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Poems tagged ‘Pele. Football Nostalgia.’

Flags Are Flapping At Half-Mast.

kevin raymond

Thursday, January 5th, 2023

Christmas, has just flown past
Flags are flapping at half-mast
An air o’ melancholy floats upon the breeze
Sauntering past a cinders football pitch
I relive every battle, fought upon it
When we feared no-one, me and my Uncle Steve.

Black eye’s, scraped knees, split lips
Dead legs, slaps, sly digs in the ribs,
“Huh! You shoulda seen the other fella’s boat”,
I’m often reminded of a game
When a timid young fella, Dominic by name
Did his Dave McKay at Billy Bremners throat.

An epic fight-back, a huge defeat
Right-handers to a flying cherub’s cheek
A perfectly mistimed tackle, settling an old score
The tear-filled tear-up, agin a burly seminarian from Cork
Sharing blows, a fag, after the ref suggested we both walk
One halcyon morning, I’m painfully reminded of once more.

Padraig’s auld one, bless her heart
One mid-week afternoon in Battersea Park,
“Oi ref, yon young fellas murdering the child”,
Leaving the twins, on the touch-line in their pram
Stormed on to the pitch, to query officialdom as a mam
In a manner, one of the other mams, described as…mild?!

The half-time vitamin c, cups o’ tepid tea
Our schools name defended ruthlessly
The nuns rustling us up a set o’ threadbare kit
Returning to the austere convent aft a win
Feeling like…I’ve rarely, if ever felt agin
A ginger God in a goalie top, a huge hole in it

That buzz on the train, or the bus back home
Reliving every precious moment, on one’s own,
In glorious colour, on the hallowed field o’ play
Yes, Christmas, has just flown past
Flags are flapping at half-mast
Reminding kids like me to be thankful for Pele.

Peace.

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Source: https://footballpoets.org/news/poem-tags/pele-football-nostalgia/