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Simply the Best

mark merriman

Saturday, November 26th, 2005

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 With a swerve and a shimmy
he escapes the clutches
of yet another hatchet man
hell-bent on breaking him in half.

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 A burst of blistering pace
sends him clear of a ragged rearguard;
defenders trailing in his wake;
bemused and befuddled by his brilliance.

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 And then the goals:
sublime chip over covering defender,
dazzling run and calm, slotted finish,
ball taken round Benfica keeper.

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 Twinkle in his eye never brighter,
impish grin never wider
than when he threw mud at the ref,
nodded the ball out of Banks’ hands.

5 Leave a comment on verse 5 0 Heads bowed at grounds
up and down the land.
Fans and players united to
pay tribute to a football genius.

6 Leave a comment on verse 6 0 Remembering the slim, slight figure,
not the gaunt, husk of a man
staring out from the tabloids,
life slowly ebbing away.

7 Leave a comment on verse 7 0 Picture the scene:
George in football heaven,
pitting his wits against the wily Moore;
two legends doing battle again.

© mark merriman 18 sept 2004

Notes

My sons stood with me today to salute a footballing icon.

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/simply-the-best/