My Mommy always taught me never to say the word ‘hate’. Shouting, swearing, answering back and the word ‘hate’ were all off the table. “It’s too strong a word” she’d say, “it’s horrible and you should only ever use it if you really mean it”. She’d teach us to say “dislike” instead.
Well I dislike Witton with the fire of a thousand suns and I’d dislike it very, very much if they beat us on Sunday!
My mom was right, ‘hate’ is a harsh and powerful word, but in this case it’s rather apt. Now obviously I don’t hate their fans as individuals, that would be petty and immature – only a Villa fan would be that moronic and simplistic. As a collective though, I absolutely despise them.
What actually is the collective noun for a group of Witton fans? The may refer to themselves as a “pride” but they haven’t had anything to be proud of since the turn of the Millennium. Maybe “a tosspot of Villa fans”? Or “a delusion of Wittons”?
Of course, like a lot of hatred, my passion is fuelled largely by jealousy. Unfortunately that so-called pride have had the lion share of good fortune in the second city and although they’re still forced to dine out on 1982, their past successes almost give them the right to be so arrogant and unbearable.
Being the underdog’s much more fun though!
Every derby day is a smorgasbord of emotions but for Blues fans the resounding vibe tends to be “yeahhhh, we’ll probably lose this”. We know what we are and we know our limits. Witton often have the cash, the form and the good fortune to come out on top.
Tides have a habit of turning though…
They may have put us to the sword earlier in the season but their boast of “when’s the last time you scored at Villa Park?!” has gone straight out of the window. Sure we may have folded in the second half but what if Che’s crossbar rattler had been just a few inches lower? Who knows.
What is clear though is that the gap between our two clubs gets smaller every day. Witton have waved farewell to the Premier League and don’t look to be rejoining it any time soon. The parachute payments and their precious Jack will be long gone by the Summer and they’ll be fully cemented in our world. Our gritty, gritty, world.
The Championship is the greatest and toughest league on the planet. It’s the quicksand division of football and Villa fans are finally realising what ‘struggle’ really is.
Blues couldn’t score at VP – that’s not the case anymore.
Blues couldn’t compete in the league – that’s not the case anymore.
Villa were the biggest club in the Midlands – that’s CERTAINLY not the case anymore!
Sunday will be a horrible day and the risk of heart attacks will rise 10-fold in the Second City. But it’s hard not to feel positive about the potential outcome. With Greasy making his return, odds are that Witton will be lifted and may well take the 3 points back to Lichfield with them, but when’s the last time you felt like the clubs were so evenly matched?
Sunday is OUR day if we choose to make it so. We’re on the front foot whilst they’re still whinging about Brucey. Our players understand what this derby means to us. The boys play for the fans whilst Smith’s men play for the paycheck. Our manager was appointed on the strength of his character and footballing brain. There’s was appointed because his dad was a steward at the ground.
Our time is now and when Sunday comes we’ll show those kittens what real Pride is! We know what the boys are capable of and we’ve more than held our own against the top teams in the league. It’s unfortunate that Gards-the-younger isn’t available for selection but we’ve got David Davis chomping at the bit, eager to be let loose. He loves a goal against them lot too…
On derby day league form is generally irrelevant. These games are about passion and desire. The side that runs hardest takes the spoils and every man has the ability to up their game by 10% if they’re so inclined.
Witton take great joy in referring to Sunday’s game as ‘their cup final’. Well you’re goddamn right it is and I pray they underestimate us yet again because this time their arrogance and complacency may well be their downfall…
Apologies for the shorter piece today but I’ll leave you with a quote;
“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he who sheds his blood with me today shall be my brother!”
Come on you Blue Boys!!!