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    Why the M23 derby is one of the fiercest in football between the Premier League Seagulls and Eagles

    News DeskBy No Comments8 Mins Read
    Why the M23 derby is one of the fiercest in football between the Premier League Seagulls and Eagles

    Every time Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace play each other, questions arise over the origins of the intense animosity between teams whose 43-mile separation means they are in different counties.

    When the clubs meet again at the Amex Stadium on Sunday (14:00 GMT), Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler will be looking for his first win in the fixture at the fourth attempt, suffering two comprehensive defeats in 2024/25 before his side earned a 0-0 away draw earlier this sesson

    Palace’s Oliver Glasner – a coach the Albion boss has immense respect for from their time in Germany – is likely to be participating in the fixture for the last time following the announcement that he is in his final campaign with the club, having overseen FA Cup glory last season.

    Hurzeler was St Pauli boss and in the away end on a fact-finding mission when the sides drew 1-1 at Selhurst Park in 2023/24, while Glasner became Palace manager 16 days after their 4-1 defeat at Brighton on February 3.

    Here are some of the history lessons the pair may have been told, as well as a look at some memorable showdowns between Brighton and Palace.

    Brighton vs Palace rivalry: When did it start?

    There had been trouble at games between the teams during the mid-1970s, as well as a subversion of Palace’s ‘Eagles’ nickname by Brighton fans that ultimately led to Albion assuming their own nickname – the Seagulls – in direct opposition to Palace.

    During the 1976/77 season, the teams took part in a first-round FA Cup tie that required three instalments before Palace prevailed 1-0.

    Two intensely charismatic characters were in the dugouts: Alan Mullery for Brighton, Terry Venables for Palace. The pair had been Tottenham room-mates as players, with Spurs manager Bill Nicholson choosing Mullery over Venables as captain.

    Mullery was furious after Albion lost the cup tie. His captain, Brian Horton, had a penalty disallowed by referee Ron Challis before the retake was saved, and iconic Brighton striker Peter Ward also had a goal chalked off.

    The manager produced an immortal piece of imagery when he flicked a ‘V’ sign at the celebrating Palace fans at full-time, complained to Challis and threw change towards the opposition squad, adding: “Palace ain’t worth that.”

    Alan Mullery vs Terry Venables

    Martin Hinshelwood, a Palace player at the time who would become a revered youth coach at Brighton and briefly manage the Seagulls in 2002, has observed that Venables “always seemed to outdo Alan.”

    Palace finished two points ahead of Brighton as both teams were promoted from the Third Division that year, and an inexorable tale of promotion tussles, dramatic matches and hatred between sets of fans had been set in motion.

    Among them, Palace beat Mullery’s Brighton to the title again in 1978/79 as both teams were promoted to the top flight, and five penalties were awarded inside 27 minutes of a 2-1 win for Palace in 1989, including a wayward spotkick by Ian Wright, who was rejected by Brighton as a youngster for being too small.

    Palace had lost eight and drawn two of the 10 derbies between 1979 and 1986, but they had bragging rights between 1990 and 2001, spending three seasons in the Premier League and the rest in the second tier while Brighton teetered on the brink of oblivion at the other end of the EFL.

    After almost going out of business and staying in the EFL on the final game of the 1996/97 season, Albion spent time at two temporary homes before finally moving to the Amex Stadium in 2011.

    Palace vs Brighton: Modern results

    When their wait of almost 13 years to play Palace again ended, it came on a glorious day for the home fans at Selhurst Park, who witnessed a 5-0 thrashing in the second tier, with future England striker Andy Johnson bagging a hat-trick.

    Palace lost only once in eight meetings with a 1-0 defeat at Selhurst Park in 2005 and became the first team to beat Brighton at the Amex Stadium, as well as defeating them there in the 2013 Championship playoff semi-finals.

    Jordan Ayew scored the only goal of the game in Palace’s first Premier League win at Brighton in 2020, and exquisite drama became a hallmark of the game during the four subsequent encounters, three of which were decided by 90th-minute goals.

    Brighton’s resounding win more than 10 months ago is the only time either team has won by more than a goal in the last 11 games between them, with Hinshelwood’s great-nephew, Jack, among the scorers on that occasion.

    Palace’s last two defeats to Brighton have also prefaced their managers departing: Patrick Vieira’s last game in charge was a 1-0 defeat at the Amex Stadium in March 2023, while their loss in the same setting last season proved to be Roy Hodgson’s final away match of his tenure.

    Why is Brighton vs Crystal Palace called the M23 derby?

    Reports tend to call the game the ‘M23 derby’ to signify the path between Brighton and London. The actual road providing a direct connection is the A23.

    Brighton vs Palace: Five episodes in the rivalry

    Brighton 1-1 Palace, October 2 1976

    In the spirit of even-handedness, let’s start with a draw at Brighton’s original Goldstone Ground home, watched by a crowd of more than 27,000 in Division Three.

    Mullery reputedly joked about Venables arranging for smoke bombs to be thrown on the pitch, feeling that the interruptions by fans had hindered his team’s momentum.

    As has frequently been the case in favour of either side, Palace took the lead against the run of play through Jim Cannon. Brighton swiftly levelled through Kenny Sansom’s own-goal.

    Palace 2-1 Brighton, March 27 1989

    A superb early Ian Wright goal, a red card for Brighton’s Mike Trusson and a successful Mark Bright penalty put Palace 2-0 ahead and seeminly on course for a routine win despite Bright and Wright then missing penalties in swift succession.

    Alan Curbishley replied from the spot after the break before defender John Pemberton fired a penalty over the bar for the hosts. Palace reached the top flight via the play-offs that season, while Brighton flirted with relegation but survived.

    Palace 5-0 Brighton, October 26 2002

    Steve Coppell had been Palace manager for that game of five penalties, and his task when the sides met again after a 13-year breather was to rescue Albion from a desperate start to their Championship season.

    Sadly for Brighton, Coppell’s first away game in charge only cemented his status as a Palace legend, with Johnson scoring twice in the first half. Current Palace sporting director Dougie Freedman then netted, as did Julian Gray after Johnson had completed his hat-trick.

    While Palace finished 14th, Coppell showed his considerable expertise to revive Brighton’s season, taking their unsuccessful relegation battle to the final day of the season.

    Brighton 3-0 Palace, March 17 2013

    This was Brighton’s first win over Palace for more than seven years, first at home for 25 years, first at the Amex Stadium and only victory in the fixture in eight attempts between 2005 and 2017.

    Spanish midfielder David Lopez scored a spectacular free-kick in between goals by targetman Leo Ulloa. Brighton were chasing a play-off place in the Championship at the time, while Palace were hoping for automatic promotion.

    Brighton 0-2 Palace, May 13 2013

    Palace had the last laugh that season in the Championship play-off semi-finals.

    Following a 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park, two Wilfried Zaha goals inside 20 second-half minutes gave the visitors a 2-0 aggregate win, with the manager who had masterminded Brighton’s promotion from League One and led them to their new home, Gus Poyet, leaving The Seagulls two days later.

    Ian Holloway led Palace to victory over Watford in the play-off final, and they have been in the Premier League ever since.

    Brighton vs Crystal Palace head to head

    The extremely tight overall record between the teams reflects the seesaw nature of their games and results against each other over the decades.

    The exact figures are the subject of debate, but Brighton have 42 wins to Palace’s 40, according to 11v11.com, with 32 finishing as draws.



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