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23rd October 2022-Championship, Watford 4 Luton Town 0

WFC.Net Goal Commentary: 1  2  3  4

Attendance:
19,282

BBC Sport: Watford put their recent poor run behind them as they hammered illness-hit local rivals Luton Town at Vicarage Road.

Sky Sports: First-half goals from Keinan Davis and William Troost-Ekong set the tone and the visitors’ doom was sealed when goalkeeper Ethan Horvath gifted Joao Pedro a third before Ismaila Sarr completed the rout. Hatters substitute Gabriel Osho then saw red late on for a dreadful challenge on Ken Sema.

BHappy: I remember this being described somewhere, many years ago, as “the sort of derby that the locals get very agitated by but nobody else gives much of a toss about”.  Harsh but fair.  Thing is…  it’s been sixteen and a half years since supporters were able to watch this fixture in the ground, and the previous a further eight years before that.  Many of the people in Vicarage Road today won’t have seen a derby game in person before;  fewer still were here the last time we won this one in front of fans with John Barnes and Worrell Sterling doing the damage in April 1987 (I kept a diary in 1987, the entry features the word “murdered”).

Fran’s Watford Blog: The players went on an extended lap of the ground and were cheered and applauded all the way around.  I am usually pulling my replica shirt off at this point, but wanted to display my colours as I showed my appreciation.  Troost-Ekong appeared to be particularly delighted and Kamara was eliciting cheers from the Rookery.  Oh it was wonderful.  As Tim Coombs said, “It is like 1997 all over again.”

Watford Observer: OPINION Let’s win the derby with style, on and off the pitch

RECAP: Relive the joy of Watford 4 Luton 0

Superb Hornets thrash Hatters to make derby history

Fans and police involved in clash as Watford smash four past Luton

‘It’ll be a totally different game when they come to Kenilworth Road’ – Jones

Derby delight: 15 pictures from a Hornets day to remember

Match report from eight-year-old sums up derby day for Watford fans

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/63274085
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23rd October 2021- Premier League, Everton 2 Watford 5

WFC.Net Jon Marks’ Goal Commentary: 1  2  3  4  5

Attendance: 38,834

BBC Sport: Joshua King’s hat-trick helped Watford to a stunning first win under Claudio Ranieri as Everton collapsed in a pulsating Premier League game at Goodison Park.

Sky Sports: Just under three minutes after coming on, Richarlison edged Everton ahead, stooping low to head Michael Keane’s cross home (63) against his former club, but Watford turned the game on its head with two goals in 88 seconds.

BHappy: This will be the day that we cash in all of our Goodison chips.  This is for Chris Powell, and the ultimately decisive penalty given against him for having the ball smashed into his face in 2005.  This is for Lucas Digne’s 96th-minute free kick three years ago.  For Alice breaking down on the M6, for me taking out the side of the Qashqai in a hurried attempt to park in 2015.  For Felix’s puncture in 2000, the insane jacking up on the side of the motorway before rushing to Goodison to see us get effortlessly dicked.  Again.  For Gomes’ injury and Cleverley’s missed penalty.  For Steve Terry in 1983, one of six defeats in six visits in our first top flight spell. You wouldn’t have chosen to cash in all those chips at once.  But given that we were to go whole hog, it would have been rude not to enjoy it.

Fran’s Watford Blog: The celebrations were tinged with disbelief.  None of us had seen that performance coming.  The players were throwing shirts (and gloves) into the crowd.  On the way out of the ground there were hugs with Simona and Dave.  We spent so long celebrating that we were on the last bus back to the city centre.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/58936301
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23rd October 2010- Championship, Watford 0 Scunthorpe United 2

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BBC SportScunthorpe picked up a second league win of the week to cause an upset as Watford’s fine form came to an end.

TelegraphThe script suggested a leisurely stroll for the hosts. Starting the campaign among the favourites for relegation has galvanised Watford without the burden of expectation.

BHappy imageThis one stank to high heaven… and there exists no more reliable an indicator of an awful performance than the home crowd, at 2-0 down, booing the display of four added minutes at the end of the game as being too long.

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http://watford.fcdb.info?s=33336&id=4931
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23rd October 2009- Championship, Watford 4 Sheffield Wednesday 1

BBC: Watford moved to within three points of the Championship leaders with a superb win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Daily Telegraph, 24 Oct 2009

BHappy: Well I have to confess to not having seen that coming. The continuing absence of H and the Duke still on the bench didn’t particularly lift the spirits on the way into the ground either. It’s never as much fun as when you don’t expect it, is it…?

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=2009-10-24
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-championship/23-october-2009/
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-championship/24-october-2009/
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23rd October 2004- Championship, Watford 2 Ipswich Town 2

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Persistence was everything here, when there seemed to be nothing much else to cling to. There’ll be talk of match-turning substitutions and heroic spirit, sure…but this wasn’t a comeback, not as such. Nothing changed. Rather, when it appeared that the cause was utterly hopeless, when we were two-nil down to a team that had gradually and increasingly out-classed us, when the ceaseless pelting rain seemed to sum up the afternoon, we just kept going. We kept our heads up, we kept our minds clear, and we kept going. Basic professionalism or pure faith, depending on whether you’re a romantic or not…but whatever, two-nil suddenly became two-two, with fifteen minutes still to play. We’d done nothing differently, really, but that was precisely the point.

http://watford.fcdb.info?s=33336&id=4623
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23rd October 2001- New Division One, Watford 1 Nottingham Forest 2

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Nottingham Forest ended Watford’s recent good run, moving up to eighth in Division One after their win at Vicarage Road.

If we learnt anything from yesterday, it was that our league position doesn’t lie. As our recent victories have demonstrated, we’re much, much better than the teams who’ll be struggling against relegation in May. As last night showed rather starkly, we’re still some way behind the division’s best sides.

http://watford.fcdb.info?s=33336&id=4469
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23rd October 1993- New Division One, Watford 4 Bolton Wanderers 3

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http://watford.fcdb.info?s=33336&id=4053
Sunday Mirror, 24 Oct 1993
Sunday Telegraph, 24 Oct 1993

BSAD imageBSAD report: At the time, Bolton were in one of their “riding high in Division 1” seasons, as opposed to a relegation dogfight in the Premier League. Typically for those years, we were skulking around near the bottom of the table, ultimately securing survival only in late-April, on the back of the Mooney/Bailey/Foster/Millen signings, which suddenly transformed the season.

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23rd October 1982-Division One, Watford 0 Coventry City 0

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=3462
Sunday Mirror, 24 Oct 1982
Sunday People, 24 Oct 1982

Watford Observer Match Report

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https://oldwatford.com/2012/10/20/20th-october-2012-championship-watford-1-peterborough-united-0/
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23rd October 1965- Division Three, Bristol Rovers 1 Watford 1

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=2591
Sunday People, 24 Oct 1965

Watford Observer match report

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=1965-10-23
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/23-october-1965/

17th October 2026- Championship, Watford 2 Charlton Athletic 0

Watford Observer: Alessio Dionisi slams ‘fake news’ after sack claim

Alessio Dionisi unaware of Watford ownership frustrations

Mattie Pollock led Watford support of boss Alessio Dionisi

Gino Pozzo discusses everything Watford-related

Alessio Dionisi braced for ‘very strong’ Charlton Athletic mentality

Watford Observer: Matchday as it happened: Watford 2-0 Charlton Athletic: Hornets bounce back

Match report: Watford 2-0 Charlton Athletic – Hornets bounce back

‘Today, I drink’ – Alessio Dionisi celebrates Watford win

Sir Elton John hails bounce-back Watford triumph

BBC: Watford ended their run of four straight Championship defeats as goals from Luca Kjerrumgaard and Jordan Zemura gave them victory over Charlton Athletic.

Sky: Despite the mood of insurrection swirling around Pozzo on social media, protests against his 14-year ownership outside the ground before kick-off were limited.

BHappy: In the distance, walking away from me, someone is holding up a placard. He does an impressive job of keeping his arms raised until he reaches the Red Lion, at which point he turns to reveal the slogan that had been guessable from the outset. He keeps his arms raised for a few seconds, scouring the area defiantly as if waiting for the club’s owner to emerge from behind a burger van, before heading into the pub for a pint.

Fran’s Watford Blog: After shipping nine goals in the last two games, it was a relief to get a win as well as our first clean sheet of the season. It was a very good performance from the Hornets and a well-deserved win. Charlton were very physical, so it was great to see the lads unfazed by that and unafraid to fight for the ball. It was an energetic, attacking performance, which was a throw-back to the start of the season and lovely to see. There were some excellent individual performances. Bravo was a joy to watch, constantly breaking forward and creating chances. When he went off injured, my friend commented that he had been a victim of bullying. He wasn’t wrong. He had been targeted all game, and Skipp had to be withdrawn as he was in danger of seeing red while dealing with him. Kyprianou also had a good game, acting as the midfield fulcrum that we know he can be but haven’t seen much recently. Kayembe had his best game in some time, another player who was making regular forward breaks and he wasn’t afraid to shoot and was unlucky not to be on the scoresheet. Ravaglia had very little to do, but what he did, he did very well. The defence were solid and this was certainly partly a result of the cohesion in the midfield. All in all, it was a very good team performance, which was pleasing to see after the recent games when we saw a disjointed group of individuals.

From the Rookery End: Watford responded to a turbulent week with a much-needed 2-0 victory over Charlton, giving supporters something to smile about after a difficult run of results.

13th October 2026- Championship, Cardiff City 5 Watford 1

Watford Observer: Alessio Dionisi calls for hard work to improve Watford’s form

Watford Observer: Matchday LIVE: Cardiff City 5-1 Watford: Kyprianou pulls one back

Match report: Cardiff City 5-1 Watford: No change, no response

Alessio Dionisi insists questions over Watford future are not for him

Alessio Dionisi set to stay as Watford head coach

BBC: Cardiff City thrashed Watford 5-1 as the Hornets’ worrying slump continued and prompted fans voicing their anger at the club’s ownership.

Sky: This was a fourth defeat in a row and the sixth in the last seven games. With Burnley continuing their revival with a draw at home against Charlton it meant Dionisi’s side slipped to 22nd in the table while the Bluebirds flew up to 18th.

Fran’s Watford Blog: A Cardiff fan before the game had said that both teams would probably lose, but it would be a goal fest as both defences were woeful. He was right on one point. It was another poor performance by the Hornets. I can accept being beaten by a team that is clearly much better than us, but that has not been the case in recent games. Moylan was clinical in front of goal, but the goals were all the result of lapses in concentration giving the ball away, or the failure of the defence to deal with balls into the box.

From the Rookery End: After two humiliating defeats, nine goals conceded and a remarkable few days that have seen Sir Elton John and former players speak out, Jon, Jason, David and Mike come together for a very different kind of Debrief. There’s anger and frustration, but also a deep sadness about what supporting Watford has become. Has the club reached a tipping point? Can the growing unrest among supporters bring about meaningful change? And what, if anything, can Gino Pozzo say to restore the trust that appears to have been lost?

10th October 2026- Championship, Watford 0 Burnley 4

Watford Observer: Alessio Dionisi confirms major Watford fitness boost ahead of Burnley clash

Alessio Dionisi excited for Watford’s Vicarage Road return against Burnley

Watford to pay tribute to Kevin Miller ahead of Burnley clash

Watford Observer: Matchday as it happened: Watford 0-4 Burnley

Match report: Watford suffer heavy home defeat against Burnley

“I’m sorry” – Alessio Dionisi issues apology after Burnley thrashing

Sir Elton John says he is “very upset” about recent Watford decline

BBC: Burnley thrashed Watford at Vicarage Road to secure a first league victory of the season and climb off the foot of the Championship.

Sky: When Stoke won 2-1 at Vicarage Road last month, it ended 251 days without a win on the road for the Potters. Here, Watford extended more charity to the Clarets, who ended 241 days without an away win comfortably.

Fran’s Watford Blog: Prior to kick-off there was a minute’s applause for Kevin Miller who recently passed away at a tragically young age. It was impeccably observed.

From the Rookery End: A disastrous afternoon at Vicarage Road saw Watford fall to a 4–0 defeat against Burnley, leaving supporters with plenty of questions about where the Hornets go from here.

Following the game Troy Deeney made this comment on Instagram about the club’s current direction.

Watford Observer: Troy Deeney says ‘the writing is on the wall’ for Watford after Burnley thrashing

Troy Deeney issues Watford captaincy advice after Burnley loss

Sir Elton John then made a comment on Instagram that was widely reported.

BBC: Elton John ‘upset and disappointed’ with Watford form

Watford Observer: Sir Elton John says he is ‘very upset’ about recent Watford decline

The 1881 and Proud Hornets supporters group as well as the Watford Supporters Board released statements exprssing concern about the current direction of the club.

9th May 2013- Championship Playoff Semi-Final First Leg, Leicester City 1 Watford 0

https://watford.fcdb.info/index.php?page=matches

BBC: David Nugent’s first goal in 17 games gave Leicester a slender and deserved lead over Watford after an open Championship semi-final first leg.

BHappy:  Less than a fortnight after the last time, we’re back at the KP stadium and it’s an odd experience.  In so many ways, and despite our refusal to get all obsessive about replicating the components of the previous encounter in the name of fortune it’s like stepping back into a story that hadn’t stopped, walking back into a room where the same album had been playing on loop for a fortnight. From the way the wind howls around the ground to the impressive and imposing noise to the frantic edginess of the occasion.  If there’s a change in mood it’s a subtle one in the away end… we’re no longer the nothing-to-lose, let’s give this a go chancers;  we had a go, we almost made it despite extraordinary obstacles, but not quite.  We are battle hardened and slightly circumspect as a result… it’s intangible, but it’s real enough. If the welcome presence of Luther Blissett in the away end provides a fillip, there’s a something that veers between determination and fear which wasn’t here two weeks ago.

Daily Telegraph, 10 May 2013
Guardian, 10 May 2013
Independent, 10 May 2013
Evening Standard, 10 May 2013