A Southampton v Portsmouth fixture is never just another fixture. The South Coast rivalry drags emotion into every encounter, and the results tend to stick in the memory longer than most.
Southampton and Portsmouth have met 72 times in senior competitive matches since their first contest in 1899. That total includes league fixtures, FA Cup ties and League Cup games, and it stretches back over 125 years of rivalry between the two Hampshire clubs.
Ahead of Sunday's renewal at Fratton Park, here's a look back at a few of the derby day matches that have shaped the modern rivalry.
2005 - One of the worst derby days in recent memory
One that sticks in the minds (and in the throats) of Saints fans for all the wrong reasons is the 2005 defeat at Fratton Park. That defeat all but sent the Saints tumbling out of the Premier League, and the 4-1 scoreline rubbed salt into open wounds.
The damage was already done by halftime. Goals from Yakubu, Quashie and Lua Lua helped push Southampton towards relegation, ending a long run in the top flight.
That match probably deepened the rivalry above all others. The Portsmouth fans gloated about how they had “sent the scummers down“, and that was just like a red and white rag to a bull for Saints fans.
Saints had already beaten Pompey in a cup meeting not long before, but Premier League survival meant so much more. The cup win had given Southampton a sense of control in the rivalry, but too many dropped points from winning positions in the league meant that by the time Pompey had humiliated their rivals in April, Southampton's fate was all but sealed.
2019 - Who the 'heck' is laughing now?
A result that Southampton supporters still cling to is the night Saints walked into Fratton Park and turned it into a Southampton party. On 24th September 2019, Ralph Hasenhüttl's men hammered Portsmouth 4-0 in the League Cup.
Danny Ings scored twice, and the other goals came from Cédric Soares and Nathan Redmond. It was a famous scoreline that went a long way to righting the 2005 result.
2011-2012 - Stalemate in both matches
The league meetings in 2011-12 showed the rivalry could still surprise, even though Southampton were the stronger side. The game at Fratton Park in December ended 1-1. Saints had the quality, but Pompey were resilient. It felt like two points dropped for the away side, who were already looking like potential promotion challengers.
Worse was to follow in the reverse fixture at St Mary's. Two goals from Billy Sharp should have settled matters, but a very late strike by David Norris served up a point that Pompey could never argue that they deserved. Saints had dominated at St Mary's, and only some outstanding goalkeeping gave the away team a sniff.
Nigel Adkins' team would seal promotion 21-days later whilst Portsmouth were relegated to League One.
An appalling advert for Championship football
The most recent renewal of the derby was tense rather than free-flowing. In front of the Sky television cameras, the Championship meeting at St Mary’s in September was an appalling advert for Championship football and ended 0-0.
It was certainly not a classic, and Will Still's team looked disjointed. The Portsmouth contingent left happy after avoiding defeat, and the rain began to fall around the ground. Home advantage had counted for nothing.
That is what these fixtures do. A big Southampton win can become part of the club’s folklore. A Portsmouth win can become a scar that lasts for years. A draw leaves both sides feeling unsettled.
Southampton have often had the better squad in modern times. But that does not guarantee anything. Derby days demand intensity and composure.
1984 - Steve Moran scored a goal for the ages
Steve Moran knows that only too well. It was his goal deep into injury time in the fourth round of the FA Cup at Fratton Park in January 1984 that die-hard Saints fans still remember above all others.
Bobby Stokes' Wembley winner, Adam Armstrong's play-off decider, and any one of a dozen Le Tissier goals were all memorable for sure.
But Steve Moran's goal in 1984 hurt Pompey. It stung. For Saints fans, there can be no greater feeling than that. And for that reason alone, it stands above all others, etched into folklore. A goal for the ages.