"Two Ayrshire neighbours are getting ready to bring one of Scottish football's fiercest rivalries to the national stage. Auchinleck Talbot and Cumnock Juniors from just a mile apart in East Ayrshire face each other in the Scottish Cup for the very first time on Friday evening, live on BBC Scotland. It's a clash rooted not just in footballing tradition, but in the shared history of two former mining villages where the pits once dominated daily life. In this part of Scotland, any Old Firm allegiances are relegated to supporters' second teams. Hate is a strong word, but when it comes to this rivalry, it is impossible to avoid. This is a derby match of legend."
"All of it steeped in industrial history, as so much of Scottish football is. Cumnock and Auchinleck are mining communities a mile apart in East Ayrshire. A hard life and harder football. And then the mines closed. "Hate. You just can't get it out of your system," says Auchinleck Talbot club historian James McAuley, who was born and brought up in a house right next to Beechwood Park and has followed 'The Bot' for more than 60 years. "They hate us, and we hate them. And that's it. Then after 90 minutes it's more-or-less back to normal. It used to be the same when the pits were open.""
"Cumnock Juniors fan David Weir chairs the community enterprise that helps support the football club. "It is actually one of the most impoverished areas in the whole country," he says. "It's a bit tribal. It always has been and we love the blood and guts of it." With this derby doubling as a Scottish Cup first-round tie, there is an extra pungency to an encounter that is forever teetering on the brink of spilling over."
Auchinleck Talbot and Cumnock Juniors, clubs separated by about a mile in East Ayrshire, meet in the Scottish Cup first round at Beechwood Park. The match carries fierce local significance rooted in the communities' shared mining history and longstanding rivalry. Supporters describe enduring animosity and tribal loyalty dating back to the pits. Club historian James McAuley says the hatred is ingrained but temporary after matches. Cumnock fan David Weir highlights local poverty and the tribal nature of support. The derby's intensity is heightened by the Scottish Cup staging and live national coverage on BBC Scotland, iPlayer and BBC Sport.
Read at www.bbc.com
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