Everything you need to know ahead of the Norwich V Ipswich Derby

This weekend will see the Norfolk-Suffolk rivalry return, with Ipswich Town FC (the Tractor Boys) facing off against Norwich City F.C. (the Canaries).

It's a long-standing rivalry with their first meeting back in 1902, which Norwich won 1-0. The teams faced their first Football League clash back on September 2, 1939.

And although it was a 2-2 tie at Portman Road in December 2023, the first East Anglian Derby since February 2019, this weekend Ipswich will be hoping to overturn a loss that's lasted 16 years, having last beaten Norwich FC back in 2009.

And of course, a major talking point of the match will be Marcelino Núñez’s move: Núñez switched from Norwich to Ipswich in the summer, adding tension and a few to new chants to the stadium.

"400 police officers on duty"

But looking at the practical side of things now, Suffolk Police say they will have nearly 400 officers on duty.

We spoke to Chief Inspector Matt Breeze, who told us how they're preparing.

“It’s a big game for both clubs and our policing plan is quite large as well,” he said. “We’ve got nearly 400 police officers on duty, supported by colleagues from Norfolk, other regional forces and British Transport Police.

"We don’t see policing operations at this scale in Suffolk that often."

Breeze, who has policed several derbies, said the operation is on a different scale to most local events. “They’ve always been big games and we’ve always put a lot of effort into them. We don’t see policing operations at this scale in Suffolk that often. Most officers enjoy the chance to be involved in something quite significant in the community.”

What else fans can expect

Breeze said they want to make sure everyone who attends is having fun, but most importantly, they're safe. As a result, Suffolk Police are putting in more safety measures, which they've planned for months ahead.

Breeze told us “We’ve got horses coming from Thames Valley and some road closures to keep people safe. From an hour and a half before kick-off until about 30 minutes after the final whistle, a corridor from Chevallier Street to the railway station will be restricted.”

“This event is probably about three months in the planning. We’ve got a really good relationship with the club and plenty of experience with big games. The Norwich match just adds that extra dynamic, which means we put additional resources on.”

Police message to fans

And his message to fans was clear: “Most people are decent football supporters and want a good game. But if you come to cause disorder, anti-social behaviour or crime, you will be dealt with robustly. Hate chanting, disorder or violence will not be tolerated.”

Transport

With nearly 30,000 fans expected at Portman Road, police are also advising people to plan their travel.

To help the crowds, Greater Anglia be running special additional trains. Here's are all the services that are running.

Before the match, the following additional services will run:

• 07:20 Norwich to Ipswich, calling at Diss and arriving in Ipswich at 07:58
• 08:15 Norwich to Ipswich, calling at Diss and arriving in Ipswich at 08:57
• 09:08 Norwich to Ipswich, calling at Diss and arriving in Ipswich at 09:46
• 10:30 Norwich to Ipswich, calling at Diss and arriving in Ipswich at 11:08

After the match, the following additional services will run:

• 14:25 Ipswich to Norwich, calling at Diss and arriving in Norwich at 15:07
• 15:10 Ipswich to Norwich, calling at Diss and arriving in Norwich at 15:52

In addition to the special trains, the normal, scheduled hourly Sunday service between Norwich and Ipswich will operate.

James Steward, Area Customer Service Manager, Greater Anglia, said:

“We know this match is very important to thousands of our customers, which is why we are running additional trains.

“We always want to support large local events where possible and make it easy for people to travel to by train.

“Trains will run with the maximum number of carriages. Our new trains are longer and have more seats. However, we would ask everyone to be patient while boarding as we are expecting very high passenger numbers on these services

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