Football Poets

ENGLAND, FIRST AND LAST

Big Sam in a jam
Playing out of position
Scored an own goal
The ref blew full time
Walked off the pitch
The end of the game
Life won’t be the same
For Big Sam.
Ianthe Exall – S […]

ALWAYS FOOTBALL

The scarecrow leans against the wall
And at her feet lies an old football.
She cannot play
And nor can I,
But when I look up to the sky
I see the memories of the football days
Just flowing […]

The wall chart is down
The games are all done,
At the end of the Euro
Portugal won.
There were high spots and low spots,
England was poor,
It didn’t take long
And they were out the back door.
Two high spots b […]

The World Cup was won by England fifty years ago
And there was a very special player
From Fulham you may know.
A solid, strong defender,
George Cohen is his name,
He gave his all to football
For the love of the […]

To score or not to score-what is the intention:
Whether it’s nobler striking from the centre
Excessive shots and drives,
Or to volley against a wall of defenders,
And by beating them, scoring.
To aim, to strike a […]

We climbed those steep stairs to the top of the stand,
Where the view of the pitch was total and grand.
We carried our cushions, our coats and our bags,
We were the young 60’s versions
Of what now are called W […]

It’s that quizzical look on the faces
That gets me every time,
When I tell them I write about football
And I do it in words that can rhyme.
Is it because I’m a woman
That they don’t understand why I do,
But when […]

You took the wrong road Louis
When you came along for the ride,
It’s time to take the long road,
Just turn your back on the side.
Man United now has lost its fire,
Performances have slumped
The situation is d […]

Popularity is dipping
The halo is slipping
What say you Jose
It’s not gone your way
How long will you stay
Or will you make way
For another?
He need not be ‘special’
But he must have the mettle
To take on the t […]

Sterling Silva Costa lot when scattered on the pitch,
And presented quite a Hazard to the teams,
But they all Rose to the challenge
And played with all their Hart,
We’d like to see Zamora that,
Football of our d […]

There is a splendid tribute statue
Standing straight and proud,
For an icon of the Cottage
And a hero of the crowd.
Hands on hips
And a foot on the ball,
Regarded by Fulham
As the best of them all.
Johnny […]

Have you ever been real friends with someone
Although you have never met?
I have, and his name is Llew Beaton
And his kindness I’ll never forget.
He contacted me after reading
What I wrote after Francis had d […]

What has happened to the football game?
The ones that I’m watching just aren’t the same.
No diving, no crowding.
No pulling, no tripping
Is this a sign that standards are slipping?
No in-the-face challenges
To the […]

Fixed stare at the TV screen
No football action to be seen
Cricket-yes, tennis-yes
But football’s gone
My life’s a mess.
Three months now to wait for action
The sport that gives me satisfaction
Withdrawal sym […]

The neglected pitch is dry and rough
The goalposts taken down
An abandoned ball all scuffed and grubby
And the side-paths overgrown.
Bleak, unloved and empty
The ground no longer used
Nothing left to shout for
To […]

The ‘News of the World’ spread out on the floor,
My Dad walking in through the side door.
“I can’t find the Wolves,
I can’t see the score!
Come help me, I’m looking but can’t look any more!”
That was me way back […]

They came out of the trenches
Not off the benches
And they all raised their hands as a greeting.
The old leather ball
Broke down the wall,
Called a truce
Because of their meeting.
At the end of the game,
‘The G […]