seem to have more than most clubs who are just general bell***s.
As a end note (didnt realise how much saturday annoyed me til i typed this!) when we left it looked like the dingle (acquaintance) was going to get a battering off a spurs fan (season ticket holder but a fruitcake) i went over to try and calm things down for his own sake, everyone in the pub had had enough of him by then and the spurs fan i knew and he is ok, but the dingle wouldnt listen, i tried to get him to leave but he then proceeded to start gobbing off even more so i just thought sod him!
The crux of it. It's not a rivalry if the majority of one side isn't bothered.
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Nothing comes close to the rivalry with Wolves. Don't really care about Villa and don't really mind Blues.
Actually hate Stoke more than Villa.
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Villa all day long.
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The crux of it. It's not a rivalry if the majority of one side isn't bothered.
Not sure whether you actually believe this or just on the wind up (I suspect its the latter), get yourself to Erdington, you can stop at mine for the weekend & I'll introduce you to some vilers, then tell me they don't hate us.
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Not sure whether you actually believe this or just on the wind up (I suspect its the latter), get yourself to Erdington, you can stop at mine for the weekend & I'll introduce you to some vilers, then tell me they don't hate us.
Likewise the ones from Bearwood and Quinton that I know.
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The crux of it. It's not a rivalry if the majority of one side isn't bothered.
Indeed, as such how can our relationship with Wolves be considered a rivalry when the majority of Albion fans consider the Vile to be the real enemy and are not bothered about Wolves?
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In all innocence when I first saw the Albion play wolves I didn't know they were rival's I was about 15 but looked 12 they had just come up and the game finished 2-2 .
I came out of the smethwick and this youth towered over me and snarled in my face you were lucky or words to that effect I looked around and all these grown men were glowering at me with my baggie scarf I actually thought for the first time at a game I might get my head kicked in luckily I spotted a copper a few yards ahead and speedily caught him up and stuck next to him until the Wolves fans went to the station!
Even after that, it's the vile i hate way-way more than Wolves.
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Indeed, as such how can our relationship with Wolves be considered a rivalry when the majority of Albion fans consider the Vile to be the real enemy and are not bothered about Wolves?
This isn't the case though. I'd estimate a 50/50 split at best, and much like Brexit, as time passes and people die off it'll only move away from Villa more.
I'm not trying to wind anyone up but even if you say it's 60/40 in Vile's favour; among their fans it's probably 90/10 in Blues favour, and that is a conservative estimate.
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Wolves for me all day everyday. Villa don’t even come close. I’m a 90’s kid and was brought up in darlaston and went to secondary school in willenhall. Albion fans in that school were few and far between. I used to get regular slaps every time we beat them, but it wouldn’t stop me giving it large to them.
The whole 90’s turned into staying in division 1 ( championship) and beating the wolves and nearly every year we did it. They were the rich neighbours spending millions to get to the promised land and we beat them to it spending next to nothing. Villa for me in the 90’s as a kid weren’t even considered a rival they were mixing it with the big boys at the top of the premier league. The thought of even competing with them was a dream .
As the years have gone on and that gap disappeared the rivalry got abit more feisty but still nothing in the wolves for me.
We’ve dominated wolves since 2002 now the tables have turned massively and the idea of competing with them is drifting further and further away. Their the rich neighbours again.
I hate wolves I dislike villa. But what I would say to any Albion fan thinking that villa consider us as a main rival then their kidding themselves. Villa ain’t bothered about us at all , wolves can’t stand us. For me the region will always be Albion wolves and villa blues
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In all innocence when I first saw the Albion play wolves I didn't know they were rival's I was about 15 but looked 12 they had just come up and the game finished 2-2 .
I came out of the smethwick and this youth towered over me and snarled in my face you were lucky or words to that effect I looked around and all these grown men were glowering at me with my baggie scarf I actually thought for the first time at a game I might get my head kicked in luckily I spotted a copper a few yards ahead and speedily caught him up and stuck next to him until the Wolves fans went to the station!
Even after that, it's the vile i hate way-way more than Wolves.
That was my first game against Wolves, I was about 10 or 11, and was in the Woodman, some dog heads walked round back of the Rainbow and were throwing stones into the Albion fans in Woodman, so me and my step brother started throwing them back till I got a clip round ear off my dad. It went mental on Halfords Lane after match and I got flattened by a dog head who booted me. I still didn’t see what the fuss was about. Does anyone remember Wolves fans on roof of Smerhwick that game and police being on roof to chase them?
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That was my first game against Wolves, I was about 10 or 11, and was in the Woodman, some dog heads walked round back of the Rainbow and were throwing stones into the Albion fans in Woodman, so me and my step brother started throwing them back till I got a clip round ear off my dad. It went mental on Halfords Lane after match and I got flattened by a dog head who booted me. I still didn’t see what the fuss was about. Does anyone remember Wolves fans on roof of Smerhwick that game and police being on roof to chase them?
I may be getting mixed up here gut there used to be a sandwich hut in the Smethwick and the wolves fans tried to set light to it was it that game?
I seem to remember that on the roof wolves fans have a thing for that remember that one falling through the roof at some away game :D.
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I may be getting mixed up here gut there used to be a sandwich hut in the Smethwick and the wolves fans tried to set light to it was it that game?
I seem to remember that on the roof wolves fans have a thing for that remember that one falling through the roof at some away game :D.
the Scarborough skydiver.😂😂
thick prat forgot his chute.
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Wolves for me all day everyday. Villa don’t even come close. I’m a 90’s kid and was brought up in darlaston and went to secondary school in willenhall. Albion fans in that school were few and far between. I used to get regular slaps every time we beat them, but it wouldn’t stop me giving it large to them.
The whole 90’s turned into staying in division 1 ( championship) and beating the wolves and nearly every year we did it. They were the rich neighbours spending millions to get to the promised land and we beat them to it spending next to nothing. Villa for me in the 90’s as a kid weren’t even considered a rival they were mixing it with the big boys at the top of the premier league. The thought of even competing with them was a dream .
As the years have gone on and that gap disappeared the rivalry got abit more feisty but still nothing in the wolves for me.
We’ve dominated wolves since 2002 now the tables have turned massively and the idea of competing with them is drifting further and further away. Their the rich neighbours again.
I hate wolves I dislike villa. But what I would say to any Albion fan thinking that villa consider us as a main rival then their kidding themselves. Villa ain’t bothered about us at all , wolves can’t stand us. For me the region will always be Albion wolves and villa blues
Villa ain’t bothered about us. You are so so wrong. They always say it’s only Blues but that’s because they always win against them. Used to get dogs abuse from them but now they hide since we started beating them.
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You’ve only got to go to a game at villa park and then one at molineux to tell the difference I think.
Stoke last week seemed to have more of a derby day atmosphere to it than Saturday did. Poor atmosphere Saturday from both sets really, didn’t here a peep out of villa and considering we were 2-0 against a team a lot of people see as the main rivals we were quiet second half except for last 5/10 minutes.
Games at the molineux just have so much of a different feel to it from the start of the day to the end of the day. Wouldn’t get Albion fans walking around molineux with shorts on show like they did Saturday, although that probably says more about those wolves scumbags more than anything else
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All comes down to age and geogrpahy i think. I didn't have a clue about Wolves until we went really bad in the 90s, on my playground it was Albion vs Villa but i am toward the Birmingham end of the black country not the dingle end. Wolves were nobodies to me in the 80s.
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You’ve only got to go to a game at villa park and then one at molineux to tell the difference I think.
Stoke last week seemed to have more of a derby day atmosphere to it than Saturday did. Poor atmosphere Saturday from both sets really, didn’t here a peep out of villa and considering we were 2-0 against a team a lot of people see as the main rivals we were quiet second half except for last 5/10 minutes.
Games at the molineux just have so much of a different feel to it from the start of the day to the end of the day. Wouldn’t get Albion fans walking around molineux with shorts on show like they did Saturday, although that probably says more about those wolves scumbags more than anything else
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This. Idiotic support doesn't create a rivalry though, you wouldn't want to walk around Millwall either.
As I said in another topic earlier one hundred and forty odd years of history says Villa are our proper rivals.
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All comes down to age and geogrpahy i think. I didn't have a clue about Wolves until we went really bad in the 90s, on my playground it was Albion vs Villa but i am toward the Birmingham end of the black country not the dingle end. Wolves were nobodies to me in the 80s.
On the playground at primary school it was always blues and Albion v Villa and Man U and any rejects.
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This. Idiotic support doesn't create a rivalry though, you wouldn't want to walk around Millwall either.
As I said in another topic earlier one hundred and forty odd years of history says Villa are our proper rivals.
Someone should tell Villa then, because we KNOW they're all about history ;D
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Did they win something in 1982? :D
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Did they win something in 1982? :D
Dunno fella I was only 1...
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Went for Wolves. I started going up in 94 so they were the main rivals for years. We never played Villa until the PL in 2002. Blues were rivals, but I just didn't feel the tension, even though my mate at school was a blue nose, went home and away with them.
Wolves are also Black Country, so that's the rivalry for me.
Besides, Villa are just a small town in Birmingham, and Blues are just a small town in Aston ;D or so the song goes!
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I was born in Great Barr and grew up in South Birmingham and as such Villa were always the main rival. My cousin was a Villa fan and there were plenty at school and latter at work.
I never met a Wolves fan when I lived in Birmingham. To this day I only ever recall meeting one and that was a guy who I worked with in Hemel Hempstead of all places. It is difficult to sustain a rivalry when you have no social contact with your rivals.
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This isn't the case though. I'd estimate a 50/50 split at best, and much like Brexit, as time passes and people die off it'll only move away from Villa more.
I'm not trying to wind anyone up but even if you say it's 60/40 in Vile's favour; among their fans it's probably 90/10 in Blues favour, and that is a conservative estimate.
I'm no stranger to football forums but this really is in seriously poor taste, and that says a lot coming from me. I'll acknowledge I'm not a reference point for forum morality but this is aiming pretty low.
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What I like about this debate is that you all base your preference from personal experiences, peers, enemies and acquaintances. The only Wolves fans I know personally are my Uncle and my late Nan, I went to school in Leicestershire with a couple of Villa fans but... In my experience football rivalry is a mob experience, one of the best football books ever written is is by satirist and all round legend Sir Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals, and it encapsulates this side of the game brilliantly.
So despite numerous examples of individual anecdotal evidence provided on here, tales of woe about being brought up in this area or that area I can't get my head around hating a team, who's fans aren't (for the most part) a bit bothered about us. Go on Villa Talk, go on Twitter, even Facebook where the bells really come out, it's just another defeat to them, they could care less they lost to us, only that they lost. They constantly talk about the disgrace of finishing below Blues, they're not bothered they're going to finish below us, they're not bothered if we get promoted. It's sheer arrogance I presume, but it's there in them, they just don't care.
I'm no stranger to football forums but this really is in seriously poor taste, and that says a lot coming from me. I'll acknowledge I'm not a reference point for forum morality but this is aiming pretty low.
Spotted you post as I was posting mate.
We know each other Dan, I meant nothing more than to suggest as many others have it's to a certain extent an age thing, I seriously apologise if I've offended you. Not my intention. But reading it back it doesn't sound great.
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Spotted you post as I was posting mate.
We know each other Dan, I meant nothing more than to suggest as many others have it's to a certain extent an age thing, I seriously apologise if I've offended you. Not my intention. But reading it back it doesn't sound great.
Fair enough chap and as stated in the PM, no problem.
All of the very best to you and yours.
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It's 100%, definitely....Wolves
From your own personal perspective it does depend on your age, location, and even friends/family and your environment growing up, but being as objective as possible, I think this is fairly accurate....
99% of Blues fans see Villa as their main rivals.
99% of Wolves fans see West Brom as their main rivals.
*MOST* Villa fans hate Blues the most
*MOST* Albion fans hate Wolves the most
There is no fixture in the WBA calendar like West Brom v Wolves. This is the game with the best atmosphere, the most bite, the most satisfaction, the most authentic rivalry. When was the last time we had a game against Wolves kick off on a Saturday at 15:00 like we just did against Villa? (just like a normal game)
They always tend to get moved to 12:00 on advice of the police. You will never see Villa-Blues kick off at 15:00 on a Saturday either.
In 2008, West Brom v Wolves was voted the most fiercest rivalry in English football by supporters across the country.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/2297404/Wolves-v-West-Brom-Bitter-rivals-do-battle.html
There will be 500 extra police on duty in Wolverhampton tonight, and all pubs will be bolted and padlocked four hours before kick-off. Wolves versus West Bromwich Albion is officially the biggest derby in the country, which may raise eyebrows on Merseyside, or in Manchester and north London.
The Black Country derby, though, takes mutual dislike to another level. Five hundred Wolves fans rioted in January last year when the two teams met in the FA Cup, and only a police blockade prevented a full-scale confrontation when West Bromwich supporters invaded the pitch in celebration of their victory in the play-off semi-final a year ago.
It is a match with an atmosphere like no other, a rivalry that goes deeper than just the football. For that reason it is perhaps no surprise that it came out top in the Football Rivalries Report 2008, published recently by the New Football Pools from information gathered from more than 6,000 members of the Football Fans Census
TOP 3 INTENSE WEST MIDLANDS DERBIES
1. West Brom vs Wolves
2. Villa vs Blues
3. West Brom vs Villa
The atmosphere at The Hawthorns and police presence and intensity will always be the highest for a Wolves game. Likewise at Villa Park for a second city Derby.
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Additionally, over the 120 years, we have spent more years in a league with Villa than Wolves, as follows
Albion - Villa 70 years
Albion - Wolves 65 years
Villa - Wolves 58 years
Since the 1980’s, that’s 39 year to date, the figures are as follows
Albion - Villa 18 years
Albion - Wolves 12 years
Villa - Wolves 10 years
Doesn’t prove much, other than that we have spent more years in the same divisions as Villa rather than Wolves.
I’ll get we coot!
Ps, sorry Blues, I will do the analysis to include you if there is a high enough demand😂
Sorry but I had different figures.... as of this season, we have spent exactly the same number of Seasons in the same division (any division) with both Villa and Wolves.
and since 1980... 39 seasons, the count is also the same for Villa and Wolves......with more seasons with the Blues thean the other two.
Since start of Football league (120 seasons) teams together at any level.
WBA and Villa = 73
WBA and Wolves = 73
Wolves and Birmingham = 65
WBA and Birmingham = 59
Villa and Birmingham = 58
Villa and Wolves = 54
Since 1980 (39 seasons) teams together at any level.
WBA and Birmingham = 23
Wolves and Birmingham = 23
WBA and Villa = 18
WBA and Wolves = 18
Villa and Birmingham = 16
Villa and Wolves = 9
and I so hope I haven't stuffed up the counts :)
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Sorry but I had different figures.... as of this season, we have spent exactly the same number of Seasons in the same division (any division) with both Villa and Wolves.
and since 1980... 39 seasons, the count is also the same for Villa and Wolves......with more seasons with the Blues thean the other two.
Since start of Football league (120 seasons) teams together at any level.
WBA and Villa = 73
WBA and Wolves = 73
Wolves and Birmingham = 65
WBA and Birmingham = 59
Villa and Birmingham = 58
Villa and Wolves = 54
Since 1980 (39 seasons) teams together at any level.
WBA and Birmingham = 23
Wolves and Birmingham = 23
WBA and Villa = 18
WBA and Wolves = 18
Villa and Birmingham = 16
Villa and Wolves = 9
and I so hope I haven't stuffed up the counts :)
Vile vs Blues well down on both those lists, still their biggest rivals by far.
Stats are just that.
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From 2010/11 when all four of the Midlands teams were in the Premier League but this is still spot on IMO
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/premier-league/8194127/West-Midlands-derbies-the-hierarchy-of-hostility-between-Aston-Villa-West-Brom-Birmingham-City-and-Wolves.html
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Vile for me, living in South brum started going late seventies then wolves but dont mind blouse tbh
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For those who are saying most Albion fans hate Wolves well according to the poll that's not the case on here over 60 % at the minute say vile.
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Reading this thead genuinely saddens me. Not because others don't agree with my point of view or perceptions but because it appears I've made an unfortunate mistake. It appears I've spent my whole football supporting life despising the wrong local team. By local I mean the one on the doorstep of the team I chose to support. What a waste of time, effort and potential friendships that's been. Nobody elses fault though, mine.
Wow, how stupid of me. I didn't even realise who my real rivals were, much less that it all depends on how many supporters get their faces broken or how many boys in blue are there to witness it. No hope for me and I may as well jack the whole lot in. What a genuine waste all those local arguments and debates were, how very short sighted and parochial of me when I should have been looking at local football rivalry in a wider and more national context.
All this time and I should have been taking 25 mile round trips by train to row about football with complete strangers whose clubs mean absolutely nothing to me on a day to day basis. I didn't even know local football rivalry was defined by what you're told as opposed to what I feel inside. My life experiences mean nothing and I should have read a book about it all. Better still if I'd had access to the internet sooner I could have let other people work it all out for me as I'm clearly very stupid.
Looking on the bright side I'll be financially better off. Life may be a little duller to start with but I'll get to save myself all that angst and general inconvenience too. I may even find something more interesting to do so it's not all bad. Who knows, unlikely though it is I may find I actually get on with the wife. That said though her dad's a Doghead so it's probably a non starter. May as well draw up the divorce papers now then. Must remember to apologise to my son too for having influenced his choices at an early age. His life would have been so much easier if I'd brought him up as an Erdington Viler like his local school pals.
Fknl, the poor lad.
Well b@ll@cks to that, SOTV and FTW. COYB 8) .
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Just looking at the poll and response on the thread, sorry if I’ve missed it, but who was the individual who voted other and who was the other? Just curious
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From South Birmingham, and don't really know any Wolves fans, so Villa is and will always be the biggest game for me. The feeling of winning on Saturday was better than any Wolves victory, even the 5-1.
But when asked who our biggest rivalry is... I simply say we have two main local rivals, and I have enough hate in me for the both of them :P
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Just looking at the poll and response on the thread, sorry if I’ve missed it, but who was the individual who voted other and who was the other? Just curious
wasn't me but Walsall isn't a choice in the poll so maybe that's the other.
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It all depends on where you were brought up IMO.
If you are from Birmingham then more than likely you will see Villa as your rivals.
But if we take the Black Country which is split into the 4 areas of Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Walsall.
If for instance you are an Albion fan growing up in Bilston or Wednesfield areas of Wolverhampton you'll see Wolves as your main rivals.
The same can be said for Dudley areas Sedgley, Coseley, Tipton, Kingswinford, Brierley Hill, Netherton and to a lesser extent Stourbridge. Most will see Wolves as their main rivals.
When you start moving to across towards Sandwell and West Brom itself as well as Halesowen, Blackheath, Smethwick and Oldbury I'd say it changes to Villa.
If you live in Walsall or Wednesbury I'd say its pretty even between Wolves and Villa but further east you go to Great Barr and Aldridge it will be mainly Villa.
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It all depends on where you were brought up IMO.
If you are from Birmingham then more than likely you will see Villa as your rivals.
But if we take the Black Country which is split into the 4 areas of Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Walsall.
If for instance you are an Albion fan growing up in Bilston or Wednesfield areas of Wolverhampton you'll see Wolves as your main rivals.
The same can be said for Dudley areas Sedgley, Coseley, Tipton, Kingswinford, Brierley Hill, Netherton and to a lesser extent Stourbridge. Most will see Wolves as their main rivals.
When you start moving to across towards Sandwell and West Brom itself as well as Halesowen, Blackheath, Smethwick and Oldbury I'd say it changes to Villa.
If you live in Walsall or Wednesbury I'd say its pretty even between Wolves and Villa but further east you go to Great Barr and Aldridge it will be mainly Villa.
I'm Rowley Regis and its Wolves for me and pretty much all my mates around my age also the Albion fans in Tividale see it as WOlves
Just over the other side of the Wolverhampton Road though in to Langley and Smethwick a lot of my mates that side see the Villa as theres
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I'm Rowley Regis and its Wolves for me and pretty much all my mates around my age also the Albion fans in Tividale see it as WOlves
Just over the other side of the Wolverhampton Road though in to Langley and Smethwick a lot of my mates that side see the Villa as theres
I live down the road from you and its Villa ;) :D
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I'm split 50/50 on this. Coming from a family of Albion fans on both sides of the family from West Brom and Smethwick, it was ALWAYS the Villa, I can't remember ever hearing the Wolves mentioned in terms of a rivalry in our household. The Wolves only ever became an issue for me from 1989/90, Bully's last minute winner for the dingles at The Hawthorns that season being a catalyst for this. The Wolves rivalry intensified from there and throughout the 90's it was 100% THE main rivalry. Living in Stourbridge throughout the 2000's only heightened this for me. It would be interesting to see the results from this poll if we happened NOT to be in the same league as the Villa this season and happened to be in the same league as the Wolves, I think the levels of rivalry fluctuate according to who we happen to be playing the most during a particular era. To summarise for me personally, historically and traditionally it has to be the Villa, from 1989 onwards I would say it's been the Wolves.
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wasn't me but Walsall isn't a choice in the poll so maybe that's the other.
Or perhaps Coventry.
Whoever it was, please put me out of my misery, I need to know!!!! :D
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Or perhaps Coventry.
Whoever it was, please put me out of my misery, I need to know!!!! :D
I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you.
It could just have easily been a passing Viler or a Doghead voting for the Albion ;) .
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I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you.
It could just have easily been a passing Viler or a Doghead voting for the Albion ;) .
But I NEED to know, which is more demanding than want at this time! ;)
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Villa for me and always has been!
Dont get me wrong I hate Wolves too but theres a special place of hate in my head and heart for the Villa scum
I pity Wolves, thats why I chucked 20p in the bucket on the Brummie Rd in the 80s
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It all depends on where you were brought up IMO.
If you are from Birmingham then more than likely you will see Villa as your rivals.
But if we take the Black Country which is split into the 4 areas of Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Walsall.
If for instance you are an Albion fan growing up in Bilston or Wednesfield areas of Wolverhampton you'll see Wolves as your main rivals.
The same can be said for Dudley areas Sedgley, Coseley, Tipton, Kingswinford, Brierley Hill, Netherton and to a lesser extent Stourbridge. Most will see Wolves as their main rivals.
When you start moving to across towards Sandwell and West Brom itself as well as Halesowen, Blackheath, Smethwick and Oldbury I'd say it changes to Villa.
If you live in Walsall or Wednesbury I'd say its pretty even between Wolves and Villa but further east you go to Great Barr and Aldridge it will be mainly Villa.
There will always be exceptions to the rule, but this is essentially the crux of the matter.
You can't have a one sided rivalry though and if you did a poll of Villa season ticket holders who they consider their main rival, the vast majority would say Blues. That is a fact. They probably consider us second, but very few actually care that much. Check what they say about us
http://www.avillafan.com/29620/wba-west-bromwich-albion-rivalry/
https://astonvilla.vitalfootball.co.uk/so-aston-villas-main-rivalry-who-exactly-is-it-with-birmingham-or-west-brom/
It'll always be Wolves for me even if we stay in the Championship with Villa for the next 50 years and don't play the Dingles during that time, but like others have said I have enough hatred for both of them :)
As for Blues, I don't actually mind them. I'm sure most Albion fans feel the same? Actually quite like them tbh. I've always seen us and them as "friends", and Wolves & Villa as scum
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This could rumble on forever but below is a link from a villa fan which throws some light on the subject he actually said...In fact, when I was a youngster I always thought of the Albion as Villa’s real local rivals – the Small Heath club never meant much to me after their abortive attempt to win the Cup in 1956, even though later on I did admire Jimmy Bloomfield and Trevor Francis.
http://www.astonvillalife.com/blog/2015/03/09/the-roots-of-a-deep-rivalry-in-the-midlands/
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Just wondered, am I allowed to support the Albion or do I need permission for that these days?
COYB 8) .
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Just wondered, am I allowed to support the Albion or do I need permission for that these days?
COYB 8) .
No permission needed mate, until the day that the region's two biggest derbies; West Brom v Wolves and Villa v Blues is allowed to kick off at 15:00 on a Saturday. Then we'll re-assess :D
What time did we kick off against the Vile on Saturday again? #justanothergame :P
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Just looking at the poll and response on the thread, sorry if I’ve missed it, but who was the individual who voted other and who was the other? Just curious
I'll have to own up to sticking down my dislike of Man Utd as beating all other options. I can only ever remember twice wanting them to win a football match, so no prizes for guessing who I'll be supporting in the coming cup tie v Wolves.
But if I'm supposed to play the poll by the rules, I can stick down Villa instead. :)
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I'll have to own up to sticking down my dislike of Man Utd as beating all other options. I can only ever remember twice wanting them to win a football match, so no prizes for guessing who I'll be supporting in the coming cup tie v Wolves.
But if I'm supposed to play the poll by the rules, I can stick down Villa instead. :)
Thank you, what a relief now I know, I'll be able to rest easy in my bed tonight ;D
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Thank you, what a relief now I know, I'll be able to rest easy in my bed tonight ;D
I know the 'local' bit is not quite right, but coming from High Wycombe, you're just as likely to met a Man U fan as any other club. Except of course they never actually attend any matches.
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I live down the road from you and its Villa ;) :D
Maybe a few of the old uns down Whiteheath that’s as much as I’ll give you ;D
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Got to be the Vile I will never forget that weds night in April 1981 when we more or less handed them the title.
I still have nightmares over Batson's back pass I hate them with a passion
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Got to be the Vile I will never forget that weds night in April 1981 when we more or less handed them the title.
I still have nightmares over Batson's back pass I hate them with a passion
Me neither. We were much the better team as well. Add that to the fact that we beat Ipswich, we really couldn't have been more helpful to them.
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Me neither. We were much the better team as well. Add that to the fact that we beat Ipswich, we really couldn't have been more helpful to them.
Before the Batson pass I think they had one shot while we squandered a few chances never felt so sick and angry after a match.
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Maybe a few of the old uns down Whiteheath that’s as much as I’ll give you ;D
Less of the old :D
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I'm from the Sandwell area, and grew up around Villa/Albion fans and I still hate Wolves more than anything
I dislike Villa, hate Wolves