Barcelona and Real Madrid? Celtic and Rangers? River Plate and Boca Juniors? Nah, it’s all about Woking and Stevenage! Out of nowhere came a fierce rivalry during our hotly-contested time at the top of the Conference. It was most likely because the Cards couldn’t seem to win the title. It’s all rooted in jealousy, you see. The tale of us and them came to life in the Conference, but it started seven years before we took our seat at non-league football’s top table; the 1987-8 Vauxhall Opel League Division One season where it all began.
April 1996. To take a punt on who’d win the Conference title meant either betting on Stevenage Borough or Woking. On Easter Sunday, we found out just how good Cloughie’s side was. We absolutely blew them away in a 4-0 tour de force. It’s still one of our best ever showings. Well, we think so. It also made sure that our pals from Surrey had to settle for second again. Think Spurs and the Premier League.
The Cards never again came as close to the Football League as that again.
Woking did, however, have the FA Trophy to fall back on – and Boro’ couldn’t stop them from making it three pots in four years, despite an epic semi-final tussle in 1996-7. You can even relive the encounter on the “You Choob“. Still can’t work out why a two-legged tie had to go to a replay, mind. After that, things kinda tailed off. Both us and them spent a bit of time being a bit rubbish as a new wave of clubs left Boro’ and the Cards pining for those titanic mid-1990s times.
