Thetownend.com

As above. :evil:

it is really. ground-to-ground they're the closest league team

Technically it is, but in terms of bragging rights...it's not. MM and the players seem to be making some big deal out of it though, in the Adver.

As long as it makes them [our players] raise their game, I don't care if they call it a derby.

The usual criticism is that the manager and players (just about all of whom are from outside the area) just don't understand the importance of our local games.  ('Oxford?!  You mean that's a game that's important to you?  Oh, all right then.  We'll remember that for next time.')

Cheltenham joined the party too late to be fierce rivals - at least for the current generation - but I'd rather have the team fired up than not.

Agreed. Although I'm looking forward to seeing Moses "we mustn't get carried away with the atmosphere" Ashikodi's face when he runs out in front of the usual 6,500 tonight, shivering silently with their cups of tea. Or I would be, if I wasn't hoping for a Cox and Corr strike partnership.

If our players need to consider this a local derby to get the right result so be it!

If MM needs to convince them that this game holds more importance to the suporters than any other game then thats fine by me.

AS LONG AS IT WORKS.........

But why do we need to rely on an apparent "derby" game to get the players motivated enough to perform?

If they can't do this on a regular basis then its a bit of a worry.

Agreed, it kind of reflects JP's comments last week about the 'big games looking after themselves because the players want to prove they can play' i.e. the big the game the better they play. The players should be doing this every week regardless of the opposition.

Zaboub is a classic 'raise it against the big/good teams' player IMHO. It's frustrating because if he played like that every week he's rip the shit teams apart.

As he did Cheltenham at Whaddon Road this season.

Cheltenham are fuck all to us, simple.

Our rivals are Reading oxford and possibly city, always have been always will be.  Rovers are insignificant but everyone likes to use it as a bit of an excuse to go a bit nutty for the day!

I'd go as far as to say Reading are not rivals either. I honestly could not give a flying fuck about Reading, Cheltenham or Forest Green Rovers, who are all closer than Oxford.

It is a local derby, plus if you live in Gloucestershire then its got more spice to it. I dont think people realise how much they hate us, and currently they've won 3 out of the 4 games between us and they've scored 9 goals. When you have to listen to the bragging non stop for 2 years it begins to grate. I really want to beat them tonight.

See living closer to Bristol and having to put up with City/Rovers fans all the time makes them rivals to me!!

I have no interest or care for Reading either.  Plastics.

City & Oxford are the true rivals.  I think some Brooker baiting could be fun tonight  :D

Hereford is far far far more of a rivalry than Cheltenham, and they are twice the distance.

Tails, if they hate us so much why will they only bring about 400 tonight?

ala Gillingham

Gills sprung to mind as well!

exactly. Jills seem to have convieniently decided to forget about us now they have realised we are twice the club they are.

As for Cheltenham, they havnt got any rivals for a reason. Like I said, Hereford have good support. They get plucky results, they wind you up. They are old school fans, like Rovers.

Cheltenhams league history is pretty much all in this decade. And us such they are a bunch of poofs.

Hehe. Poofs.  8)

Because they have crap support.

I don't really give a fuck about Cheltenham although I recall being pretty wound up when they dicked us 3 or 4-0 at their place then Gurney gobbing off at our end.

Plenty more fun derby days to be had then Chelters.. the usual suspects like Rovers, City, Oxford etc but you've got Gills, personally I fucking loathe Bournemouth and Brighton, and as SW said, Herefords normally a good crack.

It's more of a derby than MK Franchise will EVER be...despite Central calling it a derby every time we play that scummy team.

Only others I would add would be Reading and Luton.

It was only 2-0 at their place. But they beat us 3-0 at home.  :oops:

of course its a derby.but one with no real bite to it.
lack of history on cheltenhams part is the reason as we all know.
they like to see us as a big rival though.i see them as small and insignificant.
 fair play the way they rose up the leagues mind.

Franchise I hate with a passion, should be burnt and wiped from all existence and memory of English Football.

:clap:  :thumbs:

Gotta agree with Arriba and Lady there, spot on.

I think the correct term is "Pooves"

 :D   :D   :D

Oh and on the subject of Cheltenham. Like it or not we are more likely to play them in the next 5 years than we are Oxford. It's not a derby that we care about and i can't say i have ever cared much about it. But when you have them who hate us so much it might spark one day. You never know.

Yeah, good shout on Luton, always a tasty one away from home. It's a shame that their travelling support has dwindled (although I suppose we've had them on a Tues night a few times in recent years).

My first ever Town game was Luton at home in 94/95 I think it was, 1-1 and they were loud as fuck.

I like many older fans can not see Cheltenham as rivals or a derby match. Problem being their fans see it as their No. 1 derby match, their team and fans will be up for it big time. We've got to get that statistic out of the way of never winning against them as well.

 :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

They're just missing their real derby against Gloucester City.

I always think it pisses teams off more when they hate us but we don't give a fuck  :) Personally i really couldn't care less about Cheltenham,just another game.

Be nice to beat them though!

They have sold 350ish and think that is a great turnout :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

thats just embarrasing.

How many did we take there, 2,000?  and we could have sold more.

Easily could have sold more, so many people weren't able to get tickets.

350 really is shocking for 40 mins down the road.

Unbelievable.  If STFC vs Franchise is a derby game, then Franchise vs any team from London is also a derby.  That's daft.

Now that is fucking embarassing! I'm actually feeling embarassed for them.  :oops:

We had nearly 4k against them in the JPT...more than their normal home attendance !!!

They can pay on the day also, so should have more than that

It suggests to me that they don't give a fuck about us either. Bet they'd take more than that to Meadow Park (if GCFC have managed to move back there yet).

It is time we beat them though.

Of course its a fucking derby....they're our closest league rival....who need to be put in their place.

  They also nick potential fans from our traditional Glos, area. When we went there in August, I noticed they were laying on free buses from Ciren etc.

  My kid who's 21 hates them with a passion...he can barely remember the last league game v the scum,  and certainly not the one before that.

  Its a game we seriously need to win....just can't see it happening though.

Spot on Reg! We have to win this one!

I can't believe the complacency of some on here.....I recall  when O*frod were a joke team, who were upgraded to  unmerited league status, by the old boys network...nevertheless, they did manage to nick some fans from our traditional areas of Berkshire,  between Wantage and Faringdon.   Then O*frodshire commited the heinous crime of nicking the Berkshire homelands of Alfred the Great.  

 Gloucestershire has kept itself happy with quite recently nicking 2 Wiltshire fields between Fairford and Ciren.

  At least the scum have been kept largely in their place on the field, before their inevitable return to non league....I take it as an insult to the history of STFC that we can't beat the Numb.

Exactly. Roar!!!!!!! smash the gloucestershire bastards

:thumbs:

Go Dave!  8)

If anything, these cunts had better win tonight because I have decided to stay up and listen to le match.

Roar and all that too, not too loudly though cos' the little'un is sleeping.

is there a link to listen to this tonight?

Don't think so, I'm just listening to highlights on RS. Another shiteness indication factor of Brunel FM.

I'm enjoying 5 live's coverage. Both of our goals mentioned and can keep tabs on City struggling to stay level with Scunthorpe!

Keep your eye on the Stoke match!

3-0 up against Soton at half time, now 3-2

Oxford are our only rivals. I couldn't care less about Drizzle City or Reading.

Living in Oxfordshire makes me hate them with a passion.

Back working in Bristol, and its full of ManUre, Chelski and Arse fans......

Really? I always associated with having an irrationally large proprotion of Liverpool fans

It's a local non-derby...as are matches against Reading.

Wycombe is a non-local, non-derby, in much the same way as matches against Bury are.

When we (fans) went to theirs we made it a proper derby. When they came to us they, errrm.

If they had been half bothered they could have had the derby they wanted because our fans couldn't be arsed.

All any of you achieve with the "meh they don't really matter" rhetoric is to show that it does matter enough to you for you to make an effort to try and put them down. If it really was a nothing game then you wouldn't have to say anything at all.

then what would we talk about?

Manatees?

That's bollocks. Saying "I honestly don't give a shit about them" is not a put down. I'd say it about Cheltenham and I'd say it about Doncaster.

Nah, Andy Cryer started it.

When Forest play Derby, is it a derby?  :? :doh:

 :groan1:

TAAAAAAAAAAAAAXI!