It seems local residents are actually quite protective of it, too! metro.co.uk/2015/03/10/p...

I suspect it predates NIMBYism - it's not uncommon to find yourself on country lanes with incredibly stark names that date to hundreds of years ago and which either meant something very different then or meant exactly the thing they suggest now

Is 'big Midlands city' acting as a generic placeholder here, or do you have particular concerns about one of them...?

I can vouch for at least 3 of these, having lived near and even watched one of them (a team which plays at a rather unfortunate address, incidentally: maps.app.goo.gl/ranYFWkPYT8K...) at one time or another. But your theory becomes more convincing the earlier back in the competition you go: