Old Farm: The ‘intense and aggressive’ East Anglian derby rivalry explained by those involved

Opening day, closing day and the derby days: Those are the four fixture that every football fan will look out for when the schedule for the season is released each year.

For Ipswich Town and Norwich City fans, however, this season’s return of the Old Farm Derby has been a long time coming.

The Blues, now enjoying a rampant return to the Championship, were exiled to League One for four seasons whilst their cross-border neighbours from Norfolk have mostly featured in the Championship aside from a brief flirt with the top-flight in the 2019/20 and 2021/22 seasons.

The bragging rights in this part of the country have for a long time been on the Yellow and Green side of East Anglia.

Town are winless in 12 matches against their old foes, a run stretching as far back as 2009.

The fixtures have been finely poised on many occasion – ending in draws in five of those matches – but 2010/11 saw the most humbling of performances when Norwich City cruised to a 4-1 win at Carrow Road before thumping Town 5-1 in the reverse fixture.

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All the signs seem to point towards a change in Town’s Old Farm Derby fortunes ahead of this Saturday’s meeting however. The Blues have run riot since their return to the second tier and find themselves sandwiched among the recently relegated Premier League sides fighting for promotion.

Kieran McKenna’s side have made the second-best-ever start to a Championship season, recording 48 points from the first 20 games. Only league leaders Leicester City (49 points) have more.

Norwich City on the other hand have mixed form under ex-Huddersfield Town boss David Wagner.

The Canaries’ 3-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday was their fourth victory in six matches, but they have won just three times on the road this season – whereas Town have lost just twice at home in all competitions during 2023.

“You’re definitely aware of the rivalry,” former Town defender Pim Balkestein – who played in Town’s last win over Norwich City, back in 2009 – explained to Prost.

“I’ve played a lot of derby games and this one is special. You can feel the excitement when you’re driving up even just to park the car.

“It’s a different environment around the stadium compared to other games. That game – it was almost full and it gives such a boost on the pitch, so much energy. It’s hard to describe but the fans really can give you an extra five per cent.”

“That 3-2 win over Norwich back in 2009 was one of the nails being put into the Canaries’ relegation coffin, adding an extra element of spice to the derby day recipe.

“We pretty much relegated them with that result so that was one of the good things that we celebrated,” Balkestein joked.

“We had a few good wins on the bounce that helped us then, but it’s been a long time since Town have enjoyed similar success.

“I had lots of family and friends come across to watch as it was the biggest game of the season. To win that game is something I still remember.

“Derby Day will see Norwich at their throat and chasing every ball. The tempo is a lot higher in these sort of games. The away team feels that energy and chases everything. Norwich did that against us, pressing high up the pitch, but it should be a really good game to watch.”

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The derby, humoured by being given it’s ‘Old Farm Derby’ title in a reference to the region’s agricultural history, stretches back to 1902 when the two sides both met at an amateur level. Since then the 46-mile gap between the two clubs’ stadiums, as well as their varying fortunes, has only seen the rivalry intensify.

Unlike other rivalries where the football fans of a certain city are split between two or more teams, this is a bi-annual meeting of clubs whom are their respective county’s only professional club. The absence of banter across offices or blurred club allegiances in families only makes the rivalry stronger.

Neither club really has any other local rival that comes close in intensity.

Such is the aggression that even the experienced referee Keith Hackett – who was in charge of the 1985 Milk Cup semi-final between the two clubs – once said the East Anglian Derby “tops the lot”, describing how the players came out of the tunnel “as if they were ready for a boxing match”.

Ipswich-born midfielder Jason Dozell, 56, who played in that fixture, was just 17 when he featured in his first Old Farm Derby.

He told the Ipswich Town’s official podcast:

“I’ve always been brought up to dislike Norwich. It’s in my genes. I’ve got a brother who is staunch Ipswich – I got it from him.

“Those games against them were magical. You’d be packed in like sardines and it was brilliant. Those are the games I look back on most fondly.

“I know Norwich are coming up as I’m singing songs again at home like when I was younger. I’m a supporter getting excited and can’t wait.”

He added: “They’ve been on top for way to long, but it appears things are about to change. I was at Carrow Road a few weeks ago and it felt like Ipswich years ago.

“You come to Portman Road now and I’d love to play in this stadium under this crowd – it would have been amazing for me as a local lad. It’s electric. We appear the favourites but anything can happen on derby day.”

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Hundreds of players have been involved in the Old Farm Derby whether representing Ipswich or Norwich. Only a small fraction, however, have pulled on both famous kits during their career.

Alan Lee, 45, is one of those though.

The Irishman has featured 110 times for Town and scored on 34 occasions, including once against the Canaries. He was also in that Norwich defeated side of 2009.

“They are really special games,” Lee says.

“There’s such a rivalry between the two clubs. They are the only two professional clubs representing their counties. There’s a hell of a lot riding on it and as a player you look forward to them.

“A billionaire cannot recreate the feeling of you scoring or winning and going to your fans after a big game. That’s the one thing I miss from football.

“I didn’t understand it [the rivalry]beforehand but leading up to it your family and friends are talking about it, people are asking for tickets and there’s this recognition that there is an extra element to it.

“It’s a slightly different build-up. There are certainly more nerves. We’d always talk about whatever the next game was but perhaps there was a bit more tension beforehand but that’s because everyone wants to play in those games.”

He adds: “There will be a black mark against my name for all eternity for that 2009 game.

“It was a very strange experience and emotional. As a player once the whistle goes I can put it behind me, but I saw so many people from the club and I felt sad going there as I missed them. I didn’t feel ashamed or embarrassed about playing for Norwich, but I really felt at home at Ipswich.”

The match-up between Ipswich and Norwich on Saturday (December 16) is the first of a series of difficult December matches for Town.

A trip to Leeds United (3rd) precedes league leaders Leicester City’s visit on Boxing Day – taking anything from those matches will be of huge boost to their surprise promotion aspirations.

For the Canaries, they host Huddersfield (21st) before trips to West Brom (5th) and Millwall (20th) round out 2023.

They lie just three points behind sixth placed Sunderland and a play-off slot