There are plenty of tasty Premier League matches this weekend but it is unlikely that any will match the intensity of the clash between Brighton and Hove Albion and Crystal Palace at the Amex stadium on the south coast today.
The fixture is sometimes referred to as a derby but it isn't in geographical terms as more than 70km separate the two clubs. But over the years the Seagulls scrapping with the Eagles has developed into one of the biggest rivalries in English football.
Animosity between the clubs dates back to the mid-1970s when both teams were in the old Third Division and fighting for promotion. Palace were managed by former Tottenham star Terry Venables while Allan Mullery, a teammate of Venables at Spurs, was at Brighton. There was already ill feeling between the managers and with both Brighton and Palace vying for promotion the competitiveness between the two clubs was unrestrained.
The rivalry exploded in the 1976-77 season when they played each other a total of five times. In addition to the two league games they also met in the first round of the FA Cup which saw two fiercely contested replays before Palace finally progressed. Comments from Mullery heightened the tension between the teams.
It was around this time that Brighton dropped their old "Dolphins" nickname and adopted the "Seagulls" which made a more effective response on the terraces to the Palace fans shouting "Eagles". It had become the "Battle of the Birds."
Back to the present day. Brighton are currently in the top 10 while Palace are more modestly placed in mid-table. But in their last game Palace, spurred by fine displays from Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze rallied for an exciting 3-2 win over Sheffield United.
Brighton on the other suffered a shock 4-0 defeat to Luton Town who celebrated a magnificent hat-trick from Elijah Adebayo. Today's fixture is impossible to predict but you can be sure feathers will be flying.
There are many other teams in the Football League that have bird-related nicknames. For a start Newcastle United are known as the Magpies owing to their black and white stripes, a nickname they share with League Two's Notts County who have similar colours.
The Championship has quite a flock of bird names. Perhaps the most famous are Norwich City's Canaries which has nothing to do with coal mines but a result of breeding canaries in the region. The nickname is reflected in the yellow and green kit.
Cardiff City have always been known as the Bluebirds after their blue kit and have long had such a bird etched on their badge. In 2012 the owner controversially changed their colours to red but fans hated it and they reverted back to blue after three seasons.
Swansea are known as The Swans which is just an abbreviation of the city's name while Sheffield Wednesday are named the Owls not for ornithological reasons but from the club being situated in the Owlerton district of Sheffield. Leeds United were once known as the Peacocks although "the Whites" is much preferred these days while an old nickname for West Bromwich Albion before they became the Baggies, was Throstles, a local word for a thrush.
The most popular bird among clubs is the robin. Bristol City are known as The Robins owing to their red and white colours and the bird being known as "Robin Redbreast". Other clubs with a Robins nickname for similar reasons are Cheltenham and Swindon Town. Even poultry get in on the act with Bradford City being known as the Bantams because their claret and amber colours resemble that of a bantam chicken.