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
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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
joe morris
28th April 2024
Richard Williams
26th April 2024
joe morris
25th April 2024
Denys E. W. Jones
25th April 2024
kevin halls
23rd April 2024
Alex Saynor
23rd April 2024
joe morris
23rd April 2024
Crispin Thomas
22nd April 2024
Denys E. W. Jones
21st April 2024
joe morris
20th April 2024
Crispin’s Corner
In Memoriam
Kick It Out & Christmas Truce
Latest Comments
29th April 2024 at 2:47 pm
Hi Denys,
Yes Richard Williams you’re a brilliant wordsmith, my friend. When I first saw your football poetry I thought it was the superb Guardian sports and music writer. I once had the honour of sitting next to Richard Williams while at the Independent on the sports desk. He writes about music and sport with immense knowledge and authority. I’ve read a couple of Richard’s books recently. Great writer rather like you Richard Williams the Pompey fan. Congratulations on promotion.
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28th April 2024 at 5:59 pm
Thanks Denys. Yes your replay poem was superb.
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26th April 2024 at 4:46 pm
Nice work, Joe. You were quick off the mark with that! Good one from Richard Williams too I see.
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25th April 2024 at 7:33 pm
Hi Denys,
Thanks mate. I’ll do it now.
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25th April 2024 at 1:56 pm
Thanks Joe,
you might like to write a poem yourself on the same subject…
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23rd April 2024 at 4:03 pm
Hi Denys
With you all the way on the abolition of FA Cup replays. What are they doing to the game?
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23rd April 2024 at 3:59 pm
Hi Crispin,
Yes sorry mate. Villa are still in Europe. Mistake rectified.
Cheers
Joe
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20th April 2024 at 12:04 pm
Hi Joe
Shouldn’t your title read your poem Farewell Europe England to everyone exccept Aston Villa ?
I know you mention them in your poem , but I do feel sorry for Villa re the national press .
Largely ignored. the hype was was all about Man City & Arsenal with a bit of a nod to the Hammers..but hardly a mention of Villa..
So well done to them
C
.
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19th March 2024 at 8:00 am
Hi Crispin. Chris Sutton on the radio has gone for a Chelsea v Coventry final. As we know anything can happen in the Cup, and I reckon we can go to the final.
We’re still in with a chance of the play offs too, so lots to go for.
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19th March 2024 at 7:41 am
Hey Kev
Let the masses drool over their odds on City v Unted Final, but who knows how pressure can hit.
Cov and Chels will be rightly labelled as having no chance..but hey …stranger things have happened..
so Chelsea v Coventry…that’s the Final for us!
Best
C
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