Black country derby
| Locale | Black Country |
|---|---|
| Teams |
West Bromwich Albion Wolverhampton Wanderers Walsall |
| First meeting | 15 December 1888 Wolves 0-1 West Brom |
| Latest meeting | Walsall 0–3 Wolves (8 March 2014) |
| Statistics | |
| Most wins | West Bromwich Albion |
| Largest victory | Wolves 0–8 West Brom (27 December 1893) |
The Black Country derby is most commonly the local derby between the English football teams West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers. The term 'Black Country derby' can also be given to a match between either of these teams and Walsall F.C though such matches are less common as a result of the teams' relative league positionings - as of 2013, Albion and Wolves have played only 14 and 15 competitive matches respectively against Walsall, compared to 160 games against each other. All three clubs are in different divisions as of the 2014–15 season.
According to a survey by The Football Pools published in 2008, Albion versus Wolves is the fiercest rivalry in English football.
The derby is one of the oldest in the world, with both clubs founder members of the English Football league. The derby is one of the most passionately contested in the country, with both clubs being of similar size with similar fanbases. The game attracts large crowds at The Hawthorns and Molineux. The record attendance for the derby is 60,945, set on 4 March 1950 in a 1–1 draw at The Hawthorns. That same season 56,661 saw the two sides draw 1-1 at Molineux. Both stand today as record league attendances for both clubs. The first ever Black Country derby took place on 20 January 1883, when Albion won 4–2 in the third round of the Birmingham Senior Cup. The teams first met in the FA Cup on 2 January 1886, when Albion won 3–1 en route to reaching the final. In all, there have been 159 Black Country Derbies, seeing 62 Albion wins, 53 Wolves wins and 44 draws. Albion's record victory against Wolves was an 8-0 away win in 1893, whilst Wolves' greatest victory was 7-0 at Molineux in 1963. The derby reached is zenith in the 1950s when both sides challenged at the top of English football when Wolves enjoyed League and Cup domination for a good deal of the 1950s whilst Albion were also a strong side, renowned for their attacking flair. The derby has always been fierce although it is worth noting that for a long time Albion fans considered Aston Villa to be their main rivals. However, during the 1990s, when both sides were languishing in the second tier with just local pride to play for, Villa were in the top division, leading to a more heated rivalry surrounding the more common matches between the lower-tier sides. Most Albion fans now consider Wolves to be their greatest rivals whilst fans of Wolves have always considered Albion to be their main rivals.
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