Poems tagged ‘The latest early shocks at the Qatari World Cup’
Let the goals flow
Let the goals flow
Qatari World Cup
Now awash with goals
Tumbling down mountains
Spain seven against Costa Rica
And then shockingly so
Football’s jawline drops
To its feet of stunned incredulity
Decades of German supremacy
Wiped out by a Japanese whirlwind
A wild gust of Oriental wind
Sweeps through the brittle
Portcullis of Teutonic thoroughness
Japan beat the multiple World Champions
Of days gone by
It was the sentence we never thought
We’d utter in all seriousness
Because this World Cup is suspending
Our belief like a hot air balloon
Floating over Qatari sands of mystique
French romance resuming its courtship
With another World Cup
Quintessentially brilliant as we’ve come
To expect against the outback of Oz
Australia without anything that used
To resemble a Waltzing Matilda
Only the wombats and koalas can
Provide their natural redeeming feature
On their landscape
Maybe Australian Rules is your future
But Australia you still enchant with
Mastery of the red ball and cricket flow
Oh maybe you think we’re just humorous Poms
Looking on from the other side of the world
With admiring eyes from Sydney and Melbourne
While yesterday the Saudis struck a gusher
Powerful fountains of gold, oil and glorious
Victory over Argentina
Yes yet more World Cup winners
From a long time ago
And yet this is history repeating itself
Remember Cameroon of 1990 when the
Pampas and palominos of the South American currency
Lost their verve and vibrancy, Cameroon
Shook the world with football that none of us
Had ever anticipated
So not without precedent
Where are we going with this World Cup?
It’s staggering towards its week old feet
Gripped with raging and miraculous feats
The group stage is unfolding
Like a reluctant petal
Unfamiliar with the time of the year
World Cups at the end of November
They said it would never happen
Seasons confused
But we can hardly wait for more.
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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
18th April 2025
Mike Bartram
15th April 2025
Mike Bartram
15th April 2025
joe morris
12th April 2025
Mike Bartram
10th April 2025
Mike Bartram
8th April 2025
joe morris
4th April 2025
John Gilbert Ellis
3rd April 2025
Denys E. W. Jones
2nd April 2025
Mike Bartram
1st April 2025
Crispin’s Corner
In Memoriam
Kick It Out & Christmas Truce
Latest Comments
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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26th May 2024 at 2:30 pm
Hi Denys…
Re Man City:
OK it was 20 years ago but Criag Wilson did write this and a few others on them back in 04/05.
BTW I’m more Forest Green Rover since 2014 (and Chelsea) these days . I drum and am a standing season ticket holder.
Best
Crispin
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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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