Sepp Blatter and Luton Town, eh? On one hand, it’s a fallen giant of the footballing world; a bit of a *name* for whom things have been less-than-ideal (Putting it mildly? Ed.) in recent times and now with their best years far behind them. And, on the other hand, an octogenarian chap from some part of Switzerland you’ve never heard of. Well, it amuses us and sometimes that’s all that matters. Yes, folks, it’s the game that is commonly spun into some historic derby. In truth, it’s the one we most want to clear off our decks. Luton Town Away. *Shudder*
You can forget Springfield and Shelbyville; Craggy Island and Rugged Island; or even Neil’s Swindon branch and David’s Slough counterpart. This is the winner-takes-all showdown that injects fresh life into the infamous feud between Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire; one that goes right back to a right old 13th century barney over who had to take care of Harpenden. Now, the all that’s up for grabs is little more than BBC 3 Counties Radio airtime. And we all know, no matter the result this weekend, any victory we can hope to achieve on that front is pyhrric.
* Our lawyers ask that we kindly point out that Harpenden is a lovely place and that no such barney took place.
Luton Town v Stevenage: The Lowdown
The Opposition:
Oh right, yeah? Luton Town and all who sail in her. In the list of our great rivals from down them years and like, the Hatters are no Woking or ‘Itchin Town. We doubt they’re much of a Farnborough or Stalebuns either. Being close enough in geographical terms to touch with a bargepole aside, the only time it got serious with ’em was during the 2009-10 Conference title race. Since then, they’ve won a few and we’ve won a few and they shade the overall head-to-head record (just) because of two LDV Trophy wins in the early 2000s. The stuff of legend.
The Form:
As is often the Hatters’ way, Luton Town have made a swift start to the current campaign. Our hosts come into this meeting in third place, though a win is all that separates us and them for now. In their most recent outing, Luton did a tidy job away at an Accy side who also started strong. Sure, they’ve had their usual baffling defeats too; Barnet away, then Swindon indoors. All in all, this is going to be a tough test for a Boro’ side who seem to have lost the hold we had over Crewe Alexandra. It’s five wins in six for them, three in six for us.
Mind you, we’ve not lost in the last four against Luton – taking 10 points from 12 on offer. So, there is that…
Thanks to kickoff.co.uk, it’s much easier to see how the recent form has been taking shape:
The Referee:
Brett ‘The Hitman’ Huxtable. And he can use that nickname if he wants to…
P3 W1 D1 L1 F2 A3; last result: Stevenage 2-0 Grimsby Town, 28/01/2017
The Head-to-Head:
P10 W4 D1 L5 F10 A11; last result: Luton Town 0-2 Stevenage, 11/03/2017
• BoroGuide’s Luton Town club profile – sure, didn’t it used to be in the old Div One too?
