How football helped bring two sides of the political gulf together in the divided city of Derry

Londonderry is unique in the football world. It is the only city that has two football teams that play in the highest divisions of different nations.

Derry City ply their trade in Ireland’s top flight. Institute FC are members of Northern Ireland’s premiership. Supporters of these teams come from opposite sides of the religious and political divide. The clubs have one thing in common. They both play at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium. Tomorrow both teams have home fixtures. It will be a remarkable day in the life of a troubled city.

“It’s an interesting challenge,” Billy Scampton, who is responsible for security at Brandywell, said. “It will be a long day. I think I’m the only head of matchday operations who deals with two leagues.”

Institute open proceedings with a 2pm kick-off against Larne in an Irish League match. Six hours later a full house will watch Derry play Dundalk on the same pitch in Ireland’s League Cup final.

Scampton expects the day to go smoothly. “Between myself, the chief steward, his deputy and the safety officer we have more than 100 years of experience,” he said. The teams normally play on different days but there have been no issues during Institute’s tenancy. The double-header illustrates how football can help break down barriers.

There are a number of routes from the city centre to Brandywell. One goes through the Bogside. It runs past the site of Bloody Sunday and is overlooked by huge murals of Republican hunger strikers. In the middle of a dual carriageway the famous gable end of a terraced house stands alone with its message: ‘You are now entering Free Derry.’ Irish tricolours and Starry Plough flags flutter from the lampposts. Evidence of the Troubles is everywhere.

An alternative route goes along the city walls and passes the Fountain area, one of the last bastions of Loyalism on this side of the River Foyle. Here, the curbs are painted red, white and blue. A message painted on a wall is stark: ‘West Bank Loyalists, Still under siege. No Surrender.’ A ‘peace wall,’ higher than the historic battlements, runs up to the Bishop’s Gate, separating the Protestant occupants of the Fountain from their Catholic neighbours. For many within the Unionist community, going to Nationalist Brandywell is unimaginable.

Institute’s own ground, Riverside Stadium, is on the opposite bank of the Foyle. It was flooded and became unusable two years ago. This happened at a bad time. The team were on their way to winning promotion to the top flight. Various options were explored – including playing in Belfast, some 70 miles away. Instead they did what some had believed unthinkable. They became tenants at Derry’s ground.

“They were very well received by the nationalist residents and the different community groupings in the area,” Scampton said. “It’s been a happy cohabitation.”

Brandywell is no stranger to Irish League teams. Derry played in Northern Ireland’s main division until 1972, when they were effectively forced out of the predominantly Protestant organisation. They spent 13 years attempting to be readmitted before looking south. In 1985 Fifa gave the club special dispensation to play against teams from the other side of the border. Derry have grown into one of the best sides in Ireland and Brandywell was revamped two years ago. It now has a 7,700 capacity and is a vital resource for some of the most neglected communities in the United Kingdom.

Traditionally, the pitch was surrounded by a greyhound track. When the rebuilding took place, the club were keen that the stands should be closer to the pitch but knew dog racing was important to local people. Continuity was maintained by creating a new track around a training area adjacent to the stadium.

Lawrence Moore, the club’s public relations officer, leans against a barrier as a mechanical hare zooms past followed by a galloping hound. “They’re training the dogs,” he said, before turning his attention to a different type of practise. A goal kick’s distance away Derry’s youth teams are going through their paces. Different age groups run drills on the pitch and Moore watches with pride.

“Derry’s a football town,” he said. “The Brandy is the biggest social gathering in the north west. It’s so important to the local people. We’re also working to extend our reach beyond our own community.”

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The club are committed to combatting sectarianism. Irish tricolours and nationalist emblems are banned from the stadium and the team colours are stridently neutral red and white. “We all have different identities and there’s a time and place for that but it’s not at the Brandy,” Moore said.

Scampton agrees. “It’s very simple,” he said. “Derry City are a totally apolitical club. We have people from all traditions. We don’t have issues about flags and partisan symbols.”

Institute supporters understand the situation. The greater concern for Scampton is their rival Irish League teams. “There’ll be around 200 Institute fans in the ground but about 350 Larne fans. They bring some stewards with them,” he said.

“A lot of Irish League clubs are from a Protestant background. They understand the position Institute are in and the political delicacies around Institute being here. We’ve had no major incidents so far. The Irish League clubs are aware that actions of supporters would be highly detrimental to the game.”

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Nevertheless, tensions remain. At the annual Apprentice Boys parade last month, a Protestant marching band upset locals by wearing Parachute Regiment symbols on their uniforms. This was the unit that killed 14 civilians on Bloody Sunday in the Bogside. Solider F, one of the troopers involved in the shootings in 1972, is set to stand trial in the city charged with two murders and four attempted murders on that dreadful day. The band are based in Larne.

“Bands sometimes attach themselves to football teams,” Scampton said. “We have some concern about shows of support for Soldier F. It’s been stressed to them and Irish League clubs try to make sure these individuals are not associated with the club.”

In the unlikely event an incident does occur it will be dealt with quickly. Scampton and his team pride themselves on their light touch and welcoming approach. It is an ethos that runs throughout the club. Perhaps because of the history and location of the stadium, everyone connected with Derry makes a huge effort to ensure visitors feel at home. Except on the pitch.

Dundalk can expect a difficult night. The runaway League of Ireland Premier Division leaders are unbeaten in 27 games and have only drawn two during that run – both against Derry. “That’s the level everybody in Ireland is shooting at,” Moore said. “On a game-by-game basis we’ve matched them.”

Derry won the League Cup last season but, when Declan Devine was appointed manager in November, it seemed unlikely the team would be challenging for honours this year. “At that point we only had four contracted players,” Moore said. “He’s put together a team that’s on the verge of qualifying for Europe.”

Brandywell will be packed to the rafters. “It’s the first complete sellout since 2003 when we played Barcelona in a friendly,” Moore continued. “It’ll be some atmosphere.”

Devine has brought a sense of purpose back to the club. “We had lost our way a little because we lost our local spine,” Moore said. Good players were allowed to slip though the net. “The spine of the Dundalk team came through Derry’s academy,” he continued. “But it does give you an idea how strong football is in this area.”

The club has suffered tragedy, too, in recent years. Ryan McBride – who the stadium is named after – died suddenly at the age of 27 two years ago. Mark Farren, the team’s highest goalscorer in the League of Ireland era, lost a battle with cancer the previous year. He was 33.

“A football club is the beating heart of the city,” Scampton said. “To have a good team makes people feel better on Monday morning. I use the Barcelona tagline: ‘More than a club.’ We’ve had a lot of tragic years. Ryan grew up round the corner. He used to walk to the ground and then walk home again after the game. Mark had the main stand named after him. Everybody knows one another. The club is important to the people here.”

Moore concurs. “One thing that Declan did is to make sure the players know what it means to play for the club,” he said. “We don’t take the support for granted. This is not a wealthy community. The players want to give supporters value for money.”

Win or lose, Derry are on the march. “The final has probably come too early for us,” Devine said. “We’re only 10 months into project. We’re punching above our weight. We’ve got momentum and we’ll get better.”

“Saturday won’t define the season,” Moore added. “The future is bright.”

Northern Ireland’s fate is more uncertain with Brexit exacerbating tensions but the cross-community efforts at Brandywell show that co-operation can work and bring both sides of the political gulf together. Football is a force for good in this beleaguered city.