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With no Pox or Brizzle who do we consider to be our 'derby' (or grudge) game this season.

Bornmuff? Brentford? Pompey? Even Coventry perhaps?

Crawley

I would say that unfortunately, this year we don't have one.  I don't think you can create them automatically or by default. 

Would've thought it would be Yeovil

Proximity perhaps but hardly gets the juices flowing

From what I've heard we've had some pretty tasty games with Pompey in the past so then would've thought them. Can't see it being creepy without Jabba there. I thnk Franchise will be the most likely 'Derby' this season.

You're not wrong about Pompey.

Some crackers when Kamara used to play.

Bormuff is closer than Yeovil, often been a decent fixture especially the away game, and we don't have such a great record at Dean Court.  I recall a 4-1 win in 66, when Dennis (Bullets) Brown bagged all 4, and a couple of wins in the late 80's, but I've ben there loads of times, and we often struggle. So Bormuff for me.

Derbies have to be reciprocal though.  I can't imagine Portsmouth fans picking us out as "the big one".  Its a shame, but we just don't have any this season - there are always the cups, so we never know...

There have been some tasty fixtures v Pompey down the years, but a trip to Dean Court always seems like a bit of a holiday style day trip to me....maybe because I used to go as kid direct from Old Town, on the Midland and South West Junction.

Been to Pompey loads of times, and this year will certainly be interesting if it happens.

Fair enough Reg - I just think that sometimes we try to artificially recreate a "grudge" that doesn't exist.  Nothing really compared to playing Oxford or City.

I've never really had a grudge against Reading TBH

Think there can always be a kind of second tier of games, which just because of proximity and a bit of history, will always be a bit more interesting than some others....one of the downsides of Div 3 this season, are the number of mundane looking games v norvern monkeys on the list. OK some of them may turn out to be belters, but I'm sure fixtures v Carlisle and HPool wont generate quite the same interest as fixtures v Pompey and Coventry

Fair point, and you are right.  I wouldn't call them derbies or grudge matches as the original post suggest though - they are more interesting fixtures than most of our matches this season, without the history or reciprocity of a proper derby.   

Bmuff for me.

We owe them for robbing us in the relegation season.

Even dossevi scored and had it disallowed for some daft reason.

So, most people appear to conclude that, the actual game apart, we have an entire season of mediocre-to-somewhat interesting fixtures.

Still, another season like the last who really cares

Distances to closest games using a reasonable route.  None of these games are local to Swindon, I'd say.  Geographically, at least, the closest is Franchise at 64 miles...but they don't count as a proper football club, so I suppose our 'derby' this season will have to be Bournemouth.

Franchise          64 miles
Bournemouth     69 miles
Coventry          74 miles
Brentford          75 miles
Yeovil              76 miles
Portsmouth       84 miles
Walsall             88 miles
Crawley          110 miles

Never would have thought MK was the closest.

Always disliked Walsall for some reason

Dont worry, so does ralphy

Dont worry, so does ralphy

We're a lot closer to the South Midlands, and a lot further from the proper West Country, than most of us - including me - like to admit.

Ooooooooh aaaaaarrrr!

There isn't one.

We are not playing Pox therefore no Derby of any significance.

I can't get excited by Cheltenham, Yeovil or even The Bristol Clubs as Derby fixtures to be honest.
Even Reading are not significant but I personally enjoy as I grew up in an Oxford, Reading & Swindon environment.

Only Oxford really matters.

I love geographical trivia like this.  To add to old chestnuts like Edinburgh being west of Liverpool (look it up...it's true), you can add that Plymouth is the same distance from Swindon as Manchester, and that it's the same distance from Swindon to Penzance as it is to Windermere.

Tans is from the midlands, so I guess his derby game will be Coventry. I wonder if Jimmy Hill will be at the CG this season.  :sherlock:

i think we as a fan base have held on to the bitterness about franchise than most others have and always want to get one over on them, being a local i consider it a big fixture.

interestingly karl robinson cam into the bar last night so i had a bit of a chat with him, couldn't really go all out and tell him how much i hate his employers given that i work for a chain and you have to bite your tongue.  he was a decent chap as it goes but i hope if he comes in again in the next couple of weeks i get to rib him after a sound beating

Stevenage, on the basis that it's less than 50 miles

Well, that depends on where you are starting off from

Think our only hopes of a derby are in the cup unfortunately  >:(

It's franchise

It does seem that we are more bitter about the whole MK saga than other clubs, but maybe that has soemthing to do with us playing them fairly frequently since they were formed? Interestingly, my Dad, a Blackpool fan, refused to go to games there for a few years and still resents them just as much as any Town fan. We're certainly not alone!

I'd say it's also something to do with the fact that at the time of the Franchise formation we could easily have fallen in to the clutches of the Brady Bunch...and subsequent to that we had a very rough ride with Diamandis and his posse of misfits.  Our fans know that it could very easily have been our club being franchised off to another new town somewhere.  As well as AFC Wimbledon fans (obviously), it seems the fiercest opposition came from our fans and from Brentford's in the early days.

Bournemouth for me this season is the "local Derby" also followed by Pompey it is a shame it is a tueday night game

Oxford (A) JPT 1st round!!!

Failing that.....for me....hmmmm, not sure!

I remember Bournemouth coming up in 86/ 87  when we were both doing well in the league they had big John Williams at Centre Half for them he was a great big ugly bastard and he scored in front of a big crowd at the county ground, think the game ended as a draw

Fucking ugly scenes too.....massive punch ups and delayed kick off.

Wasn't that the game when one of their lads got knocked out in a skirmish, went to the game but died at half time in the ground. Or was it the next year?

That was plymuff

For me I think our derby of the season is with Franchise, we were the most vocal about them, and the fact that twat o'hanlon said he left us because they're a bigger then us. They are club that should not be.

Personally I don't want to justify MK's existence by thinking of them as a derby game.

We were? There was a general hatred of the move in football as a whole but I don't think us a club kicked off about it anymore than anyone else.

I dont think there isn't anything about us and Franchise that makes it a derby game. Distance, history between teams, etc. Being closest this season means nothing.

I vaguely remember some Coppers hat being thrown round the bank

Heaven fucking help us if the Franchise are regarded as a derby game. Fucking shame on anyone who suggests it. Cunts they are but not local or in the same league as our yellow scumbags up the A420 or the shite west on the M4.
It is possible to have a season with no derby games.

Let it go everyone, AFC Wimbledon are back in the league now. It fucking bores me to death this franchise business.

Look what you've gone and done. You've annoyed Coca Fola.

Also, there are no derbies this season. These things happen.

Doesn't take a lot does it.  :)

It's not a derby.  But those fuckers shouldn't exist, and I have no intention of letting it go.

Fuck 'em.

Does it personally affect your life in any way, shape or form?

That incident took place in or around Broad Street, not in the ground, and it was after the game if memory serves me correctly.

Deffo before the gameyoung man died in the ground during the match as a result of the injury during the fracass ....i actually saw the skirmish.

Not saying much more for obvious confidential reasons.

Funny that leefer so was I. Thought it took place in Rosebury Street but could be wrong. Bornmuff will always be a derby for me. Was it 86 when the rubble and bricks were going over the top on the Bank ?

My memory is that it happened opposite the then Pint and Cheese....i was in the pub drinking.
Of course i think there was a running battle all the way round that area so who knows when this lad copped it.

A tranny van pulled up and Plymouth fans started.....the real sad thing for me was that this young lad got caught up in it and paid the ultimate price.

Very very sad.....and something i have never forgotten.

Back In those days we used to park in the side streets off of Manchester road, and remember that day after we had parked up groups of lads running around the alleyways ( not that uncommon back then ) but it wasn't until a while after that we knew a young Plymouth lad had died.

It was around then. Bastards. Was pretty horrible at their place that year too. Remember everyone on the pitch after the game and a seat come flying past my ear and embedding itself in the ground!

What?!  So if something doesn't affect you personally, you look the other way and let it go?  Fuck me, what a brilliant philosophy to live your life by.  The point is that the franchising very easily could have involved us.  And next time, if by then we're not fortunate enough to have benevolent owners, could be us.  Stick your head in the sand if you really want to - but fortunately, not everyone does this.


Our fans were frequently cited by AFCW fans as a group who 'got it' and who were good at voicing opposition to the concept of franchising in the early days.  A long time ago now, so even if I wanted to prove it (and I'm not that bothered, honestly!) it would be quite difficult to.  I'm fairly sure that I've seen Franchise customers recognise this from time to time as well.

Everyone knows Franchise ae the real wimbledon. Should never have given the cup back to AFC.

Only that I want them to lose every week (even to Oxford), and they are the only club I would celebrate going bust.

Well that's a load of cobblers

I spend quite a bit of time in Milton Keynes and a move there is perhaps on the cards for me unfortunately, and I have to say in all my time there I have met hardly any football fans. It strikes me as a town where you dont just have to get people interested in the local football club, you have to get them interested in football.

I despise Franchise as a club,They are a soulless club, with lifeless fans in a lifeless stadium….plus my misses dad is a season ticket holder, which probably makes me want them to fail that extra bit more!

My office is in MK......1 fan in the whole office......late arrival to football.

Never forget what happened to MK Town when the Franchise came to town.

A little while after the Plymouth game I went with a handful of town to an England game. We went to a boozer and it was packed full of Plymuff. It was obviuos who we were so thought we were in for a hard time but they were alright. Their take on it was that the kid was a scumbag , from a scumbag family - had gone looking for it and tough shit. I thought it was a bit harsh but it saved me from a kicking so was happy to go along with it.
As someone else said the game down there was great fun - fucking loads of them in our end - coaches being put through. Not nice - went down there the year after and absolutely caned them.

We now have our wish of a real Derby Game.  :D