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En Route To The Double

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 Rain pouring ad nauseum
hadn’t stopped all day
got drenched on the long walk
from the Underground
across to the Lane.

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 Where thousands were milling
shoving and squeezing
with bobbies on black horses
shouting loud to no avail
their pointless instructions.

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 And barkers sold favours
scarves, rattles, woolly hats
in the dark blue and white
adorned with the names
of simply the best.

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 Being six stone and a bit
(wouldn’t eat Mother’s stews)
managed to squeeze in
to the West Stand paddock
and it was heaving.

5 Leave a comment on verse 5 0 Pushed and wheedled
step by step forward
until reaching the front
with uninterrupted views
of the pitch in the rain.

6 Leave a comment on verse 6 0 Then when Spurs emerged
the whole Lane erupted
noise was deafening
this was to be our victory
this was our Double season.

7 Leave a comment on verse 7 0 But that was half a century
back in my childhood
often wondered who were there
standing beside me in the rain
and witnessing history.

8 Leave a comment on verse 8 0 There were Fathers with sons
decent folk; true supporters
who wouldn’t miss a match
except when locked out
from a game down the Lane.

9 Leave a comment on verse 9 0 Those experiences will linger
generation after generation
recounted ad nauseum
of what the Lane was like
when Spurs won the Double.

Notes

Inspired by fond recollections of committed Spurs supporter Steve Seath

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/en-route-to-the-double/