B&B Cup Flackwell

[Nathan]

1 minute ago, GlenSTFC said:

How much is the fine for not entering by the way?

I've just been checking the Berks & Bucks FA rules for this season and from what I can gather the Exemption Fee for the Senior Cup is £750.

[GlenSTFC]

3 minutes ago, Nathan said:

I've just been checking the Berks & Bucks FA rules for this season and from what I can gather the Exemption Fee for the Senior Cup is £750.

Interesting, expected it to be more.

[Nathan]

Come to think of it £750 is a bit steep to get out of what could amount to only one match (but probably loose change for a club like Reading), so it's probably best to not pay it. I didn't realise it was quite that high when I wrote the original post!

Edited November 27, 2023 by Nathan

[Reading Rebel]

1 hour ago, Nathan said:

Personally, I see no reason why we shouldn't take the game seriously (that's not to say I'll be devastated should we lose). If we don't, then why didn't we do what Reading did for years and pay the fine to not enter?

It's our only realistic shot at silverware. Why knows, we could end up with a showpiece final vs Wycombe! (provided our tiny 25-man squad can cope with the added fixture congestion of course! 🤣)

Either that or a showpiece final against Maidenhead which would also produce a large attendance from Rebels supporters.  

Players want to win so I'm sure all the players tomorrow night will be taking it seriously.

 

[GlenSTFC]

5 minutes ago, Reading Rebel said:

Either that or a showpiece final against Maidenhead which would also produce a large attendance from Rebels supporters.  

Players want to win so I'm sure all the players tomorrow night will be taking it seriously.

 

Possibly you could be correct… but just not as seriously as the league, FA Cup and FA Trophy!!!

[Nathan]

59 minutes ago, Reading Rebel said:

Either that or a showpiece final against Maidenhead which would also produce a large attendance from Rebels supporters.  

I'm not sure that I'd class a final vs Maidenhead as a showpiece. I don't know where this supposed "massive" rivalry has come from; we were last in the same division in 2000/2001, and before that in 1973/1974, which was the last time we met in anything competitive besides the B&B or League Cup (except for that one season 2000/2001, though I understand that the B&B was very much a big deal in those days). I don't know what that rivalry was like until then (maybe some of our older fans on here can fill me in 😀), but that's a very long time without playing each other in the league or big competitions. We last met in the FA Cup in 1927, and we've never met in the FA Trophy. We don't even play pre-season friendlies!

A final vs Wycombe may attract some older Wycombe fans who remember the old rivalry, even if that is going the same way in the sense that it's been a long time since we've played outside of the B&B.

Edited November 27, 2023 by Nathan

[Reading Rebel]

12 hours ago, GlenSTFC said:

Possibly you could be correct… but just not as seriously as the league, FA Cup and FA Trophy!!!

Of course not because there's more money and prestige involved in those competitions. 

[Reading Rebel]

12 hours ago, Nathan said:

I'm not sure that I'd class a final vs Maidenhead as a showpiece. I don't know where this supposed "massive" rivalry has come from; we were last in the same division in 2000/2001, and before that in 1973/1974, which was the last time we met in anything competitive besides the B&B or League Cup (except for that one season 2000/2001, though I understand that the B&B was very much a big deal in those days). I don't know what that rivalry was like until then (maybe some of our older fans on here can fill me in 😀), but that's a very long time without playing each other in the league or big competitions. We last met in the FA Cup in 1927, and we've never met in the FA Trophy. We don't even play pre-season friendlies!

A final vs Wycombe may attract some older Wycombe fans who remember the old rivalry, even if that is going the same way in the sense that it's been a long time since we've played outside of the B&B.

A Slough v Maidenhead final would be a 'showpiece' game for most of our supporters and would be very well attended.

For some of the older supporters Wycombe are still arch rivals but they've disappeared into the football league a long time ago so really not sure why they are still seen as arch rivals.

If it was Wycombe in the final they would only play their Academy players where as Maidenhead would play players from their first team squad. 

So for me playing M'head would be the bigger game.

Edited November 28, 2023 by Reading Rebel

[Curtis]

Nathan,

The club historical archive shows we have played Maidenhead 213 times, probably more than any other club, but only 15 of those in the last 45 years.

When we played them in the B&B semi final on a January Tuesday night in 2017 the attendance was more than 1100 and both clubs were a division lower than they are now.

I would say the attraction of the fixture is the history (even if it is ancient history now) the close proximity, and our aspirations to be bigger than Maidenhead in attendances & level in the pyramid.

I would love to see us playing them in the National League on a Boxing Day & New Years Day within the next five years, and wouldn’t be surprised if 2,000+ turned up for each of the matches.

 

[Kaiser Gibbs Batman (KGB)]

When I started watching Slough, we and Maidenhead met regularly in Corinthian League matches that were traditionally, but not always, scheduled for the Christmas/New Year holiday. Matches against Wycombe were something of a rarity. That situation changed over time and but there was always a sense of achievement in putting one over Wycombe-as in putting them out of the FA Cup and winning the B&B Senior Cup in 1971. However, I think that for many of us the traditional rivalries of our younger days stay with us despite the passage of time.

I once commented to a now-distinguished work colleague ( a knight of the realm no less) that the intensity of these rivalries diminished as we got older and maybe wiser and more tolerant, to which he replied, "I still hate them Mackem bastards."  

[Curtis]

Way before mine & probably most Slough supporters time, but it looks like the last time we played Maidenhead home & away over the Xmas/New Year period was 1967 & the attendances were 2,700 & 2,400.

[Reading Rebel]

Much more satisfying putting one over a senior Maidenhead team than a young Wycombe team.

2 hours ago, Curtis said:

Nathan,

The club historical archive shows we have played Maidenhead 213 times, probably more than any other club, but only 15 of those in the last 45 years.

When we played them in the B&B semi final on a January Tuesday night in 2017 the attendance was more than 1100 and both clubs were a division lower than they are now.

I would say the attraction of the fixture is the history (even if it is ancient history now) the close proximity, and our aspirations to be bigger than Maidenhead in attendances & level in the pyramid.

I would love to see us playing them in the National League on a Boxing Day & New Years Day within the next five years, and wouldn’t be surprised if 2,000+ turned up for each of the matches.

 

NL or NLS would be great.

Unfortunately they keep avoiding relegation by the skin of their teeth.

Edited November 28, 2023 by Reading Rebel

[Bernie Gogan]

Very astute management at Maidenhead on and off the field. The Braywick development cancellation by the council is a major blow to their long term ambitions. Whether that means a continuation of perennial relegation struggles remains to be seen.

 

[Banny]

37 minutes ago, Curtis said:

Way before mine & probably most Slough supporters time, but it looks like the last time we played Maidenhead home & away over the Xmas/New Year period was 1967 & the attendances were 2,700 & 2,400.

Freezing cold. 4inches of snow on both pitches bone hard won both games four nil. Curly Stevens & Terry Reardon Skating down the wings. Memories are made of this!

[Reading Rebel]

1 hour ago, Bernie Gogan said:

Very astute management at Maidenhead on and off the field. The Braywick development cancellation by the council is a major blow to their long term ambitions. Whether that means a continuation of perennial relegation struggles remains to be seen.

 

You're probably right Bernie.

Although Maidenhead have a wealthy owner their spending must be small in comparison to a lot of other clubs in the NL. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by Reading Rebel

[Nathan]

5 hours ago, Reading Rebel said:

For some of the older supporters Wycombe are still arch rivals but they've disappeared into the football league a long time ago so really not sure why they are still seen as arch rivals.

If it was Wycombe in the final they would only play their Academy players where as Maidenhead would play players from their first team squad.

You may be right about Wycombe fielding a young team, but not necessarily. I remember a B&B match at Holloways Park a few years ago where Wycombe played a strong team, and even brought along a few fans. I also remember B&B matches vs Maidenhead played in front of a few men and a dog; the only thing of note I remember from these matches is Lee Riddell's attempted cross!

Your other point coincides with my point: can such a rivalry really survive nearly 50 years of playing only occasionally in the B&B Cup?

5 hours ago, Curtis said:

When we played them in the B&B semi final on a January Tuesday night in 2017 the attendance was more than 1100 and both clubs were a division lower than they are now.

I would say the attraction of the fixture is the history (even if it is ancient history now) the close proximity, and our aspirations to be bigger than Maidenhead in attendances & level in the pyramid.

I was astonished by that attendance! But both clubs were flying high (I believe we were both top) in our respective leagues, whereas we're both struggling ATM, and that is bound to affect attendances.

You're right about what you're saying about the attraction for a fixture against Maidenhead. I'm saying that surely the same applies to a game against Wycombe, which was a more recent rivalry. But if the geography was the only factor, why don't we enjoy "massive" rivalries against the likes of Farnborough, Thatcham Town, Marlow, Burnham, Beaconsfield, Chalfont St Peter, Brook House/AFC Hayes, North Greenford, Bedfont Town, Ashford Town (Mx), Harrow Borough, Staines Town, Chertsey Town, Windsor (whatever incarnation), Hillingdon Borough or Uxbridge? And whatever happened to our rivalries with Aylesbury United, Hayes, Woking or Dagenham? (With the exception of Dagenham, these are all teams we've played in the league far more recently than Maidenhead or Wycombe; we played some for several years running) I'd say the short answer is: we haven't played each other often enough to be considered major rivals anymore.

In fact I'm not sure who I'd consider to be our "main" rivals these days (I don't necessarily mean clubs who are in our league). I don't think matches against Hungerford, Farnborough, Oxford City or Hampton & Richmond are/were fierce enough to qualify. But that's just my opinion.

Edited November 28, 2023 by Nathan
Removed Hanwell Town from list, we've never played in the league!

[Reading Rebel]

42 minutes ago, Nathan said:

You may be right about Wycombe fielding a young team, but not necessarily. I remember a B&B match at Holloways Park a few years ago where Wycombe played a strong team, and even brought along a few fans. I also remember B&B matches vs Maidenhead played in front of a few men and a dog; the only thing of note I remember from these matches is Lee Riddell's attempted cross!

Your other point coincides with my point: can such a rivalry really survive nearly 50 years of playing only occasionally in the B&B Cup?

I was astonished by that attendance! But both clubs were flying high (I believe we were both top) in our respective leagues, whereas we're both struggling ATM, and that is bound to affect attendances.

You're right about what you're saying about the attraction for a fixture against Maidenhead. I'm saying that surely the same applies to a game against Wycombe, which was a more recent rivalry. But if the geography was the only factor, why don't we enjoy "massive" rivalries against the likes of Farnborough, Thatcham Town, Marlow, Burnham, Beaconsfield, Chalfont St Peter, Brook House/AFC Hayes, North Greenford, Bedfont Town, Ashford Town (Mx), Harrow Borough, Staines Town, Chertsey Town, Windsor (whatever incarnation), Hillingdon Borough or Uxbridge? And whatever happened to our rivalries with Aylesbury United, Hayes, Woking or Dagenham? (With the exception of Dagenham, these are all teams we've played in the league far more recently than Maidenhead or Wycombe; we played some for several years running) I'd say the short answer is: we haven't played each other often enough to be considered major rivals anymore.

In fact I'm not sure who I'd consider to be our "main" rivals these days (I don't necessarily mean clubs who are in our league). I don't think matches against Hungerford, Farnborough, Oxford City or Hampton & Richmond are/were fierce enough to qualify. But that's just my opinion.

Local rivalries/derbies with Maidenhead and Wycombe are entrenched in our DNA/history which goes back a long way unlike most of the other teams mentioned.

Of course locality is a major factor otherwise it wouldn't be a local derby/rivalry. 

I don't think where both clubs are in the league matters a great deal it's more to do with one upmanship over your oldest and biggest rivals.  

As for in our division it's got to be Hampton and Farnborough.

[Nathan]

21 minutes ago, Reading Rebel said:

Local rivalries/derbies with Maidenhead and Wycombe are entrenched in our DNA/history which goes back a long way unlike most of the other teams mentioned.

True, but they're built up over time and will dissipate over time as well. You said yourself you don't know why Wycombe are still considered arch rivals!

21 minutes ago, Reading Rebel said:

Of course locality is a major factor otherwise it wouldn't be a local derby/rivalry. 

Local rivalries of course, but rivalries aren't always local. There are obvious examples such as Chelsea vs Liverpool or Leeds, but I understand in recent years a rivalry has developed between Woking and Torquay due to some fierce games between them, getting relegated together, both being considered too big for the NLS, and then promoted together.

21 minutes ago, Reading Rebel said:

As for in our division it's got to be Hampton and Farnborough.

I don't really see any team in our division as massive, or even particularly fierce rivals. Maybe I'm in a minority, but I feel the fixtures needs some history (preferably recent) and the result needs to mean something more than the usual 3 points or Cup progression. I look at games vs Hampton and Farnborough, and they're more or less the same as any other league fixture, despite the close geographical proximity. Maybe I'm being harsh on them!

That's what I mean by rivalry, I don't see that we've really got one and I find that disappointing.

[Nathan]

By recent history I mean matches of particular importance, or incidents that are talked about years later, and I see only 2 candidates; Chesham for beating us in the play-off final in 2010, and Marlow for Mark Bartley's off-the-pitch shenanigans and their eventual expulsion from the B&B Cup, depriving them of a place in the final.

But even then I'm pushing it!

[Rebellier]

So, back to the game...WTF??