Poems tagged ‘Europa League Cup’
Anderlecht again for Hammers
Oh for those sweet Belgium buns
That once preceded
Vintage claret and blue
Suppers in the hallowed
Halls of Upton Park
Where Anderlecht met
West Ham in the fondly
Remembered days of the Euro
Cup Winners Cup Final
In the plutonium setting
Of the Heysel
Where later tragedy would
Visit with horror in its wake
Tonight the modern Hammers
Seek retribution, reversal
Of the roles.
You recall your
Floods of frustration
Tears of crestfallen despair
4-2 to Anderlecht
But it could have been so different
If only Frank Lampard
Had back passed to his willing
Colleague rather than a Belgian
Hovering in the wings
Ready to pounce and plunge
On claret and blue fragility
The Belgians of Van Der Elst
Then the Dutchman
Rensenbrink and company
A visual delight on the eye
Gorging on fantasy football
From the passing angels
Far too far sighted and
Visionary on the night
Almost prescient, aware
Of the consequences
Had they lost on their own
Patch of land
But in a way we privately
Acknowledged the East
End character, the defiance
Of the odds
A European Cup Winners Cup
Final that none had ever expected
In any flight of fancy
But then another four years
Until FA Cup trophies
Awaited in chandelier lit
Wembley rooms
Where Arsenal were served
The remnants of leftovers
From the 1979 garlands
Of victory over Man. United
But tonight it’s the latest
Instalment of Belgian waffles
Against East End jellied eels
A feast now fit for our new King
1976 please meet 2022
The past and present
In a sentimental reunion
Anderlecht and West Ham
In UEFA Conference League
It hardly seems possible
History hits the repeat button
Improbable
But true.
The Full English Final
They went thousands of miles to reach Baku,
To watch a north London derby, thanks to
Uefa’s cunning plan to spread their fame
And Azerbaijan sport-washing its name.
Less than six thousand fans in red or blue
Like Harry and Barry, Colin and Stew
Made the pilgrimage by car, train or plane
And Steady Eddie said, ‘Never again.’
Just one Englishman in the twenty-two
Who started, that’s modern football for you.
Premier League players come from every page
Of the atlas for a starring role, centre stage.
There were gaps in the stands, in defence too.
One was found by Olivier Giroud
To score the first goal, just after half time,
Leaving the Gunners with a mountain to climb
Made more hazardous by a Belgian, who
Provided one assist and then scored two.
For three minutes Iwobi gave them hope
But that sped away faster than an antelope.
It was back again by the customs queue.
When you support your team what can you do.
‘Where’s next year’s final?’ Stew was heard to ask.
Harry replied, ‘You’d best book flights to Gdansk.’
A win on the rim (of Europe)
So where was the value, in last night’s victory?
Ok yes, another trophy
Another cache of millions, in prize-money
A three goal cushion
Bragging rights over North London rivals
And the delight in denying them a Champions League spot
But in the numinous sense?
Have we lost the plot?
The match played out
In a soul-less stadium
In front of barely any true-fans
And those that were there
Had to make outlandish plans
We wanted a Ryanair romp, in all our pomp
But had to trek, to a far outpost of quasi-Europe
We should have been talking about
Glory days, bright futures
Transfers in, transfers out
Loans sealed, or repealed
And whatever happened, to Izzy Brown?
Instead, all the chatter on soshe
Is about back handers and brown envelopes
Of Blatter’s boots
Being filled by others in cahoots
And where’s the value, with a 3 goal gap and 3 minutes to go
In subbing on the un-zippy Zappacosta?
Why not reward the Young Player of the Year, Conor Gallagher?
Why not brighten up with Ampadu?
Or blood McEachran or Cumming?
Thoughts to occupy the mind
On the way back from Baku, when serially thumbing!
And how can we truly celebrate
When everyone’s favourite son, is setting sail?
All in all, it’s a sad tale
And for those in the know
Football could be heading in a direction
Where no-one wants to go
About This Site
Welcome to Football Poets -- a club for all football poets, lovers of football and lovers of (alternative) poetry. Discover poets in every league from respected internationals at the top of their game to young hopefuls in the school playground.
Publish your football poems here and then discuss them with your team mates and fans. We're archived by The British Library, so your masterpieces are in the safe hands of a world-class keeper. What a result!
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Latest Poems
Denys E. W. Jones
31st May 2025
joe morris
31st May 2025
Clik The Mouse
30th May 2025
Clik The Mouse
28th May 2025
Emdad Rahman
28th May 2025
Mike Bartram
27th May 2025
joe morris
26th May 2025
steve mingle
23rd May 2025
Mike Bartram
22nd May 2025
joe morris
22nd May 2025
Crispin’s Corner
In Memoriam
Kick It Out & Christmas Truce
Latest Comments
24th May 2025 at 7:19 am
Hi Steve
I’ve come across you before on the live poetry circuit…something I’ve also been involved in since the late 90s at slams, gigs and festivals. Did you ever get to Glasto?
I was also at Swindon when José subbed and berated Kevin in a League Cup game for Chelsea….
Salah as you point out went the same way…
Be interesting to see Kev’s next move?
Best
Crispin
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24th April 2025 at 1:05 pm
Hey Denys..love this
“You may be a miner working down a pit.
You may be a rock star playing sold out gigs.
You may be a fireman putting out a blaze.
You may be an inmate chalking off the days. ”
Not just Dylan but maybe an unintentional nod to and shades of Ian Dury’s enigmatic ‘What A Waste’ rhythmic scanning..eg:
I could be the driver in an articulated lorry
I could be a poet I wouldn’t need to worry
I could be a teacher in a classroom full of scholars
I could be the sergeant in a squadron full of wallahs
What a waste
What a waste
Was lucky enough to meet and interview him twice.
Best wishes from Forest Green to Genoa C
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8th March 2025 at 2:34 pm
Thanks Crispin
I’ve been to FGR a couple of times in the past – great food! Barnet look like they have the NL sewn up for this season, but I wish you well for promotion next season.
Regards, Beth
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11th January 2025 at 8:13 am
TO ADD THIS TO THIS POEM’S COMMENT:WELCOME BACK DAVID MOYES!!!
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27th November 2024 at 5:55 am
‘You’re Supposed To Be At Home’ is an excellent and moving poem Denys.
You start off thinking it’s just about another oft-sung chant, one we personally heard a lot last season throughout our second relegation in a row here at Forest Green(FGR) ! I always love poems where you think they are saying one thing and then they suddenly pull you deeper to somewhere or something else else.
I’m currently helping in a local school for FGR in a voluntary capacity using football to help young students with reading. At an upcoming session we will tackle racism, just like we did in workshops at football schools and grounds when we first started this site 24 years ago. I’m gonna try and weave your poem into a session.
We’ve added it to the Anti- Racism/Kick It Out section under Crispin’s Corner.
Best C
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26th November 2024 at 1:59 pm
Great poem and great to see you back Wyn.
Don’t leave it so long next time my friend!
More please.
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13th September 2024 at 6:14 pm
Welcome to Football Poets Beth
Great evocative poem Beth….
More please !
Haiku always welcome.
Hope we (FGR) get to play you again soon
Best
Crispin
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26th July 2024 at 6:25 pm
Great poem Mike Bartram. Eddie was a legend, affectionately known in Liverpool as, “the first hooligan.” Even the hoolies were well dressed in those days. The amazing thing was he was only 26 when that picture was taken. He’d played for Everton youth team and was well known to the players. He never got arrested. They threw him out and he climbed back in, just in time for Derek Temples winner.
I used the picture of him being tackled to the ground on the front cover of my book, “Once Upon a rhyme in Football.” It’s worth looking on youtube and finding the re-enactment of the Wembley scene. Frank Skinner and Baddiel went around to Eddies home in the 1990’s and acted it out on the green outside. It’s hilarious, especially all the effort they put in to get Eddie sober enough to shoot the scene.
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10th July 2024 at 6:07 pm
Hi Crispin,
I don’t know if you’ve see the picture in social media today…
a picture of a teenage Lionel Messi cradling a baby in Africa as part of a photoshoot…. the family had won a lottery to have their baby pictured with him….
the photographer has just revealed that the baby is actually in fact Lamine Yamal!!!!
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