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WC2014 : Day 32 : The Final

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 ~ # match time # ~

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 This poet struggles to land the words:
not so much from lack of inspiration,
(for this is World Cup Final day)
no, in part, it’s paternalistic pride –
fingers bent backwards by a ferocious shot
from the fast blossoming bairn
who can now put some brawn
behind the brazuca!
But also partly in paternalistic failure:
this is the seminal match
that comes around only every four years
a must see for every real fan –
but I failed my son….

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 I can attest
to the munificence
of Ben Bulben’s granite face
to the embodiment of Yeats’ stirring words
to the imagery of Horsemen passing by
But….
As for the passing of Norsemen, or Gaucho or Hun
we can only hear, of the man-mountain
that is Mascherano
of how Schweinsteiger leads fearlessly by example
of how Messi and Ozil only flit
in the shadow of shadows….
for yes, I’ve committed the cardinal sin
of mis-management
that has us nowhere near a tv
but sees us ensconced in a car
chasing from West to East
and we can only feast
on audio
where Brian Kerr chatters incessantly
over the cheering crowd
which drives us nuts
but we motor on regardless….

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 Then, to our joy
the match enters extra time – just as we reach home
and so
we see for ourselves
that Messi is mired in quicksand
that Neuer fills the frame like Rembrandt
that Kramer was creamed
that Kroos guides his passes, like a pilot tug
that Schweinsteiger is scintillating
that Schurrle schlepps to the byline
and that the baby-faced Goetze
has the guile and gait
to finish clinically, oh so, so late
to give the Teutonic Titans victory
and we see them lift the Jules Rimet aloft;
the first time in 24 years – that our caps are duly doffed

Notes

sons 1 & 2 stayed home, Patrick the Hat-trick, the real footy aficionado, steamed & steamed!

Apologies.

In my defence, the itinerary was based on the (misguided) thought that kick off would be 9pm, as per all the other evening matches, and that the (notoriously prone-to-overrun) feis would finish at 6pm.

8pm kick off and 7pm depart from Donegal Town gave my son a very warranted beef!

And obviously, fuelled this narky narrative rather than a melodic match report!

World Cup Final, 14th July 2014

Germany 1 – 0 Argentina

Germany last won it in 1990. Hard to believe! It seems like they’re always up there.

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/wc2014-day-32-the-final/?shared=email&msg=fail