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The Southern Derby
By Those Who Love the Game

"Rivalries" ……. that's the title of the thread that a fan named Wellington_sc started on the Charleston Battery's forum located on www.usldiscussions.com. It was a dark and stormy night in mid-April 2000. Well, actually, it was in the morning and the temperature in Charleston was probably already near 80 and the mosquitoes were out in force looking for some breakfast. That first modest post spelled out an idea that 3 teams; the Atlanta Silverbacks, Charleston Battery and Raleigh Express should play each other in a series of matches and the resulting winner be awarded a cup. It would "generate interest in soccer and the A-league in these communities". It was, as Wellington said in that conceptual post, "Just an idea". Yes, only one fan with one idea. 'Ol Wellington ….. just bumping up his sizeable post count. Thrown out into the electronic compost pile we call the internet. However, his one idea took root and grew quickly. Within a week and 15 or so posts, the groundwork was essentially laid and the details agreed to. The Southern Derby baby was born.

The goal of the Southern Derby was to stimulate rivalries (or trivalries in this case) which would generate interest in each club and provide a little extra motivation near the end of the season, even if the club was out of the running for the A-league playoffs. It would be a simple competition, after all, a little southern Hatfield/McCoy hatred really doesn't require many rules. The matches would be designated from the existing A-league schedule so no extra travel or planning would be required by the clubs. Each team would play the other teams 2 times; once home and once away, the last 2 scheduled meetings in the regular season. The organizing fans wanted to make a statement about the game they loved, so the Southern Derby would use the traditional (i.e. purist) scoring system; 3 points for a win and 1 point for a draw. A couple of bucks were thrown into the hat by the 3 club's fans for some nice hardware and ….Voila …. the deal was done.

The 2000 competition started with the Battery looking to have the stronger side on paper. They promptly were defeated in the inaugural match by Raleigh 2-0. Raleigh, now enjoying its lofty position at the head of the Derby pack, went out 3 days later and was trounced 4-1 by the Silverbacks. The Southern Derby's freshman year was turning into a wild ride. But then, that's the nature of rivalries. The 2000 competition came down to the final match. Raleigh was visiting Charleston and the Battery only needed a draw to be the first club to hoist the cup. It was a hard fought contest but in the end, Raleigh pulled out a 2-1 win at the Battery's cozy Blackbaud Stadium. The Express players were jubilant. The Battery players were stunned. The Battery fans were asking questions. What was this thing called the Southern Derby? The presentation of the rather sizeable shiny hardware was made ……. and so was history.

The Cup's sophomore year did not start smoothly. The defending Derby champion Raleigh Express ran into financial difficulties in the off-season and had to withdraw from the league. Would this quaint Southern idea die a quick death? Me thinks not. The 56K modems, DSL lines and cable hookups came to life and quickly a replacement was found. As smoothly as a salty raw oyster slides down a southerner's gullet, the newly promoted D3 champion Charlotte Eagles moved in to fill the void left by their North Carolina brethren. The Eagles were a logical choice. They were matched up in the same division and USOC qualifying group as Atlanta and Charleston, and were geographically close. Plus, Charlotte and Charleston already enjoyed a rivalry from the '90's and in recent years, still played each other most every year in preseason. In fact, when Charleston won the national USISL Pro League title in 1996, it was Charlotte that was on the losing end of an exciting PK shootout finale. Yes, Charlotte would do just fine, thank you very much.

The 2001 version of the Derby opened with Charleston (again) looking to be the favorite. This time, the Battery opened convincingly against Charlotte with a 4-1 victory and was already dusting off a place in the Three Lions Pub for the cup to sit proudly on the mantle. The second round saw Charlotte counter with a 2-1 OT win over Charleston at the Eagles' nest. The Derby, again, had plans of her own. Charleston played its two matches against Atlanta and won them both. Things were again right with the world. The competition boiled down to the last 2 matches between Charlotte and Atlanta. Atlanta was already mathematically eliminated and the Eagles, to have a chance, would have to do the impossible; win both and overcome a +6 goal differential owned by Charleston.

Barring the second coming of General William Sherman, Atlanta wasn't going to get burned twice by Charlotte. Charlotte was traveling to Atlanta for the first match, which is not an easy place for visitors to get a result. However, Charlotte had Slick Willie Sherman driving the MARTA bus to the stadium and they burned Atlanta with a 3-0 victory. "They just got lucky", the Silverback and Battery fans proclaimed. For the 2nd year in a row, the Southern Derby had boiled down to the final match. The Battery was still feeling confident being up 3 points and a +3 GD. However, the return match in Charlotte was another massacre as the Eagles exploded for a 5-2 victory, scoring twice in the final 5 minutes. It took the 2nd Southern Derby tie-breaker rule but the Charlotte Eagles had snatched the Cup off of Charleston's mantle. Not bad for a "glorified D3 team" (quote courtesy of Mr. Propes, from Minnesota).

So, what does the future hold for the Southern Derby? Being a romantic, I'd like to think that in a 100 years, the cup is still traveling around the 3 clubs; maybe in MLS, maybe in the Western Hemisphere League, maybe the World League. And of course, it will no longer travel by bus, but by transporter beam or telepathy. All beat up, tarnished, and covered with blood, sweat and tear stains but full of memories, joy, broken dreams, superstitions and lore. One thing's for sure. In 2002, for the first time in the history of the competition, the current holder will get to defend their title. Charlotte will be trying to prove that 2001 was not a fluke. Charleston and Atlanta will be trying to quench their Southern Derby thirst by finally getting to drink from the Cup. Not a bad 2 years …. for "just an idea" ……

Southern Derby Discussion Threads:
"Rivalries"
"The Southern Derby By The Fans, For The Game"
"The Southern Derby.. Business Discussion and Decision Making and Announcements"

Jim Gregory (aka JBG - Bribe Taker)
Just a Charleston Battery fan