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Magic Boots

Matthew Paul

Sunday, November 17th, 2019

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 The day after a game, I used a slotted screwdriver
to loosen the radiator-hardened mud from the edge
of each boot’s plastic sole, matted grass and all; levered
in one unravelling, like peeling a half-time orange,

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 the phantom, size-eleven-shaped plaster-cast of turf,
studded, symmetrical evidence of my right-back graft;
damp-cloth-wiped the uppers clean of any remaining earth,
popped the pair in the airing cupboard till an hour passed;

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 scrubbed on beeswax dubbin, taking good care not to slather
in black each long, white, triple-tracked Puma stripe;
let it sink in for two ticks; and old-towel-rubbed the leather
to Dad’s meticulous standard of National Service shine.

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/magic-boots/