Derby Day Gets The Heart Pumping

Vital Manchester City newbie, Bundo sent us the following:

Football, this is the sport of our nation. Each morning the daily newspapers' back pages, from The Sun to The Mail are occupied by this wonderful sport. The traffic on a Saturday and Sunday afternoon in the city centres are appalling due to the high prestige football fixtures. Fights are fought between teams, between fans, between nations because of football. And of course when it comes to the summer, if there is no World Cup, no European tournament, no Under-21 tournaments, no under-4s, five a side tournament etc well, in general people go mad from the weeks on end with no football - to wake up in the morning, put on Sky Sports News and have to listen to the very talented Georgie Thompson talk about the cricket - it's enough to drive you insane if that period of time lasts long enough! And, that ladies and gentlemen is how big a sport football is - quite simply is immense!

The tiniest games get your heart pumping more and more: Histon vs. Ashton United, the former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia vs. Luxembourg, or Lyon vs. Marseille - they all get you going - you're up out of your seat hurling abuse simultaneously with others in the world at this one man with a whistle, you are throwing your fists in the air with delight from the things that occur on this white box filled with grass, and quite simply it sometimes leaves you speechless. However, the games don't get much more exciting, much more passionate, much more edge of your seat, much more nail bitingly nervous...than a derby!

The Merseyside derby has its drama, Everton and Liverpool - it always has a great atmosphere around it with songs being chanted in the 'lovely' accent of the Scouse, and as the teams are getting closer in the table year by year it gets more and more exciting as more is up for stake, but from the days of Robbie Fowler to the days of Timothy Cahill, the Liverpool derby certainly has its drama - however it just doesn't get my heart pumping as much...

Tottenham and Arsenal is another. In the small back-streets of London where everybody knows everybody, you support either Spurs or Arsenal (or Palace or Chelsea, or Fulham or United - but let's just pretend it's a certain street with a lot of Spurs and Arsenal fans), and the morning time title tattle, the dinner time talks, the afternoon chats, and the late night speculation is always being talked upon in those back streets, so when the two teams, they all love, collide there is a lot at stake so they all get in their voices and make it a derby to remember each time - however this derby doesn't get my nail biting fetish began.

Millwall and West Ham of course is another and although it hasn't been heard of for a few years with Millwall's slow decline down the leagues - this one really is a massive rivalry and that is no understatement! The football itself isn't that big a rivalry, (except that they both enjoy knocking seven bells out of each other) but the two sets of fans are famous for their hatred for each other, and it wasn't too long ago when they met in the cup themselves and the whole city of London was in a standstill, as riots began and they all went absolutely mad - however this derby doesn't get my large bottom sliding to the edge of the seat.

However, just one derby does it for me - the derby of Manchester (I am going to call it this - let's not get into the debate of United and Stretford and Salford and Manchester and blah blah bleugh). It has its drama - the fights, the fans, the managers, the history, the stadiums, the chants, the posters, the flags, the flares, the trophies, the city - Manchester City and Manchester United have had massive derbies for years, and will for years to come - I assure you of that!

After City's relegation a while ago, Manchester`s football split apart and didn't feel the same! It wasn't talked about as much within the city and a season without derby day, almost isn't worth playing, and even the United fans will tell you that they missed the blues when they went down, but when they came right back up - it was yet again intense, and immense as once before - and it hasn't stopped since!

Both teams are famous for fast flowing, direct attacking football, and their passion for the game, so the style of play that both of them do certainly makes the game a feisty one … add this to the fans reactions...times it by the number of goals scored...add the number of fouls and we have a calculation worth adding up!

Of course this article has been written for a reason, this means we are coming up to this prestigious day once again! 17th April 2010 - this will be the fourth and final time of this 09/10 season that the two teams will meet for this crazy day - and 11 days before this I have been sat here just wondering, just pondering of the things that could occur on this day!!

Could Shay Given score a hat-trick? Could Gary Neville be accidentally injured and forced to retire? Could City do it this time?

Earlier in the season the two met in the league at that funny old stadium outside of Manchester (oh I'm such a tease) and it was so unbelievably close that the referee thought he should intervene by joining the red side also, however we have had our pay back since with a 2-1 win at Eastlands with a Carlitos Tevez inspired performance. Although, since then they have also got their payback with a 3-1 dump out of the FA Cup to devastate City fans. Surely now we need our payback.

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