Feb 18 2008
What’s Going On in Bristol?
NOTE: This post is about Bristol, England, and has nothing to do with ESPN, which is based in Bristol, Connecticut. Given how we sports bloggers talk too much about ESPN as it is, I felt you should know this from the top.
So yesterday while wolfing down a burrito at my local Qdoba, I pulled out my new Treo and dialed up Brian Phillips’ article for Pitch Invasion about how “Goodnight, Irene” became Bristol Rovers’ theme song. It was a timely piece, given that Bristol Rovers, a third-division club in England, is making quite the FA Cup run right about now. Rovers upset Southamption on Saturday and managed to draw another home tie against a Championship side (West Bromwich Albion) in the quarterfinals.
It also seems appropriate, given that there was a rather famous pitch invasion in Bristol 10 months ago, when Bristol City, Rovers’ main rivals, finished second in League One and found its way into the Coca-Cola Championship. A win over Crystal Palace today will put them on top of the Championship table with 12 games left in the season. Rovers also won the League Two promotion playoff last season and now ply their trade in League One.
Can anyone explain to me this resurgence of football in Bristol over the last year or so? How do two teams languishing in the lower divisions of the Football League suddenly find themselves surging like this? Is it just a matter of both clubs making the right moves at the right times? Is the whole city just getting a lift from the news that Portishead is finally coming out with a new album, and that’s spread to the football clubs? And which club does Beth Gibbons support, anyway?
Interestingly enough, there is an actual Portishead A.F.C., a tiny little amateur club based in the town from which the band takes its name, which is about 12 miles west of Bristol. Portishead A.F.C. plays in Division One the Western Football League, which is about nine steps down from the Premier League. I don’t think we’ll be seeing Portishead contend for the FA Cup in our lifetimes.
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It’s always been a bit of mystery to me why Bristol — England’s sixth largest city — hasn’t been the home to a perennially successful club. Nice note about Portishead AFC, by the way.
Something’s growing in Bristol? Surely this is because the soil is so fertile from Cardiff fans heeding their own song and remembering to “always $#!+ on the English side of the bridge.”
Speaking of which, where is the love for my Bluebirds, one of the most drama-filled, dysfunctional, interesting clubs in the English pyramid, not least of which for the fact that they aren’t even English and ARE the only club that would NOT be able to play in the UEFA Cup if they win the darn thing and take it back to Wales.
A the old saying goes size doesn’t matter it it did , Dublin would win every All-Ireland , China would be the soccer world champions and England would be better than New Zealand at Rugby
I suppose, Simon, but the cities above Bristol have all supported at least one and often two Premier League teams (London, Leeds, Birmingham, Liverpool, Sheffield) at times. So it seems to be a bit of an anomaly to me.
Simon: Judging from the last Rugby World Cup, England was better than New Zealand.
And wouldn’t you know it? Bristol City needed a goal in the 95th minute just to get a home draw against Crystal Palace. Bristol City is now in 3rd place in the Championship, one point behind Stoke and Watford.
The finish to that one, though, kind of makes me glad I blow the cash on Setanta Sports.
Dave: And Judging by the last 6 nations Ireland where a decent Rugby team , and from the last Connacht Football Championship , Sligo are a good football team .
It’s proably because Bristol Rovers have a Massive Attack, yes they are from Bristol too! Actually Bristol City have always claimed to be sleeping giants and after their long awaited promotion to the Championship last season Gary Johnson’s team has taken the Division by storm and good luck to them. As a GasHead (a Bristol Rovers fan) all I can say is that Paul Trollope and Lennie Lawrence the Management duo have instilled in the Rovers team a sense of self belief and confidence. It’s the work ethic that surged Rovers to promotion and is now seeing something similar this season.
this is the worst team in bristol , who Geoff Barrow from portishead plays upfront for
http://www.bryanmunichfc.blogspot.com/
http://www.ireland.com/sports/gaa/2008/0218/1203093480709.html
The pulse slowly gets stronger …