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The Collector

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 Over three hundred programmes,
each telling its own story,
each extolling the virtues
and various merits of STFC.

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 £2.50 will buy the current glossy brochure;
a world away from my first programme:
a thin affair for the visit of West Ham
in a cup replay in ’75. Cost? 10p!

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 Yet this programme is special
as a reminder of Town’s heroics
in various cup competitions played before
packed crowds, on paddy field pitches.

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 Two years later ( in ’77 ) 20p
will buy the “souvenir issue” so that you
can look back on the day when Town
drew with the mighty Everton.

5 Leave a comment on verse 5 0 When Spurs drew in town in ’80
front cover shows artist’s
impression of two cartoon characters
in a race for the ball- only one winner.

6 Leave a comment on verse 6 0 The ‘Town Crier’ of ’86 unveils a scroll
for a memorable promotion scrap:
Swindon v Chester;4-2 to the home side,
capacity crowd. All this for 50p!

7 Leave a comment on verse 7 0 Town record their first win in
the Premier league, 1-0 against
QPR in November ’93;
read all about it and remember for £1.50.

8 Leave a comment on verse 8 0 So many Swindon legends haunt
the front covers down the years:
Ooh Shaun Taylor, the Don, Jan the Man,
Shearer, Chalkie, Super Sam.

9 Leave a comment on verse 9 0 Cliche-ridden notes abound
from managers of great reknown:
Hoddle, Ardiles, little Lou,
MacMahon, Trollope, Bob Smith too.

10 Leave a comment on verse 10 0 Now Iffy Onuora is Swindon boss.
Resplendent in red on the cover
of the programme in ’99, top scorer’s boots
swapped for smart, sharp suit.

Notes

When looking through my extensive collection of STFC programmes the other day – I know I need to get out more – I noticed how much they have changed over the years both in terms of quantity and price!!

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/the-collector/