Early matches

The first competitive game between the two clubs took place in the second round of the 1946-47 FA Cup. The match took place at Peterborough's London Road Stadium and ended in a 1–1 draw, forcing a replay. The replay ended in another 1-1, forcing a second replay which Northampton won 8–1. This victory still stands as the largest victory in the Nene derby.

Peterborough United won the Midland League five times in a row between 1956 and 1960 before being accepted into the Football League ahead of the 1960–61 season. That season, the Nene derby was played in the league for the first time with the first game ending in a 3–3 draw and the return fixture ending in a 0–3 win for Peterborough. Both teams were promoted to the Third Division as Peterborough won the league and Northampton finished third. Both teams played in the Third Division for the next two seasons before Northampton were promoted as champions in 1963.

The two teams did not play each other in the league again until the 1967-68 Third Division season after Northampton's run in the second and first tier.

1980s

Peterborough were relegated into the Fourth Division ahead of the 1979–80 season. Both teams played in the Fourth Division for eight consecutive seasons until Northampton were promoted as champions in the 1986–87 season. The derby was also played twice in the FA Cup and twice in the League Cup during this period, bringing the total to twenty matches in eight years. The biggest victory over this period was a 6–0 home victory for Peterborough on 24 April 1984. Northampton recorded a 0–5 away victory on 12 October 1985.

Recent years

In the 2019–20 season, Peterborough finished seventh in League One whilst Northampton won the League Two play-offs, meaning that the Nene derby returned for the 2020-21 League One season. Following Northampton's promotion, Peterborough United chairman, Darragh MacAnthony congratulated them and referred to the derby as "The one real 'local' rivalry I've experienced in 15 years at Posh."^[2] The first derby of the season was played two days after the death of Tommy Robson, Peterborough's record appearance maker who started his career with Northampton, and was played behind closed doors due to COVID-19 restrictions. Peterborough won the match 0–2 with goals scored by Nathan Thompson and Reece Brown.^[3] The second league derby of the season was originally scheduled to take place on Saturday 17 April 2021, however, all English football matches on that day were rescheduled as a mark of respect for the funeral of Prince Philip.^[4][5]