Poems tagged ‘Genoa’
The Lesson
It’s our first season back in the Top Flight,
Our learning curve’s still pretty steep.
We’re keeping our heads above water,
But sometimes said water’s too deep.
Atalanta paid visit on Sunday,
Came down on us like ton of bricks.
In the course of the ninety-odd minutes,
They taught us a few of their tricks:
How to string passes together.
How to conduct the high press.
How any onslaught to weather,
Soak up pressure and cope with the stress.
How to turn on a sixpence and fire home.
How to bend a free-kick round the wall.
How to play from the back, how to counterattack,
How, in short, to play decent football.
They came and they saw and they conquered.
From the outset we were on the ropes.
Truth be told, we must have been bonkers
To think that we had any hope.
Near the end we had hoisted the white flag.
At full-time we were wholly disarmed.
They didn’t half give us a lesson,
And it sure won’t do us any harm.
12/2/24
Denys E. W. Jones
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Milan, Inter, BolognA.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Atalanta, VeronA.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Juve, Lecce, Empoli.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Udinese, Napoli.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Sassuolo and Cagliari.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Monza, Roma, Lazio.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Salernitana, Torino.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Frosinone, Fiorentina,
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Tasty as a fiorentina.
Ooh ah, Serie A!
Last, but not least, GenoA!
Ooh ah, here we are!
But no Samp-dor-ia.
He-he, ha-ha-ha!
13/8/23
Denys E. W. Jones
Will you come to De Ferrari? 2023
Will you come to De Ferrari, will you come?
Not a shadow of a doubt that you’ll have fun.
There’ll be thousands in that Square,
If you have some time to spare,
You should come to De Ferrari, you should come.
Well, we’ve spent nine long, hard months in Serie B,
Which is not where we believe we ought to be.
We belong in the Top Flight,
It’s our God-given birthright,
Cos we’ve been around since Eighteen Ninety-Three!
You can jump into the Fountain if you’re bold.
Though the water might still be a little cold.
But who cares if you get wet,
And you don’t work up a sweat?
You can tell grandkids about it when you’re old.
Now Sampdoria fans with envy they are green,
Cos their team is coming down to where we’ve been.
And they won’t be going back,
No, indeed with any luck,
They will sink still further down to Serie C!
So get down to De Ferrari in fifth gear.
We’ve been waiting for this moment for a year.
‘Course, Josh Wander will be there,
And we’ll toss him in the air,
Cos his cash has got us into the Top Tier!
6/5/23
Denys E. W. Jones
The Chasing Pack
Who wants to lead the Tour de France
Or Fifteen Hundred Metres?
Who wants to head the Marathon,
And seem like a world-beater?
How ’bout top spot in Premiership,
In Serie A or B?
I tell you, in the Peloton
Is where it’s best to be.
If you rush too far out in front,
You’re taking a big risk.
Quite likely you’ll run out of steam,
And then won’t be so quick.
Recall the tardy tortoise
Was outstripped by the hare,
But we all know who won the race,
And won it fair and square.
So we’re not trying to lead the charge,
Oh no, we’re hanging back.
We’re sat just where we want to be,
That’s in the Chasing Pack!
For Serie B sure ain’t no sprint,
It’s long and hard and tough.
And if you don’t conserve your strength,
You’ll end up out of puff.
So don’t fret if we’ve dropped some points,
We’re not in any hurry.
Our Plan’s to play a waiting game,
We’ll get there, don’t you worry.
The months of April and of May
Are when Promotion’s won.
In days of showers and darling buds,
Now that’s the time to run!
So we’ll wait for the Spring to come,
When Winter’s chills have passed.
We’ll stop for grub, fill up the tank,
And then step on the Gas…
10/12/22
Denys E. W. Jones
Genoa v Cittadella
“They call us Cinderella,
Cos we’re in Serie B.
But I say the Ferraris
Is the only place to be.
We’re playing Cittadella,
No pushovers are they.
So get down to Marassi
At 3pm today.
We’ve Strootman, Frendrup, Coda,
They’re surely worth a watch.
Yes, come to the Ferraris,
To see a decent match.
And keep your Lio Messi,
Mbappé or Harry Kane,
For from the Gradinata Nord
You’ll see a cracking game.”
The final score was Nil-One,
But that don’t mean a thing.
The match was a humdinger,
Packed with pizzazz and zing.
No lack of goalmouth incident,
A few we could have scored.
Of two and twenty thousand fans,
Not one of us was bored.
They say we’re Ugly Sisters,
Cos we’re in Serie B.
But to my mind Marassi
Is the place I wanna be.
So come and join us down there,
It’s really not too far.
I’d rather watch the football there
Than any in Qatar.
6/12/22
Denys E. W. Jones
Farewell to A
Farewell Inter, Milan, Juve,
Farewell Roma, Lazio too.
Farewell Spezia, Fiorentina,
Fair Verona’s Gialloblu.
Bye Bologna, Atalanta,
Udinese, Empoli.
Ciao Torino, and Sassuolo,
Sayonara Napoli.
Lastly there’s “So long Sampdoria”,
Cousins from our selfsame town,
Taunting us: “Sic transit gloria”,
So glad that we’re going down.
Yes, we’re falling through the trapdoor,
Dropping into Purgat’ry,
Slipping to the Second Level,
Also known as Serie B.
But no way are we downhearted,
We all trust the future’s bright.
Confident when next May comes round,
We’ll be back in the Top Flight!
15/5/22
Denys E. W. Jones
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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.
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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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