Harty on Albion’s rivalry with Southampton and Palace

WILL the arrival of the Amex Stadium and the ongoing demise of Crystal Palace see Southampton become Albion’s main rivals for years to come?

As I travelled down to Tuesday night’s fixture at St Mary’s, I did look upon the game as a “derby” match, probably not yet in the realms of a trip to Selhurst Park, but still there was plenty of anticipation.

I, along with almost 25,000, wasn’t disappointed. It was a cracking atmosphere and a classic game of domestic football.

Both teams had their chances, Albion missed a second-half penalty, although Saints probably had a good shout for one in the first half which the ref turned down. And it was the missing of the spot-kick and the reaction of the 21,000 Southampton fans which made me think, this is proper rivalry and, from next year, with comparable stadiums and finances, there will always be fierce competition between the clubs.

The Palace thing is inbred, tribal, call it what you like. It goes back almost 40 years and I don’t think anyone can really comprehend it until you actually witness one of the encounters live.

I have made no secret of the fact that, taking out the problems with the Goldstone and the club’s finances, my lowest-ever point as an Albion fan is not losing FA Cup finals or play-off matches at Wembley, it’s not a number of relegations, it’s October, 2002, when we went to Selhurst Park and lost 5-0.

It was, quite simply, humiliating. Even more so as the fact that we all went there thinking that, after a wretched Championship run of 11 defeats, which had seen boss Martin Hinshelwood replaced by former Palace manager Steve Coppell, this was the game where we could “turn the corner”.

Clearly, we were still on a footballing roundabout rather than a junction that day. It was savage, we were, as the old football saying goes “lucky to get nil”.

The psychological screw was turned even more by the PA announcer saying over the tannoy with 10 minutes left, “Just to let all Palace fans know the bars have been restocked and will be open at the final whistle. Brighton fans, you will be kept in the ground for a period of time for your own safety”.

Things like that don’t go away. So it was all the more enjoyable when we went back there two years later and won, 1-0, with a Paul McShane goal, in the 79th minute.

Other teams have tried to latch on to the Albion as rivals. Leyton Orient and Gillingham are two prime examples, but they are pale shadows. Hate is a strong, emotive word, but you can hate someone or something in a healthy way and I think that relationship exists with Palace.

I firmly believe that Brighton will go up this year, hopefully along with Southampton. But, with the “healthy hatred”, I really hope Palace can survive in the Championship because to play them at the Amex, and to record an emphatic win would, almost, expunge 2002 from my memory banks.

But that’s a big ask. Hand on heart, with the ambition of Crawley in the north of the county, they could end up Palace’s big rivals.

And I actually think that if we all remain in the same league, albeit Championship or even Premiership, the Saints/Brighton rivalry thing will become far bigger business.